Mini Compressor

[tesla]

Several have mentioned that they install an SAE plug or powerlet plug directly to the battery for easy battery tender charging and hooking up a mini compressor. Being that this is can be used as unswitched power does that mean you guys are using the compressor with the engine off? What would be the draw on the battery if both tires were completely flat and were aired up with the compressor?

 

[Solo]

Documentation with the Slime compressor says engine off.

 

[tesla]

Solo, thanks for that quick reply!

 

[HaulinAshe]

The longest flat repair I've ever done with the Slime compressor was a heavily cut rear tire on another FJR. It had to be plugged twice before it would hold air. My battery was noticeably drained, but started fine.

I always pump tires with the engine off.

 

[Brodie]

Barry

Chances are good you won't have 2 flat tires at the same time, however, if your battery is strong it should do the job - and start your bike.

My rear motorcycle tire went down last year, 5 miles away from home. I was on level ground and didn't have enough strength to get it on to center stand. I tried several times to pump it up enough to raise the bike high enough but still failed getting it on that damn stand. I ended up rolling the bike forward enough to expose the hole. Sticky string was sufficient to plug it and hold air. Durring that half hour on the side of the freeway I must have used that pump enough times to inflate 3 tires.

The bike fired right up, and I was out of there !

The slime pump may temporarily drop the voltage down to 12.2 volts, but the battery has enough reserves to recover by the time you get everything packed back up and are ready to go.

Hopefully you will never need that pump.

Brodie

 

[Patriot]

off

 

[mferriter]

Barry
Chances are good you won't have 2 flat tires at the same time, however, if your battery is strong it should do the job - and start your bike.

My rear motorcycle tire went down last year, 5 miles away from home. I was on level ground and didn't have enough strength to get it on to center stand. I tried several times to pump it up enough to raise the bike high enough but still failed getting it on that damn stand. I ended up rolling the bike forward enough to expose the hole. Sticky string was sufficient to plug it and hold air. Durring that half hour on the side of the freeway I must have used that pump enough times to inflate 3 tires.

The bike fired right up, and I was out of there !

The slime pump may temporarily drop the voltage down to 12.2 volts, but the battery has enough reserves to recover by the time you get everything packed back up and are ready to go.

Hopefully you will never need that pump.

Brodie

Dude!!!

What the hell is all that stuff hanging off the back of your bike? Looks like you got a ladder rack on there!!

 

[Brodie]

That would be my flag rack. You can read about it here... Clicky

 

[tesla]

Mucho thanks guys!

 

[SacramentoMike]

Chances are good you won't have 2 flat tires at the same time, however, if your battery is strong it should do the job - and start your bike.

This is not exactly on point, but close. Last year I went down to San Mateo for the Lee Parks "Total Control" class. We went out on the pad and did bunches of tight turns all day. Before class started, they had us all deflate our tires by a few psi; I don't recall exactly how much. Better grip, naturally.

But when it came time to ride home, there we all were with soft tires. Not everybody had pumps, but I did, so I started letting guys use mine. I'm not sure how many total, but by the time I got to my own tires, the pump crapped out. Our Sacramento-bound group ended up finding a gas station nearby to do our air pumping. But using the Slime pump until it got so hot it shut itself off (it worked fine later so I guess that was all it was), and always with the bike shut down, battery power for starting was not even close to being an issue. Plenty of cranking power.

 

[jacko]

Is there a reason you blokes don't run the motor

 

[C&C]

I'm with jacko; I think I'd have engine on.

 

[JR'SFJR]

I had a flat from a very small stone sliver in Oregon this summer and I ran the engine while inflating. Not taking a chance with a small cycle battery, especially if it's older.

 

[Bungie]

$Pump < $Battery = Engine running

 

[ionbeam]

[guess] A small high speed motor that gets really hot may be sensitive to the difference between 12.x volts and 14.x volts. The extra voltage would be adding ~10 more watts of heat to the already temperature challenged pump. [/guess]

In the middle of civilization where cell phone service is a certainty and help is right around the corner I wouldn't have an issue with using the pump with the engine off. A hundred miles from anyplace with suspect or no cell service, in bear country, at midnight in the rain I would run the engine while pumping.

 

[Fred W]

[guess] A small high speed motor that gets really hot may be sensitive to the difference between 12.x volts and 14.x volts. The extra voltage would be adding ~10 more watts of heat to the already temperature challenged pump. [/guess]

I'll play!

The extra 2VDC driving the pump will provide 16% more amperage, so the pump will run that much faster. As ion says, since no mechanical motor is 100% efficient, it will also heat up faster. But the faster running motor will also pump the air into the tire faster, meaning the "on" time should be shorter.

Downside of having the engine running? I can't see one.

Upside, you don't have any worries about flattening a marginal battery.

 

[Intech]

Just stop near the top of a hill. If the battery won't start the engine you can pop start it! Seriously, if you have any doubts about your battery you should replace it.

 

[olsonm3915]

Those little pumps (I have two of the Slime variety) don't use a whole lot of power. Unless your battery is known to be marginal and you are inflating more than one tire, I wouldn't bother running the engine while using the pump. On the other hand it won't hurt the pump whatsoever to have the engine running, it just isn't necessary. Very roughly the pump draws about 5A, your FJR battery is rated at around 12 A-h, which means you could run that pump for about two hours before the battery is completely drained. Or, to put it another way, running the pump for 15 minutes (max recommended continuous usage is 14 minutes IIRC) would only use about 10% of your battery's total capacity.

 

[Burnspot]

Never had an issue using my Slime pump with the engine off...used to do it all the time to top off the tires prior to getting a small compressor in the garage. Doesn't the Slime pump recommend something like 8 minutes max before it goes into meltdown mode?