Air tanks

[rheavn]

This posting should apply to those with 90s and later coaches. My count on air tanks that need to be drained of water occasionally is now up to ten. I was at nine until Tom McCloud found another one. There are four in front above the front suspension(the brake tanks are oblong in shape and the other two look like cross members with petcocks). There is one in basement compartment R-1(generator blower compartment), but not all coaches seem to have this tank. There is one on the front wall of the right rear wheelwell in front of the drive tire. There are four in the rear. There is an oblong tank that services the rear brakes-this tank has a needle valve to drain rather than a petcock. There are three cross member type tanks that service the rear suspension. One is above the drive axle, one is just in front of the tag axle and one above the transmission-this air tank services the tag axle and internally is split into two tanks, so this tank has two petcocks. If you begin to find water in your tanks you may need to install a new desiccant filter on your air dryer that is located on the rear wall of the left wheelwell behind the tag tire. I hope this helps others in the maintenance of their Newell.

[larryweikart]

Wow Steve, I've been under my coach many times and only recall two above my front axle, a small round one in front of the pass side drive axle and another large round tank above the rear axles. My service center has never mentioned the others either. Maybe mine doesn't have the additional ones you mentioned. I have a 94 so I guess I'll have to get back under there and look for more.

[tuga]

This posting should apply to those with 90s and later coaches. My count on air tanks that need to be drained of water occasionally is now up to ten. I was at nine until Tom McCloud found another one. There are four in front above the front suspension(the brake tanks are oblong in shape and the other two look like cross members with petcocks). There is one in basement compartment R-1(generator blower compartment), but not all coaches seem to have this tank. There is one on the front wall of the right rear wheelwell in front of the drive tire. There are four in the rear. There is an oblong tank that services the rear brakes-this tank has a needle valve to drain rather than a petcock. There are three cross member type tanks that service the rear suspension. One is above the drive axle, one is just in front of the tag axle and one above the transmission-this air tank services the tag axle and internally is split into two tanks, so this tank has two petcocks. If you begin to find water in your tanks you may need to install a new desiccant filter on your air dryer that is located on the rear wall of the left wheelwell behind the tag tire. I hope this helps others in the maintenance of their Newell.


When changing the desiccant filter on the air dryer remember to put a light coat of oil on the rubber gasket. It makes it so much easier to remove the spin on filter next time.

Also, it only needs to be 1/4 turn past hand tight.

The first time I changed mine I needed a 3' cheater pipe to turn the filter. The last person who changed it didn't lubricate the rubber gasket. Man, that thing was difficult to get off!

[davidmbrady]

Larry,

The additional tanks are ping tanks. I'm not sure when Newell started using them. Ping tanks make the 'effective' air volume larger on an air spring. There should be a large diameter air hose going from the air spring to the ping tank. The idea is that the spring rate and the resonant frequency is reduced. Of course, as with everything else, there's no free lunch. At some cutoff frequency the ping tank can actually make the suspension harsher. Hopefully that frequency is above normal road input. Remember, the tires take quite an edge off road input so in practice ping tanks can provide an improvement in ride quality. Anyone know when Newell started using them?

David Brady
'02 Blue Bird Wanderlodge LXi
NC

[encantotom]

on mine, the square tanks that are referred to as ping tanks have plugs in them and not petcocks. none of those had any moisture in them. i dont think mine had been drained in a long time and i had probably a quart in one of the front brake tanks and in the small round tank in the genny blower compartment.

tom

[larryweikart]

Thanks for the additional info. Tom, are you referring to your 90 Newell or 2002? I don't have a small tank in my generator blower compartment. Tuga, do you know how often it is recommended to change the filter in the dryer? I've only changed it once at about 120,000 miles and we cut it open to look at the inside and it was pretty clean. It is my understanding that the dryer is feed air directly from the engine mounted air compressor. My compressor failed on top of a mountain just outside of Kingman, Az and it took 4 days to get a new one and it still didn't work properly until we changed the filter.

[rheavn]

Larry,
Newell suggests changing the filter at 15,000 miles or annually. My Country Coach suggested replacing the filter every two years or 45,000 miles, but they used a different air dryer. I've heard of people who don't change it until they start seeing moisture when they drain their tanks. I change mine annually. Seems like cheap insurance.

[encantotom]

my comments were about my 2002. the 90 had far fewer tanks and i put pull cords on them and routed them to bay compartments. i could drain them all in a couple of minutes from the outside while standing up.

tom

[larryweikart]

Thanks Tom, I believe I have the same set up. I have 3 tanks with pull cords and the small one in front of the Pass drive axle I just turn by hand.

[Richard and Rhonda]

Larry,

I would guess that you also have the tanks Steve mentioned since I am only one year younger than you.

The square tanks that everyone is referencing actually are structural members of the frame. You may not realize you are looking at air tanks.

[larryweikart]

Thanks Richard, I'll look for them tomorrow!

[rheavn]

Here is an article that relates to the air dryer that Newell uses.

http://www.themotorhomeguide.com/review_air_dryer_filter.html