Electronic Automatic Tank Drain for Air Compressors

If you have a compressor that you use regularly and keep full you need one of these. Solidly built and simple to install. You supply the pipe and fittings to go from the compressor to this drain. Meaning you might need a section of pipe to go from your drain valve to this drain. Typically drains are 1/4" NPT and this unit has 1/4 inch female NPT on both sides and 1/2 inch NPT. Connect this to a drain line that runs outside or into a floor drain. You can slip a piece of garden hose over the one end and put a hose clamp on it to accomplish this. The black control box can also swivel to be turned to face a different direction. The directions are not great but if you can handle basic plumbing and have some pipe tape you'll do fine. The longest cycle time built in is 15 minutes, and you can adjust how long the valve stays open as well up to about 5 seconds. I put it on an outlet timer. So it only cycles about every 12 hours. As soon as you plug it in it cycles. So just put a plug in timer on the outlet to kick on for a few minutes how ever many times a day you want. Mine drains twice a day and that takes care of it just fine. If it's just a home weekend shop you could probably set it to drain just a couple times on weekends with the right timer. It does have a three prong plug so get the right timer if you do this. You can also still manually drain the tank and this valve also works like cleaner for the small screen strainer that prevents rust and sediment from in the tank from getting into the valve. UPDATE: product still works flawlessly after 2 1/2 years. I just wanted to pass something along. I had a lightning strike take out a lot of stuff in my shop. This little device took a beating as well. I fried the timer portion of the unit. First unplug the unit. I repaired by using inkbird timer relay Inkbird Digital Twin Timer Relay Time Delay Relay Switch 110-220V Black IDT-E2RH it by taking out the screw in the middle of the unit, then you can pull off the din plug connector and the timer unit. Then attach the plug portion directly to the valve solenoid, you do have to flip it 180 degrees to plug it back in. The screw is too long now so you can look for the proper screw thread and length or use a zip tie to ensure it doesn't vibrate off. Now you have to direct wire the power wire to the timer relay and set up the timer. Cycle time can be from .01sec to 99hr99mn in length. You do have to set it to either seconds, minutes or hours. So in seconds you can have up 99.99 seconds on and 99.99seconds off. Minutes you get .01 to 99.99 minutes off/on and hours you get from 0hours 01 minutes to 99hrs 99minutes. mine is set for 99.99 minutes off and .03 minutes on. Anyway, just thought I'd pass that along. Saved buying another 95 dollar item. Spent 50 to do repair and now I get to keep the valve and solenoid and not even remove from my tank. And with a quick blow 2amp fuse hopefully even if lightening does strike twice it might survive. I guess I should have wired a small fuse inline for the original and it might have survived. Inkbird Digital Twin Timer Relay Time Delay Relay Switch 110-220V Black IDT-E2RH Hammond Manufacturing 1591VSBK STYRENE PLASTIC CASE (4.7" x 3.5" x 4.8") Amico AC 10A 250V IEC320 C14 Inlet Module with Neon Lamp Rocker Switch and Fuse Holder C2G / Cables to Go 24240 18 AWG Universal Power Cord for NEMA 5-15P to IEC320C13, Black (1 Foot/0.30 Meters) 5 Qty. GMA 2A Fast-Blow Fuse 2 Amp 250v GMA2A, GMA2 The timer relay uses 50ma to run and the relay in it probably uses a couple hundred ma max and the valve solenoid uses 500 ma. So about 750ma or .75 amps. Hopefully this little fast blow fuse will be good insurance just in case. I haven't tried but I bet you could also buy amazon item B00IJ67P28 a cheaper built drain and take it apart and use the timer off of it.

It has been working flawlessly since I installed it, can't remember exactly when but it was over 6 months ago. I have it open every 30 minutes for like 3 seconds. Just an fyi it can scare the crap out of you if you are not expecting it. I'm used to it now and it still makes me jump sometimes. I added the brass tubes and fittings for ease of mounting and adjusting. I would buy again.

If you need dry air or are just looking to extend the life of your compressor tank, this device is fantastic. Runs on 110 volt plug in. Has a duration timer for both frequency of run and how long it discharges air from the drain off at the bottom of the tank. It has an inline filter screen upstream of the device to catch and rust or debris that may be in the tank minimizing dirt and or rust from fouling the seat of the valve, causing it to leak. Know that the valve and timer body is too tall to fit under the tank, so purchase a brass nipple to extend it out from under the tank. It amazes me how much moisture is blown off from the bottom of the tank on a regular basis! This has greatly reduced the draining and desiccant refills on my air dryer/filter set up by more than 50%. My only minus is that the two dials and knobs that control frequency and duration are very small, but once set you shouldn’t have to mess with them again. It took three adjustments to the duration time to get it “dialed in” . I started at 5 seconds and ultimately would up at 30 seconds of purge. If the floor showed visible water, not just wet look I raised the duration. After the third increase to 30 seconds , the floor shows no visible water, only a damp look to the concrete. It has been running for three months at the point of this review with no problems at all. It is a bit unsettling at first getting used to the pop and rush of pressurized air from the valve when it’s first installed as that sound always has bad connotations ! Overall the quality is good and the money spent will hopefully extend the life of my tank and it immediately began saving me time and money on dryer maintenance and media

So far the electronic tank drain is working as it was advertised. It was easy to install and I would recommend this item.

trash out of box failure and second replacement one never arrived 0 stars

This tank drain is working well so far. The pipe fittings hold it securely under the tank, though I am a little afraid I'll step on it. So, I added a support just in case. I did not connect to my motor switch as others have, but plugged into an outlet using a switched outlet. I didn't want the thing turning on at timed intervals draining down my tank air and making the compressor run needlessly. I like to turn the compressor off and close all the valves when not in use. This way I can switch on the drain and have in purge any water at first power-up, each day when I go in my shop, then turn it off. When using the compressor continuously I leave the tank drain switch on till I'm done using the air.

This electronic drain valve is well made and works great! I did have a problem with condensate freezing during very cold weather (I have my 80 gallon compressor located in a semi-conditioned space) and the valve stuck in the open position during the first winter I used it. This caused the compressor to continuously run while I was gone overnight. To be clear, this is not a problem with the valve, but rather the condition it was asked to perform in. I solved this issue by using a heat wire wrapped loosely around the drain line and valve and insulated this area with fiberglass pipe wrap. I secured the insulation with zip ties and I've never experienced this problem since; even during the coldest of winter. If you think you might have to employ this technique, you may want to remember to additionally activate the heat wire seasonally so that you don't unnecessarily waste energy.

I just received and installed this valve on an 80gal, vertical tank compressor. It appears to be very well made, all brass and stainless steel valve materials. Of course the electronics are in plastic, but every thing seems very sturdy. This valve is an excellent value for the price, most automatic drain valves cost much more. I had been wanting to add an auto drain to my compressor for some time, but didn't because of the prices. When I found this on Amazon I was skeptical of the quality because of the low price. After receiving it and seeing how well it is made, I am very pleased. Since I just installed it, I can't report on how well it holds up, but I can see no reason it wouldn't.

Even with Factory settings it does a Good job.