Can An Extension Be Added To A Tire Inflator To Reach The Inner Wheel Of A Dual Wheel Setup

Updated 02/02/2025 | Published 01/24/2025

Products Featured in This Question

ARB Dual Chuck Tire Inflator Wand - 1/4" NPT - 10" Long

$29.95

Question:

2018 ROADTREK CS Adventurous, 2017 Mercedes-Benz 3500 chassis, dual rear wheels. No valve stem extensions. Can a long chuck be attached to the inflator to reach the inner tire valve?

asked by: Neal

Expert Reply:

Hey Neal,

It's totally normal to add on an air chuck extension to your compressor or the Viair Portable RV Air Compressor Kit # VA99WR you were looking at to reach the inner tire of a dual wheel setup. We currently only offer one solid extension with part # ARB74QJ, which has a male quick disconnect fitting so you might have to buy an adapter to connect it to your inflator. Adapter fittings can typically be found at your local hardware store near the air compressors and air tools.

If you decide you want to put on some valve stem extensions later on or need anything else just let me know and I'd be happy to help.

expert reply by: Kevin C

Neal

1/25/2025

Thanks, A duty cycle question. My anticipated use is to routinely maintain 6 tires at 61psi. The duty cycle is listed at 25% at 20 amps and 30psi. If I understand duty cycle the compressor would need to be turned off for 45 minutes if it was run for 15 minutes. Would you anticipate this 15 minutes limitation would not be an issue given my typical use?

Kevin C.

1/25/2025

@Neal That description is wrong, it should've be 25min. @ 30 PSI not 25% according to the manual. The Viair # VA99WR can fill from 80psi to 90psi in 2 mins so at your lower 61psi rating you'd need even less time to fill 10 psi. Viair lists a 30-45 minute wait after running the compressor for the full time, but the system has a built in safety shut off since there's factors like the temperature and and higher/lower psi's that can affect how quickly the motor heats up. With your intended use the # VA99WR should be more than enough to handle the job.

Neal

1/26/2025

Also, on the extended chuck.: The compressor instructions say to connect to valve stem, then turn on the compressor. Is this gospel? I think that might not work when using the extended chuck as the compressor will likely not be close to the wheels. Can you clarify?

Kevin C.

1/27/2025

@Neal The # ARB74QJ doesn't have a shut off so that's likely why they state that in the manual. You can get a quarter turn valve to thread on before the female quick disconnect adapter fitting from your local hardware store to turn the compressor off when you're done filling a tire.

Neal

1/30/2025

@KevinC So if you turn off the air line with the 1/4 turn valve the compressor stops delivering air even though it, the compressor, is still turned on?

Kevin C.

2/2/2025

@Neal Sorry, I totally misread the last comment and was thinking you were using a normal compressor. To clarify, you can connect an extension to the # VA99WR but you would need to have it on the valve stem and then turn on the compressor when you get to your desired psi. This style compressor doesn't have a shut-off and would just keep running.