I am familiar with air line piping kits, with which you can branch an air compressor out to different fixed locations of a garage or workshop, but I only now learned that Husky offers one such kit.
This Husky “air compressor extension kit” (HAS-100KIT) comes with 100 feet of 200 PSI nylon tubing, a manifold block, air outlet blocks, and a number of fittings and valves.
Husky says that the tubing can be mounted behind walls, or on surfaces, and includes 30 Airlock mounting clips.
- 100 ft of 1/2″ OD 3/8″ ID nylon tubing
- Manifold block
- (2) outlet blocks
- Quick-release fittings, couplers, drain valves
The fittings are press-fit, and require no soldering or threading. A small tubing cutter is provided to ensure square cuts.
Husky says that the components are safe for use with compressor oils.
Price: $75
Buy Now(via Home Depot)
Compare(Rapidair kit via Amazon)
From what I can tell, this Husky kit looks comparable to the basic Rapidair kit, but with slightly different specs, such as a higher working pressure rating, and perhaps different fittings styles.
Why buy something like this?
If you use a portable air compressor, you can often move your compressor around to where you need it. Or you could potentially snake a longer hose around to where you need it.
But what if you want an air drop in the middle of the garage, by means of a ceiling-mounted hose reel? or you wanted an air outlet close to the door for easier connecting to an air chuck for maintaining tire pressure?
You can NOT use PVC for pressurized air, and metal piping can be large or cumbersome to work with. With tubing like what’s included in Husky, Rapidair, Maxline, and other such kits, you trim the tubing to length and connect it with easy-to-use fittings.
Advice on the internet says that tubing can be a little stiff to work with, and so it’s best left in the sun for a little bit to soften, but other than that, everyone seems to be agree this systems like these are a breeze to install and convenient for bringing compressed air to different locations of a work shop. There are also DIY and off-the-shelf straighteners that can make the larger diameter Maxline tubing easier to work with.
Expandability might be a challenge. Are other brands’ fittings compatible with this Husky kit? Will there be any issue mixing in components from other brands?
Keeping in mind that Husky is a private label brand, I doubt that the components of the kit are proprietary to just the Husky kit, and so there’s the potential to expand upon the set if you do your research and due diligence.
For someone that knows they will need more than just a single Husky kit, but aren’t sure what their exact current or future needs will be, the Rapidair system might be a better buy. Or Maxline, which is Rapidair’s larger and higher volume system.
If you didn’t know something like this existed, you do now. And if you’re been yo-yoing about whether to go with such a system, then maybe this kit will knock you off the fence.*
*As I wrap up writing this post, I now see that today is the last day of “Special Buy” pricing. The kit was on sale for $53, or $22 lower than the regular price. The Rapidair kit is also regularly priced at $75.
I should also point out that buying and installing something like this requires some background research. For smaller compressors and shorter runs, the Husky set should work well. But for larger air volumes, longer runs, multiple branches, or other considerations outside what the average home user might want or need for their garage or hobby workshop, you’ll need to do some due diligence in properly planning things out.
In other words, if you use a 3/8″ inner diameter air hose, or even 1/4″, and only plan on using the included manifold and two outlets, this system will likely be okay. But if you have greater needs, or need for 1/2″ ID or larger tubing, you’ll need to do some homework and budget for a larger system that can handle higher airflow.
Buy Now(via Home Depot)
Compare(Rapidair kit via Amazon)
Compare(Maxline via Amazon)
