SeBlackMax97

im buying a zex nitrous kit and im wondering how important the pressure guages are? are they a must have or are they just good to have?

Jime

iTrader: (10)

Most of the jetting sizes are dependant upon nitrous pressure which should be somewhere between 900-1050 psi. Without a heater and a gauge you can be off by 30% or more because most bottles just filled are around 700-750 unless its really hot out. Fuel and nitrous shot are dependant on this and there is a major difference in power if its not up where it should be.

SeBlackMax97

so your telling me i should buy a bottle heater and a gauge right? the gauge is just going to tell me what the pressure is at and i wont be able to do anything unless i have a heater?

Jime

iTrader: (10)

Yup, you can run without either but don't expect to be consistent or to get the best potential out of your system.
Its also better to have a gauge in the cockpit vs on the tank so you can see it all the time without having to look in the trunk.

1MAX2NV

iTrader: (5)

It's a must. What if the nitrous pressure is at 1200psi? You could be running lean.

Jime

iTrader: (10)

Lots of people run without either heater or gauge but if you have a heater yes you must have a gauge. The pressure will never go that high unless you heat it.

SeBlackMax97

that zex kit says it will not engage the nitrous if it is running too rich or too lean.

SeBlackMax97

hey jime i noticed about a month ago on your sig you were running a 13.6 now you ran a 13.1. what have you done to get the better times? nice times!!!

Jime

iTrader: (10)

I switched from a NOS kit to an NX wet kit. More money but a huge difference in HP. Easy to install and setup too, great kit.
I helped a bit on a Zex install they are somewhat different than NOS and NX at least the electronics.

CSever05

I've never, ever heard of anyone running nitrous without a bottle heater. You need a bottle heater and pressure gauge.

SeBlackMax97

i just ordered a zex kit with bottle heater, spark plugs and pressure gauge for 665

bullseye

NOS has a good bottle heater. An Autometer #4374 gauge is good, too. You also should consider an EGT gauge. Summit Racing can sell you all these items.

The bottle warmer ensures your bottle pressure is optimal, for safer, more consistent runs. The pressure gauge helps you monitor the bottle pressure so you can keep it in the optimal range. Pressure too low? Turn on the heater. Pressure OK, or running high? Turn the heater off.

The heater is controlled by a thermostat, but you still want to ensure you don't leave your switch "on" when you leave your car. You also want to ensure you wire the heater to a circuit that is "hot" only when your ignition is turned on. All this provides a redundant safety system that keeps your car from peeling itself from the inside out, if you know what I mean...

The EGT gauge helps you monitor exhaust gas temps, to detect any abnormal increase, indicating a lean condition. If you see the EGT heading skyward, take your foot out of it at once!

Good luck.

1MAX2NV

iTrader: (5)

If you park your car outside in a hot summer day, it will reach that high. An interior of a car can reach 90+ degrees easily. Bottle pressure have a direct correlation to heat. 75F will yield around 900psi. The hotter it is, the higher the pressure. There are plenty of times when my bottle pressure is at 1100psi. Anyways, it's less of a problem on Zex or dry kit since fuel pressure will rise as bottle pressure rise. On a wet kit, forget about it. The fuel system have no idea what your bottle pressure is. Better hope your setup runs on the richer side.

Jime

iTrader: (10)

I spent all day saturday at the track at 90+ and still had to heat my bottle. On a wet kit the system is designed to run at nitrous pressures of 900-1050, if its lower then the system of course will run rich because there is less nitrous and the same amount of fuel. However, a little rich is much better than lean. Once thing about NX they give you the exact nitrous and fuel jets for the correct ratio for a given fuel pressure. No need to mess around with jetting like on the dry system because the fuel pressure remains constant at 43 psi. Also it doesn't overload your injectors so less chance of failure.

What I was really trying to say before is that if you are on a budget you can get away without a heater, gauge etc as long as you stay away from high shots. I know of a couple of guys who race regularly that have just a base kit ie no warmer, gauges, window switch etc etc and do very well at the races. That said if you really want to be consistent you need to know and have the pressure the same all the time.

ejj

iTrader: (5)

Do you guys run a Nitrous line into the cockpit for a pressure guage, or have your found/forked over the $ for an electric pressure guage.

Jime

iTrader: (10)

My whole nitrous line runs through the cockpit and likewise the pressure gauge. But I don't do what everyone else does, so expect a whole bunch of people who do different than me.

ejj

iTrader: (5)

Isn't that considered a no-no?

matt calder

iTrader: (2)

I just took my bottle heater off for the summer because the bottle gets to hot. I have to buy bags of ice to get the pressure down to somewhere normal half the time. Usually in the heat of the day my pressure goes up to 1200 or 1300 easily.

1MAX2NV

iTrader: (5)

I ran a ss braided line from my engine bay before the nitrous solenoid to my a-pillar. That was a PITA.