Paintball Tanks-How to fill a CO2 and HPA Tank

Let’s suppose that you’re at the paintball pitch and ready to downpour the domain along with your crew at your opponents, but the worst-case comes along in between the battle and your tank runs out of air.

Now what?

Patently, in order to step back in, you’ll have to refill your tank. But, most importantly you should know the type of tank of your gun, the places where you can get a refill from, and finally, you have to know the steps so that you don’t mess up.

Being a regular paintball player myself, I have been in this scenario a number of times. Thus, I will share my experience of how I deal with this situation so that you know the important factors that you have to keep in mind.

Paintball Tanks

Paintball tanks are of three main kinds:

1. Compressed CO2 Paintball Tank
2. Compressed N2 Paintball Tank
3. High Pressur Compressed Air (HPA) Paintball Tank

The main difference between CO2 and compressed air Paintball tanks is the pressure. The pressure of compressed air is much more than the normal air. Moreover, Cost plays a major factor as well. CO2 is cheaper than compressed air. We will see in detail about all the deciding factors.

1. Compressed Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Tank

The CO2 in these tanks is in its liquid state and its tank size varies from 3.5 to 40 fluid ounces.

2. Compressed Pure Nitrogen (N2) Tank

These tanks are a bit rare. These paintball tanks basically get attached to your gun and then compressed gas is released that shoots your paintballs at high velocity.

3. High-pressure Compressed Air (HPA) Tanks

These tanks have highly pressurized oxygen or breathable filtered air, these tanks have different sizes and capacity but their highest capacity is 5000 PSI.

HPA Tanks (High Pressure Compressed Air)

Unlike CO2 tanks, the air in HPA tanks is a lot denser due to which they can be stored under high pressure.

HPA tanks have further two types of their own:

i) Fiber wrapped HPA Tanks

These tanks are made out of carbon fiber, shaped into cylinders. These tanks are lightly weighted so they can store air at a high threshold.

However, these tanks are expensive and are not durable against harsh impacts.

ii) Aluminum HPA Tanks

These tanks in comparison to Fiber tanks are quite heavy so they are sold in small sizes. They can take up to 3000 PSI.

They are cheap, durable, and can work up to 15 years if taken care of.

How to fill a Paintball Tank?

The air tanks of a paintball gun are filled by using an air compressor. Some players often buy these compressors for their use and before coming to the arena they fill their guns from their homes.

On the other hand, those who can’t afford a personal compressor get their tanks filled at two different places:

1. The playing field
2. The paintball gun store

The shopkeepers will let you fill your gun using their air compressor by charging a small fee.

CO2 Paintball Tanks vs HPA Paintball Tanks

This is a crucial part when deciding between the tanks, but most players prefer choosing the HPA tank over CO2. This is because CO2 tanks are mostly dependent on the temperature. Resultantly, if the environment is too hot then the liquid inside the gun will expand and will cause damage to the internal tank. However, if the temperature is cold then the CO2 inside of the tank shrinks that makes it not only difficult but almost impossible to shoot at longer distances.

Additionally, there is another factor as well that CO2 transits from liquid to gas after each shot due to which the players won’t be able to shoot at rapid succession. Thus, you will be missing the thrill of rapid firing.

The only reason people use CO2 tanks is that they’re a lot cheaper but HPA is a preferred choice due to better performance.

Refilling of HPA and CO2 Paintabll Tank

a) How to fill CO2 Tank at home?

In order to refill your air tank, all you need is a CO2 bulk tank and a CO2 fill station. By following some simple steps you will be able to refill your tank.

Firstly, refrigerate your CO2 paintball tank to avoid fluctuations in pressure because of temperature differences. And remember to do it before filling the tank.

Then after taking it out of the fridge, immediately attach the fill station to the paintball tank. When you’re done attaching the tank to the fill station, rotate the bulk tank’s primary valve and open the tank to let the air inside the tank until it’s full.

Although it’s a simple task always remember to carefully store the CO2 tanks as there is peril linked with it.

b) How to fill Paintball Tank with Air Compressor?

How to fill HPA Tank with Air Compressor?

Before filling your HPA tank, you have to examine the tank to find any hole or leakage. In case of any leakage, it won’t work properly and may cause some serious damage.

If you find any issue with the tank, immediately abort. Just head towards some repair shop. Or, if you are expert enough, take your own tool kit out. But remember, this is no job for a novice. So, do it only if you know what you are fiddling with.

Additionally, if all is well then you have to ensure an extra check before filling the tank. Always make sure that the tank is empty on the inside. If it is not empty then just open the air releasing valve to remove all trapped air. Also, keep in mind that when you are releasing the trapped air; do it somewhere in an open area because the gas can lead to some breathing issues.

Now, when the tank is empty then you are ready to refill it. For that purpose, first, compare the nozzle sizes of both tank and compressor against each other.  Importantly, both nozzles should be of the same size to avoid any gas leakage once you are filling the tank. After this check, connect the air hose with the tank and then start the compressor. After the tank is filled, place it at some secured place to avoid any harm.

Final Thoughts

Filling your air tank is a simple matter if you get to bring the right parts together. And you’ll find it easier once you start filling regularly when playing more often.

If you are visiting a Paintball field occasionally, you can avail of their services. But if your plan is to be a regular player then I suggest that you invest in buying your own compressor. So, you will be able to save tons of dollars in the long run. Thus, you can use that money to buy high-class paintball equipment for yourself.