NITROUS OXIDE ( nos / n2o ) advice forum

I have tried to pulse some holley solenoids with my minimax.
The nos one pulses (empty with no nos supply) but my fuel solenoid doesn't pulse much if at all.
Sometimes it does sometimes it doesn't.
It has fuel supplied to it at 45psi from my fuel rail.

I've tried two different holley fuel solenoids direct to a battery and they click fine.

Am I right in saying that the power coming from the controller is not enough to pulse these solenoids? Do the won ones only need a small amount of power to run? Do the fuel/nos solenoids use different amps to operate ?I have a brand new stand alone battery to run the system.

The solenoids are brand new and both fuel and nos solenoids run from the same orange wire from the controller.

Just need clarification before I order some won ones as I don't want to replace them for the same to happen with the won ones.

i'm sure that Trevor, (the wizard of nos) will be along shortly. but

no other solenoid is designed to pulse. or designed specifically for Nitrous use. (correct me if i'm wrong)

yes there are of different power. 900psi vs 45psi they've got to be haven't they?

probably the best thing to do is take those holly solenoids and carefully place them in the bin. before you end up doing the same with your engine.

get some lovely X-10's

Having put 10k into my motor if I need to change them to x10s so be it I just need to make sure it's nothing else causing this.

Someone mentioned running a relay from the batt instead of using the orange from the controller so the solenoids get the full juice but I'm thinking that's just a get around not a cure to the problem.

If you try to interface a relay to pulse those solenoids you will just create another problem I think. If you look at the wiring diagram you will see that the main power feed for the solenoids comes straight to the solenoids via the battery + terminal and the arming switch. The minimax only pulses the earth side of the circuit to make them work.

So if they both share the same power feed and one solenoid will not pulse like the other one it cant be the fault of the controller can it ?

Holley solenoids come in a variety of sizes. Some need more to pulse them than others. If you do manage to find a solution to pulse those holley items you will then find that they wear quickly and start letting by.

If you have £10k invested in the engine, the cost of a pair of pulsoids is chicken feed eh?

I ditched my Holley stuff a long time ago as it was not up to the job of delivering accurate nitrous flow via my very old WoN controller. I dont actually know the age of my controller, but it was second hand when I bought it about 8 years ago. Trev may be able to advise? Its an FRED controller and its quite large. This was the forerunner of the minimax.

I dont know what engine you have or how big it is, but please dont risk the expensive build for the cost of what equates to a pair of decent tyres??

Just to add I have wired the controller as per diagram but have extended the wires with
1.0mm2, 16.5A - cable OD 2.0mm all connections are soldered not crimped as my vehicle is rear engined. The battery is brand new fully charged and is stand alone just for the nitrous system and is about 4 feet from the minimax controller in wire length.
I believe this to be the correct gauge wire as I looked into another thread on here for that answer.
Is that grade wire suitable for the main (black earth) for the minimax as I extended it to reach the battery neg terminal?

Surely, a decent chassis earth is better than a lengthy run back to the battery.

Trying to pulse Holley solenoids is a no no ... as Perry said above, they are not designed for it. using a relay to boost the current to them will be of no advantage. The Holley solenoids are basically bog standard industrial machine items with stickers on.

X-10 all the way......

I use several body earths on my engine as well as a main earth back to the battery for the nitrous system.
I would double the cable size for an earth back to the battery though.

The guys have covered most things but I have a few more details to add, although I could save myself (and YOU) the trouble if you'd just accept the BEST advice that has already been given and that is to DUMP those GARBAGE solenoids, as they are barely reliable when NOT pulsed.

The President of HolleyNOS told me in person, that they'd decided against replacing their solenoids with our Pulsoids, JUST BECAUSE THEY'D LOSE SO MUCH REVENUE FROM RECON KITS and that should be all I need to say to stop anyone using them.

Before I go in to all the other reasons why you should dump those solenoids, I have to point out a couple of points about your testing;

1) Testing the nitrous solenoid without FULL pressure applied is pointless.

2) If it had worked it wouldn't have been ANY indication of whether or not it would work under pressure.

3) If it doesn't pulse without pressure it is unlikely to pulse with pressure, unless it is actually opening and you haven't noticed it and if that was the case the pressure MAY result in it working

4) It is more likely that when pressure is applied it will be less likely to pulse

Even if you managed to get them working, besides the fact that they are barely reliable when NOT pulsed, there are other problems with not only the solenoids but also the other parts you'll be using in conjunction with them, that makes them TOTALLY UNSUITABLE for pulsing.

1) They are electrically INCOMPATIBLE so they will NOT pulse in sync with each other

2) They are mechanically INCOMPATIBLE so they will NOT pulse in sync with each other

3) Even if they pulsed in sync with each other the flow is INCOMPATIBLE and as a consequence the amount they flow is UNEVEN

4) Even if the solenoids pulsed in sync and the flows were even, the pipe work and jet locations will screw it all up, as metering MUST be carried out AT THE SOLENOID OUTLET and the bore and lengths of the pipe need to be minimal, to avoid that problem.

In a nutshell there is NOTHING about generic solenoids & US outlets from the solenoids that ISN'T TOTALLY WRONG.

If you still wish to use such JUNK, I suggest you repeat the test with the nitrous pressure applied and then report the results and you might also like to give me the flow capability of the solenoids and what power level you intend to use them for?

Before you waste your time doing that, might I suggest your time would be better spent reading this thread in our advanced section on the full story of why ONLY WON pulsed systems work correctly;

viewtopic.php?f=5&t=2811

Thanks for the reply, I've already taken that decision and the solenoids are off my vehicle, I would like to buy some of those lovely x10s but I'm going to have to hold out until the end of next month to save!

Good idea and it'll be worth the wait!, once you get the x10's in your hand and have a good look at them you'll understand what everyone has been taking about!.

A relief to everyone...

Wise move and while you're at it you'll NEED to junk the nozzle/s and hoses, as they are just as unsuitable for pulsing.

If you can provide vehicle details and your intended power target, along with some pics to trev@noswizard.com I'd be happy to advise you on ALL aspects of your requirements.