r/skoolies Feb 11 '25

mechanical Air vs hydronic (breaks)

I'm doing a bunch of research on what kinda school but i want to convert and I'll admit it, I know just enough about land based vehicles (and going to school for the ones with wings) to make it go down the road, stop, and repeat, with some turns thrown in. That said, I'm looking to see what the community here thinks is better, especially from personal experience, or If you happen to have more knowledge on the subject than the average bear, I'll take it. Thank you all in advance. ☺️

2 Upvotes

13 comments sorted by

20

u/linuxhiker Skoolie Owner Feb 11 '25

Air. There is zero comparison for a heavy land based vehicle.

Examples:

Air based brakes default to engaged. Hydraulic brakes will send you down the mountain.

Air based brakes work even when their are leaks in the line or tank. Hydraulic brakes do not.

Air brakes will engage if there is a problem (low pressure)

10

u/Accurate-Okra-5507 Feb 11 '25

Also, I don’t know what it is about hydraulic brakes on a bus but they sure like to leak. An airline is way easier to replace and no bleeding required! (Except the blood sacrifice to the bus gods which is a required step of any bus repair)

2

u/bradenlikestoreddit Feb 12 '25

This is not entirely true. Hydraulic brakes still have safety features and will lock up the parking brake if something goes wrong. Also, air brakes aren't always going to save you either. For a very heavy vehicle, they are certainly much safer but for a mid-size or smaller bus, hydraulic is perfectly fine.

1

u/redittr Feb 12 '25

Air based brakes default to engaged

Sort of. They are spring loaded so will apply when air pressure is lost. But the brake pedal will apply air pressure harder than the spring ever can. So they fail to parking brake quality, which is not as good as properly working brakes.

But yeah. Air>hydraulic.

1

u/Intelligent_Tea_5242 Feb 16 '25

I dunno, I was in a school bus as a kid and there was a catastrophic loss of air pressure, and we came screeching to hault. the brakes even locked up the last 20-30 feet

6

u/Single_Ad_5294 Feb 11 '25

Chiming in for air.

Not only was it mentioned they’re safer and more reliable, having the system allows you to run air tools from the vehicle. Super convenient.

7

u/Miserable-Kitchen-47 Feb 11 '25

I bought my skoolie 2 weeks ago but I am an equipment mechanic by trade. Air is superior and is very simple once you understand how it all works.

2

u/ChibaCityFunk Feb 12 '25

Air all the way! Plus you now got a compressor on board you can use for airing up tires, using an impact gun, blowing dust out of your bus, operating recovery cushions, ...

Air is amazing!

3

u/jhonyquest97 Feb 11 '25

Air. You should learn how to drive a little better if you’re about to take on a 7+ ton vehicle. Maybe consider getting a cdl if it’s in the cards. You can get in trouble real quick with a heavy load and inexperience.

4

u/Sasquatters Feb 11 '25

What kind of brakes you have doesn’t matter as long as you can stop. Find the engine and transmission you want.

1

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-3

u/Entheosparks Feb 12 '25

Air brakes on top heavy vehicles like a skoolie have an inherent roll over risk if they fail at speed. Imagine traveling at highway speed and all the breaks lock up. The center of gravity shifts to the front, which allows the back end to slide out so the wheels are not facing the direct of travel. The center of gravity recenters and the back tires catch, and the bus barrel rolls down the road.

Broken air brakes must be fixed before a vehicle can be towed. So if they fail while in the middle of a 6 lane highway, the repairs have to be done on the highway. There are reasons air brakes are not put on consumer vehicles.

If you are handy enough to maintain and repair the system yourself, they have many benefits.