Portable Air Pump

[JAS]

I don't own an air compressor. Until now, I have gotten by with a portable air tank. I have started looking around for a portable air pump. I ran across the Airmoto. Does anybody here have one of these? If so, how well does it work? Are there any other portable air pumps that I should look at?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B094DMH7ZM/?tag=cpf0b6-20

Airmoto - Portable Air Pump and Smart Tire Inflator

Never leave home without an Airmoto, the best-selling portable air pump. Great for road trips and everyday use.

getairmoto.com

 

[bykfixer]

Some of the little pumps I've owned were great for pumping a basketball or a bike tire but for a car tire... forget it unless you only need to add a pound or three to top them off.

To fill a tire on a car or truck takes a portable compressor with a baffle system bigger than a hummingbird lung so the auto part store is a good place to find those.

I use one made by Bell called Bell Aire4000

 

[coffeecup66]

 

[Mappo]

I have a Viair compressor mounted under the hood of my car. Its technically portable, but not handheld.

Instal was very easy and it moves alot of air. Would recommend going this route if the primary concern is inflating tires and in my case airbags.

Viair also makes portable setups. I just prefer the under-the hood option.

 

[turbodog]

I don't own an air compressor. Until now, I have gotten by with a portable air tank. I have started looking around for a portable air pump. I ran across the Airmoto. Does anybody here have one of these? If so, how well does it work? Are there any other portable air pumps that I should look at?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B094DMH7ZM/?tag=cpf0b6-20

Airmoto - Portable Air Pump and Smart Tire Inflator

Never leave home without an Airmoto, the best-selling portable air pump. Great for road trips and everyday use.

getairmoto.com

That's a compressor, and I mean that literally. There's no tank with it.

One thing you will find is that a compressor only (without tank) will inject water into whatever device you are filling up.

A compressor with a tank allows the air to cool after compressing, the water to condense, and the air that's delivered to your device to be a good bit drier because of this.

For most people, any small compressor with a tank would be a great, cheap, lightweight, and long-lasting option. Additionally, having a tank allows it to be MUCH more useful, running things a compressor only cannot: air tools, blow guns, etc. And you have air on demand w/o waiting for the compressor to run.

Oil-free is fine... don't be scared away. I ran the heck out of an oil-free unit, used commercially, for ~5 years.

 

[SYZYGY]

all the major tool brands make cordless inflators now. i can't tell you what's best for your situation.

read reviews and compare specs. notably, look at max pressure, cycle times and duty cycle, what attachments it comes with, do you need a high flowrate inflator mode (for turbocharging a camp fire or inflating a raft), can it run on 12V, etc. what battery system you're invested in is another big consideration.

for me, the best was dewalt DCC020IB. it can go to relatively high pressure (my bike tires need 90+ psi), and i use the bulk inflator mode sometimes. and i already have dewalt batteries.

https://amzn.com/dp/B07H39S9JQ

 

[SYZYGY]

That's a compressor, and I mean that literally. There's no tank with it.

i believe the current industry term for this class of product (tankless compressor primarily used for inflation) is "inflator".

also, i agree with you. the wet air thing with inflators is less than ideal, but i use one anyway lol.

 

[turbodog]

i believe the current industry term for this class of product (tankless compressor primarily used for inflation) is "inflator".

also, i agree with you. the wet air thing with inflators is less than ideal, but i use one anyway lol.

Correct terminology is a two edged sword. 'Tanks' are known as 'receivers' if you are deep in commercial air lingo.

 

[Lynx_Arc]

I think the first thing you need to consider is do you want a 12V Car corded, or tool battery powered compressor. Each of these have their advantages and disadvantages. If you have cordless tools with batteries you can just buy a compressor and use your batteries from your tool line. Another thing to consider is do you want to use it for tires and beach balls etc both if you only need it for air mattresses and the like then you don't need one that can do 50psi or more.

I have an old corded car compressor that has an analog pressure dial and comes with attachments for inflating low pressure stuff also that I keep in my car and have used close to a dozen times especially when I have a low tire and the free air stations compressor has been vandalized. I've used it to fill a leaking tire with enough air to get to a place to fix the tire so I didn't have to remove the tire and mess with the spare saving me a lot of time and effort.

 

[Poppy]

Like our friend @bykfixer I had a couple of those 12V units that plug into the cigar lighter socket. They had a VERY slow flow rate, but could go to relatively high pressures.

They are not ideal for blowing up rafts for the beach, or inflating a very low on air, car tire. They do however work. ALso one is limited in the distance it can travel from the car.

I have a 3 gallon reserve tank compressor (I think it is a Craftsman) it works well but it is loud (as loud as most of those pancake compressors are). I keep attached to it a ? 10 foot long coiled flexible hose. I also have a couple of 25' extension hoses. It can run a 1/2 drive impact hammer for a very short time, but often long enough to break a nut free.

As mentioned above various tool manufacturers make battery operated tools that share their same battery. I bought into the Ryobi brand, so I have a number of their tools that run on the 18V platform.

I have both the Ryobi inflator, and the High Volume inflator.
The inflator is more for inflating tires, or basketballs, although it could be used to inflate a raft, if you are a patient person.

The high volume has been used to inflate a king sized 12 inch high bed mattress a number of times, although a really quick method is to use a leaf blower. It is certainly convenient for beach balls, and rafts etc.

The tools are particularly inexpensive if you already have the batteries.

Here are pics of the inflator

And of the high volume inflator

 

[bykfixer]

This is the one I keep in my work truck.
When driving home from work one day I crossed some rail road tracks and my low tire alarm started ringing. Luckily I was about 200 yards from a place I could stop safely.

As I traveled that 200 yards my dash showed 22 pounds and falling. 50 yards later it was 17 pounds, at the parking lot it said 11. By the time I stopped 7 pounds was the reading. I pulled out the BellAire 4000 and started inflating thinking I'd probably have to change to the spare. I keep tire repair stuff in my work truck. Spray the tire with soapy water and behold, there's the leak.

It was filling the tire sure enough so I inserted a tire plug into the big ole 19" tire and filled it up in about 10 minutes. The plug has held to this day.

I keep a little Craftsman (what I call a) basketball pump in Mrs Fixers car and it keeps her tires topped up when it cools and tires lose a few pounds over night. My Lexus is parked in the driveway behind where she parks and it has a tire with a slow leak. The basketball pump fills that up from about 10 pounds every few weeks. It sits most of the year so when the 5 year old battery went dead I started using Mrs Fixers car to provide the power to the basketball pump to reinflate the Lexus tire again.

I think I've had the Bell Aire 4000 over 10 years now. It's been a goody.