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I am a complete luddite here, been inflating car and bike tyres by hand/foot (or at the petrol station) all my life, but have decided to investigate alternatives.
I have done some research into this, but am not sure I am looking across the whole field, so what sorts of things should I be considering for:
- pumping up car tyres on our driveway (easy reach of a mains socket in the garage)
- pumping them up when on the road (doesn't necessarily need to be the same product)
I don't need a full-blown compressor for the garage, though it would be nice I guess, I can seat tubeless mtb tyres OK using my pop bottle bong if needed.
Thanks in advance.
Tyre inflators are almost exclusively 12V, buy one for the car, job done.
Seating tubeless is another requirement altogther.
I've got this - it's 12V and also has its own battery which is very useful
Chuck isn't the best, just a screw-on job, but it's not too big of an issue.
I use a fat bike track pump, I find the 12v things very noisy and take forever.
The 12v ones do a decent job, I'm still using the track pump for the tyres, despite having two 12v compressors in the house ! Doh...
We've a Ryobi 12v, uses their One battery system, very handy it has been too and one of the only ones I could find that would give the pressure needed for the caravan tyres.
I've got an 'air monster' which has been great for 15 plus years. Works corded and with the in-built battery (still going strong.) great for camping as it has a LP blower too for inflatables.
Not sure it's made any more, but this looks to be a replacement from the same manuf:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bon-Aire-12V-Air-Inflator-TC12CUK/dp/B07DHT3J3J
I have a very compact 12V one I carry along with a tubeless plug set when I am motorcycle touring. Useful in an emergency but takes forever to inflate a fully flat tyre. At home for topping up I use a foot pump for a few psi in one tyre, but if I'm doing more than one tyre or any are at all flat, I fire up the compressor.
I've got a little AA branded 12v one. Plugs into the cigarette socket, lead is long enough to reach each tyre. Takes while if its flat but a little top up doesn't take long. Very compact, and it lives in the spare wheel well. Was about £10, no complaints. I have a compressor too but I'll use the 12v one for a quick top up or when out. Still use a track pump for the bike.
Ah OK thanks everyone, looks like 12v ones are what there is, I will get one of them.
I got a Makita 18v tyre inflator a few months ago, I leave it in the garage, though. Works great for checking/topping up pressures. I've not had fully inflate a tyre, yet.
They now seem to have gone up in price by £20 since I got mine! 😳
I have a Ring 12v inflator in the car as it weighs not much and compact. It’s mostly for when I am away from base as I find a MTB stirrup pump far quicker and less noisy at home
Funny I was looking for exactly the same. In the US they sell a direct drive 120v ones you can mint on the wall of your workshop. Here? Nothing as far as I can see.
I did think about the Makita one I can use my 18v drill batteries on. I think it was £50-60 bare
A few years ago I bought 2 Aldi 240v portable compressors in their shop sale at just under £25 each. One to mount on the garage wall and the other to take with us in the camper. Both have popped on numerous tubeless tyres, swapped two yesterday, and the one in the camper has rescued a few Enduro racers days when they have had problems pre race with seating tyres on to damaged rims. The garage one can be lifted down and used on the car tyres when needed.
Didn't need a full blown compressor and this one, although a bit noisy, works a treat.
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Scrapyard. They will have a stack from any car that gets supplied with goo rather than a spare. Big SUV-type?
Bought one this morning in Aldi .£20.
The only problem is the 12v inflators are UNBELIEVABLY noisy. For something so little, they make an almighty noise and seem to take a while to get the tyre up. They do work in the end though
I leave a little airman one in the van for topping the tyres up if I'm out and about, although I use a proper compressor if I'm at home
I’ve got several, one cost £9 from a garage, another I got from an ex-Motability car, and my car came with one. I’ve used loads at work, flat tyres, like flat batteries are a fact of life, and often sorted by just grabbing a random 12v inflator from the nearest car with one.
Yes, they’re staggeringly noisy, best to stand twenty feet away while it’s doing it’s little dance by the flat tyre, but I’ve never found one that didn’t do it’s basic job of inflating a flat tyre.
Don’t use the white goo that’s often supplied, the tyre will be trashed if you do - it’s impossible to mend a puncture if that stuff is inside the tyre. They do get a bit warm as well.
My top tip is that the 12v ones seem to run a whole load quicker at 14v (engine running) compared to 13.5v (engine off). More than the 15% or whatever would make you think. I recon they're pretty lossy, so the speed really helps
Also the engine noise drowns out the awful racket they make
Concur on the Ryobi as simple to use and can go as high as 150psi. Simply switch on, set pressure and connect with no trailing wires on the 12v connector in the car. If you’ve already Ryobi great addition. Also perfect for inflating tubeless setup as leaves you hands free.
Yeah the 12v ones are really slow to inflate + crazy noisy, fine for an emergency option to have in the car (or if you like annoying your neighbours on a Sunday morning) but for at home I just use my track pump to top them up (although 99% of the time I use the inflator at my local garage)
I've just bought into the Ryobi cult. I'll probably be buying the tyre inflator as it's the obvious choice now that I have the battery and charger.
Is it as loud as the small 12v ones that dance all over the floor?