Not so very long ago it was difficult to find a mini air compressor in South Africa – in fact even today mini air compressors are not common in the country, though they are beginning to appear in some camping and outdoor shops. Naturally a mini air compressor is limited in the number of applications to which it can be used. The main use is for the emergency inflation of vehicle tyres, and because of this most of the mini compressors available in this country are 12 volt machines that can be plugged into a vehicles cigarette lighter. They weigh in the region of 3 to 4 kilograms and have an output of 150 psi or greater.

The main use of the mini air compressor is, of course, outdoors, where it is used for pumping up anything that inflates, such as rafts, Geminis and inflatable tents. The compressors are thus very popular with outdoor enthusiasts, especially those who go off on long trips into the bush with 4 x 4s. It is always a good idea to have a mini air compressor to hand in the home for pumping up the kid’s bicycle tyres, footballs and other inflatable toys. Those sections of the artistic community who use airbrushes are finding these small compressors extremely useful. In essence a mini air compressor is little more than a machine for pumping air. In some cases there is a tank for holding the pressurised air, and in the cheaper machines this tank becomes the receptacle that is being inflated.