Portable Air Compressor
Wide Variation of Portable Air Compressors
The advent of the portable air compressor was a most welcome development for contractors who need to move their equipment from one place of work to another. Traditional industrial types of this machine were often too bulky and unwieldy to transport that when their smaller siblings arrived on the scene, a good number of the contractors embraced the latter.
There are literally hundreds of models of this easily transportable machine available in the market today, with varying horsepower, pounds per square inch (PSI), cubic feet per minute (CFM), and tank size. All these factors determine the power output and capabilities of the machine.
The horsepower of a portable air compressor defines its raw power. It can vary from 0.3 in a small machine to as high as 5.5 in a bigger one. PSI readings range from 135 to 150, while CFMs at 100 PSI can be a low of 0.75 to 8.9. Tank sizes also vary, from the DeWalt D55140’s 1 galloon- to the Alton 25’s 25 galloon-capacity.
Power can be supplied either from an electrical source or a gas-fed engine. As a rule, the bigger machines are gas-powered. Drives may be belt-driven which require regular oil change, or direct which do not.
As there is a wide range in the variations of these machines, their prices likewise widely vary, from $250.00 to $1,600. In addition to these variations, individual brands and models are also likely to affect the price.