Air pump for filling tires

I've got the Viair and can recommend it. Seems to be the brand of choice on off-road forums. 15 amps is the rated draw at max pressure of 150 lbs. I believe it draws around 12 amps at normal pressures. You should use it with the car running especially a car with a motor cycle size battery. Also, you can't damage the car as the cigarette lighter is fused.

 

A tire valve extender would provide more space for one of those clamp on type attachments. Just about any 12V air pump will work, eventually. They're rather slow, and the pressure gauge is generally pretty low end. A bicycle pump with a schrader attachment will work, but it's really slow. Car tires are just a lot bigger than bicycle tires...

Personally, I just prefer to use the fancy pump at Costco. The one by the tire operation, not by the gas station. The tire stores I've used have this device that you set the target pressure on a touch panel. Then you attach the hose and the thing adjusts the pressure up or down as required. It's usually self service, but there was one store where they insisted on doing it for me. Free, no documentation about having purchased the tires from them.

 

Meh, after plug repairing one of our tires, I press'd back to over 40 psi, with just a bicycle pump. Granted it took a while, but it's not a killer, easily doable.

 

The Schrader valve stem on the bike should be the same as the Schrader valve stem on the car. I use the same bicycle pumps for both, though sometimes the pump hose head collides with the wheel rim and is difficult to get a good seal unless it is turned to just the one right orientation.

That sounds more like a compact hand pump of the type I carry while cycling. It is not reasonable for cars.

My primary bicycle floor pump, very similar to the one pictured in Mendel's post #8, takes 7 strokes per 1 psi. That would get very old if the full set of tires needed full inflation from empty, but is reasonable for ordinary able bodied adults for a single empty tire, or for regular topping off the full set.

 

The strokes per psi will also vary by pump model. When getting a spare to throw into another car, I got a higher volume model. It takes only 4 strokes per 1 psi, but the larger piston diameter makes the strokes significantly harder.

So, note that different choices are available, so various people should be able to tune the tradeoff between their strength and number of strokes required to do the job. But without getting several different pump sizes to try, I don't currently have any guidance to help pick the right one on the first try.

 

...we got an old Sears tire compressor plug-in to wall 120v seems to work fine at home.
Noisy....... I use ear protection though.

 

No, 10A. I would not use an air compressor requiring 12V power unless it came with cables intended to be directly connected to the 12V battery.

For regular use, it would be better to purchase an air compressor that runs off 120VAC power from your house.

 

I also installed valve stem extenders for a Schroeder valve on all 4 wheels. Mine are chromed metal about 2 inches long, which is quite long enough to get far enough from the OEM rims to use either gas station or portable pumps. Source was local auto parts store , but mine cost $10.

 

Yes good bicycle pumps have both choices attached, I prefer a bicycle pump that screws the prestra or schrader on, rather then clamp it on, if the unit extending out of the rim isn't metal, twisting it, pushing hard on it etc will cause premature failure of that part.
Slime makes extenders, remember to tighten the valve core before installing, and check for air bubbles with a drop of oil.

 

Since you can't easily plug into AC house power, I suggest you get a 12V air compressor that has alligator clamps to attach directly to the 12V battery. Then you don't have to worry about blowing a fuse or damaging the Prius electrical circuits. You only have to worry about draining the battery.

 

A 15A fuse that is frequently operated at 15A will have a very short life expectancy. If you don't want to be replacing fuses often, stick to devices using just 10A or less.