12v Dinghy Inflators

[Guest]

Anyone used either of the 12volt dinghy inflators advertised on the Force 4 Website?One is at £49 the other at £64.Any comments etc. re their usefulness reliabilty etc. welcome.

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[LadyInBed]

I use an old one. It gets low pressure air in fast, then you can get the pressure up with the foot pump.
Don't expect it to pump a tube to Working Pressure, it wont and you will end up disappointed.
With it, I can have my 2.4m inflatable from locker to water in 10 mins.

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[Andy_H]

Where they really come into their own is deflating the b----y thing when you want to get it back in the bag!

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[longjohnsilver]

Go for an LVM, they're the dogs bolx, anything else will probably be underpowered.

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[Joe_Cole]

I have the LVM (or something like that!) pump . It wasn't cheap, but it has been excellent. I can inflate our 2.8metre tender in just a few minutes, all it needs is a few pumps with a hand pump to get it up to full pressure. If I feel lazy and condidtions are calm I don't bother with the hand pump. As someone else has said it's good at quickly deflating the tender so that it can pack away into the smallest possible size.

All in all a bit of a luxury but excellent.

Joe

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[Avocet]

I'll second all that.

I have an LVM and although it doesn't get a lot of use, it has always woked and just about inflates the dinghy to full working pressure.

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[toad]

Camping shops do one for about £10,have to do a few pumps with the foot pump to top up but deflates ok.Not as good as the LV one but a fraction of the price,also good for starting the BBQ.

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[toad]

Re: 12v Dinghy

Camping shops do one for about £10,have to do a few pumps with the foot pump to top up but deflates ok.Not as good as the LV one but a fraction of the price,also good for starting the BBQ.

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[Boathook]

I have the LVM one, not cheap but it does it 's job and it is over 10 years old. If it packs up I would buy the same again.

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[trays]

Re: 12v Dinghy

What does "LV" mean?

What about the little 12v things they sell in camping shops dirt cheap and plug into the cigarette lighter?

What about 12v compressors that plug into the cigarette lighter?

I don't have an inflatible. Not much room on my little 18' tralier sailer.

Should I get one?

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[dickh]

Re: 12v Dinghy

"12v compressors that plug into the cigarette lighter" are C**P! they take about 15 mins to put about 5 PSI in a car tyre!.... Bought one about 3 years ago, it's quicker to use my old foot pump, also tried it for bouyancy bags - utterly useless. All IMHO.....

<hr width=100% size=1>dickh
I'd rather be sailing... /forums/images/icons/smile.gif

 

[LadyInBed]

Re: 12v Dinghy

LV - Low Voltage
LVM Ltd
Aerogen House, Old Oak Close
Arlesey Beds SG15 6XD
Fax: 01462 730466
Tel: 01462 733336
E-mail: lvm.ltd@dial.pipex.com

Mainly make AeroGen wind generators

12v compressors that plug into the cigarette lighter
Are you thinking of the type that pump up car tyres?
They are low volume/ high pressure devices, only suitable for topping up tyres.

LVM make a high volume / low pressure pump for boats, air beds etc.

Should I get one? only ifyou have an air bed /forums/images/icons/smile.gif


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[philip_stevens]

Lidl has them in at the moment (last weeks offer) at £9.99. These are 240vac/12vdc on adaptors charging ni-cads for cordless use. So, can be used plugged in or cordless.

They will pump the dinghy up to save effort, and only require the foot pump to pressurise at the end.

<hr width=100% size=1>regards,
Philip

 

[Plum]

The LVM one is worth the extra money. I find that I do not need to finish the job with the manual pump. I am sure the cheeper models will get lots of air in, but probably won't give you the pressure to do the job properly. It only takes 3 minutes to inflate my tender (one minute per compartment). It is a bit noisy, though.

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[Guest]

Thank you to all who have posted replies.I think I will go with the LV model.

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[whisper]

Think you should know that this will not simply plug into a cigarette lighter socket. It needs to be clipped directly onto your battery which can be slightly or very inconvenient depending on your own layout.

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[jackho]

................. and a low cost hairdryer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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