How to use a 24 litre air compressor
Updated: 21.10.2026
The compressor is on the garage floor, the hose is still in the bag, and the first job is a tyre or a blow gun. A 24 litre tank is small enough to wheel into a corner and large enough to hold water you cannot see. This is how to use a 24 litre air compressor in that first session: oil only if the pump needs it, set the regulator before the tool, drain after the air, and stop if it smokes. It is not a ranking. The machines themselves are on the [24 litre air compressor comparison](/hub/compressors/air-compressor-24l). The steps follow the listings in this set and public HSE guidance on drains and safety valves. We have not run these pumps on a bench.
The compressor is on the garage floor, the hose is still in the bag, and the first job is a tyre or a blow gun. A 24 litre tank is small enough to wheel into a corner and large enough to hold water you cannot see.
The compressor is on the garage floor, the hose is still in the bag, and the first job is a tyre or a blow gun. A 24 litre tank is small enough to wheel into a corner and large enough to hold water you cannot see. This is how to use a 24 litre air compressor in that first session: oil only if the pump needs it, set the regulator before the tool, drain after the air, and stop if it smokes. It is not a ranking. The machines themselves are on the 24 litre air compressor comparison. The steps follow the listings in this set and public HSE guidance on drains and safety valves. We have not run these pumps on a bench.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Lubrication | Connector | Drain | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Hyundai Hyundai HY7524X 24L | Oil-free | Euro quick connectors | Condensation trap listed | 9.4 | about £149.95 | View offer |
| Alternative |  Orazio Orazio 241184 | Oil-free | Shallow 1/4 inch in reviews | First drain for weld spatter | 9.0 | about £129.99 | View offer |
| Alternative |  Einhell Einhell TC-AC 190/24/8 | Oil-lubricated | PCL outlet in UK reviews | Condensate drain plug listed | 8.4 | about £129.95 | View offer |
Before the first start
Only one machine in this set is oil-lubricated: the Einhell TC-AC 190/24/8. The bullets list a pressure reducer, a gauge, a non-return valve, a safety valve, and a condensate drain plug. Check the oil before the first start. UK reviews describe a missing threaded oil plug, oil in the carton, and oil from the cylinder head after light use. If the plug is missing, or the oil is in the box rather than in the pump, do not switch on and hope. That is a return or a parts question. The oil-free or oil air compressor page explains why this pump is the odd one out. The other six listings are oil-free. They do not get an oil fill. They still get a drain later, because oil-free does not mean a dry tank.
Look at the plug before you look at the regulator. A continental two-pin lead, which reviewers report on that Einhell, does not fit a UK socket. If you can fit a BS 1363 plug correctly, do that before the first run. If you cannot, stop and call an electrician. Forcing a two-pin lead into a UK socket is not a setup step. UK mains are 230 V. A lead that is only described as 220 V on the listing is a reason to read the plug, not a reason to improvise an adapter from a travelling kit.
Set the machine so the tank drain points at a container, not at your shoes. Hyundai reviews mention steel shot-blast media in a new tank, and Orazio reviews mention weld spatter. The first drain is part of commissioning, not a chore you postpone for six months.
Pressure at the tool
Two gauges do different jobs. The tank gauge shows what is stored. The regulator sets what the hose is allowed to deliver. The tool sees the regulated pressure, not the maximum printed on the tank badge. Turn the regulator down before you connect a nailer or a gun, then raise it to the tool’s stated pressure. Feeding a tool the tank’s full cut-out is how fittings leak and how a brad nailer gets more pressure than it was built for.
Connect the hose only after you know the coupler. The Hyundai listing states Euro quick connectors. Reviews of the oil-lubricated Einhell mention a PCL outlet. Orazio reviews describe a shallow 1/4 inch fitting. A Euro coupler and a PCL coupler do not become the same part because they look similar from a metre away. If the joint hisses, isolate the tool, vent the hose, and refit. A leak that empties the tank is a connection fault. Do not keep raising the regulator to hide it.
The safety valve is not a second regulator. HSE compressed-air guidance expects a receiver to have a drain, a gauge, and a safety valve that can pass more air than the compressor supplies. You do not turn that valve to gain working pressure. If it weeps during a normal fill, unplug and treat it as a fault. Eight bar on 24 litres is about 192, which sits under the 250 bar litre line, and a weeping valve is still not something you adjust with a screwdriver.
Draining the receiver
Water condenses when the air cools in the tank. Left there, it corrodes the receiver from the inside. A sensible drain sequence, the one compressor makers publish for receivers in general, matches these listings: switch off, isolate the power, wear eye protection, drain at the low point until liquid stops, close the valve, and check for leaks. None of these amazon.co.uk pages states an automatic drain, so the valve is your job.
How often depends on how damp the garage is and how long you ran the pump. A short tyre top-up on a dry day leaves less water than an afternoon of blowing or spraying. If you cannot remember the last drain, drain before the next job. These listings do not give a residual pressure, so you drain with the power off until the liquid stops, rather than chasing a number that is not on the page.
Hyundai and the Einhell TE-AC 24 Silent state a drain valve or a condensation trap. Use that point. Do not tip the whole compressor to hurry the water out, and do not pour oily water into a rainwater gully. The oil-lubricated Einhell can put oil into the condensate. That liquid is waste, not something for the outside drain. Close the drain before the next start. An open drain is why a tank never reaches cut-out and why a motor then runs hot. If the valve will not close, stop.
When to stop
Smoke or a burning smell on the first start is a stop, not a warm-up. A Hychika review describes smoke and a burning smell on day one. Einhell oil reviews describe blue smoke and a machine that would not run. An Orazio motor overheated after light airbrush use. Unplug, let it cool where it cannot scorch the floor, and contact the retailer. Do not open the motor housing to look for the smell. A new machine that is faulty is a conversation with the seller under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, not a repair you start on the bench.
A pressure switch that never cuts out, or a pump that will not start again after it has cut out, is the same class of stop. You are not resetting the safety valve to force a start. You are unplugging. Hearing protection is a use choice even when the Noise Regulations do not bind a householder. Those regulations are for employers. A listing at 97 dB, the oil Einhell and the oil-free SIP, is still a long-run reason to wear defenders. The 57 dB LpA Einhell is the one listing that states a low LpA.
A written scheme is not a step before a homeowner switches on a 24 litre receiver for tyres. HSE’s overview of the Pressure Systems Safety Regulations ties that scheme to qualifying work equipment. Do call a competent person if you are the employer and the vessel may sit outside the 250 bar litre exception, or if the safety valve is not doing its job. Heat halfway through a fence is a spraying limit, covered on the 24 litre compressor for spraying page.
Common questions
What do I do before the first start on an oil-lubricated pump?
On the Einhell TC-AC 190/24/8, check that oil is in the pump and that the threaded plug is present and tight. Reviews report a missing plug and oil sitting in the carton instead. Confirm the lead is a UK plug, or fit a BS 1363 plug, before you energise it. The oil-free machines in this set do not take a pump-oil fill. They still need the drain checked so the first run is not pushing debris up the hose.
Where is the drain, and how often?
Use the condensate drain or trap the listing names, at the low point of the tank, with the power isolated and eye protection on. Drain until liquid stops, then close the valve. Do it after a long run and whenever you cannot remember the last time. These listings do not give a day count or a residual pressure. An open or leaking drain means you stop, because the pump will run without building pressure and will get hot.
Regulator pressure or tank pressure: which one feeds the tool?
The regulator feeds the tool. The tank gauge only shows stored pressure, which on several of these machines is up to about 8 bar, or 7 bar on the Orazio’s 700 kPa line. Set the regulator to the tool’s pressure with the hose connected and the tool at rest, then pull the trigger. If you need more pressure than the safety valve allows, you need a different compressor, not a tweak of the valve.
What if the quick connector leaks?
Stop, vent the hose, and refit the coupler. Hyundai listings specify Euro quick connectors, Einhell oil reviews mention PCL, and Orazio reviews mention a shallow quarter-inch outlet. Those are not one fitting. A leak that empties the tank is a fitting problem. Do not raise the regulator to compensate, and do not tape a leaking quick connector and carry on.
What if it smokes or will not start?
Unplug it. Smoke, a burning smell, or blue smoke on start shows up in reviews of the Hychika and the oil-lubricated Einhell, and overheating shows up on the Orazio after light airbrush use. Contact the retailer rather than running it again to see if the smell fades. A machine that will not start after cut-out is the same stop. Do not bypass the pressure switch or the safety valve to force one more job.
Can I turn the safety valve up to gain pressure?
No. The safety valve is there to pass air if the cut-out fails. HSE guidance treats it as part of the receiver, not as a pressure adjustment. Raising it can leave the tank above the pressure it was fitted for. If it weeps in normal use, unplug and take the machine back. Working pressure for the tool is the regulator’s job, and it should sit at the figure printed on the tool, not at the tank maximum.
Does a home user need a written scheme before switching on?
Not for an ordinary home garage inflating tyres or blowing dust, on a receiver around 8 bar and 24 litres, about 192 bar litres. The written scheme under the Pressure Systems Safety Regulations applies to qualifying work equipment. You still drain the tank, leave the safety valve alone, and stop if the machine smokes.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources and the amazon.co.uk listings below. Listings checked on 19 October 2026.
- Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000, Schedule 1 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- HSE: Pressure Systems Safety Regulations overview (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- HSE research report RR1226 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Pressure Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Pressure Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016, regulation 24 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005, regulation 4 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- HSE: Noise at work, employer duties (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- HSE INDG271: Buying new machinery (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- amazon.co.uk listings for the seven compressors in this set (retrieved 19 October 2026)