STIHL is an iconic brand that this year celebrates its 100th anniversary. It’s well-known for creating quality power equipment such as chainsaws, edge trimmers, brushcutters and other gardening tools.
I’ve owned and used several Stihl products over the years including chainsaws, brush cutters and even an electric lawnmower.
In fact, it was the reliability and quality build on these products over the years that lead me to purchase a Stihl electric lawnmower and it’s been a great investment!
Stihl has done a great job adapting and evolving to the ever-changing world of electric products and they haven’t just stopped at chainsaws or mowers!
Which is why I jumped at this opportunity to test a new product from Stihl – the Koa 20. The Koa 20 is a portable and simple to use electric powered air compressor. It’s ideal for multiple uses from pumping up tyres (car and bike) to blowing up footballs, inflatable pool toys and more.
For any one who fishes and enjoys camping, 4WDing, beach fishing and boating, the Koa 20 is a useful piece of equipment.
And anyone who spends time off road understands the need to deflate and inflate tyres. It’s essential for safe bush driving and even more important on the beach. Any beach fishos who takes their vehicle along the sand would be well aware of the need to adjust tyre pressure to avoid sticky situations wth soft sand.
Personally, I do a lot more inland 4WDing to reach off-the-grid fishing spots. Some of the best Murray cod, bass and trout fishing spots require drives along rough and steep roads. ‘
If you’re without some type of air compressor in the vehicle, the only option is to deflate the tyres slightly so your vehicle performs well off road, yet still drives at a reasonable speed afterwards until you reach the nearest service station. But that’s risky. You could damage your tyres, experience poor handling, and you may need to deflate them further if you find yourself bogged. For that reason, you should always have some type of inflation device with you.
The Koa 20 has been really convenient. It may not replace a conventional air compressor when it comes to durability and overall speed and efficiency. But on the flipside, the Koa 20 is small, lightweight and runs off a small rechargeable battery. It’s also very versatile and can be taken anywhere.
I’ve found the battery life really good. It claims to hold about 28 minutes of battery at full use. If you’re heading out for extended periods you could take a spare charged battery or you may have a way of recharging.
It features a simple menu and you can change between units of measurement, whether that’s PSI or Bar. Im really only familiar with PSI. Simply set your PSI, attach the nozzle and press the start button. It’s hands-free and the rubber feet on the Koa 20 makes it stable and easy to leave while the air is inflating. It will measure the tyre’s existing PSI once it’s fitted the the valve and will increase on the menu as it inflates until it reaches the pre-set pressure. At this point it will switch off. It’s similar to what you would use at a service station.
Other uses
This is what makes this a useful product. I recently took it on a six night off-grid camping trip in the Snowy Mountains. We used it to pump tyres, as above, but it also came in handy pumping up balls, air mattresses and inflatable pool toys. Sure, these things can be done with a hand pump. But the convenience of having the Koa 20 in the back of the car and ready to go was a no-brainer for these tasks. It’s one of those products that you don’t know how you ever did without it!
In addition to the tyre connection, the underside of the Koa 20 features several adapters and a larger tube connector. The adapters include a ball needle, bike adapter and multi-purpose cone shaped for inflatable toys and air mattresses.
Another use I was keen to explore was pumping up my drift boat. A few years back I bought a US-made NRS drift boat. It’s a large boat with oars, three seats and several inflatable chambers. It’s a fantastic boat for drifting down rivers and small lakes chasing trout and natives.
But there’s a lot of air to pump up. I fished from one of these a few years ago in New Zealand and we used a electric pump to make things easier and since then have been looking for a similar product for my own drift boat.
The good news is the Koa 20 makes short work of this job! However, at the time of writing this review, I still haven’t found a perfect solution for an adapter. I used the NRS adapter kits and there is a fitting that works and fits, but it ’s not a solid fit and can sometimes work itself loose unless it’s held during the inflation. There are so many different fittings available and I’ll no doubt find the correct one soon. In the meantime, it pumps the chambers up so quickly, kneeling down and holding the nozzle is a simple and effective method for inflation.
Overall thoughts
All up, I’ve found the Stihl Koa 20 to a be a very useful product! While I haven’t owned it long enough to make a judgement about its longevity, it does feel like a quality piece of gear. It’s simple to use, effective for it’s intended purpose and compact and lightweight for storage.
It uses the AS 2 battery system. That’s a small battery than the Stihl lawnmower or large chainsaw, but it is compatible with several other Stihl products. One of these is the GTA 26 pruner. It would be a handy bit of equipment around for firewood or clearing small branches.
Overall, the Koa 20 is highly recommended for pumping up tyres, camping equipment and inflatable boats.
Find out more at stihl.com.au
