Hi Phil,

I used to have a very cheap 25ltr compressor, which they used to sell in aldi, power craft or something was the name on it. It was very good for the price and put out around 7cfm, which for its size is excellent. The problem you might face is if you find yourself using more air than you thought and the compressor is kicking in and out to build up pressure, then they can overheat very quickly. Also the direct drive models, which is most of the smaller compressors are very loud, probably over 90DB. After a while the noise becomes an issue. If you can find a smaller belt driven model then this will be quieter.

Hope that helps,

Adam.