It seems to really overpriced in terms of raw materials and manufacturing costs, and what you’re really paying for is just the fact that it’s damned handy.
In terms of raw materials it seems like a 12oz can should be profitable priced at a dollar or two but even on Ebay they start at around $8.
The air costs pennies. The can? That’s a different story. Refillable aerosol cans cost around $8.00 empty. They have extra hardware to make them refillable, but don’t hold nearly the pressure that single use cans come with.
If you’re talking about “computer dusters” like you can buy at Office Depot they aren’t compressed air, the cans contain liquid fluorocarbons.
I believe they are intentionally priced high to also make them less accessible to huffers.
By the same logic new automobiles should be priced at what, $1000? Can’t be more than a few hundred dollars worth of raw materials in one.
You can buy a 12-volt air compressor for $12.48and have a virtually unlimited supply of air for dusting. However, as the OP notes, there’s an additional price for being “damned handy.”
And, you won’t be adding any potent greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere.
This. The ones we have at work contain R-134a.
Most likely some CO2 was released when the electrical power was generated to run the compressor.
True, but the gasses used in these “compressed air” dusters are hundreds of times worse than CO2.