Anyone ever use Fix-a-Flat to stop a slow leak? I have two tires on two vehicles that need a bit of every 10 days.
ed
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Anyone ever use Fix-a-Flat to stop a slow leak? I have two tires on two vehicles that need a bit of every 10 days.
ed
ed
Probably don't want to do that. I used it once in an emergency and it sure messed up the wheel balance. After the flat was fixed it was a real bitch to clean that stuff from inside the tire.
I agree that stuff is real good when your in a jam. I guess! I have never used it. But I do understand that it does a number inside the tire and will eventually need to be gooped out.
Why not bring the car to a garage and they will find the problem?
Maybe the valves.....or that your tire needs to be seated properly on the rim. Anyway for a garage it's a small job.
Why not bring the car to a garage and they will find the problem?
Maybe the valves.....or that your tire needs to be seated properly on the rim. Anyway for a garage it's a small job.
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Sounds like it could be a bead leak between the rim and the tire....often they'll act like that, and the fix-a-flat won't help much.
Easiest way I've found to find the leak is pull the wheel off and spritz it really good with Windex or equivalent and then wait to see where the bubbles grow. Very slow leaks tend to "foam" by growing a small cloud of tiny bubbles, while faster leaks tend to blow a bit bigger bubbles (1/4" diameter). A bead leak will grow tiny bubbles, almost like fuzz, right between the rim and the tire - just spritz a bunch of windex on a horizontal wheel at the intersection between wheel and rubber and sit back and watch. A leak in the tread can be found by rolling the wheel slowly along the ground whilst spritzing it with the Windex and watching for bubbling.
Once you find the leaks, you can determine if they're a bead leak or something caused by a puncture. If it's a puncture, then you can use a flat fix kit which has a rasp for cleaning out the hole, and a probe which inserts a puncture seal, which is an adhesive coated cord pushed into the hole with the probe. All pretty simple and they work great - just follow the directions.
If it's a bead leak, then you should take it to a tire place, have them pull the tire off the rim and then clean the rim bead with a rotary wire brush, goop it up with rim sealer and put the tire back on and re-balance it. Bead leaks can be a pain, so have someone fix it right.
I agree that fix-a-flat stuff can cause MASSIVE imbalance when used in a tire. The stuff pools at the bottom when injected and can sometimes gel there and stay put (because you ALWAYS take a few minutes to get it in there, then collect all your stuff, put the kids and the dog back in the car, get back out to check for anything left, get back in, make sure everybody's ready and THEN take off - during that time, the stuff has pooled at the bottom of the tire and hardened and acts like another wheel weight, but NOT where you want it!)
Gordon
Easiest way I've found to find the leak is pull the wheel off and spritz it really good with Windex or equivalent and then wait to see where the bubbles grow. Very slow leaks tend to "foam" by growing a small cloud of tiny bubbles, while faster leaks tend to blow a bit bigger bubbles (1/4" diameter). A bead leak will grow tiny bubbles, almost like fuzz, right between the rim and the tire - just spritz a bunch of windex on a horizontal wheel at the intersection between wheel and rubber and sit back and watch. A leak in the tread can be found by rolling the wheel slowly along the ground whilst spritzing it with the Windex and watching for bubbling.
Once you find the leaks, you can determine if they're a bead leak or something caused by a puncture. If it's a puncture, then you can use a flat fix kit which has a rasp for cleaning out the hole, and a probe which inserts a puncture seal, which is an adhesive coated cord pushed into the hole with the probe. All pretty simple and they work great - just follow the directions.
If it's a bead leak, then you should take it to a tire place, have them pull the tire off the rim and then clean the rim bead with a rotary wire brush, goop it up with rim sealer and put the tire back on and re-balance it. Bead leaks can be a pain, so have someone fix it right.
I agree that fix-a-flat stuff can cause MASSIVE imbalance when used in a tire. The stuff pools at the bottom when injected and can sometimes gel there and stay put (because you ALWAYS take a few minutes to get it in there, then collect all your stuff, put the kids and the dog back in the car, get back out to check for anything left, get back in, make sure everybody's ready and THEN take off - during that time, the stuff has pooled at the bottom of the tire and hardened and acts like another wheel weight, but NOT where you want it!)
Gordon
Also, if you have a warranty on the tyre from the place that fitted it originally, using fix-a-flat will void any coverage for replacement of the tyre if you do have a puncture.
I was informed of this by someone at Sam's Club on sunday when I bought two new tyres for our minivan.
Jim.
I was informed of this by someone at Sam's Club on sunday when I bought two new tyres for our minivan.
Jim.
Gordon - Plugging a tire from the outside is a very temporary unsafe fix. It too can void the warranty on a tire. The proper repair for a tread puncture is to remove tire from rim and patch from the inside with a vulcanized patch then remount tire and rebalance. (There are plugs that are applied from the inside of the tire which is ok). Sidewall punctures can not be fixed on radial tires so best ya can do there is insert a tube and use it for a spare.
Re the fix a flat inflatable stuff, secret there is to put the stuff in the tire and immediatly drive it for at least 5 miles to enable that stuff to distribute itself inside. I used it on occasions in a pinch and it does work! But drive the car as soon as you put it in or you will have a severe balancing problem!
Bruce
Bruce
Dont use Fix a Flat! It will rot the inside of the rim If left there. That stuff is for stranded old ladies with a flat on a dark alley at night!
Thanks guys. Looks like I'll have to get off my duff and do something.
ed
ed
Sorry, Wolfgang, but I have to disagree. I've outside plugged a LOT of tread holes (usually from nails or screws) and only once, in over forty years and 20 - 30 plugs, have I ever had one that leaked, and a bunch of them lasted over 30,000 miles. The one that leaked (after two years) I pushed through with the probe, rasped it out again and re-plugged and it held for over two years (then we got a new set of tires). I've plugged close to the sidewall, too, and it held for several years, but I wouldn't recommend patching within an inch of the sidewall to anyone else, and never, never try to plug a sidewall leak (of course, whenever I get a sidewall leak it's more of a tear, anyway, and simply coouldn't be fixed, no matter what!).
The inner patching you've described is absolutely the best way to go if you're at a tire store, but I've found that plugging can be pretty darn effective and long lasting, too!
Gordon
I
I went through the slow leak thing all this past Fall. Fill the tire and everything is fine for a week or two. It goes flat again, fill it up and flat again the next day. Try it again and it holds for a week.
Sometimes the "inner guts" (special technical term) of the valve stem are loose and air slowly leaks out. Often aggravated each time you refill. In my case I had metal valve stem that go through the rim and are held captive with a nut. The gasket dried out and next thing you kno, flat again.
Tony
Sometimes the "inner guts" (special technical term) of the valve stem are loose and air slowly leaks out. Often aggravated each time you refill. In my case I had metal valve stem that go through the rim and are held captive with a nut. The gasket dried out and next thing you kno, flat again.
Tony
I second Gord. I've used those same rubber cords with adhesive "injections" (as we call them here) for years and they've worked beautifully and economically for my purposes. Not a single failure and about 50% cheaper than a patch.
Keep in mind, if you puncture a tire, of __COURSE__ Tire Rack wants to make it seem like you should be buying a brand new tire!!
Plugging it from the inside is obviously the best way to do it, but I've patched quite a few tires with the way Dad describes above, and I've yet to have a problem. In fact, I've even plugged a few motorcycle tires (another "popular" never-to-do), and I haven't run into a problem with those, either. Come to think of it, I'm fairly certain a ran a track day on the bike with a plug.
As long as you use some common sense while installing it, I don't think it's a bad alternative at all for someone who doesn't have the means to dismount a tire. I can't say that I've ever seen bubbles crop up in a tire I've plugged either, but I suppose I can see how it's possible.
Chris
Plugging it from the inside is obviously the best way to do it, but I've patched quite a few tires with the way Dad describes above, and I've yet to have a problem. In fact, I've even plugged a few motorcycle tires (another "popular" never-to-do), and I haven't run into a problem with those, either. Come to think of it, I'm fairly certain a ran a track day on the bike with a plug.
As long as you use some common sense while installing it, I don't think it's a bad alternative at all for someone who doesn't have the means to dismount a tire. I can't say that I've ever seen bubbles crop up in a tire I've plugged either, but I suppose I can see how it's possible.
Chris
Gordon, I'm with you. I've plugged tread leaks for over 35 year and never had a bad experience afterward. Trucks included. Added lot's of additional miles. Irony is that when I've taken a tire into to the local Discount Tire store to get fixed, they NEVER ask where you bought it. They just fix it for FREE!
Don't belive everything you read! The proper way to fix a puncture is from the inside. End of story.