Tires Water in rear tires

   / Water in rear tires #1  

roysallis

Gold Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2000
Messages
271
Location
Alabama
Tractor
JD 5210, JD 521 Loader, JD MX6 Rotary Cutter, TufLine 6' Disk, TufLine 6' Grader Blade, TufLine 6' Box Blade
Please provide your experience concerning adding water and antifreeze in the rear tires for better traction.
I have a JD 5210 with tubeless 13.6-28 rear tires and a JD 521 front end loader. I need more traction. What is the best method for putting antifreeze in the tires? I have heard of the adapter to connect to the valve stem and to a water hose but you have to let some of the air before and during the time you are puting in the water. Also, I heard of an adapter that does not require that you let any air out during the filling. Will the water eventually damage the wheels? Should I put in tubes? What do I need too know about this before I do this? What are the problems associated with this?
 
   / Water in rear tires #2  
You might want to search the old forum for 'ballast' to get a huge amount of information on this subject. Briefly, my opinion is this: get somebody who specializes in hydroinflation to do it. It's a royal pain. They do make adapters that you can use yourself. But you have to put the 'antifreeze' in somehow. Most places around here use methanol as the antifreeze because it's not nearly as toxic. Calcium chloride is a lot heavier, but far more corrosive. If you use methanol or antifreeze, you don't need tubes. If you use calcium chloride, tubes are a must.
 
   / Water in rear tires #3  
I found the data hard to come by. All the tire books talk about is Calcium Chloride. The dealer filled my tires to 75% with 40% Sierra Brand Propylene Glycol. Far less toxic than most other antifreeze and has rust inhibitors. Costs a little more than standard antifreeze, but far less than one pet.

I couldn't find anyone in the North Texas area that would even talk about Calcium Chloride. I believe the non-toxic antifreezes are the better solution. I asked for protection to -10 degrees F which is adequate for this area.
 
   / Water in rear tires #4  
Guess I didn't address some of your questions.

I put the antifreeze in 16.9x30 tires. This added approximately 1200# to the rear. The front tires will probably hold another 300#.

The dealer just used a small plastic hose from the antifreeze bottles through the valve stems and put the antifreeze in first. He had the wheel jacked up. He also had an adapter from the garden hose to the tires to finish adding the water. Slow, but worked.

The rust inhibitors should take care of the rims. The tubes are cheap $15, but they wanted $40 more each to put them in. Most people don't use tubes with antifreeze. My old Massey had the same antifreeze in the tires for 18 years.

The problem is - try not to run over thorns or nails or all your money (anti-freeze) runs out unless you can get it in a barrel pretty quick. That is the advantage of propylene glycol over other antifreeze formulations. Some states have even prohibited ethelene glycol.

The advantages are quickly noticed. Better stability on slopes. Better traction. Can pick up bigger loads in loader without counter weights - although a 850# box blade on the back is pretty nice in addition to filling the tires.
 
   / Water in rear tires #5  
I'm in the northeast and am tired and just about broke from replacing tubes and rims because of chloride use. I now run straight water and drain every fall, like in the old days. In the winter there's no field work to do, so I don't need the weight. I run chains if weather's bad. Many auto-supply stores have the liquid-filling valve that will couple to a water hose. Mine was $10. Air must be let out at intevals so as not to over-pressure the tire while filling with water. Most know that the valve stem is to be at top, and fill accordingly so that water will be at a level over the top of the rim at it's highest point, so it is always "spilling over the top." When draining, I put valve stem at bottom and just pull out the valve stem's core, letting the tire go flat under the weight of the tractor. This lets all but a gallon or so of water out. The small amount of ice that leftover gallon produces has never hurt my tubes so far, it's been ten years. I presume when it breaks loose under use, it just glides along the inside of the tube like a smooth sled. I wouldn't want to go at road speed in winter though, because you may have a balance problem. But maybe not. Never needed to do it. Having six tractors, for me it's worth the time to fill & drain the water each year vs. buying a great deal of expensive antifreeze and then hoping not to get a flat. I have no worries with straight water. I have had no flats either. I see you have a loader, and presume you must run it year-round. In winter, I carry a heavy back-blade which is filled with poured concrete. It helps greatly. If I am working in a bad spot and lose traction, I don't fill the bucket all the way. Or I put chains on if it's really nasty.
 
   / Water in rear tires #6  
I do not recommend using the calcium chloride , because you will rust out the rims, In our tractors, we put methanol in the rear, and nothing in the front because of the weight of the loader, if you fill the front tires with fluid, then this cause too much stress on the front of the tractor when you are using the loader.
 
   / Water in rear tires #7  
I just got a new tractor and am looking at the same problem. Im from Midlothian who did you see in North Texas. Thanks,
Bill
 
   / Water in rear tires #8  
Wow, it gets that cold in Texas!?! /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

I live in northern Vermont. The rears on my L3010 are loaded with the same stuff Wen uses. The fronts run windshield washer fluid. Not as heavy, but good enough and cheap enough. I run tubes in the front (due to punctures in the tires from running over logging hooks) and got the special valves that allow you to unscrew the valve stem from the rim. This gives me an opening about the size of a dime, and makes adding ballast much easier.

Sheesh -- cold in Texas! Who woulda thunk? /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Pete
 
   / Water in rear tires #9  
Bill, I don't think you'll get a response from Wen. He was a regular on here a long time, and we miss him. I even tried to look him up and call him last year, but never did find him. My rear tires are tube type and I put two gallons of antifreeze in each one, then filled them to the 75% level with water. You can get the air/water adapter from Tractor Supply Co. although I just used home made tools on hand.

I guess Kendrick Tire Co., 511 Franklin, in Waco (254-753-2491) still does the foam for tractor tires; at least they were doing it a few years ago. I don't know how many varieties they have, but bet they would do the liquid also.
 
   / Water in rear tires #10  
Pete, it hit 78 day before yesterday and was probably near that yesterday, but supposed to get back into the 20s at night by this weekend./w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif
 
 
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