491ton
Member
What different fluids can be used for ballast?
Ballast Tire ballast types
- Thread starter 491ton
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davesl708
Elite Member
Several. RV anti-freeze is common. Regular type (green, orange, blue) can be used as well.
I think there are some commercial fluids as well.
I think there are some commercial fluids as well.
4570Man
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The most common are beet juice, and windshield washer fluid. Calcium chloride used to be common. As long as it won't freeze where you live you could use water.
LD1
Epic Contributor
Calcium: Corrosive and can eat rims if you have a leak. But its good and heavy @~11lb per gallon. And its cheap
Beet juice (rim guard): Non toxic and non corrosive. Good and heavy like calcium ~ 11lb per gallon. Expensive
Windshield washer fluid: Pretty common. Non corrosive, and cheap. But not as heavy @ ~8lb per gallon
RV antifreeze: Pretty much the same as WW fluid. Non corrosive and light. Not too expensive. Personally, my decision between RV antifreeze and WW fluid would be based on price.
Wouldnt use calcium. Calciums benefit is cheap cost like WW fluid but heavy like beet juice. I would either spend the extra money for beet juice or do without the extra 3#/gallon and go with WW fluid.
Just pumped 40 gallons in each tire on dads 444. WW fluid on sale ~$1.50/gal for -20f stuff
Beet juice (rim guard): Non toxic and non corrosive. Good and heavy like calcium ~ 11lb per gallon. Expensive
Windshield washer fluid: Pretty common. Non corrosive, and cheap. But not as heavy @ ~8lb per gallon
RV antifreeze: Pretty much the same as WW fluid. Non corrosive and light. Not too expensive. Personally, my decision between RV antifreeze and WW fluid would be based on price.
Wouldnt use calcium. Calciums benefit is cheap cost like WW fluid but heavy like beet juice. I would either spend the extra money for beet juice or do without the extra 3#/gallon and go with WW fluid.
Just pumped 40 gallons in each tire on dads 444. WW fluid on sale ~$1.50/gal for -20f stuff
k0ua
Epic Contributor
Yes, I have outlined how to do it many times on many threads. It is an easy procedure with a less than $20 investment in tools.
ovrszd
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For you and I, in the potential freeze belt, the cheapest would be Windshield Washer fluid. I bought 180 gallon of it from the local auto dealership. Paid just over $200. Then pumped it in myself.
The heaviest and probably most expensive is Rim Guard (Beet Juice). Your local tire shop can quote you a fill price.
Here's a link to a chart telling you how much your tires will hold.
http://www.rimguard.biz/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Hydro-Flation-tables-2014-PDF.pdf
Looking4new
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Gemplers sells the fitting you need. Installing Liquid Ballast in Tires | GEMPLER'S
k0ua
Epic Contributor
How to fill your rear tires:
Step 1, buy the fill/burp valve. Available at tractor supply, Gemplers, Amazon and other places. Look up the 75% fluid fill for your tire and set out just that amount of fluid.
Step 2: Get a 5 gallon bucket, some short pieces of garden hose and a small pump. I used the $8 drill pump from Home Depot. it is crap but will last for this job.
Step 3: Make sure the valve stem is at 12 o'clock. Jack up one side of tractor so that tires is just barely sitting on the ground. Not free to spin but almost no weight on it. The reason for this is so the tire bead will not be broken when we let most of the air out of tire.
Step 4. hook up pump and pour your liquid in the 5 gallon bucket and dump in the inlet hose , hook up drill pump and fill valve, and get your valve stem removal tool ready.
Step 5: remove valve stem core, let most of the air out but not all. Hold thumb over hole to retain some air pressure while screwing on the fill adaptor. I also put a simple garden hose on/off ball valve in line with the adaptor to make it easier to control the loss of air pressure after getting the fill valve on. So to recap, I put the fill adapter on immediately after removing the valve stem core. Then let most but not all of the air out with my inline ball valve. The reason for leaving some air in is to prevent the bead from unseating on the rim. Also see step 3 above.
Step 6, Start the drill pump and start pumping in the fluid. As the fluid goes in the air pressure remaining in the tire will increase. The will build up a "head pressure" the pump will not be able to overcome, and the pump will labor and the fluid transfer rate will go down. Time to stop and burp some more air out of the tire using the little burp button included on the fill adapter. Let some air out, not all.
Step 7: Pump in some more fluid. With the little junky drill pump, I had to stop and burp at about every 3 gallons of fluid. Just use common sense. Pump burp, pump, burp until the measured amount of fluid for 75% fill is pumped into the tire.
Step 8. Get valve core ready, and remove fill adaptor and get core screwed back in and air up tire to your manuals normal air pressure. Mine is at 20 lbs.
Step 9: Let down jack and repeat procedure for other tire.
Step 10: Enjoy increased traction and stability.
Step 1, buy the fill/burp valve. Available at tractor supply, Gemplers, Amazon and other places. Look up the 75% fluid fill for your tire and set out just that amount of fluid.
Step 2: Get a 5 gallon bucket, some short pieces of garden hose and a small pump. I used the $8 drill pump from Home Depot. it is crap but will last for this job.
Step 3: Make sure the valve stem is at 12 o'clock. Jack up one side of tractor so that tires is just barely sitting on the ground. Not free to spin but almost no weight on it. The reason for this is so the tire bead will not be broken when we let most of the air out of tire.
Step 4. hook up pump and pour your liquid in the 5 gallon bucket and dump in the inlet hose , hook up drill pump and fill valve, and get your valve stem removal tool ready.
Step 5: remove valve stem core, let most of the air out but not all. Hold thumb over hole to retain some air pressure while screwing on the fill adaptor. I also put a simple garden hose on/off ball valve in line with the adaptor to make it easier to control the loss of air pressure after getting the fill valve on. So to recap, I put the fill adapter on immediately after removing the valve stem core. Then let most but not all of the air out with my inline ball valve. The reason for leaving some air in is to prevent the bead from unseating on the rim. Also see step 3 above.
Step 6, Start the drill pump and start pumping in the fluid. As the fluid goes in the air pressure remaining in the tire will increase. The will build up a "head pressure" the pump will not be able to overcome, and the pump will labor and the fluid transfer rate will go down. Time to stop and burp some more air out of the tire using the little burp button included on the fill adapter. Let some air out, not all.
Step 7: Pump in some more fluid. With the little junky drill pump, I had to stop and burp at about every 3 gallons of fluid. Just use common sense. Pump burp, pump, burp until the measured amount of fluid for 75% fill is pumped into the tire.
Step 8. Get valve core ready, and remove fill adaptor and get core screwed back in and air up tire to your manuals normal air pressure. Mine is at 20 lbs.
Step 9: Let down jack and repeat procedure for other tire.
Step 10: Enjoy increased traction and stability.
FTG-05
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Assuming it's not a COC violation here to post these, I always liked these two articles:
6 Reasons to Liquid Ballast your Kubota?s Tires | OrangeTractorTalks
How to Ballast your Kubota?s Tires | OrangeTractorTalks
6 Reasons to Liquid Ballast your Kubota?s Tires | OrangeTractorTalks
How to Ballast your Kubota?s Tires | OrangeTractorTalks
buickanddeere
Super Member
In an ideal world. The tires would be tubeless radials and external dry cast iron wheel weights bolted on. The most traction per lb of tractor . The quickest and least messy way to deal with flat tires too.
MMagis
Veteran Member
That’s more a matter of opinion. I prefer filled tires, I can get more weight and get that weight where I want it. And that’s not considering the huge difference in cost.
It may be worth a call to the local tire shop, one that handles farm equipment. The last tire I needed they came out and did it for me right in the field, and filled it right there. I can’t put an exact price on it, but I think the farm call was only a few bucks. I know that I had just done another tire a couple months before, and hauled/mounted it myself, and paid the exact same money (different shops).
LD1
Epic Contributor
Yea, not sure I'd call it easier to deal with if you have a flat.
If I get a flat, the WW fluid leaks out and the tire is light an managable to get repaired. Once repaired, I re-fill.
With weights, you have to deal with the weight everytime. For the price of fluid and price of weights, I can afford to loose all the fluid in each tire 10 times before I would break even. So far in 10 years of ownership it has happened twice.
If simply replacing the tires, the fluid can be pumped out pretty easy (easier than removing heavy weights IMO), and be put back in the new tires.
If I get a flat, the WW fluid leaks out and the tire is light an managable to get repaired. Once repaired, I re-fill.
With weights, you have to deal with the weight everytime. For the price of fluid and price of weights, I can afford to loose all the fluid in each tire 10 times before I would break even. So far in 10 years of ownership it has happened twice.
If simply replacing the tires, the fluid can be pumped out pretty easy (easier than removing heavy weights IMO), and be put back in the new tires.
buickanddeere
Super Member
As others have already explained, you missed this one. See explanations in two posts above.
You missed the point of "in an ideal world". Many people seem unaware that the same tire with 500lbs of external cast iron weight will pull more than if it was filled with 500lbs of liquid.
Why does anybody have to slug weights to plug a tubeless tire ? Or did you miss that point as well?
If you can't "get enough weight" on the tractor . The choice of application and equipment are less than ideal.
ovrszd
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You've tried to argue the point about cast weights being more effective than fluid before. It simply isn't true.
To plug a tubeless tire I don't even need to remove the fluid so no point there.
The idea and need for placed weight on a tractor is very broad. Totally depends on the uses. And normally has nothing to do with application or equipment selected.
LD1
Epic Contributor
Maybe I missed the discussions before.
How is weight outside the tire supposed to pull better than the same weight inside the tire?
How is weight outside the tire supposed to pull better than the same weight inside the tire?
MMagis
Veteran Member
Curious myself. Probably a lot of scientists that would want to know as well, since it defies simple physics.
