Slow Leak in Tire

[GuglioLS]

Do you have a FEL, or someone close by with one? - if so put the tire under the bucket and use the FEL down pressure to "break the bead" Soap up the bead, inflate and see if you fixed it.

 

[WVBill]

Thanks, guys -

I had the slime with me when I did the soapy water test. I didn't put it in because I thought slime only worked on leaks in the tread area. But since some of you have had real-world success with slime for rim/bead leaks I'll give it a go.

WVBill

 

[DieselPower]

Tire sealants like Slime work anywhere there is a leak. It doesn't know the difference between the tread area and the bead.

 

[Casey1]

This seems like a very common problem. Happens to me all the time but I thought it would not work on a rim leak either. I'm glad it doesn't know the difference between the rim or not. Thanks for the info Diesel Power, I'm going for it.

 

[canucklehead]

not too sure how well this would work on a tractor tire (and it's almost the same as the slime idea), but an old-time tire guy friend (bubble balancer days) showed me this trick. remove valve stem, on a 15" trailer tire, we'd inject 2 horse syringes full of dishwashing soap (I'd say double that for a tractor tire). then replace valve, air it up, and spin it around. It worked great, but only on those annoying slow leaks that take a few days to show loss of tire pressure. I've also used this method successfully on our ATV tires.

 

[exNCite]

How much slime is needed in a tire? Is it just a few ozs or does it take the whole can? (I know it depends on the size of the tire, but how about a tractor tire say 26 x 12-12). Thanks guys.

 

[normde2001]

Bite the bullet, take it to your nearest service station and invest $10.

 

[schmism]

i usually use another veical weight to break the bead of a tire....

placeing the rim on the ground drive up on the deflated rubber tire just missing the rim, the weight is usually enought to break the bead.

 

[patrick_g]

If the tire is mounted properly then why mess with breaking it down and remounting. Like Bob and others said, SLIME IT. Slime and its similar brothers is GOOD STUFF. I recommend Slime or equivalent for all small tractor tires whether they leak or not (and wheel barrows and nearly every pneumatic tire you have.

With slime, small pumctures like from thorns and such self seal while the foreign material is in the hole and again after the debris comes out. I used to get slow leaks from thorns in the front tires of my tractor (L-4610HSTC Kubota) but put Slime in 5 years ago and nary a leak since. I haven't aired the tires in 3-4 years.

Rear tires are also a candidate but Slime and its ilk are not cheap and you'd need a fair volume to cover the waterfront in a large rear tire. My Kubota manual prohibits (not just warns against) the use of liquid in my tires so I can run Slime in the rears. If you have loaded rear tires, you can put radiator stop leak in them and get action similar to Slime.

I have used a little slime in a wheel barrow tire that was literally coming apart and would not begin to hold air and the tire sealed right up and worked fine at maximum pressures. Sure I changed to a new tire but at a convenient time later not as a crisis right away.

When I mountain biked in (dare I say it) the mountains, I used slime in the tires and never had a thorn spoil my fun.

Anyone ever have a BAD experience with slime? I never heard of one. Maybe someone could get some where they don't want it or somehow foul a Shrader valve (never had a problem myself) but I haven't heard of a documented problem. Of course if you damage a tire requiring more than just slime to fix it (a patch applied internally) the slime will have to be wiped away from the area where the glue is to be applied. Big deal, not much of a problem for the benefits derived.

Pat

 

[roxynoodle]

I'm having the same problem with my Yanmar. I just got new tires 3 weeks ago, but one won't seal to the rim. I have taken it back twice already. The rim appears to be in good condition without any bends. I have been debating putting a tube in or sliming it. I'm getting tired of taking it off the tractor and carting it back to the farm co-op. It is a front tire, 5x12. If I were to put in slime, how much would I need?