Tire Ballast

Erichh66 · May 3, 2011

You should really look into Rimguard. It's food grade, biodegradable, non-corosive, non-toxic and tips the scales @ around 11 lbs. / gal. Anti-freeze would be around 8 lbs./gal calcium is 12 lbs./gal I had 28 gal. put in each rear tire on my B3300 Kubota. 616 lbs. and it cost me $151.00 installed. washer fluid (75 gal @ $2 each)would cost that much and anti-freeze will be more.(50/50 mix = 40 gal. @ $7+/ gal.=$280 ish) Then you have to spend a day putting it in yourself.
If the rimguard leaks out, it won't kill your dog. Just sayin.

XSKIER · May 4, 2011

I'm still in dis-belief. I took the tires of my jd 425, weighed 33.4 lbs each. I installed 26-12r-12 ATV tires and had them loaded with rim guard. When I put them back on, 180.3 lbs each! The cost was $53 for the rim guard.

deepNdirt · May 4, 2011

after reading much about adding liquid to the rear wheels and recently experiencing some lack in traction I been considering doing this to the tires on my Yanmar, I do have a question of concern...... on a larger and more powerful tractor it might not effect it, but with having barely 21 Hp. I'm wondering what this added weight will do to the power?
for example: if I load the tires with say 100 lbs each would it take more power to drive my tractor up a hill? this lack of traction I recently had was when trying to back up a 50 or so degree incline, I was attempting to back up the hill to drop the pulverizer at top to drag and remove the crown from top of the hill,
I simply lost traction about 1 ft. short of getting to the top of the 8 ft hill,
I'm thinking tire ballast, but then again will this only be extra weight to pull up the hill? I mean I don't do this type of thing all the time

but wondering if perhaps there would be a power trade off for traction?

johndeerezach · May 5, 2011

ok i am new to this liquid ballast and would like to get some for my 3038e john deere. how do i go about getting this liquid and i dont know the first thing about doing it so i would like some body who knows what they are doing fill the tires .

Gobblin Tom · May 6, 2011

johndeerezach said:
ok i am new to this liquid ballast and would like to get some for my 3038e john deere. how do i go about getting this liquid and i dont know the first thing about doing it so i would like some body who knows what they are doing fill the tires .

Any dealer can add it for you, it is cheap compared to bolt on weights.

Gary Fowler · May 6, 2011

I have been wanting to put in some liquid ballast on my new tractor but never took the time. WELL I have been calculating the costs. Beet juice based on figures from this forum $2.50-3.50 per gallon x 150 gallons for rear tires=$375-$525. Antifreeze at 60/40 water antifreeze ratio at $12 per gallone antifreeze= 60 gallons for $720. Windshield washer at $2.29 per gallon=$344. I could get by with 10% antifreeze to protect to 25F which is normally minimum temps at my place but still cost me almost $200 and this is all do it yourself except for the beet juice which I dont really have a real figure on. I am thinking that I might spring for the $200 worth of antifreeze to give me a nominal protection. If it freezes the water, it wont hurt the tire anyway as long as it isnt moved while frozen. I have pure water in my Yanmar tires and we had several weeks of below freezing weather around Christmas last year and didnt hurt a thing. I dont need anything in it anyway because it wont crank below 45 F. I guess I will bite the bullet and go buy 4 cases of anti-freeze and pump in 8 gallons on each rear wheel when I get home this time. I really need the weight to stop the tipping tendency when the FEL is fully loaded.

Gobblin Tom · May 6, 2011

Gary Fowler said:
I have been wanting to put in some liquid ballast on my new tractor but never took the time. WELL I have been calculating the costs. Beet juice based on figures from this forum $2.50-3.50 per gallon x 150 gallons for rear tires=$375-$525. Antifreeze at 60/40 water antifreeze ratio at $12 per gallone antifreeze= 60 gallons for $720. Windshield washer at $2.29 per gallon=$344. I could get by with 10% antifreeze to protect to 25F which is normally minimum temps at my place but still cost me almost $200 and this is all do it yourself except for the beet juice which I dont really have a real figure on. I am thinking that I might spring for the $200 worth of antifreeze to give me a nominal protection. If it freezes the water, it wont hurt the tire anyway as long as it isnt moved while frozen. I have pure water in my Yanmar tires and we had several weeks of below freezing weather around Christmas last year and didnt hurt a thing. I dont need anything in it anyway because it wont crank below 45 F. I guess I will bite the bullet and go buy 4 cases of anti-freeze and pump in 8 gallons on each rear wheel when I get home this time. I really need the weight to stop the tipping tendency when the FEL is fully loaded.

My dealer said it was around $150 for both back tires for rimguard, maybe that is because it is a new tractor? I would check a dealer 1st and see what they charge.... jmo ........ might save you some of that green stuff!

johndeerezach · May 6, 2011

So my local john deere dealer would be able to fill the tires. Iron weights are not that much i have 2 -60 lbs for wheel well and were only about $40 and came with smaller set of 2-30 lbs also at auction but need more weight for tires but thank you

Zork · May 6, 2011

deepNdirt said:
after reading much about adding liquid to the rear wheels and recently experiencing some lack in traction I been considering doing this to the tires on my Yanmar, I do have a question of concern...... on a larger and more powerful tractor it might not effect it, but with having barely 21 Hp. I'm wondering what this added weight will do to the power?
for example: if I load the tires with say 100 lbs each would it take more power to drive my tractor up a hill? this lack of traction I recently had was when trying to back up a 50 or so degree incline, I was attempting to back up the hill to drop the pulverizer at top to drag and remove the crown from top of the hill,
I simply lost traction about 1 ft. short of getting to the top of the 8 ft hill,
I'm thinking tire ballast, but then again will this only be extra weight to pull up the hill? I mean I don't do this type of thing all the time but wondering if perhaps there would be a power trade off for traction?

I doubt it because the average man is about 200 pounds and I dont think your tractor would have this problem starting with you and an additional person or two sitting on it.