Posted by Jim Erhardt on December 29, 2011 at 10:43 AM
Photo above - my tire safety kit - a small 12 volt portable compressor and a tire pressure gauge, which is kept under the driver's seat.
Without a doubt, one of the most dangerous activities you can be required to do is changing a flat tire on the side of the road. Not only does the traffic pose a serious threat to your safety, but the jack supplied with your car is barely adequate to securely lift the car, and the supplied lug wrench inadequate for loosening lug nuts that are often over-torqued from the use of pneumatic impact guns.
Fortunately, the vast majority of "road side tire changes" are entirely avoidable. Rarely does a fully-inflated tire that is in good condition suddenly rupture and "blow out" on the road. More often than not, a slow leak caused by a nail, screw, etc. is the cause of the problem. The slow leak does not cause the tire to fail, the underinflation from the unnoticed leak does. Most leaks are easily repairable by a service professional.
The following simple habits can prevent the need for the vast majority of roadside tire changes;
1. Do a quick visual inspection of all four tires everytime you get in the car! This is fast and easy to do!
2. Carry a tire pressure gauge in the car. If a tire looks suspicious, check it with the gauge. For most passenger car tires, pressue under 25 PSI should be addressed before driving the car. At pressures under 20 PSI, tire failure while the car is moving becomes very likely (and very dangerous).
3. Finally, carry a 12-volt portable compressor in the car. If you find a tire low on pressure, you can inflat the tire to proper pressure and then drive to a nearby safe place to deal with the leaky tire - such as a local service station. Most of these compressors are small and plug into a 12 volt outlet, such as a cigarette lighter socket.
A few notes;
Even though you can not judge tire pressure with a visual inspection, you can usually detect a tire that has become dangerously low. If a tire is supposed to be inflated to 35 PSI but is down to 20, you should be able to see this by how much the bottom of the tire "bellys out" on the pavement. Remember, an underinflated tire is a major safety concern!
Once a week, check the tire pressure with a gauge. Become familiar with what they look like when properly inflated.
Every 10 degrees in temperature change can make a 1 PSI difference in tire pressure. You will need to make tire pressure adjustments when the seasons change.
When tread depth gets too low - under 3/32" tread depth at the point of most wear - replace the tires! I usually replace tires before that because all that separates us from disaster are those four very small patches of contact between the tires and the road.
By getting into these simple habits and carrying a pressure gauge and compressor, the nerve-wracking and dangerous practice of changing a tire that failed due to a slow leak on the side of a busy road can be avoided. Over the last 10 years, I have spotted a leaky tire several times before getting into the car, inflated it with a compressor and made it to a safe place to deal with it. Being able to do this just once - and avoiding the dangerous roadside tire change - will more than pay for the small price of the equipment and minimal time these safety habits require!
Points well taken Jim, and I especially like the fact that the gear you highlight is easy to store.
I'll add to the broad list of "tire safety" if that's suitable.
I'd include tire chains in your vehicle even if you seldom use them. And especially so if you will be plying dirt roads in the desert on some future vacation.
Tire chains? Desert?
You'll kiss my feet if you're ever caught wandering the desert and it suddenly starts to rain. Away from any sand, much of the soil in the Southwest has a high clay content. When wet it turns into a greasy layer of "peanut butter" on top of the hard surface half an inch to an inch below. It instantly packs tire treads and turns them "bald," and is so slick you can barely stand up on it. Tire chains, even the lightweight cable variety easily defeat the goo.
I carry chains in my truck as a matter of course, but in the years since I bought them new in 2001, they've never been used for snow. But each spring I use them at least once for mud. And most of the time it's mud on country back roads rather than offroad.
Even when I'm renting a car in the Southwest, my first stop with a rainy forecast is the auto supply store for a set of cheap cable chains.
Posted by Jim DeWitt on December 30, 2011 at 3:11 PM
Two additional points:
(1) Carry a Safety Seal or similar kit to make quick repairs of minor punctures. I like Safety Seal because it isn't damaged by freezing.
(2) Read - study - your owner's manual for how to get at your spare, jack and tire iron and how to use them in the comfort of your garage. Lower the spare, for example. It's better to learn how in your heated garage than on the interstate, in the dark and rain. My Dodge Dakota owner's manual is useless.
Posted by Scott Fricke on February 21, 2012 at 12:39 AM
I have a 4WD vehicle with a Warn Powerplant, a combination winch and air compressor. It's great for airing up the tires after airing them down prior to going off-road. I have used used it exactly as Jim described in his post. I came up on another vehicle on the trail I was on who had gotten a small rock puncture. The trail at that point was steep and had enough of a cross slope that changing the tire would have been a bit dangerous. We aired up his tire and refilled it twice more before we got to a place safe enough to change the tire.
As Jim D. suggests, I also carry a puncture repair kit that ARB makes to patch punctures in the field. I'd add another word of advice as well. Check your spare tire for air pressure as well. On 2 different occasions I stopped for people who had flats who pulled out their spare tire, mounted it, and then found out it was flat as well.
Posted by Lorna Taylor on February 21, 2012 at 9:46 AM
I have one of these and it has been a saving grace many times not only for my self but for offering road side assistance a few times , that is when I can get it away from the kids in the neighborhood who use it constantly to pump up every kind of ball and bike tire on the planet !!
When venturing into the desert, I bring along a portable CO2 tank. It allows me increase the tire pressure roughly 1 PSI for every 2 seconds of inflation. In the past when I aired down to around 15PSI for deep sand, it would take me about 15 minutes to get each tire up to street pressure --- so that's an hour of inflation. With the CO2 tank, I can inflate each tire in roughly 30 seconds, so the entire vehicle takes only 2 minutes. I also carry some automatic tire deflators that take the pressure down to a set level. This makes it easier when airing down before hitting deep sand.
Discussion
5 repliesWithout a doubt, one of the most dangerous activities you can be required to do is changing a flat tire on the side of the road. Not only does the traffic pose a serious threat to your safety, but the jack supplied with your car is barely adequate to securely lift the car, and the supplied lug wrench inadequate for loosening lug nuts that are often over-torqued from the use of pneumatic impact guns.
Fortunately, the vast majority of "road side tire changes" are entirely avoidable. Rarely does a fully-inflated tire that is in good condition suddenly rupture and "blow out" on the road. More often than not, a slow leak caused by a nail, screw, etc. is the cause of the problem. The slow leak does not cause the tire to fail, the underinflation from the unnoticed leak does. Most leaks are easily repairable by a service professional.
The following simple habits can prevent the need for the vast majority of roadside tire changes;
1. Do a quick visual inspection of all four tires everytime you get in the car! This is fast and easy to do!
2. Carry a tire pressure gauge in the car. If a tire looks suspicious, check it with the gauge. For most passenger car tires, pressue under 25 PSI should be addressed before driving the car. At pressures under 20 PSI, tire failure while the car is moving becomes very likely (and very dangerous).
3. Finally, carry a 12-volt portable compressor in the car. If you find a tire low on pressure, you can inflat the tire to proper pressure and then drive to a nearby safe place to deal with the leaky tire - such as a local service station. Most of these compressors are small and plug into a 12 volt outlet, such as a cigarette lighter socket.
A few notes;
Even though you can not judge tire pressure with a visual inspection, you can usually detect a tire that has become dangerously low. If a tire is supposed to be inflated to 35 PSI but is down to 20, you should be able to see this by how much the bottom of the tire "bellys out" on the pavement. Remember, an underinflated tire is a major safety concern!
Once a week, check the tire pressure with a gauge. Become familiar with what they look like when properly inflated.
Every 10 degrees in temperature change can make a 1 PSI difference in tire pressure. You will need to make tire pressure adjustments when the seasons change.
When tread depth gets too low - under 3/32" tread depth at the point of most wear - replace the tires! I usually replace tires before that because all that separates us from disaster are those four very small patches of contact between the tires and the road.
By getting into these simple habits and carrying a pressure gauge and compressor, the nerve-wracking and dangerous practice of changing a tire that failed due to a slow leak on the side of a busy road can be avoided. Over the last 10 years, I have spotted a leaky tire several times before getting into the car, inflated it with a compressor and made it to a safe place to deal with it. Being able to do this just once - and avoiding the dangerous roadside tire change - will more than pay for the small price of the equipment and minimal time these safety habits require!
I'll add to the broad list of "tire safety" if that's suitable.
I'd include tire chains in your vehicle even if you seldom use them. And especially so if you will be plying dirt roads in the desert on some future vacation.
Tire chains? Desert?
You'll kiss my feet if you're ever caught wandering the desert and it suddenly starts to rain. Away from any sand, much of the soil in the Southwest has a high clay content. When wet it turns into a greasy layer of "peanut butter" on top of the hard surface half an inch to an inch below. It instantly packs tire treads and turns them "bald," and is so slick you can barely stand up on it. Tire chains, even the lightweight cable variety easily defeat the goo.
I carry chains in my truck as a matter of course, but in the years since I bought them new in 2001, they've never been used for snow. But each spring I use them at least once for mud. And most of the time it's mud on country back roads rather than offroad.
Even when I'm renting a car in the Southwest, my first stop with a rainy forecast is the auto supply store for a set of cheap cable chains.
(1) Carry a Safety Seal or similar kit to make quick repairs of minor punctures. I like Safety Seal because it isn't damaged by freezing.
(2) Read - study - your owner's manual for how to get at your spare, jack and tire iron and how to use them in the comfort of your garage. Lower the spare, for example. It's better to learn how in your heated garage than on the interstate, in the dark and rain. My Dodge Dakota owner's manual is useless.
As Jim D. suggests, I also carry a puncture repair kit that ARB makes to patch punctures in the field. I'd add another word of advice as well. Check your spare tire for air pressure as well. On 2 different occasions I stopped for people who had flats who pulled out their spare tire, mounted it, and then found out it was flat as well.