Flat Tire

[SnoManX]

Alright, what's the best route with a tire that won't hold air longer than a week? I've looked and can't seem to find any puncture holes at all but the tire will not hold air very long. It wasn't a big deal this summer but with this cold weather I have to fill it once a week. Should I just pull the tire and have a tube placed in it? Or should I try some Tire Slime? One guy told me this was a common problem on tubeless ATV tires not seating correctly on the rim.

[Dave]

Have a tire place (or do it yourself if capable) remove and inspect the tire and rim to see why it's not seating well.

[Roofer]

The solution is 6 ply tires if you haven't already changed from the 2 ply stockers. With the aluminum rims and 2 ply, they move and shrink too much with temperature and the beads slowly leaks.

If that's not it, you could try slime. It has worked for me in the past.

[dogs]

Slime has worked for me, had a pebble one time between rim and tire that once removed would not seal and slime sealed it.

[Scott K]

The best thing to do is find where it is leaking, if you have a big enough tank to fill with water, and submerge the tire, this is the best way to check it. Slime is a good product, but I wouldnt use it to repair a problem, just to prevent one, or for emergency. Find the leak, fix it, then put the slime in it, for future problems. And if you plan on replacing tires soon dont use it, the person replacing the tires wont like you much! 6ply tires is also a good option to prevent problems, but isnt the cheapest way.

[Dave S]

A little dish soap and water mixed in a glass will work wonders to find the leak. No water tank needed. Just slowly pour a little around the bead area as well as the valve stem. If nothing shows up, then target the rest of the tire. Even with 6 ply tires, it can be a task to find the leak, but the soapy water will bubble up once it comes into contact with the leak. Just make sure you start with a little more PSI than your tires are rated for normal use. Maybe about 10-15 PSI.

[BobT]

Bear in mind this is just my opinion.

It seems just about any low pressure tire out there, keeping air in them for any length of time is a challenge. Riding lawn mowers and ATVs are two applications that come to mind. In both cases I seemed to have the problem of keeping air in those tubless tires. I believe there just isn't enough air pressure to hold the bead tight agains the rim seat.

I had the same problem in mine and over a year ago I added Slime and haven't had to add air since until recently when I punctured one with a nail. I will say that repairing the tire becomes a mess.

Another, possibly even less expensive solution and certainly less messy if you need to repair, is to install tubes. The real advantage in Slime is the tire held air even with the nail hole. Having Slime in your tires can sometimes get you home when the tube won't.

Bob

[Scott K]

I dont like tubes, do to if you pick up a nail, your done! There isnt no plug it, or air it up and drive home, Once the tube pops time to jack it up and bring it in for repair! They make a bead sealer that works good for alum. wheels, and problem leaky beads, I also use it on low pressure tires.

[Bjjams]

The bad thing about putting tubes in an atv tire is you’ll have to keep more air pressure in them. With the amount of torque an atv puts on its tires if the tube doesn’t have enough pressure it’ll slip inside tire giving you more problems than you started out with. Slime might work for you but most tire changers will charge you more if you have slime in there because it is such a mess. My suggestion would be if it’s a bead problem take the tire off the rim and try to re-seat it or if it’s a small hole around the tire try to plug it.

[Dave S]

Even though they would add more weight to the tire, tire balls are the better option over a single tube.

[BobT]

I never thought of that with using tubes in an ATV tire. Do the tires slip on the rims that much? If so, that would explain the issue with keeping air in them too. It is a good point though about the difficulty with fixing when needed. I repaired the tire on mine and I'll never try that again. I have slide hammers for breaking beads on tractor tires and I never worked so hard as I did to remove the ATV tire. Maybe using a tube is not such a good idea after all.

Bob

[SnoManX]

Thanks guys!! Last night I figured the most common answer would be to tube it - glad I asked first. Never would have thought about all the problems a tube could create. I'm leaning towards the slime but if I get time this week, I might run it into the tire shop. Just don't want to have any issues out in BFE on the week long hunting trip to ND.