AntiFreeze in tires to aid balance.

[MPBerk]

Centramatic

 

[WadePatton]

I'm adding water right now. Aluminum wheel, rubber tire--what the hey.



And whoever said "brake fluid"! no way -- very corrosive!

 

[John - K5AWO]

Originally posted by Jeff H

I worry about that stuff eating away at the rubber. Don't know about antifreeze?

Glycol isn't going to do anything to the rubber. That's what all the hoses are made out of on the cooling system.



Forget the water, just use glycol.

 

[Matt400]

Originally posted by MPBerk

Centramatic

Those are kinda neat, at first look pricey but when you consider they stay with the vehicle through all your sets of tires and the discount you will get from no balancing they are worth it.



Looks like they would keep the brake dust off the wheels too!

 

[John - K5AWO]

Originally posted by Matt400

CENTRAMATIC: Those are kinda neat, at first look pricey but when you consider they stay with the vehicle through all your sets of tires and the discount you will get from no balancing they are worth it.



Looks like they would keep the brake dust off the wheels too!

Uh, not completely. The tires will have to balanced upon purchase. After that, never again.



Those things will not totally balance a tire/wheel unless it is very close to begin with. Been there, Done that!



Down side? The ball bearings eventually wear grooves and metal starts to shave off internally. Then the bearings hang up and the wheel starts jumping. Ticks you off big time. I finally threw them away. Not for me. Of course, I used them over 35 years ago. Maybe since then they have figured out you need to put some oil in there too.

 

[tcourse]

How much?

So how much equal does it take?



TC

 

[pwknapp]

The Equal comes in different size paper bags. The correct bag is determined by tire size. Just throw a bag in each tire when mounting. The bag breaks and paper turns to dust after a few miles.

 

[draymorris]

Regular Antifreeze is a glycol based fluid and should help prevent rust and not harm rubber. Brake fluid. from my experience is also a glycol based fluid that is primarily made to withstand compression, not corode brake components, and not breakdown with heat - yes it does remove paint when left on a painted surface.



Farmers use fluid in tires only for weight - water would work by itself, but would corrode and freeze - therefor a water anit-freeze mix is used. The people who use salts in the water are achieving 2 things - one is a lower freezing point and two is more weight - saltwater is more dense than just water - and a tube would be used to keep corrosion down



I like the idea of using straight antifreeze - if you were worried about the environment, maybe some RV antifreeze, although I don't know about it corrosion inhibitors.



BTW, I would recommend corrosion inhibitors even if you have aluminum wheels. I have seen our city water consume aluminum fittings in our cooling system at work.

 

[Froadin]

Ok, so how much antifreeze do you need? I imagine there is some kind of formula that could at least be a rough guidline. And I have some trailer tires that really need a better balance.

 

[Froadin]

Btw, seen, and had a number of tractors using antifreeze in the tires for ballast. Works wonders. And never seen an issue other then having to handle them when they are off the tractor!

 

[John - K5AWO]

Why worry about the "off the wheel" situation? That's what I paid my money for when I get to tires

 

[Froadin]

I got my trailer used. Sure the tires were almost new, but there is no way I am taking the trailer in to have the tires rotated and ballanced on my trailer. So something like antifreeze will help maintain the balance on the tires as they wear.

As for normal vehicles, this also helps as you balance needed for your tires is in constant change. And also noted that 1/4 ounce of weight is typically the smallest weight a shop will use on your tires, and even they they are not perfect.

 

[John - K5AWO]

Originally posted by Froadin

And also noted that 1/4 ounce of weight is typically the smallest weight a shop will use on your tires, and even they they are not perfect.

And IF the tech is somewhat less than concerned about his quality, the "place" he attaches that 1/4 oz weight probably is NOT precisely vertical above the axle shaft. Worse than that is the guy who won't find the fore and aft points at which the reading changes from 00 and then center the wheel before he stabs on those weights.



Yet another reason I watch the balancer. If they won't let me, I find another tire shop.

 

[Dan_69GTX]

Ahh - easier yet - just buy your own balancer!



I have 2. A computer spin type (paid for by doing others tires), and a on-car Hunter brand - that spins the tires for the exact weight and placement - balance the entire rotating mass. - cost all of $25 at a swap meet.



Dan

 

[Lnwing]

What happens if the tire is punctured, besides pi$$ing off the tire dude? Can the antifreeze slime be cleaned up well enough for a plug/patch to hold?



I have actually used it for years in lawnmower tires for traction on sidehills, and it works great. Rims do not rust! Try to seat the beads dry before adding the antifreeze, though, because they can seep at the bead otherwise.

 

[knewman]

we always had to get all the water out of big truck tires or they would bounce like crazy

 

[RKrueger]

Boy, you guys must buy anti-freeze at whole sale prices.



At any rate, if you run out of glycol, check out the new balancing bead supplier in town:



http://www.innovativebalancing.com/



They have a new high-tech material, and a vast improvement over the old CounetrAct beads, glass or steel, with none of the drawbacks.

They also carry the accessories, plus two new items, Duallie Six-Packs for us Duallie-lovers



It's worth a look.



Cheers,

Robert



P. S. - It's a TDR "friendly" site.

 

[John - K5AWO]

No need for wholesale prices. If you leave the weights on, just add a couple oz of fluid.



If you take the weights off, just replace the weights with the same weight of fluid plus an ounce or two.

 

[PPeterson]

Don't use transmission fluid around rubber products, my father-in-law must have put some in the master cylinder of the IH Travelall I got from his widow in the '70's, It ate the seals out of everything. Had to replace the master and brake cylinders and all the rubber brake lines. Really thrilling to have the pedal go to the floor at a stoplight!

 

[John - K5AWO]

PPeterson



We were refering to anti-freeze as the "fluid". Rubber is pretty much impervious to anti-freeze.