Tire inflation

I do not know if this subject has been discussed Previously, But here goes. Many places are selling Nitrogen for tires at high prices, Our earths Atmosphere is about 80% nitrogen, so paying for Nitrogen is only replacing about 20% of the air in that tire. Save your Money and Check those tires a little more often. Happy Motoring lloyd 193.

I've been using 78% nitrogen for years in all my vehicles. I find it works quite well.

exavid wrote:

I've been using 78% nitrogen for years in all my vehicles. I find it works quite well.

exavid wrote:

I've been using 78% nitrogen for years in all my vehicles. I find it works quite well.

Me too... And it's free!

A bit like bottled water from exotic places. Tap water is only tested once a day.

bandito2 wrote:

exavid wrote:

I've been using 78% nitrogen for years in all my vehicles. I find it works quite well.

Me too... And it's free!

I use compressed 78% nitrogen. It works better under pressure. Like some of our Mods do.

Surprising that you can't get the stuff at gas stations. I've asked a couple guys at some local stations and they tell me all they have is air. Check and see if your local station carries 78% nitrogen.

Trouble with that leaking bead area is a simple fix. Next time that tire is off that rim use your wire brush to thorouly clean that bead area, Finish that cleaning with some steel wool until that bead is smoothe. Then two coats of clear aerosol spray, Krylon works well for me. After you have done both bead areas, Allow to dry over night is best. Then mount that new tire using a good Lubricant and your bead leak problem will have Disappeared. Happy motoring lloyd 193.

I also use nothing but the 78.09% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen, 0.93% argon, 0.04% carbon dioxide blend, have been on all my pneumatic tired things for over 65 years--and check the tires on my '06 at least once a week as It's parked just 7 feet away from my compressor--and because there's only two of them and I had one blow out once (rear), it sucks¹...

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¹ - Back when motorcycle seats were upholstered with leather we had an expression for experiences like tank-slapping turns on washboard roads, tire blowouts, etc.--"It's a good thing shǐt sticks to leather". I have found over the years it sticks acceptably well to vinyl too.

I use a tire pressure monitoring system that keeps track of the amount of compressed nitrogen I have in my passenger tire commonly referred to as darkside.  

A simple weekly check of my nitrogen pressure with a nitrogen pressure tester to double check the accuracy of the passenger tire pressure monitoring system assures me that the monitoring system is working properly.

NOTE:  The adapter to check the nitrogen pressure vs the regular air pressure is an app that can be downloaded for free online.  Just google passenger tire nitrogen pressure monitoring adapter.  

Below is a picture of a manual nitrogen pressure tester. I hope this clears the air.

Modernman1953 wrote:

I use a tire pressure monitoring system that keeps track of the amount of compressed nitrogen I have in my passenger tire commonly referred to as darkside.  

A simple weekly check of my nitrogen pressure with a nitrogen pressure tester to double check the accuracy of the passenger tire pressure monitoring system assures me that the monitoring system is working properly.

NOTE:  The adapter to check the nitrogen pressure vs the regular air pressure is an app that can be downloaded for free online.  Just google passenger tire nitrogen pressure monitoring adapter.  

Below is a picture of a manual nitrogen pressure tester.  I hope this clears the air.  

Yes this Nitrogen discussion has truly been a breath of fresh air. Happy Motoring lloyd 1939.

I was all in favor of the TPMS in my car until I realized that when the transmitter batteries wear out it's $250 to renew the system.

There are some decent TPMS units available that don't require batteries that expensive. Of course on a car there's the labor in removing, breaking the bead, installing new battery, reseating the tire times four. My GT came with TPMS as standard equipment. Replacement batteries aren't all that expensive for it. Surprising considering the usual price of BMW parts.

My tire pressure monitoring system uses the valve stem caps and the batteries are small 1.25 Volt batteries which costs $2.00 each at Batteries Plus. I haven't had to replace one yet as mine came with spares, but I did check on the replacement batteries.

Okay, so what TPMS should I be looking for then? Something that doesn't require breaking the tire bead to mount inside, something which mounts outside and presumably replaces the valve stem? Or is it that a truly functional TPMS mounts inside the rim?  Photos? Inquiring minds want to know.

Tim

Cosmic_Jumper wrote:

Okay, so what TPMS should I be looking for then? Something that doesn't require breaking the tire bead to mount inside, something which mounts outside and presumably replaces the valve stem? Or is it that a truly functional TPMS mounts inside the rim?  Photos? Inquiring minds want to know.

Tim

I use a direct observation and periodic validation based system, it consists of:

• Looking at the tires before I ride to see if they look properly inflated, worn, or damaged in any way;
  
• Checking the inflation pressure a couple times a week, or if I haven't ridden in a while--which is rare here in Florida;
  
• A close inspection of tread depth, sidewall condition, etc. once a month or so;
  

This has been working for 60+ years--I.e. it ain't broke so I'm not planning on fixing it anytime soon...

cliffyk wrote:

Cosmic_Jumper wrote:

Okay, so what TPMS should I be looking for then? Something that doesn't require breaking the tire bead to mount inside, something which mounts outside and presumably replaces the valve stem? Or is it that a truly functional TPMS mounts inside the rim?  Photos? Inquiring minds want to know.

Tim

I use a direct observation and periodic validation based system, it consists of:

• Looking at the tires before I ride to see if they look properly inflated, worn, or damaged in any way;
  
• Checking the inflation pressure a couple times a week, or if I haven't ridden in a while--which is rare here in Florida;
  
• A close inspection of tread depth, sidewall condition, etc. once a month or so;
  

This has been working for 60+ years--I.e. it ain't broke so I'm not planning on fixing it anytime soon...

cliffyk wrote:

I use a direct observation and periodic validation based system, it consists of:
[*]Looking at the tires before I ride to see if they look properly inflated, worn, or damaged in any way;
[*]Checking the inflation pressure a couple times a week, or if I haven't ridden in a while--which is rare here in Florida;
[*]A close inspection of tread depth, sidewall condition, etc. once a month or so;
[/list]
This has been working for 60+ years--I.e. it ain't broke so I'm not planning on fixing it anytime soon...

Thanks Cliff. I realize that that TPMS works well for some of you folks in the more temperate weather zones, but getting down to check pressures then attempting to get back up is a tedious and oft times painful task for me. I was kinda hoping that some one of you guys had a magic soultion for monitoring tire pressures.

Tim

One of the things that I liked about my scooter when I got it was the TPMS. At 74 with arthritis it's uncomfortable to get at the valves with my gauge. I often put the bike up on my HF bike lift just to check tire pressure.
The system on my GT isn't super accurate it reads about three psi below what my two tire gauges show. Since the differential is pretty constant I know if I see 39psi on the rear tire it's actually 42psi which is the proper pressure.
A fellow down the street from me has one of the cheap systems in the link below. He got it a few months ago and says it's working well for him. He has it on a Harley and mounted the receiver inside the fairing where he can see it but it's not too obvious to prevent theft. The sensors on the wheels don't look too obviously different so they don't call attention to themselves.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Measurement-Limited-Motorcycle-TPMS-Monitor/21118551?wmlspartner=wmtlabs&adid=22222222222015273670&wmlspartner=wmtlabs&wl0=e&wl1=o&wl2=c&wl3=10359492225&wl4=kwd-1103077496333&wl12=21118551_0&wl14=motorcycle%20tpms&veh=sem

Tim,
I use the FOBO TPMS system to monitor my tire pressure. It mounts on the valve stem and uses Bluetooth to communicate to your cellphone. It does have a replaceable round battery. Works with IOS and Android phones. The battery lasts about 2 years. I have had mine for about four years now and have not had any problems with it. At anytime you can check it with your phone. You set the max/low pressures for both tires. You get automatically notified when the actual pressure falls out of the range you set. You do have to unscrew it from the valve stem to add air. I have used it long enough to trust it, so I only get on my knees when I get notified of a low pressure.