How Many Times Do You Pump Up Your Tires ?

[Andrew D]

The Details : I have the Kendra 27.5 X 2.2 fat tires that come with the Aventon L2 , and a decent amount of Flat Out in them .. Limit is
50PSI , so I inflate to 49 ..
When i first got the bike i used to put fresh air in every week , take it down to about 20PSI before pumping it back up . That got a little
old with a floor pump , so I bought an electronic air pump ... and then I missed a week . but when I attached the el-pump , I noticed I
had barely lost a fifth of the air .
Last two times are a great example : Previously , I waited 2+ weeks , and then when I went to fill the back was at 39 PSI but the
front was at 42 . That is after over 100 miles ... Last time I waited almost a month , and only filled because I was already doing maintenance
and Thought the front seemed low ...well the back was at 42 , but the front was still at 48 !
I only know when the back feels low because when I hit the throttle the kick-up to speed is not as smooth . also there is a slight
out-of-true wobble . Also the tires make a different sound when they hit the pavement if they have lost the 20%; kinda more of a slapping sound ..
And I deliberately try to ease it over potholes , speed bumps and uneven bridge connectors , so I am not banging it around ..
Would retaining at least 80% of air pressure over weeks be normal ? and is the Flatout a factor ? I had to ride home from work once ,
when the front had dropped to 20PSI for some reason , but took it over bumps real slow and had no trouble on good surface ..

 

[any name you wish]

I check the air pressire once a week. I top it off if it drops by more than 5 psi or so. Removing air then filling it back up does nothing but waste time. Retaining air for weeks like you mentioned isn't unusual. Losing a lot in a week means you have a leak. Remember temperature does effect your air pressure.

 

[Unit59]

When your loosing air on a constant basis you have a tube problem, and with flat-out in them you shouldn't be loosing hardly any. I check mine before every ride and they are usually ok, maybe once a month I need to top them off a few pounds. If your going to buy new tubes make sure you get quality name brand tubes as they will hold air better.

 

[BiggKidd]

With how small bike tires are the act of checking them will make the pressure drop a little. I haven't put air in my tires but once since getting it in Oct. Since then I just thumb test and ride.

 

[CoffeeandBikes]

I have 26" x 4" fat tires. The max pressure is 20 psi. It's a hardtail so I only run 15 psi when riding on pavement. When I ride on the beach I lower the pressure to 5 psi. I carry a portable electric pump, so I can pump back up to 15 psi when I get back to pavement. If I forget to reinflate the tires it's a nightmare when hitting pavement . With that said, I've gone a couple weeks between inflations and the pressure is consistent. Those HUGE fat tires hold A LOT of air.

 

[Hakaman99]

I put the green slime in mine about a month ago, and it seems to be holding the air fine. I should go and check them again, just to make sure. I have Kenda 27.5x2.4" eBike puncture resistant tires, slimed up, ha ha. I really don't want to have a flat 10 Mi out, as I don't have much experience changing or repairing tires. I would really have to use all my mechanical skills set to take off a rear tire, replace the tube, and reassemble. I am wondering if there is any videos that are proprietary showing how to change a rear tire?

 

[Smaug]

The Details : I have the Kendra 27.5 X 2.2 fat tires that come with the Aventon L2 , and a decent amount of Flat Out in them .. Limit is
50PSI , so I inflate to 49 ..
When i first got the bike i used to put fresh air in every week , take it down to about 20PSI before pumping it back up. <snip>

Stop right there. You've got a leak. If you inflate to 50, it should not lose more than maybe 3-4 psi in a week's time. This is also why the front loses pressure MUCH slower than the back; the back is punctured and the front is not. ;-)

It sounds like you have a puncture that is not fully sealed by the FlatOut. That, or a loose valve.

Take the wheel off the bike, take it to your bath tub with maybe 8" of water in it and slowly turn the tire through the water until you find the stream of tiny bubbles; that's where your leak is.

 

[Andrew D]

Ok but to explain the ONE time it was at 20 psi , I think it was sabotaged. I didn't have a cap ; anyone could have pressed it ..and that was months ago ..
Both tires have been holding air pretty well ;the 5 psi lost a week , is right on track . Obv a skinny tire is much different . And I never had flat out or slime in my road tires ...

 

[Andrew D]

Just checking how fat tires respond. .If I only have to really check the back tire , that's good..

 

[BiggKidd]

All I can say is I have NOT added air to my tires since the initial airing up and when I put flat out in them.

 

[Pspurcha]

I have 26x4.8 tires. I picked up a bunch of goat heads in Arizona riding off road (probably 50 in each tire). A flat front made me look. I took a small pair of needle nose and pulled them all out including the broken off spikes where the goat head broke off. Had no spare tubes and ended up sliming both front and back tubes and reinflating thinking I would pull the wheels and tires/tubes and start new whem i returned from my trip in a few days, but that was 5 months ago and I don't lose any pressure to speak of. Aired up 1x since. Love my slime!

 

[Unit59]

I just tried a product called "Joe's no flats" I've never heard of it before, but apparently it has gotten rather great reviews in he bike tire sealant world. Available in small bottles 125ml to be carried in your bike bag, but also available in larger quantities. So far I like it and I like the added protection and peace of mind.
https://www.amazon.com/JOES-NO-FLATS-Super-Sealant/dp/B0DT25PPX7?th=1

 

[CoffeeandBikes]

I have 26x4.8 tires. I picked up a bunch of goat heads in Arizona riding off road (probably 50 in each tire). A flat front made me look. I took a small pair of needle nose and pulled them all out including the broken off spikes where the goat head broke off. Had no spare tubes and ended up sliming both front and back tubes and reinflating thinking I would pull the wheels and tires/tubes and start new whem i returned from my trip in a few days, but that was 5 months ago and I don't lose any pressure to speak of. Aired up 1x since. Love my slime!

I purchased a couple lbs of Slime, but decided against preemptively putting it in the tires. I carry it with me now. My concern with putting it in right away is my practice of releasing pressure from the tires before riding on loose sand. Do your valves still work well with the Slime?

 

[JerryB]

I thumb test mine once in awhile......they rarely loose air. If I need to add air.....my shop compressor is used. Not sure why anyone would release air and fill.....air doesn't go bad????

 

[CoffeeandBikes]

I thumb test mine once in awhile......they rarely loose air. If I need to add air.....my shop compressor is used. Not sure why anyone would release air and fill.....air doesn't go bad????

I release air when riding in/on loose sand - lower to 5 psi on 4" fat tire. It makes a lot of difference.

 

[Pspurcha]

I purchased a couple lbs of Slime, but decided against preemptively putting it in the tires. I carry it with me now. My concern with putting it in right away is my practice of releasing pressure from the tires before riding on loose sand. Do your valves still work well with the Slime?

They work fine with the slime but I do keep the valve stem off the bottom position when releasing air.

 

[BiggKidd]

The problem I've run into with slime is it hardens before you need it. The flat out supposedly stays liquid for two years.

 

[Smaug]

All I can say is I have NOT added air to my tires since the initial airing up and when I put flat out in them.

(re. fat tires)

Fat tires tend to hold air better, because the pressures are so much lower. Well within what Schrader valves were designed for.

Some bike tires that use Schrader valves have more pressure than Schrader was designed for, so they need topping off a lot more often.

Presta are better at higher pressures, but can't always be found in the size tubes we want.

 

[BiggKidd]

(re. fat tires)

Fat tires tend to hold air better, because the pressures are so much lower. Well within what Schrader valves were designed for.

Some bike tires that use Schrader valves have more pressure than Schrader was designed for, so they need topping off a lot more often.

Presta are better at higher pressures, but can't always be found in the size tubes we want.

Schrader valves were first designed in the late 1800's and have no trouble holding 110psi on tractor trailers. The higher the pressure the tighter they seal so your explanation doesn't add up very well. I am a school trained diesel mechanic and have over 40 years building things...

Copied and pasted
The Schrader valve (also called American valve (AV)<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schra...ionary_of_Mechanical_Engineering_-_page_312-1"><span>[</span>1<span>]</span></a>) is a type of pneumatic tire valve used on virtually every motor vehicle in the world today. The original Schrader valve design was invented in 1891 and patented in the United States in 1893.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schrader_valve#cite_note-:0-2"><span>[</span>2<span>]</span></a>

The Schrader valve consists of a valve stem into which a valve core is threaded. The valve core is a poppet valve assisted by a spring. A small rubber seal located on the core keeps the fluid from escaping through the threads. Using the appropriate tools, a faulty valve core can be immediately extracted from the valve stem and replaced with a new one.

 

[Smaug]

OK, good point. I stand corrected; they were designed to work at higher pressures, but they damn sure don't hold air as well as more modern designs like Presta. The higher the pressure, the faster they leak down.