Nitrogen filled tires...BS or not? Pro's vs cons...lets hear'em.
Thread: Nitrogen filled Tires
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03-01-2010 11:45 PMWarning: There will be no warning shots.
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03-01-2010 11:52 PM
The only real difference is that Nitrogen is much more thermodynamically stable than regular air (which is 78% nitrogen). So it doesn't expand and contract with heat and cold. This allows for a slightly more consitant tire pressure but thats about it.
P-4077 "The Swamp" S.B.Y.C. and Michigan medboat mothership
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03-02-2010 12:04 AMMarketing gimmick, unless you are racing the car (and then you should check several times during the day) the advantages for a street car are nil.
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03-02-2010 12:13 AMOne more "real" difference is nitrogen molecules are larger than "air" molecules so there's less pressure seepage over time. The big plus with a pure gas fill is the lack of moisture. Ever run an air hose at a gas station? You could confuse it with a water hose. Moisture is bad. The "con" with a nitro fill - what happens when you need some pressure, and you're nowhere near a nitrogen tank?
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03-02-2010 12:37 AM
Pressure stays more consistent with fluctuating temperatures. Less likely to set off a tire pressure monitor with temp changes. Other than that, alot of hype.
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03-02-2010 01:08 AM
on my benz i had to go to nitrogen I kept having sensor going off on cold days now it never goes off
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03-02-2010 01:13 AM
Like was previously mentioned. If you need air and there are no Nitrogen filling stations around, then what? As far as I know, you are not supposed to mix air and N. To fill with N, the tire must be totally evactuated of air first. Just doesn't seem worth it to me. Air is pretty easy to find and it's really cheap.
Eddie
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03-02-2010 01:49 AM
It'll always be easy to find, but just wait until someone figures out how to put a price tag on it...
The whole bottled water thing comes to mind.
I may be onto something here
Eddie, it was half your idea, how do we market the air thing, I'll take you in as a partner at 25%"Keep the bottle on the bar Ira, I won't be long".
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03-02-2010 02:56 AM
75 cnts for 3 minutes of compressor time.....
P-4077 "The Swamp" S.B.Y.C. and Michigan medboat mothership
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03-02-2010 04:09 AM
On our delivery trucks it has cut down the low tire syndrome dramatically. Our first truck with it, an F150, went over a year before being needing topping off, as did my Mustang. I am converting my trailer tires (several hundred of em) to it next, supposed to help eliminate the internal dry rot..
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03-02-2010 09:06 AM
Air is over 70% nitrogene anyways....
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03-02-2010 09:38 AMSpace shuttle tires are full of nitrogen. Mad Poodle is full of .............
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03-02-2010 10:29 AMHave you guys never seen an oxygen bar. Yes they do exist and they do charge for air someone already beat you to it. On the tire thing I sell wheels and tires most of my competitors sell it I do not see the point. But it does help with tpms sensors and also a leak that air would leak out of nitrogen will not (bigger molecules) the other big advantage is moisture content (which was already stated). It would definatly help with dry rot.
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03-02-2010 10:35 AM
there was a great SAE paper I read on the subject as many of my customers were asking about it, I did a little research.
1) The fact that an uninflated tire actually has 14.5 ( approx) psi in it: atmospheric pressure means that there is still a large percentage of straight air in the tire when its inflated with nitrogen thus negating the anti corrosive aspects of the theory. It is dam nearly impossible to evacuate all air from a tire without pulling the tire off the rim bead therefore dam nearly impossible to inflate a tire with 100% pure nitrogen.
2) in order to meet the claims of being non corrosive, the nitrogen must be medical grade 100% pure. As little as 1% oxygen in the mix and it loses the anti corrosive properties.
3) non of the currently marketed commercial nitrogen generator tire inflation machines is capable of producing 100% pure nitrogen ( most are 80% pure or less ) so in essence, they are useless other than generating gross profit for the user.
4) any thing over 5% air in the tire greatly dimminishes the thermal stability of a nitrogen fill.
Conclusion, worthless to the average person. Profitable for the tire store and the machine manufacturer.
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03-02-2010 10:40 AM
I tell the tire stores I don't care what they pump in my tires when they install them as long as it is free and they do not put those ugly green caps on my valve stems. And I prefer my oxygen flavored...
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03-02-2010 12:03 PM
I am going to use helium for weight reduction. I figure on the jeep with 37's it should pick up 10mpg.
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03-02-2010 12:57 PM
Did it on my wifes Jeep sensors all over the place with weather change wear on tire same MPG a touch better .I'd stick with air it's free.
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03-02-2010 01:07 PM
on a good tire seal, i.e. new and near perfect, it helps. for the average joe it doesn't seem to do a whole lot.
I'd get it if it was free (like at Costco). if you need to fill up just use air after that.
It is supposed to help with the internal tire rot but what I found on my boat trailer (where the tires rot before tread is worn) is the wheels had slight corrosion around the lip so the air would seep out of the seal on the wheel to tire. It wasn't a bad leak but bad enough that nitrogen wasn't going to help. So I found myself topping them off with regular air every few weeks anyway so that great idea went out the window.
For car tires I don't currently have a car that I don't wear the tread out before the tire rots so that's a moot point. And checking air pressure is something I do once a week or every other week anyway. it isn't that hard to drag the compressor hose out of the garage.