flat free and the like tyre punture prevention?

[prematurity]

i recently watched a program about cars and it showed a punture seel liquid that seals puntures as they happen helping to prevent blowouts , a similar product i found is called flat free and is here

http://www.netparts.co.uk/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=8&products_id=49
what you people in technical think is it a good thing for caravans if so why?

if you dont think its a good thing then likewise why?

karl

 

[Legsmaniac_374344731]

I use Flat Free in my car and caravan. I think it's good because it seals any punctures as they happen, allowing you to continue your journey. Unlike Tyre Weld or any similar stuff used to fill and inflate a punctured tyre AFTER a puncture, you're not limited to 50mph for a set number of miles. You can carry on driving.

I would rather use Flat Free than Tyron Bands. Far cheaper too.

 

[Meister]

Sounds reasonable but ....... I don't think this type of product will work in the case of a side wall blow out which is where I am told many many caravan punctures happen.

 

[Oldfogey]

I think one aspect that would concern me is that you could pcik up a nail in your tyre and not know it.

Normally a nail might give you a slow puncture, which you could spot and deal with, but with these products you could not know, and the nail would continue to do damage until you got a catastrophic failure.

 

[steve_374234388]

i wonder what mess the inside of the wheel/tyre are in when it is time to change the tyre.

 

[Robert_374242026]

I go along with Meister as 3 weeks ago we had a sidewall blowout and nothing would have prevented the damage received and that was with Tyron bands. I had a long time ago a simular product on our car and it did keep the tyres up , but when one wore out the fitter was not pleased with the mess inside.

 

[Legsmaniac_374344731]

Nothing will prevent a side wall tyre blow out of course. Flat Free is intended as a puncture fix and most punctures will be as a result of rolling over a screw, nail or glass. It's good practise to inspect your tyres before every journey so you'd spot a nail if you had one. And in most cases of side wall tyre blowouts, the tyre is likely to shred so nothing will help with that.

As for the "mess" - it's just 8 ounces of water soluble liquid which washes out easily. Not a problem.

I spent a long time uming and ahing over whether or not to use Flat Free but after watching their DVD and speaking to several people about it,including tyre companies and a policeman friend (who also uses it), I was happy to go ahead and use it. I would much rather prevent a puncture en route than risk an accident.

 

[CheapnCheerful]

It could well prevent a side wall blow out, I rekon most side wall blowouts are due to overheating, which in turn is due to low pressure, which in turn is due to a slow puncture.

How many people who have had a side wall blow out have investigated whether there was a slow punture in the tread that caused it? - indeed the evidence that there was may well have been destroyed in any case.

If you get a slow punture on the move, it could very well be that the first time you know about it is when you get a side wall blowout.

 

[EmmanuelMuldoon]

I fitted Flat-Free in the Car & Van last year, but have only done perhaps 1500 miles since, so not a lot yet, but I feel safer with it. No balance problems. Only downside is that you have to deflate each tyre to put the liquid in, so really need a "proper" compressor to reinflate.

 

[prematurity]

thanks for the responses, i myself am umming and arring but in a way agree with both arguments ,in a way isnt it the same as shockobsorbers and atc , you dont really definately know if they help but its a case of piece of mind?

keep the comments coming anyone one else used it and got punture with it in?

i am tintering on the edge of giving it a go.

karl

 

[Legsmaniac_374344731]

You said it. It's peace of mind, isn't it? So what harm is there in using it? It's not gonna cause any damage or harm. And it's only

 

[Rich]

The one problem with sealants like that are they can gather in the bottom of the tyre and when you drive will have the same effect as an inbalanced wheel. OK 8OZ seems a small amount but as it is at the outermost point of the tyre it will have a big impact on balance of it doesn't spread round the inner of the tyre. As you do not stop with the wheel in the same position everytime you cannot balance the wheel to allow for it either.

I do not like using products like this.

 

[Legsmaniac_374344731]

Sorry, Rich, but you're wrong. There is no problem with balance. It's a fairly thick gooey liquid which spreads easily and quickly around the inside tyre wall and spreads uniformly when in motion. The Flat Free website and demo video stresses there's no problems with balance and I was dubious myself when I first got it. My thinking was that I would try it and if I had problems with it, I could simply wash it out again.

I can honestly say there's no adverse affects with balance at all. A friend of mine had his Motorhome tyres filled with a similar product by a professional dealer and he feels no balancing problems either.

At the end of the day, each to their own. You'll never know until you try it. I'm very happy with it and will use it again.

 

[Surfer]

Having sold tyre sealant in the past, there is no ways I would have it in my caravan tyres. A caravan may stay stationary for a few weeks at a time and the gooey stuff will all settle in one position causing an imbalance. However this is not the main reason why I would not use it.

If you picked up a nail or sharp object that initally caused a small leak resulting in a slightly deflated tyre, the danger of a side wall burst are very good. It is a know fact that caravanners very seldom check their tyre pressures. If the object that penetrated the tyre is longer than usual, it may rub against the inside sidewall causing a sidewall blow out at some time.

I would prefer to get the puncture and then use a sealant to inflate the tyre enough to get me to the nearest garage. Better still is to carry a spare and to have break down cover. then there is no need to any sealants.

As this is a fairly common subject and close to the hearts of many caravanners, it is a wonder that it has never been highlighted in the PC magazine or even tested and pros and cons discussed or maybe I just missed the article.

 

[Rich]

Legsmaniac.

Sorry to disagree with you. I have fitted loads of tyres to not only my bikes and cars but also my race bikes and Karts. We were sponsored by a company who made a similar product and we used to get punctures in the Kart tyres if we clipped sharp kerbs or hit debris from other karts. The wheels are only 6 inches in Diameter but if we left the stuff in the tyres we used to have problems. Karts have no suspension and used the flex in the chassis to go round corners. With the shake from imbalance it used to have real problems for handling. It may not have been noticable in a car with suspension but it would make it shake if there was enough sealant which had settled.

Ian does have a point about getting a nail which can eventually get to the tyre wall. I prefer a tyre pressure monitoring system. At least you know you have a puncture and if you pull over before you lose too much pressure then just swap to the spare and get the damaged tyre swapped. Safer than riding round with a faulty tyre.

 

[Legsmaniac_374344731]

Fair point Rich but I don't think you can compare 6 inch tyres on suspensionless karts to car and caravan tyres.

All I can say is, I use Flat Free and don't have ANY vibration at all, not even at speed.

I also check my tyres regularly and the caravan tyres before every journey. This comes from being taught to do this as an LGV driver where I would drive a different van every day and to refuse to drive any van with defective tyres.

As for a nail possibly affecting a tyre wall, I do agree but that can happen with or without Flat Free. In most cases, a nail seals the hole with maybe a very slow leak. Chances are you could be driving along with a nail for some distance and not know about it.

Another case of each to their own as I've already said and I'm happier with the peace of mind Flat Free gives me.

 

[Rich]

I have used a similar substance as I said and yes all wheels compare as all wheels spin and the only difference is the moment of inertia of each wheel and even small wheels can have quite a high moment of inertia if they run thicker tread in the tyre so kart tyres run a thinner tread and are a bit more likely to get damaged. Bikes have 17 inch wheels which have a smaller contact area than a car and will also have reletively high speed due to bikes being ridden quicker. But I have seen bikes with a bad imbalance literally bounce off line even at moderate speeds. The chatter this puts through the bars can cause Vibration White finger after a ride. Now I have had this happen with a customers bike and after a lot of head scratching we found it was due to a puncture sealant. Ok it was one you do after a puncture but he wa not riding the bike when it happened and a so called mate did the repair.

I would never use such a product and the worry of carcase damage which is hidden by the sealant is not something I would risk. Not enough people check their tyres and reccomending a product which needs regular checks is not something I would do. If it were such a good safety feature then it would be an option or offered as standard in new vehicles. It is not so I would not reccomend it. Bib mousse tyre inserts are even better and relitively safe, but I don't see them being used as they have a limited life and can cause still cause problems if they get damaged. These were common in motor cycle enduro and World Rally cars but have now been banned in world rally.

 

[Legsmaniac_374344731]

We'll just have to agree to disagree then, old chap. Carcase damage was another one I looked into and Flat Free doesn't do that.

I have some emails and reports that I could publish which led to my finally taking this route. I wouldn't bother publishing them because this isn't about trying to convince you (or anyone else) and you have obviously made up your own mind.

Posting my views and experience of it is merely intended to allow the original topic poster (and anyone else interested)to make up their own minds.

 

[Rich]

Legsmaniac,

I understand you are happy. I am only going on my own experience from a lifetime in motorsport having been round it since I was born. I have seen every type of crash, blow up, accident and tyres do things you would not believe. Most if the tyres I used would only last a day or two when racing and swapping tyres that often I have seen what the gunk can do. I was sponsored by a manufacturer of a similar product and even though we were being paid to use it we stopped after a very short period of time and although we had the stuff on show and empty bottles which look like we were using it we did not and the tyre manufacturers who supplied us with tyres did tell the fitters to not fit tyres to wheels which were using the stuff!So any team using the sealant had to fit up tyres themselves and fitting 20 sets in a weekend without automated tools is not fun!

 

[johno1]

Karl

many year's ago when I had motorbikes I used a substance called OKO it sealed punctures on the move and saved my life on one occasion so these product's do work.

Don't forget though that if you do use these thing's check your tyre's weekly 'cause if you pick up a screw or a nail and leave it in the carcase of the tyre then it will be far beyond safe repair or use.