Nitrogen Tire Thread?

whats up everyone?!!


just wanted to see if anyone else had nitrogen in their tires.
for temperature change because it does not expand or contract in cold temperature?..
ive got it in my duratracs

 

Not worth it. If it's offerend free, I won't turn it down and cause a hassle, but if they want to "upsell" you to it, tell them to pound sand.

 

I run a 80% nitrogen mix in my tires...the big issue is using DRY air and most of the vending machine air pumps don't have decent dryiers or drains. My home system has water trap by the compressor and four additional drain points.

Howard

 

I run C02 in my tires just because I have a tank on board. I was thinking of switching to a Nitrogen tank on board just so I can add to my shocks if need be.

 

Costco puts it standard in their tires IIRC. They also use a green valve cap that I thought indicated that the tires were nitrogen filled. Not sure though. I thought the only benefit to higher nitrogen in the tires was less fluctuation in pressure in hot vs cold weather

 

not worth it.. hell air is 79% nitrogen. If i was running a race car maybe.

 

The air you breath is mostly nitrogen. When you put nitrogen in the tire what happens to the air that's all ready in the tire along with the water where does it go?

 

^this. As mentioned earlier, if offered for free I'd let them do it but I won't pay for it. Waste of money for the twice a year when we actually get enough temperature fluctuation to make a difference.

 

X3....I've never considerd tire pressure that big of a challenge. The only advantage is that it's dry. I have onboard air with a 12' copper cooling coil and drain. That takes care of it.

 

True, to do it properly they would have to pull a vacuum on your tire (which is NOT recommended) and then fill with nitrogen. My Avalon XLS has it from Costco and the Little Lady hated the green caps, made me buy some chrome ones, I knew there was a reason I married her.

She picked up a nail in one tire and had to have it fixed at a station that does not offer nitrogen. So when she got home I dumped the air and took a nitrogen cylinder off my HVAC truck and re-filled it. Being such a dry gas it will absorb quite a bit of moisture per cft of nitrogen. The fact that the pressure remains fairly constant is also nice.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=191

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitrogen

 

I've met a member that's does that found a good size tank and filled it with nitrogen and works well

 

i am running nitrogen. costco put it in..and they have a hose that i can refill for free.

i still get the occasional "low air" warning when i go up to cold weather. meh!

 

I did, but I air down my tires too much to be adding this stuff everytime. I just cruise right on over to the car warsh where they have air and fill up. I really do need to get an on board compressor though

 

With my last set of tires, the previous owner bought them at big o tires and when i got them rotated & balanced they "did me a favor" as the guy said and filled my tires with nitrogen, and put on new green stems and caps because he said it would become the law in the next few years in Ca!!! And the fucker even charged me for them, without telling me beforehand what he was doing to my truck!!! I just paid it because I was in a rush, I never liked big o.

My tires were getting close to needing to be changed anyways so after about 5000 miles, went to good 'ol America's tire and told him this story and when I talked to him about the tires i wanted he told me that they have a set of tires that has higher ratings, was cheaper than the ones I wanted, and had a longer warranty. I love that place!

That's my story about nitrogen in the tires

 

I air down almost every time i take my truck out. So to fill them with more than 79% N2 does not seem worth it. I live in a colder climate and the twice a year i adjust my tire pressure for the weather isn't a real big deal. If you are overly concerned about MPG then i guess it might help you. But in that case you can just check you pressure more frequently.

 

Nitrogen DOES NOT maintain a constant pressure over temperature changes. It is subject to the same gas laws as any other gas or mixture. It does not negate the need to check or adjust pressure.

The difference often cited is the result of the presence or absence of moisture. N2 is a dry gas as a result of the way it is produced. Most air compressors deliver extremely moisture laden air unless the system is equiped with a cooling coil and water separater. The advantages of N2 over completely dry air are purely academic. You could never measure them with a tire gauge.

The bottom line is, fill with reasonably dry air and you will be fine. You'll get 95% of the benefit of N2 with none of the hassle. That's why I have a copper condensation coil on my OBA. It works like a still. It will lower your pressure variance, especially at higher temps where the water vaporizes. It will cut down corrosion on your wheels too.

While there are a few grains of truth in the Nitrogen thing, it is mostly a marketing gimmick and a potential up sell.

 

So help me understand. I top off my tires with air out of my 33 gallon Sears compressor. I thought compressing air pulled moisture out. Isn't that why I have to open my drain plug and empty the water out of the tank every so often? Wouldn't the air in the compressor have less moisture than uncompressed air? What is the harm of moisture in a tire anyway as long as it doesn't condense and pool?

BTW, I notice no difference from Nitrogen vs. regular air in my tires.

 

This thread makes me giggle...

 

Yes and no.

Moisture coming into the compressor with the outside air is held in a vapor form because it is heated by the compressing process. Once in the tank, it begins to cool and condense out. Letting the tank completely cool before filling your tires will help since this process is completed. If the compressor is running however, then the moisture laden air goes directly into the tire and condenses there. Having water sitting in the tank also assures that the air inside is saturated at that pressure and temperature. Not the best situation. My cooling coil is between the compressor and the tank. Water is removed before it gets stored.

Water in the tire will vaporize at higher temperatures. It will cause a rise in pressure above the normal rise expected by the gas laws. That is the same principle used to power steam engines. When it cools it will go back to liquid and contribute to corrosion.

 

This was not my experience. Your tires will lose about a pound of pressure per ten degrees of lost ambient temperature because air is not inert. I used to drive a Discovery, on which maintaining rear tire pressure was really important (long story). After I switched to nitrogen, the pressures stayed right where I put them from fall through winter and into spring, a total range of more than 40 degrees C.

I haven't bothered with it on any other vehicles since then, but the difference was absolutely notable for me. Nitrogen's inert nature is a big reason it's used in aircraft tires and yes, there is a significant difference in N2 content between 'pure' nitrogen and atmospheric air.