Bicycle Mechanics - Tubes - patch and re-use or chuck them

What do most of you guys do with tubes after you bring a flat one back from a ride - patch them and re-use them or throw them away?

I've spoked to a couple of guys recently who throw them out - I guess they don't want to take a risk that the patch doesn't hold. Seems like a waste, although I don't want to be stupid and increase my chances of another flat in order to save a couple of bucks.

What do you guys do?

Yeh i agree with the other guys you talked too patches just dont work for me. plus i use big freeride tyres that the tubes hardly fill without a patch let alone with one. Patches just blow off for me and yeh i recon it is easier to just grabb a new tube.

You'll never have it digging in the back of your mind will it hold or not if you get a new tube.

Have fun

I save up the tubes and when I get a bunch of them, I patch them and put them back into the rotation.

Definitely patch. But patch with real patches, not those self adhesive ones. I rarely have a problem with a patch. Why pay $3 to $4 per flat?

I patch them unless the hole is to close to a another patch or if it is by the stem. After about 6 patches I throw them out.

I always patch AND I USE GLUELESS PATCHES!!! And you know what? I've been using these patches now for about 5 years (Park brand) and have NEVER had a problem. I have 1 glueless patch on a tube now that is 3 years old and I still ride on it; and all my tubes are 65gram ultralight tubes. I will never go back to glue patches again, no more dried glue tube, and no more gluing step.

Like I said I aways patch a tube untill either tube requires a patch near another or I get about 6 patches on a tube, or the tube just gets too old...just like Grampy mentioned. I also try to patch a tube on the road BEFORE replacing it, instead of just replacing the tube and patch at home. This patching process takes almost the same amount of time as replacing the tube when you do it right. Folding tires are easier to do then wire beaded tires. With kevlar beaded tires you can remove just half of one side with the hole being in the center, then pull about 6 inches of the tube with the hole being in the center area of course, pull out what ever caused the leak and run my hand in the area of the leak inside the tire, scuff, patch and reinstall-about 5 minutes (notice the gluing part is missing). With a wire beaded tire I have to remove the one side entirely then pull about 1/4 of the tube out.

I put new on the ' only bike I like' and the one I use for serious and long rides.
Patched tubes go on the grocery getter\ spare bikes, that I don't ride more than a few miles from home. I usually don't pack a spare- just load new and a repair kit.

If you like to throw away your tubes, send them to me! Especially if you live in Canada, so they don't go through Customs.

I replace the tubes when the valve breaks apart of when the cut is too large for a patch. My record so far? Around 10 patches on a 15 year old tube.

Regards,

Hey guys. Question:

What kind of "patch kits" do you reccomend? Will just cutting an old tube and gluing it on work?

I worked in a tire shop for over 6 years, I have worked on everything from tires 15 feet high to wheels 6 inches high.

If a patch is done right it is just as strong, and in some cases stronger than the area of the tube it is covering. so I would patch before buying a new tube.

Leave the old tube on the side of the road. Don't want to carry it out and I definitely do not want to be bothered patching it. Just the cost of riding I guess.

Leave the old tube on the side of the road. Don't want to carry it out and I definitely do not want to be bothered patching it. Just the cost of riding I guess.

Bad deal for the environment, considering they don't biodegrade. At least acrry the old one out with ya. Or heave it in the nearest trash can

I would patch them up to three patches per tube depending on severity of course. The main thing is to patch the tube with the utmost care for reliable usage. Which means doing a good sanding job, apply a good amount of cement, let cement dry thoroughly before applying the patch, and do not use tube until the next day. Just a precaution.

I hate patching tubes, but I also hate buying new ones. So I mainly patch. Sometimes it works well, sometimes it doesn't. I am cursed and I get more than my share of flats. I guess I should run higher pressure and not be such a hack at drops. Oh well, just bitter from the amount of patching I've done in the last two or three days. Bah.....what are you gonna do?

I patch, and buy new... I always like to carry a new tube with me, just in case I get a flat while it is raining or something. I have a hard enough time finding the hole in the tube in good weather, sh***y weather just makes the problem expodentially more difficult.

I have about 7 tubes waiting for me in the basement... Seems like I will have to buy more patches...

My record is 9 patches on a tube.

What are these glueless patches?

Tossing a tube with a repairable hole is wasteful, it seems to me. But, this is a throwaway society. Leaving it by the side of the road is littering.

I use RemaTipTop patch kits, and carry a spare tube with the aim of patching a road side puncture if I can. If not (like the rainy day I last had a flat), then I swap the tubes.

I agree, a well patched tube is as good as new. I doubt I have given up on (tossed out) even a dozen tubes on all of our road bikes (my wife's and mine) over the past 30 years (probably 100,000 miles total ridden). I just patch them.

I don't like riding patched tubes because I can feel the patches thump thump thump. I don't get flats very often, so I usually patch them when I get home and and use them as back-up tubes for when I get a flat.


What kind of "patch kits" do you reccomend?

I like Rema (http://www.bikepro.com/products/tubes/tubes-patchkit.html).

I save up the tubes and when I get a bunch of them, I patch them and put them back into the rotation.

Back in the day, I used to save them up until I collected a bunch of punctured tubes and I'd patch them all at once on a rainy Saturday afternoon. I've never had a tube that I patched leak at the patch. I remember trying to limp back to the car with a slow leaker once and, when I went to patch that tube, I found eight separate pinch flat places to patch. The tube held air fine afterward.

Today I use Armadillo tires most of the time and save the Axial Pros for smooth rural roads that are nearly glass free so I only get a couple of flats per year. At that rate it'd take me two or three years to save up enough tubes to fill a decent tube patching session and I probably have enough spares in my shop to last me the rest of my life anyway. So today I just dump 'em.

I patch 'em when possible, but get new ones when I replace the tyre(s), keeping the least damaged two as spares.

I've used sticky-backed foam patches on occasion, and they work fine for me; in fact I keep a couple in my wallet for on-the-road punctures (slap 'em on, reinflate, carry on), but I have to admit to having less confidence in them than a 'permanent' repair. I do ride at a fairly high pressure tho, which probably helps. :)

Am I the only one here that just pulls them out, puts on a patch, sticks them back in the tire and rides on? I use both kinds of patches and have had very good luck with both. I also usually keep the tube untill the valve body pulls loose or the seal fails.
I will admit that I had a few glass flats that gave me greaf before I wised up to how to find the glass inbedded in the tire. :rolleyes:

I would patch it and ride on - my only flats so far - knocking on wood as I type - were caused by using rim tape that was too narrow. I asked my LBS for rim tape for my new rims and they gave me the narrow stuff (12mm) without asking me what size rims I had. They should have known better, and now I do know better - the hard way!

I carry a spare tube, since the guys I ride with have a 5 minute rule on flats. If you're not putting air in the tire after 5, you're dropped! As back-up, I carry Park glueless patches.

I patch flats with a Rema kit at home, then carry the patched tube as a spare. I hate to toss a patched tube, but don't like to run patched tubes. On big rides, I often carry two spare tubes, and will freely give one away to someone with a flat.

When I ran 23 mm tires at 125 PSI, the Park patches would hold forever. But now that I run 25 mm tires at 95 PSI, the Parks will only hold for a few days. Strange.

carry a new tube with glueless patches while out on a ride, that way you have options.

Save your flat tubes and repair them if you have the time and motivation to do so. The glue patches are stronger than the tube when properly done. I don't know why people think it is messy to use glue patches, even a novice like me can easily do a good glue patch. The motivation to do it? That's another story!

Hmm, this is where my laziness and cheapness clash! In theory, I patch them and reuse them. In practice, I buy a bunch of tubes at my LBS' semi-annual sale.

[edited for sense]

Tubes on sale are not that expensive..Sort of an on the spot emotional thing..How long do I suspect it has been in service..Had it in use half a year. TO heck with it. Besides, once it has a big gash- not sure I trust it.

Leave the old tube on the side of the road. Don't want to carry it out and I definitely do not want to be bothered patching it. Just the cost of riding I guess.

Just leave it in a noticable place so some other bikers can pick it up and reuse it :p

I can't believe someone would actually leave a punctured tube on the side of the road. Disgusting. Then they take time to post their stupidity and immense ignorance?! Pig. Just the cost of living in a world full of disgusting stupid people I guess.

/me patches. The intelligent thing to do.

I can't believe someone would actually leave a punctured tube on the side of the road. Disgusting. Then they take time to post their stupidity and immense ignorance?! Pig. Just the cost of living in a world full of disgusting stupid people I guess.

Pigs was the nicer word I had for those types of people. When I lived in Bakersfield California the bikers littered more there then anywhere I've ever lived; the most popular bike related trash I found was those dam CO2 carts thrown just about everywhere, next in frequency was tubes, then GU or something similar wrappers, then tires, and then those carbon fiber spokes every once in awhile. Flats were a daily occurance there for riders but for them to throw their trash with no regard to laws not alone decency was just plain weird and piggish.

Pigs was the nicer word I had for those types of people. When I lived in Bakersfield California the bikers littered more there then anywhere I've ever lived; the most popular bike related trash I found was those dam CO2 carts thrown just about everywhere, next in frequency was tubes, then GU or something similar wrappers, then tires, and then those carbon fiber spokes every once in awhile. Flats were a daily occurance there for riders but for them to throw their trash with no regard to laws not alone decency was just plain weird and piggish.

yeah i hate when im biking and i see trash that is obviously from a biker. The thing that bothers me is that biker will talk about how their biking is saving the environment. if you carried your spare tube to where you got your flat then you have a nice little spot in your pocket/bag/wherever to put your ruined tube.

What do most of you guys do with tubes after you bring a flat one back from a ride - patch them and re-use them or throw them away?

I've spoked to a couple of guys recently who throw them out - I guess they don't want to take a risk that the patch doesn't hold. Seems like a waste, although I don't want to be stupid and increase my chances of another flat in order to save a couple of bucks.

What do you guys do?

When out ridding i carry a spare tube some times up to 4 times patched and a hand pump.This saves on the road patching ,and can be repaired at home .When replacing the tyers last time I bought 2 new tubes . This time I bought gator skins tires with a kevlar compound and havn't had any probs, ,$40 each and run them at 130psi.

Tossing a tube with a repairable hole is wasteful, it seems to me. But, this is a throwaway society. Leaving it by the side of the road is littering.

I use RemaTipTop patch kits, and carry a spare tube with the aim of patching a road side puncture if I can. If not (like the rainy day I last had a flat), then I swap the tubes.

I agree, a well patched tube is as good as new. I doubt I have given up on (tossed out) even a dozen tubes on all of our road bikes (my wife's and mine) over the past 30 years (probably 100,000 miles total ridden). I just patch them.

the more paches on a tube the less chances of a flat :) ? ???

yeah i hate when im biking and i see trash that is obviously from a biker. The thing that bothers me is that biker will talk about how their biking is saving the environment.

When mountain biking or offroad driving, I follow Tread Lightly (http://www.treadlightly.org/readedu.mv?edu=3D347DB70000D76600005E8C00000000) and IMBA Trail Rules (http://www.imba.com/about/trail_rules.html) which both advocate packing out whatever you pack in. This rule is still transferable to road riding too. Just because it's paved doesn't mean it's no longer part of the environment.

I carry a spare tube for quick changes while riding, but should a flat occur, the damaged tube will be repaired ready for duty as a spare. Of course they do eventually get beyond repair (patches too close to other patches etc) but one can get a lot of use from a tube. Plus they are getting expensive here £4 in a cheap store, up to £6 in the "posh" bike store for long stem specials etc - for that kind of money, I'm going to repair as much as I can and certainly would not leave them littering the side of the road.

Cheers,

Ed

I too patch it and ride on. I carry a spare tube with me, so if the weather is really bad or puncture is right next to the valve stem I can just replace the tube. I have had no problem with patched tubes, so I continue to use them. I use whatever brand of patches is available and I have not noticed any differences. Haven't tried glueless patches.

--J

I always patch mine

I patch them but always carry a new spare also. I recently had a flat on my 3-speed rear and patched it but it did not hold, I believe because the hole was right next to the seam. Has anyone else had a problem repairing a puncture like this? I believe it might be because I used a smaller patch, I still have the tube and I am going to try a larger patch.

I patch them but always carry a new spare also. I recently had a flat on my 3-speed rear and patched it but it did not hold, I believe because the hole was right next to the seam. Has anyone else had a problem repairing a puncture like this? I believe it might be because I used a smaller patch, I still have the tube and I am going to try a larger patch.


I am going to try to find the Rema brand patches for home use and carry the glueless ones for the road emergencies.

Tossing a tube with a repairable hole is wasteful, it seems to me. But, this is a throwaway society. Leaving it by the side of the road is littering.




Carrying a slime filled tube 20 miles back into town is not a lot of fun. Or at least it doesn't ever seem like it would be. :(

Leave the old tube on the side of the road. Don't want to carry it out and I definitely do not want to be bothered patching it. Just the cost of riding I guess.

Wow, you kinda suck.

I carry a spare and put it on when I have a flat in the field, and carry home the bad tube. At home, if it's doable, I patch it. I generally then use patched tubes as spares.

If the valve is coming off the tube, or it otherwise can't be patched, I retire it. The rubber comes in handy for things; for example, last winter I slipped sections of tubes over all the cold metal handles of the stalls at our Humane Society's barn, so staff wouldn't freeze-burn their hands on them. A coupla friends down the street wrap their frames in old tubes to disguise their value and protect the finish (adds a lot of weight, though).

I've got enough piled up, though, to merit finding a place to recycle them. Landfilling them is bad enough; simply leaving them on the side of the road is environmentally unconscionable. Imagine a wild animal getting caught up in it, or ingesting part of it.

Yeah, I've had trouble patching near seams. It helps to sand around the area so that the extraneous rubber along the seam is worn down; that makes for a flatter surface for the patch to sit on. If you use cemented patches, remember to let the cement get tacky-dry before putting the patch on. Let it dry completely before pumping up the tube. Then air it up for a test. If you see any leaks, air it down, and try putting a little more cement where the air is leaking. The edge of the patch should "dissolve" into the base tube; that's when you know the cement is working.

They come in a roll, wax paper on the back. Just pull them off and attach to your tube.

I haven't had good luck with them, but they are really fast & easy.

I've got enough piled up, though, to merit finding a place to recycle them.

Track down the closest fetish club and offer them a donation. :)

Carrying a slime filled tube 20 miles back into town is not a lot of fun. Or at least it doesn't ever seem like it would be. :(

Ever heard of zip-loc bags? a gallon size one ought to hold a slime tube with no problem.

Be prepared. There's no excuse for leaving your trash on the side of the road.

I can't believe someone would actually leave a punctured tube on the side of the road. Disgusting. Then they take time to post their stupidity and immense ignorance?! Pig. Just the cost of living in a world full of disgusting stupid people I guess.

/me patches. The intelligent thing to do.
I agree fully

Ever heard of zip-loc bags? a gallon size one ought to hold a slime tube with no problem.

Be prepared. There's no excuse for leaving your trash on the side of the road.

That's right. BTW, I never said I did and i guess you never said i did either.

I only repair the patch at home. I've been having problems with those Park patches and will probably use crazy glue along with the glue-less patch the next time. I find the glue on the glue-less pathes to be OK but I will be applying super glue in the future.

Well I do everything on the cheap and so when I punctured a tube I tried fixing it my way and have been running one for almost a month in the front and just did another today. All I do is carry a small bottle of hobby grade CA glue (super glue, but GOOD stuff) that I already have from building RC gliders, and a bit of old tube. I also carry a multi-tool with me that has a knife in it. Cut a piece of tube, apply glue to the deflated tube, and mash the two together for a good 20 seconds. Make sure to put the 'outside' of the old tube toward the outside of the tube being repaired.

Anyway it works well, and for me was really cheap. Heck I even put my multi-tool IN the old tube and stuff some allen wrenches down the side, cleans up my seat bag quite a bit :D

I am also a model airplane builder! :p I would not think CA type glue would be a good choice because it cures into a hard mass. I would also think the tube around the patch would have to do all the streching because the patch would be hard plastic, instead of a rubber like connection of a regular patch.

I am also a model airplane builder! :p I would not think CA type glue would be a good choice because it cures into a hard mass. I would also think the tube around the patch would have to do all the streching because the patch would be hard plastic, instead of a rubber like connection of a regular patch.

That is probably true! But, time will tell :-) It is notable that I do not apply glue to the WHOLE patch, only to the VERY spot there is a puncture, so there isn't TOO much making it a hard spot like you said.

I fly slope gliders when I get a chance. So far this season that means not once. Been busy on bikes!