timdoginc

hey-
anybody have any idea why every tube i put into my tire has a slow leak?
it has never been a big deal because i was constantly on it, but i went back to ride after a couple weeks off and it was totally flat.
I always noticed it had the slow leak, i've had about 5 or 6 tubes in there, and they all have done it (except maybe the first). Could i have damaged the rim in some way the first time? any thoughts? thanks.

noisebeam

mebe cause tire has sharp object stuck inside it

onetwentyeight 

i usually re inflate once a week when stuff starts getting kinda squishy...

what kind of tubes are you using?

Retem

news flash this jst in all prest valves seep

now for the shock and awe

heliumb

rimtape?

edit: oh, a couple weeks? pump it up.

Landgolier

Yeah, but they usually don't go to dead flat in a few weeks. This kid has some glass or something in his tire.

Retem

yuppo or a brad nail tack wire brush peice of metal glass residue inside the casing


I know I had em all

baxtefer

or bad rim tape.

Rattlebag

Why is this in SS/FG?

timdoginc

I really don't think there is a sharp object in it. I replaced the tire after 4 flats in a few months after my first flat.

Meaning I had the bike for about 4 months, 1st flat. Then 4 more after that first for the next few months. Changed tire, only 1 or 2 flats for the next 8 months.

Things were going smoothly, but still slow leak. Slow enough where every 3 days I have to re-inflate because it is too low. I know there is gonna be some leak, but that seems excessive, no? Also,

I've used a bunch of different tubes, but the one in there now is from iro.

And it's in the ss/fg forum because I ride a fg and it's the only forum I really use.

i'll check the tape, although i don't have any experience with it so, i'm not sure i'll know what to look for. just anything poking through?
thanks.

dirtyphotons

if you can see any part of a spoke hole then that's probably it.

Landgolier

Also feel around at the valve stem hole and see if the drilling is rough. Not as big of a problem with presta, but a burr on the inside could be doing you in. It could be your tire installation technique as well, but after this many iterations I kind of doubt that you're pinching it the same amount every time to get the same slow leak.

Fixxxie

Or he's using the super thin or latex tubes. they will go flat in a couple weeks

noisebeam

also (if you unlikely have the four old tubes) blow em up all bulgy and try and find if theres a leak - put em in tank of water - then check if the leak is in the same place, then check if in same place if inside tube (rim/rimtape problem) outside (sharp in tire) or sides maybe double (pinch) very unlikely the later if a very slow leak.

al

Retem

also try getting a valve hole boot for your rim it could be you aretightening the little valve ring too tighta gainst the rim and causing a leak at the base of the valve

timdoginc

this could be possible. what's a valve hole boot?

took tube out, checked it. not a tape problem. no hole in tube. didn't tighten valve ring as much, i'll see how that goes.

i don't have any of the old tubes because they popped and i've replace them. i don't mind the slow leak so much, as it's more a pain. and i can't seem to ever get the tire inflated back to where it was when i first had it. thanks again.

mihlbach

Geez people, theres nothing wrong with his tires, tubes, rim tape, or anything. He said it deflated over a couple of weeks. Ever notice that a balloon will slowly deflate over a period of several days....well tubes do that too..its perfectly normal. They are not perfectly airtight.

To the OP: There's nothing wrong with your tubes. Save your money and stop buying tubes. You should top off your pressure every week or sooner if you are particular about your tire pressure. The reason skinny little road bike tires deflate rather quickly is because of their small volume. A small amount of air loss will quickly lower the pressure. You may notice that mtb tires will hold their pressure for longer, and a car tire will hold its pressure way longer. Thats because these tires have much much more volume than a skinny road tire and a lot more air needs to leak out before you will notice a pressure change.

baxtefer

yeah, air leaks out constantly, but tires should not be "TOTALLY FLAT" after a couple weeks.
700x23c tires with regular butyl tubes inflated to 100psi will drop down to maybe 80-90 psi over the course of 2 weeks.
and yeah Retem, theis has nothing to do with presta vs. schreader vales

timdoginc

no it's not normal, it didn't happen until i changed my tire the first time. and i'm not replacing them because of this, i'm replacing them because they've popped. not because of this, but they've popped.
and it doesn't happen to both tires, just the back one.

silent1

If they popped you should systematically take off the tire and remember how the tube was in the tire. Then take a close look at the tube and see where it popped, on the inside, on the treadside, etc. Once you find where the tube blew out, look back at the tire or rim in the vicinity of the hole and find what is causing the tube to blow. If you are using wire bead tires I would suggest taking a careful look at the bead in the area of the hole because that could be the cause. It dosen't take much for the wire bead to put a hole in the tube. If you can't find the problem just buy another tire because at $4 a tube you will quickly eat up the price on the whole rubber part (tire,tube) of the rear wheel.

h_curtis

Really not difficult to find the problem. When flat take the tube out taking note on which direction the tube was in and keep the tire in its position without letting it turn. Find the leak in the tube, even if you have to submerge it under water. Once you find the small hole set it up next to the tire and rim inflated to find what area the rim or tire caused the small hole. If the hole is on the outside, it will be a tire issue. If the hole is on the inside it will be a rim issue. Pretty obvious. If it is a tire issue, it is possible to have a small object in the tire like a little piece of glass or something that when under certain pressure finds its way to the tube and puts a small hole in it. If it is a rim issue, it could be tape or something very small stuck in the tape.

Pretty elementary really.

Aeroplane

Forensics are the key. My order of checking goes rimtape, tires, tools (I once tore a tube by using a screwdriver as a tire lever, stupid). Get your popped tubes and find where the leak is. I like to pump 'em full and then hold them near my lips to find the leak, it's less mess than the water way.

Sammyboy

It's also possible you're damaging them on install with your tyre levers. I'm great at that.

timdoginc

sorry, i said they popped in unrelated events to this problem. glass, a missing cobble stone, metal shard, etc.

I checked the tape (in perfect condition), I checked the tube in water (no leak), and I checked the tire (nothing I could see or feel). The tube itself has NO HOLES in it, so those are not the problem.

I wouldn't be surprised if it was my fault while installing them, except the majority of them were changed in shops.

So, the best idea so far, is the valve ring, and as I've said, I loosened it and will see how it goes. If that doesn't work, i don't know. I still don't know what a valve hole boot is.
and thanks again.

baxtefer

if there's no hole in the tire and its still completely deflating (not just getting kinda squishy) after a couple days then it sounds like you ended up with a batch of tubes with leaky valve cores.