Im sick and tired of flat god damn tires.

My stock tube kept going flat on me, even though I found NO leaks in it whatsoever. So finally, after weeks of having to re-pump my tires up once or twice a day, I decided to buy a new ******** tube. So I hit up the BS and I get one, ride home, go to sleep, next day-- its flat. I do not know why road tires are so ****ty.


Im worried because half the times I get a flat, I'm riding on my bike and I don't even realize its flat till I get home. This is pissing me off because now my front tire is not spinning very true any more and Im worried this is going to 'eff with my front brake usage.


/end rant/


How do I deal with this constant failure of my tires?

Did you check the inside of your tire to make sure there is no glass or other debris stuck in it?

Your problem is not typical, this really shouldn't be happening.

Check the inside of your rim for anything sharp that might be puncturing the tubes. Check your tubes to find where the holes are, if it's in the same spot you know where your problem area is. You are making sure to close the valve after you pump up, yeah?

How do you ride on a flat on not notice?

Inflate the tube outside of the tire, put it underwater, and look for bubbles. There is a tiny piece of glass or thorn embedded in your tire, or the rim tape has moved around and the edge of the spoke holes are puncturing your tubes. The location of the puncture on the tube will tell you where on the tire or rim to look.

Dude, I seriously don't even notice. I dunno, usually I pay attention to it (because its an issue I'm having often...) but lately I'll just look at my bike randomly and the front will be flat.

First, don't keep buying tubes as a solution! As others above have mentioned, there's most likely a problem with your tire/wheel. Could be something sharp embedded in your tire. Or, a spoke poking through the rim tape. A burr on the inside of your rim. A problem with how you are installing the tube at the valve hole or along the tire bead. And so on. You need to do a systematic check of your problem. When you find your tube is flat, check what kind of puncture is in your tube, where it is in relation to the tire, and look in that area of the rim and tire for the offending device. Finally, are you pumping your tires to the recommended PSI range?

I'm wondering if it's because you aren't inflating your tires enough. You would have to be riding at a seriously low PSI to not notice if you got a flat. You're probably pinch-flatting if that's the case.

There's an edit button.

Edit: For Bryguy, I didn't want the "helpful" information for the OP to get overlooked for my good-humored nit-picking, so yes I double posted.

He says as he double posts.

Agreed. It's so annoying to have to check them twice a day. I don't know why everyone else even puts up with that.

Seriously, do you know how to work on a bike? It's not rocket science. (unless you're laying up omni-directional carbon fiber) Plenty of advice can be had on the forums or your LBS, but you actually put up with this for weeks?

When you look at your bike and see that the tire is flat is it while riding, right after riding or after it's been sitting for a while?

There have been a number of times that I've ridden my bike to work and arrived without a hint of a problem and then after work I found there wasn't a bit of air pressure in the tire. This is typical when you have a slow leak, which is itself typical when you have a problem with your tire or rim tape.

The one time I was having persistent slow leaks I tracked it down to a piece of glass embedded in my tire. I couldn't feel it when I ran my finger along the tire because it was embedded in the tread and only poked out under pressure. I finally tracked it down by matching the hole in my tube to the trouble spot in the tire and digging in the tiny slit I found there with an awl. This is why it's useful to center the valve on the tire logo, incidentally.

This sounds like the most usual culprit.....
It also helps to check the exterior of the tire.... as sometimes the foreign object doesnt go all the way through with the tube deflated and vice versa......
SO whenever you re-inflate it doesnt go flat all of a sudden as that foreign object with the tires help plugs the hole in the tube, so the air instead leaks slowly.

You could have also punctured the tube when you mounted your tire. Do you use tire levers? If you punch in at the wrong spot or too hard, then you're screwed.
Or it might just be a pressure issue.
Normally, its a better idea to inflate them to the highest recommended pressure level (hell, I usually go over a bit).
Otherwise, a pressure that is too low will cause too much strain on your tubes and tires over uneven surfaces, which may lead to a pinch flat.
And as stated above, check if there are any sharp things poking out along side your rim tape. If your spokes are too tight, they may poke through the tube as well.

I would notice it was flat after it had been sitting for a while. Obviously Im not going to ride on a flat tire, and I pump it to 110 psi every time, no question.

check your rim tape, check the inside of the tire for rocks, pebbles, thorns, etc.

I've had times where I couldn't find the object that was poking into my tube. I ended up going along the outside of the tire and sort of rolling it back and forth between my fingers until the tiny bits of glass were revealed. It's kind of a pain, but it beats spending money to replace an otherwise perfectly good tire.

Well i'll be dammed, there was SMALL SMALL bits of broken glass lining the rim wall.


Haha, damn me. Well thanks for the advice guys I know what to do from now on -_-

Next time you go to buy tires I recommend you get something puncture resistant. Continental Gatorskins or GP-4 Seasons, Specialized Armadillos, Vittoria Randonneurs, Schwalbe Duranos, etc. all have some sort of layer to keep out the sharp things.

To the OP:



The best $3.50 you will ever spend on your bike.

seriously, i have a feeling is something simple, like crappy rim tape, tires not inflated to proper psi, leaving the presta valve open, not checking your tires and rims for chips, or debris,

OR the one i see allll the time, not properly installing a tube and/ or mounting your tires

A good way to check your tires is to turn them inside out. Tiny pieces of glass, wire, etc. are easier to spot. Or to feel; I usually slowly run my finger along the tire and can feel the debris before I see it.

When faced with mystery flats, new rim tape does the trick.

calm down guys. he already figured it out.

We all know that doesn't really matter here.

first of all, if your tube keeps going flat and you can't find any leaks, it means that there are leaks you can't find. this is called a slow leak, and since you can't find it, it usually means that the tube is done. cause if you can't find it, you can't patch it. spend four bucks on a new tube. if the new tube goes flat, it's time to look at other causes - did you run your fingers along the inside and outside of the tire to check for any glass or shards of anything embedded in it? did you make sure that your rim tape is adequately protecting the tube from the spoke holes? do you keep your tires pumped to a level where you'll avoid pinch flats?

if you don't even realize that your tire is flat while you're riding it, i'm not sure if you can blame the road tires.