[Curtis Pelt]

do any of you use this in your tires and is it worth spending the money ??

 

[Neilslure]

My truck had Nitrogen in the tires when I bought it and everytime it went to the dealership for service they would check the pressures. I didnt opt for it when I bought new tires from Discount tire. I cant tell any difference, I wouldnt pay for it.

 

[Drum Runner]

If you do alot of highway miles in a vehicle with a good high mileage tire like Michelin you can save little over the life of the tire and prolong the life of the tire just because the pressure is a constant. Most of my miles are highway miles. 45,000-50,000 a year.

I'm comfortably over 100,000 miles on a set of 80,000 mile Michelins and I run nitrogen.

 

[Curtis Pelt]

thanks for the reply's but my question is related to boat trailer tires . 15.00 dollars for two tires , is it worth the money ??

 

[Fish Whisperer]

No economic justification in my book for nitrogen in boat trailer tires. Is your tire shop trying to sell this? If so, why do they recommend it?

 

[sundrop]

Nope not worth the money.

 

[dragula65000]

If you get it, just write "sucker" on your forehead. There is absolutely NO NEED to put nitrogen in tires. You get ZERO performance in the tires. Only thing that I can see, is maybe the trailer wont float up so much when its in the water.

The only need for nitrogen in tires is in aircraft. Air expands as it goes up in altitude, nitrogen does not. Air in tires is very bad at altitude. Now, something that many people don't know, is that with higher ambient air temperatures, nitrogen pressures rise slightly, and if the tires are in direct sunlight, they will still raise. Not as much as air pressure, but they still go up.

Do not put nitrogen in your tires. Keep your money.

 

[Neilslure]

Alot of tire shops probably get their nitrogen straight from the same air compressor that they run their tools off of.

 

[Mechanic Bob]

I say save your money. How do you know they put in N2? Air is 85% N2 anyways. I would not spend the extra $$, but I would spend it on a bottle of Slime first.
But great question and makes for a great thread. Thank you.

 

[Brenardo]

I say save your money. How do you know they put in N2? Air is 85% N2 anyways. I would not spend the extra $$, but I would spend it on a bottle of Slime first.
But great question and makes for a great thread. Thank you.

Hard to argue the facts...

 

[Drum Runner]

Facts.
What you don't want in a tire is humidity. Water vapor. It affects tire pressures to more of a degree than dry air.
With nitrogen, you won't get any water vapor.

Fact. Nitrogen will not migrate through a tire like oxygen.

Fact. Water or water vapor in a tire is likely to cause corrosion to both steel and aluminum wheels.

When I have tires put on, you won't see anyone sop a wet mop around the bead. I aint having it. That is shade tree right there.
Each to his own but the facts bear witness that nitrogen has it's advantages.

 

[NCTribute]

I think the question here is not whether nitrogen has some perceived advantages, but whether the advantages are worth the price.

I vote no. Heat is what kills tires and that will happen regardless of what you inflate them with. Rim failures are few and far between, most likely from physical damage and not moisture. Also, guess what is in the tire when it is mounted, air that has not been conditioned to remove moisture like a compressor does. So nitrogen 'filled' tires start out with a nice dose of humid air to begin with. Spend your money as you please.

Edit, found this, good read. http://www.edmunds.com/car-care/should-you-fill-your-cars-tires-with-nitrogen.html, there are advantages, but very small and negligible.

 

[Brenardo]

Facts.
What you don't want in a tire is humidity. Water vapor. It affects tire pressures to more of a degree than dry air.
With nitrogen, you won't get any water vapor.

Fact. Nitrogen will not migrate through a tire like oxygen.

Fact. Water or water vapor in a tire is likely to cause corrosion to both steel and aluminum wheels.

When I have tires put on, you won't see anyone sop a wet mop around the bead. I aint having it. That is shade tree right there.
Each to his own but the facts bear witness that nitrogen has it's advantages.

Here's a fact. My 2012 Sierra had Nitrogen in the tires and during cold mornings the pressure was lower just like with conventional air.

**** on spending the $$$ on Nitrogen. Use Helium instead, maybe it will help the vehicle float a little and increase MPGs.

 

[Drum Runner]

You must have bought nitrogen at one of those rip off places yall were talking about.
Nitrogen is simply not going to expand and contract to the point it's noticeable. A 1/2 pound would be pretty radical.

 

[Brenardo]

Straight from dealership. Unless GM is hustling people I feel pretty confident there is Nitrogen in the tires.

 

[NCTribute]

Actually Bernardo is correct, air and nitrogen behave exactly the same at low temperature, both follow the ideal gas laws. The earlier statement about aircraft at altitude is incorrect. The difference is moisture and the change of state of water. So at normal temperatures, nitrogen and air will change volume due to change in temperature at the same rate. But at high temperatures the moisture changing from a liquid to vapor will cause a bigger change in pressure. This is critical in aircraft and race cars, but your normal everyday car or truck not so much. So a high quality compressor that removes water well is going to serve the normal user fine. Permeability is another matter, but you should be checking your tire pressure often enough that it is a non issue.

 

[dragula65000]

Sorry its not incorrect. I am an airframe mechanic, been one for 10 years, and deal with tires quite often. You cant tell me anything different about nitrogen. At low pressures, like the one in vehicle tires, 33-50psi, air temperature due to the friction on the tires and road will not raise the pressure as much as ambient air will. For example, A car driving on the interstate with air and the exact same car same interstate, same temps.....the air pressure WILL raise more then nitrogen. N2 isn't affected by heat as much air is, which is what makes N2 suitable in car tires, BUT while sitting still, N2 will be affected by heat of the tires.

Hard to explain over the internet while typing, and with air in tires at higher altitudes WILL expand and N2 will not. Trust me on this....I have been a quality assurance rep on the V22 since the beginning of 2006.

In aircraft tires, we deal with high pressures, minimum of 110psi, and it is paramount that tire pressures stay the same. N2 doesn't fluctuate as much as air does...for example...when an aircraft lands, any aircraft, the N2 will keep the tire more 'round' to say the least, so it doesn't explode on landing. Water vapor isn't that much of a factor in any tire, and a rim will not corrode as fast as people think it will with a little bit of moisture in it. Air/Water separators are mainly for the tools to not get any water in them and the break down. Water vapor in tires isn't that big of a deal. They wont corrode super fast.

Bottom line, for cars, no need for N2. Pressures are too low for it to even make a difference, like 33-50psi. I say 50 since some truck tires require 50psi.

I do know that some racecars have N2, not sure about NASCAR and Indy, but N2 will be a more stable pressure due to friction of the tire on the road, and air will raise faster.

 

[NCTribute]

With all due respect, the laws of physics apply here. I would think that aircraft uses nitrogen due to being inert, the high heat of landing/taking off, flammable liquids nearby and the effects of moisture in the tire. Nitrogen is very low in moisture and does not leak through the tire, which is more critical in applications like aircraft and high speed racing cars. But the effects on air and nitrogen due to altitude and temperature are nearly the same. P1*V1/T1=P2*V2/T2 Yes, the ideal gas law is a simplified equation, but since air has such a high percentage of nitrogen it is very accurate. The example below is about temperature change, but the same applies for pressure and volume.

Check this link: www.getnitrogen.org/sub.php?view=nascar

I am a Mechanical Engineer specializing in hydraulics for 30 years and calculate the nitrogen precharge needed for accumulators for a specific volume of hydraulic fluid in a specific range of pressure on a regular basis using the Ideal Gas Law, taking into account temperature changes. Nitrogen is used in accumulators because it is inert, no worries of explosions, dry and does not permeate butyl rubber bladders or seals.

 

[dragula65000]

No. They use nitrogen in tires because of what I said. I have been working on aircraft for quite some time. Also, with all due respect, I have been dealing with engineers who designed this plane over the past 9 years, and most have never seen the full aircraft in person.

 

[trigger22]

You are both correct in what you are saying, no need to argue. There are 3 primary reasons for using Nitrogen in an aircraft tire. Nitrogen won't expand at altitude like air will; nitrogen isn't combustible, air is; and at altitude nitrogen won't form moisture like air will. The effects of gathering moisture at altitude is a big deal because moisture in a tire at altitude will freeze and stands a greater chance of blowing the tire on landing.