Guest Author - William Charles Vetter

How to fix a flat tire – cheap.

Last week I noticed that I had a nail in my rear tire. I planned on fixing it so that it wouldn’t go flat on me. I’m the worst person when it comes to procrastination so per my normal modus operandi, I didn’t fix it. While sitting in heavy traffic someone driving by pointed at my tire and yelled some incomprehensible words. I knew instantly what the problem was… I suddenly remembered that nail in my tire. Ten minutes later I had put the spare on and I was again on my way.

Most flat tires are a result of road hazard which sounds like some terrible tire destroying collision but actually road hazards include such relatively benign things like nails, screws, spikes, etc. If you pick up a nail as I did, it will often be stuck in your tire and because the rubber in your tire seals around the nail in many cases your tire will continue to hold air until the obstruction is removed. Most flat tires are a result of minor punctures, these punctures don’t destroy tire carcasses but if your tire loses air and you continue to drive at high speed you will destroy the tire very quickly. Fortunately for me I was driving very slowly and a Good Samaritan clued me in before my tire self destructed.

If you notice a nail in your tire or one of your tires has lost a significant amount of air pressure and looks to be low on air chances are that you can fix it yourself, often without even having to remove the tire or go to a tire shop. First look around the circumference of your tire. You are looking for a foreign object like a nail or screw sticking out of your tire’s tread. If you find it, do not pull it out until you are ready to complete the entire repair or you will most likely have a flat tire on your hands. You will need a tire plug repair kit and access to an air compressor to replace the air that you have lost or will lose when you pull it out. Please note that a can of fix-a-flat will not do a secure repair job and is temporary at best. These products also require a considerable amount of clean up as these products create a huge mess inside of the tire and wheel and they also cost more.

Once you have everything in hand and you are ready to go, use a pair of pliers to pull the nail or screw out. The tire plug kit contains four items one is a spike shaped rasp with a handle on it, one is a spike that looks like a large sewing needle also with a handle on it, several pieces of black chord impregnated with a sticky rubber compound and a tube of rubber cement. Shove the rasp deep into the nail hole and twist and then using 2 or 3 in and out motions. The idea is to rough up the inside of the hole, do not be afraid to push with all of your might you can’t really do any damage to the tire or wheel so don’t be timid. Now thread one of the cords halfway through the hole in the needle. Liberally coat the cord with the rubber cement so that it is almost dripping off. Insert the needle in the rasped hole until approximately half of it is still sticking out, this is important. Jerk the needle out quickly and it will cut the cord off inside the tire. The needle should come out without the cord. Trim the excess cord off flush with the tread using a razor blade or sharp knife. Re-inflate the tire back to the vehicle’s recommended pressure and you are ready to drive.

Available at any auto parts store the cost of one of these tire plug kits is $10-$20, which includes enough plugs to repair 5 to 10 holes yielding a cost per flat repair of about $1 or $2. Most reputable tire shops or service stations will charge you $10-$30 to make the same repair. I have one of these kits in the glove box of my car. I can pull into a gas station by the air pump station and repair a tire in about five minutes Please note that this little trick will not work for major tire damage, large holes or flats due to extreme tire wear.