Nitrogen filled tires

[Tfort]

My 5er came with nitrogen in the tires when purchased which I never payed any attention to until when I went to pick it up at the dealer after being there for a couple months I asked them to check the pressure before I picked it up. They checked them but informed me they couldn't fill because they did not have nitrogen. I pulled it home about 10lbs shy of full. Being in the automotive business I always felt like it was a gimmick got passenger tires but was wondering everyone's opinion on it in trailer tires. I am struggling to go pay someone to fill tires.


2000 F250 CC 4x4 7.3L diesel

15 Salem Hemisphere Lite356QB

[beachcamper]

Mine came with nitrogen. I fill with my compressor at home. That's like 80 percent nitrogen. I check tires every trip. I believe nitrogen fill is mostly a gimmick.

[rockfordroo]

It's a gimmick. But you've touched on one of the many touchy subjects on this forum.

Here's just one of MANY threads that fuel the debate:

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...res-55172.html

[aceinspp]

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

It's a gimmick. But you've touched on one of the many touchy subjects on this forum.

Here's just one of MANY threads that fuel the debate:

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...res-55172.html

X 2 I don't believe in it and when you add just air now you have lessen the amount in the tires. Notice a lot of car dealers doing this and charge you $80 to do and it's done to there new vehicles so you have no say. Later RJD

[Oaklevel]

Just put air in them unless you want to pay the extra.......... Many threads on this topic

[ferguson65]

I fill mine with air. They came with nitrogen. Air is composed of 78% nitrogen, so you don't gain much. They say you get less temperature fluctuation with pure nitrogen, but I really question how much of a difference it could make. I say fill 'em with air and don't sweat the gimmick.

[Still Kickin]

Air is 78% nitrogen, it's your money.

[tande]

Anybody know what the "Long/Haul/Truckers" do, concerning this issue?? ......

[Tfort]

Thanks for the info. That's what I thought. When I worked at the car dealer I refused to sell this service because I refused to rip off my customers. I didn't see any reduction in pressure loss when sitting so I see no real advantage to it. I will be adding compressed air to mine and replacing the green caps with black ones so they are not scared to add air next time.


2000 F250 CC 4x4 7.3L diesel

15 Salem Hemisphere Lite356QB

[emm-dee]

The only real advantage of nitrogen is the lack of moisture. Aircraft operating for hours and hours in temperatures well below -50C need that to prevent ice formation inside the tires. That's not a factor for our tires so save the $$ and use the free air.

[Mtelkman]

They would have to mount and seat the tire, then pull a vacuum inside the tire, then refill with nitrogen to actually get an appreciable level of nitrogen above the 78% that is in the air anyway. And at that point there would still be arguments about just how beneficial nitrogen is in a RV trailer tire anyway. The service manager at my dealer told me that Forest River does not pull a vacuum on the tires before filling with nitrogen per a training course they attended.
In other words, total gimmick.

[4mula1fan]

Originally Posted by tande

Anybody know what the "Long/Haul/Truckers" do, concerning this issue?? ......

There is no way the company I work for, with 17000 power units, would pay to air up tires...

[spock123]

I think Walmart uses nitrogen in there truck tires. My son drives for Walmart and he tops his 1500 tires off, it's free for him


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[fmc]

Originally Posted by emm-dee

The only real advantage of nitrogen is the lack of moisture. Aircraft operating for hours and hours in temperatures well below -50C need that to prevent ice formation inside the tires. That's not a factor for our tires so save the $$ and use the free air.

X2

[Too Tall]

In my opinion, it's not a gimmick, it's just not practical for the average person to use nitrogen. There are some advantages but they don't outweigh the expense. Compressed air has worked fine for me for 68 year.

[jadatis]

Even moisture is not a big problemm for a tire and rimm.
Made a word document about that filling with normal air with all the water as humidity in it , is even better then to fill with Nitrogen.

Will give it here , but in addition to it , its the question if when you let your tires filled with Nitrogen, that its 100% Nitrogen, if filled with a device on the hose the percentage is about 95% and they dont vacuüm the tire, so the air in it when pressure zero makes the end percentage also lower.

Here the copy.

Filling car tires with normal air is better then with Nitrogen.
A. Oxygen, which makes 21% of normal outside air, in volume absorbs more energy to rise a degree in temperature then Nitrogen.
Difference is only 1% , but in selling argument is sometimes mentioned in energy/ mass so Joule/kg.degr. Kelvin and there Nitrogen wins by 13 % . Tires though are filled with a certain volume so that counts .
This selling argument can be de-myth simply by the fact that its untrue.

B. Water in a tire transports the heat more then dry air or Nitrogen-filling ( which is by its production process free of water).
Not for no reason water is used in central heating and cooling system of cars as main substance.
The tire inside will have lower temperature which is better for cooling down the important spots of the tire wich have to keep a low enough temperature to prevent hardening and damage in next bending of those parts.
When incidentally the tire inside gets hotter ( sunshine on tire or severe braking, or high ambient temperature) more water goes over to gas wich highens the pressure inside the tire more then dry gas. Also then more water as gas in tire so even better cooling.
So advantage of water is 2 ways when needed, better cooling and lesser heat production.
Disadvantages of water as oxidation only happen at outside . Tire specialists will confirm that when they remove a tire of the rim , the rim inside the tire is not corroded.

C. When a Truck, transporting flammable substance, is on fire, the little oxygen in a tire will , when exploding ,probably even kill the fire .
In tunnels experiments where done to kill the fire with air current , and it worked, despite the oxygen in it.

D. A normal car tire up to truck tire is not a race-car tire, for which a constant as high as possible contact area, so best grip , is needed to give half a second better round time.
For that reason they are filled with as dry as possible air or Nitrogen.
That this gives low lifetime is not important, and for a normal car tire it is.
Often blowing tires at racing, is seen there as collateral damage, but we don’t want that for normal car tires.

E. A car tire is also not a airplane- tire in which the water can freeze and when landing this can give misbalance , which can lead to tire-failure or accident, when suddenly going from zero to about 200m/h.
The water in a car tire does not freeze that often, and when it does and the car begins do drive , it begins slow and the misbalance is not a big problem . then pretty soon, certainly when on speed the ice is melted to water and problem will be gone.

F. When filled with normal air the user is aware of checking the tires regularly, which takes better care of a saver tire, because regularly filled up to the right pressure and optical checking of the tire .
The illusion that Nitrogen filling makes the tire to loose almost no pressure, which is often exaggerated to 5 times , while in real a poor 2 times and then only in the very beginning, makes the user less caring .
The tire also looses air when hitting pavement so temporary leak between edge of tire and rim, Filling with whatever gas-combination won’t prevent that.
This idea is even stronger when TMPS is used which is often inaccurate , so the user thinks to maintain the right pressure, while really riding with to low pressure for longer time, which can lead to tire damage. Aftermarket sensors for TMPS when screwed on the valve can give leakage trough hole where valve is placed , because of the bending of the valve by centrifugal forces at speed.

G. Filling with normal air is always possible, even with a bicycle- pump, is only to fill up so won’t take that long. When you keep driving with to low pressure , in order to find a place to fill with Nitrogen, you damage your tires. So just fill up with normal outside air, even when the tire is filled with Nitrogen. Then also you don’t need to have the tire refilled with pure Nitrogen by your tire specialist when at home again, not worth the trouble, and normal air is even better then nitrogen because of the water in it.

[Windjammin]

When considering this issue I asked myself, did the person mounting the tire do so in a special area that contained only 100% nitrogen? I doubt it therefore the tire started out with air in it then was topped off with nitrogen.

[spock123]

Originally Posted by Windjammin

When considering this issue I asked myself, did the person mounting the tire do so in a special area that contained only 100% nitrogen? I doubt it therefore the tire started out with air in it then was topped off with nitrogen.

If and when I ever get the 36CKTS and move up to the Goodyear 17.5 H rated tires I will get a nitrogen tank because my pancake air compressor will not go that high. I like nitrogen, I had it in my first Cedar Creek and in the year I had the camper I never had to put any air in the tires.


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[Oaklevel]

For us nitrogen was no different than air ...... On our camper had to add nitrogen just as air.... in our junk 2011 Subaru had to add air and replace the tires at 32K no difference than air.......... just more cost

Waste of time and money........

[CNYCamper]

IMO the best part of nitrogen filled tires is the green cap. Haven't lost one yet in my black topped driveway.