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Car Forum / Acura Cars / November 2004Tire Pressure
I was told not to check the tire pressure when the temperature is below freezing, because the valves might stick. Is there any truth to that? Is there a way to prevent the sticking? -- I put 2 and 2 together and got 22. > I was told not to check the tire pressure when the temperature is > below freezing, because the valves might stick. Is there any truth to > that? Is there a way to prevent the sticking? That is total and complete nonsense. Who told you that? Your kid brother pulling a prank on you? Do you suppose that nobody in Alaska can check his pressures from November till June? You can check the pressure at 40-below with no ill effects.  SignatureTeGGeR? The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ www.tegger.com/hondafaq/ On 25 Nov 2004 03:21:03 GMT, "TeGGer®" <teggeratistopdotcom@changetheobvious.invalid> removed the duct tape and proclaimed: >> I was told not to check the tire pressure when the temperature is >> below freezing, because the valves might stick. Is there any truth to [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > >You can check the pressure at 40-below with no ill effects. The guy who sold me my tires told me that. -- I put 2 and 2 together and got 22. >>> I was told not to check the tire pressure when the temperature is >>> below freezing, because the valves might stick. Is there any truth to [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > >The guy who sold me my tires told me that. IF your tires were filled with humid air and IF you checked your tire pressure at a few degrees above freezing, the expansion of air coming through the valve MIGHT cause frost to form on the check valve and cause it to stick, but conditions would have to be just right. I have checked my tire pressures at Cold Lake Alberta with the thermometer reading -35 F and had no problems, except for freezing my fingers. >>>> I was told not to check the tire pressure when the temperature is >>>> below freezing, because the valves might stick. Is there any truth to [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > thermometer reading -35 F and had no problems, except for freezing my > fingers. If the air has been in there since it was very cold outside (like winter tires are likely to be) the freezing problem won't occur - the same as being too cold to snow, the air isn't able to hold enough water. But if the tires were initially inflated when the air was above, say, 40 or 50 degrees, there could be enough moisture to freeze the valve open. As John says, the danger point is when the air in the tires is a little above freezing. When it's very cold the moisture has already turned to frost inside the tire. This is a common problem in carbureted aircraft and used to be a problem with carbureted cars before automatic intake air temp control - enough humidity with the right range of temperatures can ice up the carburetor and kill the engine. Mike And I'm sure you are aware of the perfect gaz law: P x V = n x R x T So, assuming a more or less constant volume for your tire and a constant number of air molecules in the tire, that means your pressure is directly proportional to the temperture in Kelvins. For example 68F = 293K and -40F = -243K. So at -40F, the pressure will drop 60/293 = 20% (about 6 PSI) compared to the pressure measured at 68F... "John Ings" <nodamned@spam.org> a ?crit dans le message de news: n8mbq0dobobrh47kemclv05ocg5ogck9bu@4ax.com... >>>> I was told not to check the tire pressure when the temperature is >>>> below freezing, because the valves might stick. Is there any truth to [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > thermometer reading -35 F and had no problems, except for freezing my > fingers. >>>> I was told not to check the tire pressure when the temperature is >>>> below freezing, because the valves might stick. Is there any truth [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > through the valve MIGHT cause frost to form on the check valve and > cause it to stick, but conditions would have to be just right. And then, even assuming the strong spring pressure on valve was not enough to punch through the frost, the frost would melt within minutes of driving as the tires heated up. > I have checked my tire pressures at Cold Lake Alberta with the > thermometer reading -35 F and had no problems, except for freezing my > fingers. Did you go to the Armed Forces base there? SignatureTeGGeR? The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ www.tegger.com/hondafaq/ "TeGGer®" <teggeratistopdotcom@changetheobvious.invalid> wrote: >> I was told not to check the tire pressure when the temperature is >> below freezing, because the valves might stick. Is there any truth to >> that? Is there a way to prevent the sticking? I wouldn't check air in tires at a temperature colder than about -25F, and I wouldn't do that without driving the vehicle for at least a couple miles first (which will both warm it up considerably, and exercise it too). Put it this way... I spent two decades living in Salcha Alaska, about 40 miles out of Fairbanks and making daily 80 mile round trips to work. The nearest air pressure pump was two miles down the road. There is *no* way I would have put an air pressure gauge on a tire at home when it was -25F. >That is total and complete nonsense. Who told you that? Your kid brother >pulling a prank on you? Maybe somebody that has ended up with a flat tire? >Do you suppose that nobody in Alaska can check his pressures from November >till June? Well... most folks don't! In places that experience extreme temperature variations (in Fairbanks I saw both -70F and +96F) it is pretty much necessary to check air pressure as the seasons change, but it really is not a good idea to be doing that at -40. >You can check the pressure at 40-below with no ill effects. Then again you might just end up with a flat tire. Worse yet you might also find it impossible to put new air in the tire, because it won't flex and seal the bead. The only solution would be to take the wheel off the vehicle and roll it inside for an hour or so, and then refill it. Just in case you aren't aware of it, at -40 tires are square for about 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile... then they get round again. You don't want to try measuring air pressure in square tires, and you don't want to try putting air into square tires... SignatureFloyd L. Davidson <http://web.newsguy.com/floyd_davidson> Ukpeagvik (Barrow, Alaska) floyd@barrow.com > Just in case you aren't aware of it, at -40 tires are square > for about 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile... then they get round again. > You don't want to try measuring air pressure in square tires, > and you don't want to try putting air into square tires... Well, I should have clarified. I have relatives living in Alberta. They get -30 regularly in winter. They have no problems checking tire pressures during winter months, which is why I posted what I did. I do not know if they make a habit of driving first before checking the pressures or not. SignatureTeGGeR? The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ www.tegger.com/hondafaq/ >> Just in case you aren't aware of it, at -40 tires are square >> for about 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile... then they get round again. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > not know if they make a habit of driving first before checking the > pressures or not. ...and a more considered reply here: My "40-below" was an extreme example chosen to illustrate a point. It is obviously less realistic than if I had said "10-below". The original poster was told not to check tire pressures when it was "below freezing", which could be as high as +31 degrees. That is plain silly. I live in Canada, and my area gets as low as -20F. Never in my whole life, in 26 years of driving have I EVER had a valve stick open on me when the pressures were checked when it was below freezing, not even at -20. Never ever ever ever. I HAVE seen bead leaks start, or get dramatically worse as the temperature drops, but never valve leaks due to having filled up the tire or checked the pressure. That's why I responded the way I did to the OP. SignatureTeGGeR? The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ www.tegger.com/hondafaq/ Beware when adding air to your tires. Always depress and check the air flow from the air nozzle first. If the service center does not empty the/change the filter of the air compressor you may be putting in water with the air. Then on a freezing morning the water in the tire will become ice and cause an imbalance problem. The air coming from the nozzle should be just that, AIR. > I was told not to check the tire pressure when the temperature is > below freezing, because the valves might stick. Is there any truth to > that? Is there a way to prevent the sticking? > > -- > I put 2 and 2 together and got 22. > Beware when adding air to your tires. Always depress and check the air > flow [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > an imbalance problem. The air coming from the nozzle should be just that, > AIR. In addition, when I was young and foolish (now I'm old and foolish) I put an air hose on a low tire and listened to it hiss for a little while, but the tire wasn't inflating. There was no pressure in their tank, at least not until I shared some of mine with them. Mike >I was told not to check the tire pressure when the temperature is >below freezing, because the valves might stick. Is there any truth to >that? Is there a way to prevent the sticking? Unless you have have moisture in the valves, you have nothing to worry about. ------------- Alex > In article <4d0aq0lneok9b1ra6stgm2t2nhd31jb3he@4ax.com>, > insert@address.here [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > ------------- > Alex Actually, it is the moisture in the air inside the tire I'd be concerned about (but not much). The moisture in the air will condense and may freeze when the air is released, and it will be coldest inside the valve. As other posts pointed out, this is only a potential problem when there is enough humidity in the air inside the tire and the temperature is in a narrow range above freezing. Mike |
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