Inflating car tires

[CRLLS]

My 2012 Hyundai has no spare. Instead, the mfgr gave me a can of goop and the 12V compressor. So before you arbitrarily go to find an air supply, check your trunk. You may already have one.

 

[calmloki]

Anybody had one of these in the distant past?
Engineair Power Pump :: Aerostich Motorcycle Jackets, Suits, Clothing, & Gear

Back in the olden times when one could find a sparkplug and had a wrench to remove it...

Have used one, it worked, and it made very scary noises while operating.

 

[Idnar7]

My mechanic said those cans of goop ruin the tire. They cannot be repaired if gooped. But they work in an emergency.

 

[Car-Guy]

There are "lots" of them. Most any car parts house will have several to choose from (Auto Zone, OReilly's, Pep Boys, Advanced AP, etc, and even Walmart's auto section has air pumps) Even most of the cheap 12v pumps that work off of your cars cigarette lighter will work although some of them may be pretty slow to inflate your tires. If you get one these, make sure the electric cords are long enough to reach from your 12v outlet to your tires.

Even though I have an air compressor with a large tank in my shop, I prefer to use a small portable 110v electric pump when I'm at home for tire inflation. I have two portables. One is a tankless Powermate (my favorite) and the other is a 2 gallon Campbell Hausfeld. Both work well and have lasted for years and years and I pump up lots of tires.

FYI, lot's of people will see their car TPMS lights come on at this time of the year. When you get a good cold front coming through and the temperature drops 20 to 30+ degrees overnight, the next morning a lot of TMPS lights start coming on. A rule of thumb is for every 10 degree drop in air temperature your tire pressure will drop by one PSI. (The reverse is also true) "If" your cold tire air pressure happens to be just a pound or two under the limits of the TMPS, often after 8 to 10 miles of driving it will heat up the tires air enough to raise the pressure to turn off the light. I've seen that happen many times.

 

[Amethyst]

Lots of good ideas here - thanks! I am definitely getting some kind of portable electric compressor to keep in the car. I had to laugh at the "you'll give yourself a heart attack" posts about bicycle pumps. I think if we had to use a bicycle pump, we would survive the effort but die of boredom. It would probably take 20 minutes per tire.

Anyway, the tires are full now. I called the next closest gas station to ask if they had a working compressor. They did, for the usual price of $1.50 in quarters. Then I had to try to get 6 quarters. Try that in an era when nobody pays cash any more. Nobody had any cash. The soda machines wouldn't take my wrinkly bills.

So I called our usual station, the one with the free air pump that was out of order, and asked if they'd had it fixed yet. Normally that would have been a recipe for getting myself laughed off the phone, but this particular station has always been friendly and customer-oriented (which is why they are also the only one around with free air). Turns out they have two free air pumps, one of which is working. So I used that.

Now the car tells me the tires are full, but I can't get it to change the display so I can go back to obsessively monitoring our gas mileage. Sigh. Man in the service of technology, as usual!

 

[easysurfer]

I have two cordless ones that run off drill type batteries. My go to one for topping off the PSI is one from Ryobi that has a handle. The other is made by Craftsman that looks like a drill. I leave that in my car for emergencies. On both of these, I made a modification with a better chuck to get a strong grip.

I think going portable much more convenient than going to a gas station or using an air tank in the garage. Also, I suggest going cordless instead of the 12v cigarette lighter type. The convenience worth the additional expense. I do also carry a cheapo 12v inflator in the car as an added backup, but don't intend to use this.

Picture of my "go to" inflator (this one shuts off automatically when reaching the PSI I set ) ...

 

[travelover]

Lots of good ideas here - thanks! I am definitely getting some kind of portable electric compressor to keep in the car..........

Costco can be a good place to buy one of these, especially given Costco's warranty and these compressors' propensity to overheat and die eventually.

 

[Walt34]

I keep a small two-gallon size compressor in the garage and check the tire pressures monthly. When I had a motorcycle I checked those tires weekly. There's also a 20-gallon compressor in the basement that I can haul up to the garage if needed. Both are from Sears bought on sale, I have no idea who made them.

 

[RetireAge50]

I just have Costco check them once in awhile. Don't own any pumps except for bicycles.

 

[sengsational]

I bought a crummy, noisy, slow 12V pump for DD when we sent her off to a distant state with her new-used car. It had nice tires, but one had a slow leak. That was two years ago and she still yanks out that compressor every month or so, lol! Sure beats trying to find air at a gas station or paying a buck or two for air!

 

[zinger1457]

I have the Ryobi One+ system, the basic kit is an 18V drill but they also sell about 70 different tools that run off of the same 18V battery. One of the accessories I picked up is their One+ Power Inflator for about $19. It works great for topping off low car tire pressure and filling bike tires. I also have a shop compressor I can use but find the Ryobi much faster and it has a built in pressure gauge that seems to be fairly accurate.

 

[aja8888]

I'm flush with compressors. I have an old 4 HP 230 Volt compressor that puts out about 9 CFM @ 40 psi and is in my workshop. I also have a twin tank 1.5 HP compressor that I use for nail and brad guns. Filling tires is a breeze.

There are lots of good suggestions above for the OP. Stay way from the goop cans unless you are totally stranded. Pre-paid roadside assistance sometimes comes with a newer car too.

 

[Hermit]

I bought a crummy, noisy, slow 12V pump for DD when we sent her off to a distant state with her new-used car. It had nice tires, but one had a slow leak. That was two years ago and she still yanks out that compressor every month or so, lol! Sure beats trying to find air at a gas station or paying a buck or two for air!

She might take it in and have the tire checked. There is a chance she has a nail in it. That is about how often I have to air up my tires when I get a nail in them. It seems to happen quite often. Something to do with building a house, I think. Last Sunday I had to take the Jeep in because the slow leak suddenly had a very bad leak. It had not only a nail, but a 3/8" bolt in it!

 

[Hermit]

My car informed me of low tire pressure yesterday. I checked, and indeed, it's only 25-28 psi in all 4 tires. There is one local gas station. Their air pump is broken. The next closest is the one near work. Their air pump is broken. So now I am going to have to travel to more distant stations...hoping they have an air pump that works and isn't blocked by garage customers' cars.

So, what do y'all do? Is there a reliable car-tire inflator for home use?

Amethyst

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0036E9VB6/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is the one I got from Amazon. It was recommended by four-wheeling folks. When we go out on rough roads, we deflate the tires to 12 - 15 lbs and at the end of the run, pump them back up. I've had it for 3 years. It gets a lot of use and has been good so far.

 

[easysurfer]

I have the Ryobi One+ system, the basic kit is an 18V drill but they also sell about 70 different tools that run off of the same 18V battery. One of the accessories I picked up is their One+ Power Inflator for about $19. It works great for topping off low car tire pressure and filling bike tires. I also have a shop compressor I can use but find the Ryobi much faster and it has a built in pressure gauge that seems to be fairly accurate.

I was wondering about how accurate the pressure gauge works on that inflator. For only $19 (if you already have the battery system), you really can't go wrong.

 

[CardsFan]

Now the car tells me the tires are full, but I can't get it to change the display so I can go back to obsessively monitoring our gas mileage. Sigh. Man in the service of technology, as usual!

Check the owners manual, there is probably a procedure to follow. In my current car (Nissan) the sensor alarm will automatically reset (if the pressure is correct) when you hit about 20 MPH.

 

[jimbee]

My complaint: Tire pressure gauges. The cold weather causes tire pressures to get low and the "low pressure" light to come on, but some cars don't even tell you which tire is low. And I own 4 gauges and none of them appears to be very accurate, or at least they don't agree with the "smart" senders in my tires, or with each other. I've spent from $2 to $15 and still haven't found a reliable one. I'd prefer to avoid anything that needs a battery.

My preferred tire gauge for passenger cars is the Milton S-921. I have one in each of my cars. About six bucks, doesn't require much space to store, no batteries required. Amazon has it available if you can't find it locally.

 

[LOL!]

Like others, I just use my bicycle tire pump. It is rather easy, so maybe folks don't remember how easy these things are.

And it is not like going from 0 PSI to 32 PSI. It is more like going from 25 PSI to 32 PSI.

But I know some folks are too frail to walk up a flight of stairs, so you shouldn't be using a bicycle pump.

 

[stepford]

Bike pumps work, but car tires have a lot more volume than bike tires. Translation: While pumping up a bike tire may take about 20-30 strokes a car tire can easily take 100-200. Doable, but a bit tiring.

A few summers ago my wife and I drove the family car up to Fairbanks, got a flat while driving around Alaska and put on the spare... and soon after we left Fairbanks for the long ride back down south the spare started leaking. I spent 3 days regularly reinflating that tire with a bike pump every couple hundred miles until we got to a place that fixed it. Had lumberjack arms by that time.

 

[template]

The Discount Tire store near me has an outdoor tire inflation station you can use for free. You can check your tire pressure and inflate your tires using their compressor.

They have over 900 Discount Tire locations in 29 states, though I don't know how many provide the free tire inflation facility.

 

[meierlde]

I'll also add that you should be checking them, and topping off before your system tells you.

Now, do I always do that? Hmmmm, OK, do as I say, not as I do! It's for your own good.

-ERD50

It depends on the brand both my 2011 Cruze and 2016 Malibu have a mode where the actual tire pressure is displayed on one of the displays, not just an idiot light. This is how I see the pressure be lower on cold days also.

 

[easysurfer]

My car has a low pressure indicator but doesn't tell the actually psi. I just check and top off every couple of months along with other regular stuff (check oil, wiper fluid, recharge battery jump starter) on a regular routine. Oh, I have a checklist too for the month so I don't have to dwell whether I do the routine maintenance this month or last month? . My car is usually down a few psi in two months.

 

[like2]

The Discount Tire store near me has an outdoor tire inflation station you can use for free. You can check your tire pressure and inflate your tires using their compressor.

They have over 900 Discount Tire locations in 29 states, though I don't know how many provide the free tire inflation facility.

http://www.americastire.com/dtcs/infoServicesAirCheck.do

I think Americas tire and Discount are the same, the one near me provides excellent service. I have learned it is always a good idea to look very closely at your tires when the alert goes off. A couple of time I have found a nail or screw in the tire.

 

[wolf]

+3 on 12 volt portable. FYI. The gauges on them are not very accurate.

What I did, purchased tire gauge, (many years ago Consumer Reports did a review on best models). Then marked the 12 volt infiltrator with the correct
pressure.

ie. Inflated to 32 lbs. (per tire gauge). 12 volt said, 40 lbs.

So I used a black marker and wrote " 40=32 lbs."

 

[meierlde]

+3 on 12 volt portable. FYI. The gauges on them are not very accurate.

What I did, purchased tire gauge, (many years ago Consumer Reports did a review on best models). Then marked the 12 volt infiltrator with the correct
pressure.

ie. Inflated to 32 lbs. (per tire gauge). 12 volt said, 40 lbs.

So I used a black marker and wrote " 40=32 lbs."

To start with a 1 inch dial is that goes to 150 lbs does not provide much resolution. I found a pressure gauge with a 2 inch dial that only goes to 60 psi and that holds pressure until you release it. The inflator is also designed for bicycle tires and needs to go to 100 psi with its dial.