water in tires

[sqwert]

I purchased a small tractor from southern arizona and it has water in the rear tires 17.5x24 tubeless. I live where it may get to 10 degrees the lowest. What would be best to replace the water with?

 

[Anonymous-0]

compressed air. find another way to add weight if you need it.

 

[Mike M]

windshield washer fluid is what many are putting in now in Ohio.

 

[Charlie M]

If you don't need the extra weight I would just empty them. If you need all the weight you can get then calcium chloride is the best for weight but bad news over time for the rims as it will eventually rot them. I think some guys have put antifreeze in the water. I don't know if you can find enough places to put wheel weights to make up for empty tires.

 

[old]

Well if you do not need the extra weight just drain the water out. If you need it drain it and refill with Wiper fluid or some other such thing. For many years CaCl was used but can be hard on rims. Some say to use used antifreeze but I do not like it due to the risk of hurting and animal if you get a leak I use wiper fluid winter grade but your looking at 30 or so gal. per tire

 

[Tx Jim]

You don 't need to replace the water with anything as long as you don't need to drive tractor when the water in the tires is frozen. Back when I was using my JD 4255 for plowing I had straight H2O in the tires with no antifreeze for several years but I didn't drive the tractor in the Winter(Zip code 76031)

 

[David G]

Washer Fluid

 

[mkirsch]

The reason CaCl has been so popular is because it gives you more weight per gallon of volume. Water is around 8.4lbs per gallon, but saturated with CaCl, it is well over 10lbs per gallon IIRC.

Washer fluid is ~25% alcohol, and alcohol is lighter than water. You lose a bunch of weight with washer fluid.

A 50/50 mix of antifreeze is just as bad if not worse.

 

[Rwolfejr]

Deere and others I'm sure... sell some sort of beet juice for tire filling that is comparable in weight to the calcium chloride but without the risk of rim damage. I've been told it really stinks though if you empty or blow one. It's also pretty expensive.

 

[Dean]

Rim Guard is non corrosive and nearly as heavy as CaCl. It is, however, expensive and makes a real mess if you have a flat.

Dean

 

[showcrop]

If you have inner tubes the Cal-Chlor doesn't hurt your rims. Owner procrastination is what ruins the rims. When the tire gets soft and it goes soft again in a few days don't just keep airing it back up. Get it fixed!

 

[evilboweivel]

what ever you favorite local tire dealer wants to put in
if you do it yourself then Calcium is the way to go

 

[buickanddeere]

CaCl is popular because it"s the cheapest upfront cost per lb.
Long term costs us as increased rolling friction, seepage
damage, flat repairs and damage to paint if the tire sprays are
seldom considered.

 

[Wesley Stephens]

Here in SE NC it gets into the 20's often and we have a few nights per year in the teens. We always use plain water in the tires.

 

[casenut1]

farmed many years in north central Ohio. never put anything in the tires. we had special cast hubs from Case for loader use and this gave us all the weight we needed.

 

[caterpillar guy]

Both Deere and Case have 500LBS weights and on down. So yes you can get enough weights on if you put them on both on inside and out,

 

[jm.]

You can argue CC all you want. Around thes parts NO dealer or tire shop will install anything except a 1/3 /2/3 mix of water & methanol. On a 55 gallon tire you get about 460 lbs of weight vs something around 550 with the calcium.. Guess it just boils down to what the customer wants but this part of the country calcium is kinda like the crud, nobody wants it.

 

[Bill in Colo]

I need a source for methaol and price

Thanks Bill

 

[tomstractorsandtoys1]

Do something before cold weather. Years ago we bought tractors from the south and they often only had water in them and if you moved them after they froze the valve would break off, then you had to park them in the shop for a week to thaw and then new tubes.