Help!
I’ve a tyre that’s losing air. It’s a very slow loss, perhaps about a pound’s pressure in a month. I can live with it until I take my car in for service. I don’t drive much in the winter anyway and It only takes a moment or two to bring it to the proper pressure.
I mentioned it to The Commander. I was hoping he’d volunteer to fill it. He hinted that the problem may be more with the air than with the tyre, and suggested a remedy.
The problem is that the oxygen in the air is combining with the rubber. His solution: inflate the tyre without oxygen. He claims that it’s fairly easy to do.
First step: suspend a big plastic bag from the ceiling in our basement and fill it with air. Put a candle in the bag and light it. Seal the bag. When the candle flame expires, the oxygen in the bag has been depleted. We can use our vacuum cleaner hose to connect the bag with the air intake on our compressor. He suggested a garden-waste bag for it’s size or a dry-cleaner bag because we can see inside easily.
Once the compressor tank is filled with our “special air,” it’s a simple matter of bleeding the tyre and refilling it. As a bonus, carbon dioxide molecules are larger than oxygen and will likely plug the porous rubber.
My problem - - -
He loves kidding me. And he’s quite good at it. But there are times when he presents the most bizarre stories using facts and logic that seem solid. Without some knowledge of my own, I can’t tell when he’s having some fun at my expense or when he’s serious. This is one of those times.
I’d really appreciate hearing some independent opinions.
Cheers, PW.
P.S. I like the new Christmas graphics on SI.
