Nitrogen in tires

Is any one using nitrogen in there tires? I have 265/75/16 xt's on my x the door says to run 30 psi for stock 255/70/16's I run 30 psi in the tires. I am a Heating and Air Conditioning service technician so I can get all the nitrogen I want. Is It worth it to run nitrogen in the tires? and should I still run the 30 psi?

 

[red96camaro]

Don't know much about the subject. Why would ya want to? Any advantages?

 

[WILL]

Sounds like more a pain than anything else. Think about this though...gases expand when heated, the expansion properites of air are known (generally) what about Nitrogen? How much does it expand/contract at a given temperature? As an electrician I have access to all the electrical wire I could want...you dont see me rewiring my house just becouse I have different color wire than what is in my house. Not being rude or anything, just proving a point.

 

[Rick]

Nitrogen is great to use when you air up your tires after running them low off-road. It's expansion is similar to air, it's dry and inflammable.

Lots of people use it for that, but for airing up on a regular basis there is no point.

 

[WILL]

Different colors of wire are good to use, it's properties are the same as other colored wire, but it keeps you from blowing ur house up when connecting them.

 

[Bored_2wd]

I believe they use an inert gas in the tires of Indy cars because it expands at a slower rate when heated. Their tires go from normal outside temp to very high temperatures, and it's hard to keep a steady pressure. They may use nitrogen, but I'm not sure if nitrogen is intert. Anyway, that's probably where you heard it. There is no practical reason to use it or not to use it in tires. People have those onboard tanks filled with liquid nitrogen, which come in handy. You can run air tools and fill up tires much quicker than with other methods.
--Bob

 

[addkev]

We run Nitrogen in our aircraft tires and our aviation support equipment, the main reason we use it. Regular air carries water, if an aircraft tire had water in it, when it reached high altitudes and froze, the tire could explode. Nitrogen doesn't carry water and doesn't expand as much as regular air. I can't see the advantages to using it in a truck.

 

[FORDisKING]

me either.

jay

 

[aldive]

Advantages in a race vehicle are there, but in our trucks, I don't see the need either.

 

[Black Magic]

What about using Helium to keep the weight down?

Just a stupid comment!

 

[lonewolf68]

These are some articals I found.
Tires Last Longer,Nitrogen is Safer Than Air, Tires Hold Their Pressure 30-40% Longer, Better Fuel Mileage and Handling, Fewer Tire Road Failures (Oxygen and Heat Destroy Tires), Lower Operating Costs.
Nitrogen has a much more consistent rate of expansion and contraction compared to the usual air. Often, a half pound of pressure will radically affect traction and handling. Nitrogen pressure is more consistent than normal air pressure because air typically contains varying amounts of water vapor due to changes in the relative humidity. Water causes the usual air to be inconsistent in its rate of expansion and contraction, And you will get unpredictable tire pressures. In one experiment involving 54 new truck tires, 33 were inflated with nitrogen and 21 were inflated with air. These tires were run side by side on the same vehical units until they failed or until they wore to the tread wear indicators. In this case the 54 new truck tires, nitrogen inflation resulted in 26% more miles being run before tires had to be removed when wear reached the tread wear indicators.
In the case of the failed tires a smaller percent of nitrogen tires failed physically (30% vs. 57%) and they gave 48% more miles before failing than did the air tires. This 48% improvement is due to the tire bodies lasting longer and not the better wearing properties of the tread which is the situation with the tires that lived to wear out.
The experiments involving 54 new and 44 used tires running some 7,345,497 tire miles in drive axle service, when viewed in light of the election microprobe experimental findings presented earlier, depict a clear cut picture of what nitrogen inflation can do for the transportation industry - cost wise as well as safety wise.

 

[Fusion213]

Air is mostly nitrogen.

 

[FORDisKING]

Good call on the previous post, I almost put that in mine, but didn't. Most people forget.

Jay

 

[aldive]

Most ( the approx 80% ) is not ALL, and the 20% that is O2 can and does cause the troubles mentioned above.

 

[mikeymed8]

I work for an Air Conditioning company too. One day I had a flat so I filled up the tire in my work van with nitro. Can't notice any difference.

Mike

 

[Fusion213]

All i'm trying to say is that since air is mostly nitrogen, 100% nitrogen in the tires shouldn't be bad.

 

[lonewolf68]

Well I finally did it, I filled all my tires with dry nitrogen to 30 psi.

 

[jssong]

keep us updated on how everything goes..

 

[Hammer]

BOOM!
Thump, Thump, Thump, Thump

 

[lonewolf68]

Well I drove to Idaho and back today to rescue my stranded sister so I decided to check the pressures of the nitrogen in the tires. It expanded slower than the air but it did expand 4 psi. I drove 90-95 MPH. It was 698 round trip. It only expanded the 4 psi even at those speeds and that distance. So the only advantage witch I will have to wait and see will be if the tires last longer.