As with fixing a flat bike tire, there are specific indicators to look for when identifying tube leaks. Doing this will allow you to decide whether to repair or replace your tubes.
X-rays will be conducted before and after chest tube placement to assess how much air or fluid drains off the chest tube and whether the collapsed lung has begun re-expanding.
Tube Size
Though tubes may not be everyone’s top accessory choice, they’re essential to keep their ride running smoothly. Unfortunately, however, there’s often confusion regarding which tube to buy and how best to attach it to a tire’s tread pattern. To select the appropriate tube for your bike, it is vitally important that you understand rim type and valve options to determine an ideal tube that suits your individual needs quickly.
Schrader, Presta, and Dunlop tubes are today’s three primary options. Most bikes currently come equipped with Schrader valves; however, more often than not, these have since been switched out for Presta valves due to increased durability and performance. A good bike shop should be able to help you determine which valve suits your bike best while stocking the appropriate tubes.
Identifying your wheel and tire sizes is critical in selecting the appropriate tube. Thankfully, this information can be found molded onto the sidewall of your tire by looking for two numbers separated by a dash on its sidewall – this first number displays your wheel diameter – making choosing an appropriate tube much simpler as most are manufactured to accommodate various wheel diameters.
The second number will indicate the width of your tire; this is essential as most tubes are tailored to accommodate specific width ranges. Thankfully, this information can usually be found molded onto your tire sidewall, and it is simple to identify if you understand bicycle tire sizing conventions. Many tubes also contain information regarding width ranges (e.g., 700x23c), so ensure your wheel fits within that range for proper tube fitting.
Paying close attention to the inflation limits on your tube – representing the maximum amount of air it can hold without bursting – will help you determine when and how much air to add. Furthermore, if a rotation direction is indicated when mounting it onto your wheel, follow that when mounting. Doing this can prevent flat spots from developing on the tube surface.
Valve Stem Type
There are various valve stem styles. Which one you use depends on factors like tire and wheel size, required air pressures, driving conditions, and which valve-mounted tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) transmitter your vehicle uses – this system alerts the engine whenever any tire underinflation occurs.
Tubeless tires have three basic valve stem options: rubber snap-in, high-pressure metal clamp-in, or low-pressure molded rubber valve. Set rubber valves fit standard rim hole diameters from 0.45 to 0.625; they work great on passenger vehicles, trailers, and light trucks – although they might struggle under higher air pressure or faster speeds, such as race cars.
Other valve stem types are designed to meet higher air pressures and speed applications, with metal valve stems costing slightly more and having more robust construction, often looking more like screw nuts than traditional caps. They’re well suited to heavy-duty truck rims and higher air pressure requirements, such as those in autocross competitions or racing.
These wheels feature deep rim profiles to accommodate long valve stems. Some also come equipped with threaded inserts at their bases that directly accept bolts connecting TPMS sensor bolts. Valve stems compatible with TPMS come in various length options from less than an inch up to almost two inches and can even be bent or cornered to meet any particular rim shape to provide optimal performance.
Schrader valves on most bicycle tires are among the oldest valve designs on the market. Their main difference lies in their core sitting inside rather than outside the cylinder. When closed off with plastic or metal caps that prevent moisture, debris, and dirt from getting inside their inner valve bodies – typically knurled hexagonal shapes – moisture contamination remains minimal.
Durability Needs
Many factors can impact the durability of a find tube. These include its design, material selection, and manufacturing processes used. Furthermore, environmental conditions must also be considered as this could significantly decrease performance and lead to early failure of your find tubes.
Find tubes are devices installed along a highway that detect the axle of vehicles as they pass over their sensor, recording this information onto a computer for analysis to identify vehicle class, speed, axle count, and travel time data collection. Road tubes offer an efficient and cost-effective means of gathering traffic data collection.
Oxygen-free copper and controlled expansion cobalt alloys are among the most frequently employed materials for find tube construction due to their excellent corrosion resistance, electrical conductivity, diameter options, and wall thickness options. Other materials have also been utilized; however, stainless steel or tungsten are generally inferior due to poor corrosion resistance or higher costs.
Manufacturing and assembling a find tube involves many scientific disciplines to produce a quality product. These include thermodynamics, heat transfer, materials science, vacuum technology, and atomic/radiation sciences – each complex and needing precise control to reach anticipated technical results. If any of these disciplines is mismanaged, an unacceptable tube will result.
Mechanical, chemical, physical, and latent failures of tubes may arise for various reasons. Mechanical failures include broken boxes caused by collisions, improper installation, operation, or vandalism, while chemical and physical failures result from temperature cycling, aging thermal stress oxidation, or other environmental conditions. Latent failures often appear over time without immediate visual indication from routine inspection – be it small vacuum leaks that produce gasses preventing satisfactory high voltage performance or more serious situations such as critical structural failure.
Power tubes will deteriorate over time depending on how often and under what conditions the amplifier is used, so it is wise always to have spare replacement tubes if one begins wearing out or stops performing as intended. Pre-amp lines tend to outlive power tubes but do not have an indefinite lifespan.
Tube Patches
Tube patches are the go-to solution for punctures on bicycles. Available in all sizes, from standard rim strips to 30x20mm ovals, and as kits with various adhesives, these patches come in multiple colors to complement your frame or add an individual flair. Many choose Remo’s Vulcanizing Patch Kit, while numerous alternatives, such as Lezyne’s Smart Patch Kit or Park Tools Super Patch Kit, could also work.
Before applying a patch, it’s a good idea to clean around the hole with a wet rag and inflate it, if possible, to help locate its source. If that fails, check if you hear or feel air hissing out from its puncture site, as otherwise, you might have an irreparable slit puncture or star-shaped blowout that won’t heal with patches.
Begin preparing the patch site by roughening up an area on the tube about as large as your patch using either the scuffer, sandpaper, or emery paper piece from your patch kit (emery paper also works). This makes the rubber less smooth and will allow the glue to adhere more securely.
Once the tube has been thoroughly cleaned and prepared, apply the patch over the puncture hole by pressing down firmly with your fingertips to eliminate any air bubbles or stickiness issues. Allow a few minutes for drying before reinflating, and check for any unintentional air pockets that might have formed underneath the patch.
Practice makes perfect, but most people can save a tube using a quick patch and some minutes of work. A tube patch may be your best bet when traveling on a flat tire; otherwise, a spare tube should be your go-to solution until a more severe puncture can be addressed. In that instance, purchasing an entirely new box should also be your default decision.
