weird tubeless problem...

… where my Stan's sealant, rather than remaining a consistant liquid solution, becomes a large, odd and useless rubbery curd-ball inside my tire.

:S

it's happened two or three times now in thick and thin wall tires 2.35 and 2.7.

I'm running ghetto tubeless.

has anyone else had this happen? know how to prevent it? I'm considering mixing stans with latex mold builder and water to see what happens.

stan's sealent is not very effected by colder weather due to the anti-freeze they put into the mix, so i don't think its a temp. issue causing the problem

I can only assume that your sealent is reacting to either the soap (detergent) you are using to seat / seal your setup or your ghetto tire strip material (although this is unlikely as it should be butyl rubber like the stan's strip)

I use dish washing detergent and don't have any problems with it reacting with sealent, the sealent stays liquid for months here in England

another possibility is your inflation system if using an air compressor with an oil lubrication system misted oil may be finding its way into your tire inner space and reacting with the sealent

the sealent has dried up and needs to be replaced… it dosent last for ever so the only option is to replace it!

It happens after a while. Remove the ball and add a bit more…

Make sure the inside of your tire is really clean when installing.

Is it possible that you are not cleaning the white powdery stuff out of the innertube effectively prior to assembly?

Maybe that ball is the talc combined with the stan's?

--just a thought….

I'm betting that you're using CO2 Cartridges? The CO2 reacts with the latex and makes it harden up into weird balls…

Get a nice pocket pump or change over to Bontrager Super Juice :)

well, I always clean the tire and tube inside and out thoroughly before mounting, and did not use soap for mounting.

I don't know if it is a compressor oil problem because this only happens after the sealant is topped-up a couple times, then inflated with a floor pump. previously I used a compressor at a gas station, but I have an oil-less compressor now.

I have never used Co2.

I'm thinking it could be related to quickly letting air in and out of the tire (re-filling etc.), but it could just be the age of the sealant. I just think it's odd to have it lump up the way it did.

and I've never heard of the bontrager stuff before. I guess it's worth a look!

I think its normal, especially over the summer. You air them up with relatively dry air (ie on a hot June day), the air absorbs a little moisture inside and releases it when you air it down. Repeat 50 times over the summer and it'll totally dry out

I think its normal, especially over the summer. You air them up with relatively dry air (ie on a hot June day), the air absorbs a little moisture inside and releases it when you air it down. Repeat 50 times over the summer and it'll totally dry out

X2. Add a bit of water every now and then to re-dilute and prevent drying.

happens to me too… i just put a new cup of stans in… a bit of a hassle but after adding stans once or twice my tires are usually worn out anyways…

I use a special mix of Liquid latex(mold builder), Slime, PE Antifreeze and glitter. Works quite well. I've had a 3" long nail puncture my tread, hit the rim and curl out to put a gapping hole in my sidewall. Sealed it right up. However after 6 weeks I got a snot ball of latex similar to this.

Whats odd is that I still had some left over of this concoction in a clear bottle and its perfectly stable.

lol glitter, the secret ingredient

Because the sidewalls of all non-tubeless tires are somewhat porous, air and some water vapour will be lost over time. This causes the nature of the sealant to change over time as it dehydrates. The end result is partial or complete coagulation and hardening of the sealant. This will not happen if you remember to regularly add more sealant.

how often should i be adding sealant?