Repair a wheelbarrow inner tube?

[DrPhill]

I assume the process is just the same as a bike, and I can use the same stuff..... but is it worth it? I can buy a new puncture-proof wheel (complete) for less than 15gbp delivered.....

What would you do?

 

[Bm101]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/183291123888?ul_noapp=true
Time versus cost versus personal circumstance.

 

[Fitzroy]

I bought a new wheel recently as the tire was also perished. When it arrived although the dimensions were the same the spindle from the old wheel was too loose fit. Luckily I could just swap the tyre and tube to the old hub as they were the same size.

I guess wheelbarrows aren’t that precise so new may not match old.

Fitz.

 

[Aquachiefofficer]

I've got a garden trolley and wheelbarrow. After the umpteenth puncture repair I bit the bullet and changed all 5 tyres for solid rubber.
Best move I ever made!
Paul

 

[Phil Pascoe]

A few weeks ago Aldi had wheelbarrow wheels for £8.

 

[HappyHacker]

I've got a garden trolley and wheelbarrow. After the umpteenth puncture repair I bit the bullet and changed all 5 tyres for solid rubber.
Best move I ever made!
Paul

Are the new solid tyres any improvement on the old ones? I have had wheel barrows in the past with solid wheels and they were horrible, the smallest stone in the way would cause it to try and stop especially when fully loaded. The pneumatic wheels would just ride over stones or lumps.

I had a Rotti that did not like wheels and would bite them so I have spent many a happy hour repairing wheel barrow tyres as they were just the right size for her to give them a good bite. Fortunately the car tyres were just a bit too wide for her. I tried the puncture proofing liquid you put in the tyre but it does not work very well when the puncture is on the side

 

[DrPhill]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/183291123888?ul_noapp=true
Time versus cost versus personal circumstance.

I did not think of that.... makes repair kits look expensive!

I bought a new wheel recently as the tire was also perished.

Hmm.. my tyre looks quite well cracked. That may swing it for a complete replacement. I do not use the barrow much, but when I do need it I dont want hassle with a flat tyre.

A few weeks ago Aldi had wheelbarrow wheels for £8.

That would suit.... except it is 25 miles of slow driving to my nearest Aldi (my fault for living in the sticks). Mind you the puncture-proof ones are just under double that.

 

[Bm101]

If you have bike tyre irons you're set.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

https://www.toolstation.com/pneumatic-wheel/p55838
Free delivery.

 

[MikeG.]

I've got a garden trolley and wheelbarrow. After the umpteenth puncture repair I bit the bullet and changed all 5 tyres for solid rubber.
Best move I ever made!
Paul

Are the new solid tyres any improvement on the old ones? I have had wheel barrows in the past with solid wheels and they were horrible, the smallest stone in the way would cause it to try and stop especially when fully loaded. The pneumatic wheels would just ride over stones or lumps...........

Yep, solid tyres are just about unusable on a building site. If you are simply using a wheelbarrow for collecting dead-heads off roses from the other side of your croquet lawn, then perhaps a solid tyre might work. In the real world, however, they're a nightmare.

And yes, you repair a barrow inner tube in precisely the same way as a bike inner tube. It's just a bigger pain getting the wheel off.

 

[DrPhill]

A whole gamut of opinions....

Repairing the old tube seems more environmentally friendly, but I remember patches on patches on my school bike inner tubes..... maybe I am more competent now? The low price of replacement inners makes repair seem pointless.

I am going to try the puncture proof replacement. The puncture-proof tyres do seem to have a reputation for stiffness, which makes them hard to use on uneven surfaces. For me this matters far less as I almost always use them on concrete or paved paths. Mainly for transporting coal, or logs, or bags of compost.

Thanks for the opinions - they helped me decide

 

[Lons]

I bought an Aldi wheel locally a while ago as a spare, haven't used it yet. Can buy online and p&p costs £2.95 so still under £11 total https://www.aldi.co.uk/workzone-wheelba ... 9276374500

I took a solid wheel off my barrow because of the gravel paths but also because it dug into the lawn when it was soft after rain.

 

[Aquachiefofficer]

Apologies to the professionals I seem to have upset by my recommendation of solid tyres, but as DrPhil says he uses his barrow mainly on paved or concreted paths as do I. They work well for me in the uses I put them to around the garden and driveway.
Regards, Paul

 

[MikeG.]

Apologies to the professionals I seem to have upset by my recommendation of solid tyres.........

What makes you think you've upset anyone? Someone disagreeing with you doesn't even begin to imply that there is any form of upset. I hold a counter view to you, and have expressed it. No more than that, and, though I don't need to say it, I am absolutely not upset with you. In fact, I'm trying to think of a way I can gift you the un-usable abomination of a hard-tyred wheelbarrow that someone gifted me a couple of years ago.

 

[DrPhill]

I found it useful to know where a solid tyre was useful and where it was not. This thread brought that out nicely. For my current situation a puncture-proof one should work and save me the hassle of dealing with a flat tyre occasionally.

FWIW I did not see any sign of upset - plenty of different views for sure, but that is the beauty of this forum. A good natured and informative place.

 

[clanger]

Having a horsey wife, our wheelbarrows get a hard treatment. I've had solid tyred barrows in the past, but across fields to the muck heap, they are not that control-able. My local garden machinery place recommended Linseal. https://www.linseal.com/

For small tubed tyres (barrows, sack trucks, mowers etc) I thoroughly recommend the stuff - ya get in a mess putting it in, but once done, the jobs a goodun.

 

[Woody2Shoes]

I have a collection of wheelbarrows used for general gardening and firewood-shifting, as well as some building work. I find that the pneumatic tires degrade in the sunlight and the inner tubes quickly get punctured by blackthorn/hawthorn etc. Having got bored with changing inner tubes (which is just like a bike wheel setup) I bought a couple of (surprisingly expensive - £14 each I think) 'solid' replacement wheels with a squidgy but solid 'tire' on the rim, from Aldi. These have saved me a lot of hassle, and even when fully laden with firewood are manoeuvreable over reasonably flat ground.

If I were regularly shifting heavy stuff (barrows of wet concrete or the like) over more uneven ground - per Mike's comments - I'd much prefer to use a pneumatic tire, but for everything else the 'solid' wheels are excellent.

Cheers, W2S

 

[Lons]

For small tubed tyres (barrows, sack trucks, mowers etc) I thoroughly recommend the stuff - ya get in a mess putting it in, but once done, the jobs a goodun.

Hi Chris
Just curious how it's a mess putting it in the tyres, I treated the tyre on my lawn tractor a few years ago using the 1 ltr DIY bottles with built in tube nozzle and it was fairly easy and clean. Good stuff though!

Bob

 

[HappyHacker]

Many years ago (must be about 15) I bought a heavy duty wheelbarrow tyre, at what I thought was an extravagant price at the time, to try and mitigate the attentions of the Rotti. It worked well and she did not puncture it and the heavy thread on it stops the normal hawthorn punctures. The problem now is not the tyre, which looks as good as new, but the wheel barrow itself is now nearly worn out: The tube around the front of the tyre is worn more than 1/2 way through, one handle is 4" higher than the other and the whole thing flexes alarmingly when full.

I have two other wheel barrows with the normal tyres and have at least two spare redundant wheels off old barrows, all tyres are perished and need replacing. I am still not sure how I have managed to collect so many barrows. As with tools I have to keep telling myself I am a user not a collector

I think I will stick with pneumatic tyres, I was hoping that the solid ones may have improved since I last used one.

 

[clanger]

For small tubed tyres (barrows, sack trucks, mowers etc) I thoroughly recommend the stuff - ya get in a mess putting it in, but once done, the jobs a goodun.

Hi Chris
Just curious how it's a mess putting it in the tyres, I treated the tyre on my lawn tractor a few years ago using the 1 ltr DIY bottles with built in tube nozzle and it was fairly easy and clean. Good stuff though!

Bob

Hi Bob, the internal diameter of the bottle spout was larger than the ext-diameter of the tyre valve so I was getting leakage. By my third tyre, I started to wrap the whole thing in Duck Tape and so leakage was at a minimum.