Rim leak on Aluminum rims

[Ralph50]

I have been to Discount tire 3 times for the same rim leak. They say there is no bead sealer for aluminum rim wheels. I called around, and (Google searched) to other local shops and they all said they can use bead sealer, 10 dollars per tire to seal and balance. Discount said the rims have corrosion and needs to be replaced, 300+ dollars. My solution, bought a tire de-mounter from Harbor Freight for 40 dollars and broke all the beads and put bead sealer on the tires and inflated. No more leaks!. I think if I ever buy new tires again I will pay the additional money to use the bead sealer at the install. Now for my question, is it acceptable to use an old fashioned inner tube in the tubless tire wheel system? inner tubes are 14 dollars at Autozone. This would certainly fix the slow leaks. These tires with low air probably have lost some of their life. I dont think I wll go back to Discount tire again. As the guy said at a local place, "D Tire knows that eventually you will get fed up with the air leak and buy new tires". Also, when I did break the bead on the one tire that was leaking there was some corrosion, what upset me was that D Tire only cleaned small areas of the rim not the entire rim, that is crazy to de-mount the tire and then not clean the entire surface. Yea they are ok with me sitting around their waiting area.

[HotZ28]

Yeah, sounds typical some num-nut tire store employees! No need to use tubes if they don't leak.

[RahX]

Tell em to wire brush the whole tire mating surface and use beadsealer, they're a bunch of lazy fking morons. And I would not recommend an inner tube for a radial tire.

[HotZ28]

If cleaning the bead and using bead sealer does not fix the problem, then you may have air leaking out through the porosities in the cast aluminum alloy. GM has a published repair procedure for this problem: Inflate the tire to 40 psi or more and immerse the wheel/tire in a dunk tank. If you see bubbles, mark the rim with a grease pencil where the bubbles form. Then pull the rim out of the water & demount the tire from the rim. Scuff the (inside) of the rim area marked, with 80-grit sand-paper and clean with brake cleaner. Dry the area and cover it with a thin layer of silicone gasket sealer. Allow the silicon to cure for a few hours, and then remount the tire & balance. Any tire store should be able to follow this procedure. Good Luck!

[PRESTON LLOYD]

Originally Posted by RahX

Tell em to wire brush the whole tire mating surface and use beadsealer, they're a bunch of lazy fking morons. And I would not recommend an inner tube for a radial tire.

You are correct with this one exception - Do not use a wire brush to polish the aluminum surface which is a soft metal. The best way to polish the aluminum is to use a 3 M Roloc™ Bristle Discs; Outside Diameter (Inch): 2; Grit: 50; Abrasive Material: Ceramic; Mfr #: 00048011187303. This disc will provide a very smooth surface on aluminum or copper. A wire brush leaves micro cuts and scratches
in the aluminum which serve to begin the corrosion process again. Follow up with the bead sealer and you have a seal which will holds up for a very long time. A number of Gemni Dealers in the Akron OH area use this disc with great sucess. Do not use this disc on motors where bearings are present as the ceramic abrasive which cannot be seen will get into oils and greases and damage moving surfaces.