Tires Calcium Loaded Tires

[BoylermanCT]

My tractor has tires loaded with Calcium Chloride. A friend who is a mechanic at the local John Deere dealer was helping me replace a blown hydraulic hose and commented that I should consider replacing the calcium with beet juice. He said my rims will rot out with the calcium, and they use beet juice now as weight in tires. Is calcium corrosive enough that I should get it removed and replaced with something else?

 

[k0ua]

Well here is the thinking on that. Yes Calcium is very corrosive. and if it leaks out of the inner tube and into the rim, it will rot the rims.. if it was put into a tubeless tire, yes, it will eventually rot it out from the inside. Some have reported it eating the vulcanization of the valve stem and causing some leaking into the rim that you may not notice, (until it is too late) If you pick up a hole all the way thru the tire carcass and the tube, it will squirt this salty water all over your tractor as the tire rotates until you notice it. You will then fight rust on your tractor parts for some time. Ask me how I know that... The plus side of Calcium Chloride is that it is cheap and is heavier than water. Thats about it. Oh, don't get any on your shoes either, it ruins the leather. Bottom line Calcium Chloride is old school and it sucks.

Beet juice product. AKA Rimguard. More expensive by far, is only dealer applied, weighs more even then the calcium chloride solution and has non of the nasty features of calcium. It is non toxic, but it does stink. Of course it does not stink inside of the tire. You can safely put it inside of a tubeless tire. Don't let the air pressure get down too low though as it is a bit slimy and if the air pressure is too low it can result in the rim spinning inside the tire. This doesn't happen much, but it has occurred when the pressure was very very low. Overall Rim Guard is the premium preferred product to put in your tires if you can afford it.

 

[Deezl Smoke]

Well here is the thinking on that. Yes Calcium is very corrosive. and if it leaks out of the inner tube and into the rim, it will rot the rims.. if it was put into a tubeless tire, yes, it will eventually rot it out from the inside. Some have reported it eating the vulcanization of the valve stem and causing some leaking into the rim that you may not notice, (until it is too late) If you pick up a hole all the way thru the tire carcass and the tube, it will squirt this salty water all over your tractor as the tire rotates until you notice it. You will then fight rust on your tractor parts for some time. Ask me how I know that... The plus side of Calcium Chloride is that it is cheap and is heavier than water. Thats about it. Oh, don't get any on your shoes either, it ruins the leather. Bottom line Calcium Chloride is old school and it sucks.

Beet juice product. AKA Rimguard. More expensive by far, is only dealer applied, weighs more even then the calcium chloride solution and has non of the nasty features of calcium. It is non toxic, but it does stink. Of course it does not stink inside of the tire. You can safely put it inside of a tubeless tire. Don't let the air pressure get down too low though as it is a bit slimy and if the air pressure is too low it can result in the rim spinning inside the tire. This doesn't happen much, but it has occurred when the pressure was very very low. Overall Rim Guard is the premium preferred product to put in your tires if you can afford it.

That is great information and very well detailed. All of it can be backed up with fact except the report of calcium chloride eating rubber, or (vulcanization) as it is written.What it can do is corrode the brass around it's insertion and result in a failed joint. This may be what k0ua meant, but I wanted to ad that for clarity. Vulcanization is a one way process of curing rubber that can not be reversed or undone at this point in time.

Heed k0ua's advice and especially reread and understand the part about getting it on your tractor as the tire rotates before you notice it. It can make a real mess of you tractor's finish.

 

[k0ua]

That is great information and very well detailed. All of it can be backed up with fact except the report of calcium chloride eating rubber, or (vulcanization) as it is written.What it can do is corrode the brass around it's insertion and result in a failed joint. This may be what k0ua meant, but I wanted to ad that for clarity. Vulcanization is a one way process of curing rubber that can not be reversed or undone at this point in time.

Heed k0ua's advice and especially reread and understand the part about getting it on your tractor as the tire rotates before you notice it. It can make a real mess of you tractor's finish.

yeah, I had that happen on my Long 2360. I had a thorn punch a hole in my rear tire and sprayed the tractor down pretty good. I had rust start forming really quick. It took a lot of work to keep it from eating the fender up. I decided then, no more Calcium Chloride for me.

 

[buickanddeere]

Calcium Chloride is a power alkaline corrosive that never stops breaking down everything it touches . It's not a matter of if but when it will rot something to bits.

 

[oosik]

I had CaCl in my previous tractor and it was a constant battle. It would DIGEST the valve stems and start leaking. I had to go thru the "valve stem replacement" scenario at least annually. New tractor has rimguard and I'm very happy with this product. No leaks, no rips, no tears - just the added weight.

 

[ovrszd]

Let's also talk a bit about weight. Especially the difference in weight of Calcium Chloride, Rimguard and Water antifreeze solutions such as Windshield Washer Fluid.

I used WWF in my Kubota. Added 180 gallons to the rear tires for a cost of $212 (memory). This added 1,500 lbs to my tractor. Cost me .14 cents per pound of ballast.

I know Rimguard weighs 11lb per gallon. Not sure about CaCl solution. And I have no idea what the costs are. With that said, I could have added another 480lbs to my setup by using Rimguard.

I'll let someone else post their data in regards to Rimguard or CaCl because I don't know what they might have paid.

I concede that you gain more weight with Rimguard or CaCl. I'm just making a point that if the weight difference gain isn't significant or critically important it might be much more cost effective to go for WWF or something similar. Some guys even home brew their own non corrosive solution that doesn't freeze.

James' statement about air pressure with Rimguard is worthy of mention as well. My Brother filled the front tires on his Kubota L3240 with Rimguard. Within a couple months he had lost both due to running manufacturer recommended air pressure and having the slimy Rimguard start seeping out between tire and wheel until they finally broke down and dumped the ballast.

 

[k0ua]

I believe that RimGuard will typically cost about twice what Calcium Chloride will cost, and weight nearly the same.

 

[Quebecguy]

Hello BoylermanCT,
I don't doubt any of the horror stories that the other posters have recounted but on the other hand Calcium Chloride can do the job well for many years. Although my International is on its second pair of tires it has had Calcium Chloride since day one back in the early seventies without problems. How old is your tractor and has it shown any sign of a problem with the Calcium Chloride? How old are you and how much cash are you willing to spend? You might well be able to put off making any changes and let your heirs worry about any eventual problems. That being said I do admit that I had the beet juice installed when I bought my John Deere!
Regards, Chris

 

[ovrszd]

Hello BoylermanCT,
I don't doubt any of the horror stories that the other posters have recounted but on the other hand Calcium Chloride can do the job well for many years. Although my International is on its second pair of tires it has had Calcium Chloride since day one back in the early seventies without problems. How old is your tractor and has it shown any sign of a problem with the Calcium Chloride? How old are you and how much cash are you willing to spend? You might well be able to put off making any changes and let your heirs worry about any eventual problems. That being said I do admit that I had the beet juice installed when I bought my John Deere!
Regards, Chris

So you paid twice as much for equivalent ballast for the Deere. Why didn't you use CaCl which has proven itself to you?

 

[MORRISONSTEEL]

Many users will also decide based on availability of a tire dealer(s) that handles rimguard for future tire repairs, heaven forbid. If you are making a living with the machine it is nice to be able to have more options for the quickest response. In our part of the country we have 1 out of 10 tire shops that handle rimguard vs cc so is usually limited to cuts and utilities being used as a personal use machine and the ag or commercial users still pretty much stick to a combination of cc and dry ballast.

 

[lilranch2001]

but it does stink. Of course it does not stink inside of the tire.

Don't let the air pressure get down too low though as it is a bit slimy and if the air pressure is too low it can result in the rim spinning inside the tire. This doesn't happen much, but it has occurred when the pressure was very very low. Overall Rim Guard is the premium preferred product to put in your tires if you can afford it.

The second point above is very true!
ask me how I found out..... :confused3:

The first point..... When I first started searching for my last tractor I went to a bota store and they sold Rimguard, and the owner testified how bad it stunk
When I let the air pressure get to low......
And the Rimguard leaked out all over my barn floor.......
It actually wasn't near as bad as I assume it would be!
:thumbsup:

 

[buickanddeere]

Calcium Chloride was used in the bad old days because it was the only practical material at the time. Later Bubba Jr used calcium Chloride because it was what Grand Pappy Bubba and Pappy Bubba used. Plus the initial upfront cost was the cheapest.

 

[BoylermanCT]

Hello BoylermanCT,
I don't doubt any of the horror stories that the other posters have recounted but on the other hand Calcium Chloride can do the job well for many years. Although my International is on its second pair of tires it has had Calcium Chloride since day one back in the early seventies without problems. How old is your tractor and has it shown any sign of a problem with the Calcium Chloride? How old are you and how much cash are you willing to spend? You might well be able to put off making any changes and let your heirs worry about any eventual problems. That being said I do admit that I had the beet juice installed when I bought my John Deere!

Regards, Chris

That was my line of thinking. My tractor is a 2008. I am 15-20 years from retirement, so I can't play with my tractor full time yet! I am on the original tires, so my thought is when I need new tires, I will decide what to fill the new ones with. From what I am reading here, I won't be choosing Calcium. But is it worth draining the Calcium and replacing it now. That's what I am wondering. Has anyone had it removed? What did it cost? I'm not going to drain it onto the ground, at least not my ground!

 

[oldpilgrim]

Then there are the many owners, who like me gave had cacl in their tires (tubes) for over 25 years and counting, with NO tire,Tube or valve issues.

And many dealers like mine only put cacl in whatever they sell.

 

[lilranch2001]

From my experience people like you are few and far between
And if you ever have a spill you will be sorry

 

[grm61]

From my experience people like you are few and far between
And if you ever have a spill you will be sorry

Just curious. what is your expeience?

I posted in another" adding weight", that I don't give tire advice because there or to many "experts"...not picking on you in particular....but crap, if your tire has a leak fix it, if it has a bead leak fix it.....Calcium chloride was used for MANY years, most of the rot stories you hear of are from neglect..let a leaking tire leak...yep its going rot if you don't fix it.

Not everyone has access too or can afford to pay someone to do a half assed job filling their tires with rimguard, truth is in the 30 years I worked field doing calcium filled tires on construction equipment ,Lull, Skytrack, Gradall, Gehl, etc,,5k to 12k lift capacity, 36 to 50' reach these machines all REQUIRED ballast in the tires, and back then it was calcium, and they were all tubeless as new, until some ****** would come out to fix flat and put a tube in it to make his .25c commision... I also did tire replacements and flat repairs for tractor dealers, most of the tires were 1/4 to half full.....unless your standing over one of these retards shoulder your not going to get what you paid for....


FYI My Dad bought a new JD 970 back in 96 I filled the tires for him with calcium back then, he has AG rears that are tubed.. .His wheels are fine, he gets his tires fixed when he has a leak!

 

[lilranch2001]

my experience is.....
my 8 N had 1 wheel rot through, and had to replace it
When I did I needed to replace the tires, and the second rim was within 3 days of rotting through, so I had to replace that wheel as well
It also leaked all over one fender and that fender rotted out, and the axle rust red
My next door neighbor has a Ferguson, his rotted out as well but since he never used it, it sat and the fluid ran out and he had a very large patch of contaminated ground that was bare for about 4 years
Not to mention how many threads I have read on here

You can testify how good it was for you all those years you fondly remember filling those tires but I have my own memories

Only mine are not fond memories..........
:thumbdown:

 

[DaveNJ]

I've got an old H to restore when time permits. Both rims rotted away by Calcium at the valve stem area. This stuff was in all the old equipment I used and usually didn't cause a problem but I wouldn't use it today.

 

[ovrszd]

I understand the CaCl days. Grew up in them. Things change. Today there's no reason to risk rust. Too many options available. There's also no need to pay someone to fill tires unless you insist on material such as Rimguard.

I choose to fill my own with the most cost effective and least corrosive material available.