Tire seal, no flat, filler stuff...experience, advice, reviews sought

[Sheltietreasure]

We are contemplating adding a spare tire and undercarriage storage rack to our 2018 Greyhawk 30x motorhome. But, we are concerned about exceeding our GVW...we tow a Goldwing Trike and trailer and the Jayco rating says we shouldn't also carry anything like food, water, chairs, tools, people, etc...but I digress!

So we started looking into the stuff that can be inserted into tires so they won't go flat after a puncture. This would weigh lots less than a spare, rim and storage rack.

Our current tires are:
Hankook Dynapro ht Lt225/75-16

RV dealerships sell this at a huge markup, but Amazon sells DIY stuff in the range of $35 for two tires.

Please comment on your experience. Brand names of the good stuff would be appreciated. Specifics on the "don't even think about buying" products would be most helpful.

Also, should we not use it in tires that were made in 2017 with 9000 miles on them?

Please feel free to share your opinion on whether you think we should just go ahead and get the spare. Don't worry, we don't plan to change a tire on our rig ourselves if we get a roadside flat. But, we have read the stories about price gouging on tires that have to be purchased in an emergency situation.

We have Rv roadside assistance, but the last program we had left us stranded by the side of the road and hung up on us four hours after we first called them because our motorcycle caught fire. So, we don't trust any of them to do the right thing for their customers.

Sorry if this is all covered in another thread...I could not find it in my search.

Thanks for everyone's help!

[JimD]

I would love having a spare but the weight and cost just isn't worth it. I have the optional road side service that I hope would help if I got a flat.

I off road dry camp a lot and have had to air down my tires so as to not get stuck in the sand. I carry a small compressor in my little enclosed trailer to air the suckers back up. I also carry a tire plug kit but have never had to use it on a big tire. I had used it before on smaller tires and it did work. Also, I do carry the green tire goop that seals punctures for our off road vehicle tires.

I also added a tire pressure monitor that gives me some peace of mind. It is now easier to monitor the inner tires.

I just hope that I never get a flat.

[Route 66 Traveler]

Personally I stay away from the stuff. It will ruin a TPMS sensor in the tire, as well as damage a valve stem sensor. It eliminates the possibility of putting a patch on the inside of the tire and tire shops hate working with tires filled with the stuff. You could buy plugs to work in an emergency if you carry an air compressor. It will also probably unbalance the tire as well. Just my opinion...see what others have to say.

[michael.g]

Originally Posted by JimD

I would love having a spare but the weight and cost just isn't worth it. I have the optional road side service that I hope would help if I got a flat.

I just hope that I never get a flat.

I would highly recommend you check with your roadside assistance provider to see what they offer. When we had our Greyhawk, we had AAA Plus with RV. They would cover replacing our spare, but only if it was a spare mounted on a wheel. Fortunately, our 2009 came with a mounted spare.

A spare tire and wheel are not that heavy. Ours came mounted on the rear bumper. We removed it and put it under the rear bed. We did have a blowout once and was glad to have the spare tire.

-Michael

[RetiredOne]

I'm thinking there are a lot of variables to this equation, and it depends where you camp.

If you're off in the boonies and get a flat, it might be easier to shoot some Slime into the tire and air it up with a compressor, so you can limp out to find a service location.

If you're in a urban area, where roadside assistance is easy to get, then just having them handle the repair could be the answer.

Personally, I carry Slime, Fix-A-Flat and a compressor, just in case... If the tire guy has to deal with some crap inside the tire when he fixes it, that just means I was able to roll and get to his location...

[foglght]

So far I've had 3 blowouts. None have been the kind that can be fixed.

I carry a spare. If I have to change it, I just use the leveling jacks to get the tires off the ground (also how I rotate tires). Otherwise, the two times it has come down to replacing the tire without a spare, it was between $400-450 even with roadside assistance.