What is tire balancing and why is it important to you?


When a tire is installed on a wheel rim, it is usually followed by a balancing process. Have you ever wondered why?
The purpose of the balancing

The purpose of the balancing is to eliminate any vibration which might be caused by any mis-match between a tire and the wheel.
First, you may wonder why there might even exist a mis-match requiring tire balancing when you're buying new tires and possibly installing them on new wheels or even used ones which are in good condition.
Tire Balancing can correct vibration caused by as little as 1/4 ounce

To begin, it is important to realize that the amount of weight difference which could cause vibration can be extremely small. Most tire balancing machines today are set to detect and correct vibration caused by as little as 1/4 ounce. Just 1/4 ounce ... that's less than the weight of the pat of butter you put on your morning toast!
Why this tiny weight can be important is based on the principle that a small force, repeated rapidly and frequently can cause serious damage to almost anything.

• Remember how just one tiny drop of water, dripping on a piece of solid rock over hundreds of years can wear that rock forming fantastic shapes and formations which we marvel at in nature.
  
• Next take into account that 1/4 oz. (which is the minimum a tire balancing machine corrects) is many times heavier than that tiny drop of water which can wear away a mountain and you can start to realize that this small weight imbalance can be important.
  
• Now add to this, the knowledge that a car's wheel which is traveling at 60 mph is making approximately 4 revolutions every second, and every one of those revolutions is producing a tiny shake which is passed on to every part of the vehicle connected to it.

More than 14,000 little shakes an hour

be aware that what might seem to be a very tiny, insignificant event, can easily become something of importance

This means that in just one hour driving, one wheel can deliver more than 14,000 of these little shakes.

Now start adding the other wheels on the car, multiply by hundreds of miles driven in a day and then start factoring-in the holes, bumps, rocks, debris, and other things a car may encounter on the road and you can see that the numbers start growing to incredible proportions.

It's not necessary to calculate all the thousands or even millions of vibrations which a vehicle could experience, because the exact number isn't important. What is important is simply to be aware that what might -at first glance- seem to be a very tiny, insignificant event, can easily become something of importance once you take into account the tremendous number of times this event is repeated in a vehicle which is being used under ordinary driving conditions.
When should balancing be performed?

People often notice unbalanced tires when they are on the front wheels because the vibrations are transferred through the steering wheel to the driver's hands. These same vibrations are not felt when they are on the rear wheels, but the fact that the driver isn't aware of them, doesn't mean they aren't affecting the mechanical wear-and-tear of the vehicle. This is why it has become a standard practice to balance every new tire at the moment it is installed, regardless of which position it will occupy on the vehicle.
How often should tire balancing be checked?

This can best be answered by simply remembering the thousands of revolutions which most tires make every day in simple driving conditions. Now take into the account that every road is not perfect and may have cracks, holes, rocks, glass, many kinds of other hard and sharp debris, all of which can come into fast and frequent contact with the tire as it is driven. Each one of these tiny contacts in themselves may not make any significant difference in the wear and life of the tire, but again these events are repeated thousands of times a day, over and over.
The result: the tires wear, but not only that, because the contacts with foreign objects are not usually in any regular orderly sequence, the tires will probably wear unevenly. Very gradually this uneven wearing of the tire changes the balanced condition which was established when the tire was installed. It is not likely that the change will become noticeable very suddenly unless there has been some unusual impact or extremely harsh road conditions. However, if a tire is tested after it has been used for a few months or after 1,000 to 2,000 miles of driving, it is not at all unusual that there has been a sufficient change to make a detectable difference.
Obviously the ideal would be to have your tires balanced every day you start out just as it would be great to change the oil, lubricate, wash and polish and do other types of up-keep and maintenance but in real life this isn't practical. Under average driving conditions, experience of many thousands of motorists has shown that it is advisable to check the balance on tires every time they are being rotated (between 4 and 6,000 miles) and certainly any time it becomes necessary to make a repair to the tire because of a puncture.
The conclusion?





Tire balancing is important to keeping your vehicle in good mechanical condition. If it is only attended to when there is a noticeable vibration in the ride or is felt via the steering wheel, it may have already caused considerable stress on your vehicle.

1. Always balance new tires when they are installed
   
   
2. Check tires for proper balance whenever tire rotation is performed at intervals of 4,000 to 6,000 miles.
   
   
3. Have any tire which is repaired, balanced again to compensate for the weight change produced by the patch and the damage being fixed.

The Importance of Tire Balance
Click below link 2 view `vid's
YouTube - The Importance of Tire Balance
&
Wheel Alignment
YouTube - Wheel Alignment: Why Do Cars Need Wheel Alignment

 

Balancing Act
Pat Goss of MotorWeek
Thanks `Pat
Have a Cookie : )


We get a lot of questions involving vibrations in cars, and usually those vibrations have something to do with tires and tire balance. But balance isn't always the answer. Now consider this airplane, or any airplane, the propeller on it has to be perfectly balanced in order to keep from vibrating the plane apart. Yet we couldn't take that propeller and put it on a car or anything else and drive it on a hard surface, because clunk, clunk, clunk. Doesn't work. So, how does that relate to the car? Well, here we have a tire on a typical machine to balance a tire. It's balanced out here in the air. We spin it in the air. Ok, so we can balance the tire completely, but that doesn't mean that it's going to roll smoothly down the road. And the reason for that is what is called road force variation.
Now you have to think of road force variation as being oh similar to a hard spot someplace here in the tire that every time it hits it creates a vibration that's transmitted into the car. Back in the day that didn't matter because tires used to be like this, really tall sidewalls, and there was a lot of area to absorb those imperfections. Today the smaller sidewalls, the low profile tires, they're very unforgiving with this. And that means that all of these imperfections in the tire are transmitted into the vibrations and into the car. Alright, so what'd do?
The Hunter GSP ninety-seven hundred road force balancer is pretty unique in that it has this big roller here. The roller comes up against the tire as the tire is spinning, it senses any imperfections in the tire, converts that into a digital reading, and tells you what the road force variation is. And there are set standards. So, if a tire has excessive road force you can balance it, from now till next year, and it's not going to roll smoothly on the road because of excessive road force. So, what do you do? If you're having a balancing problem, new car, new tires, old car, or old tires, whatever, you want to look for a machine like this, a road force variation machine, and dial in the road force variation to get a smooth ride. I'm sure you'll be impressed.

 

Importance of Tire Pressure Safety
· Low air pressure causes erratic wear and is the #1 cause of tire failures.
· Properly inflated tires extend tire casing life, resulting in less overheating and fewer blowouts.
· Low tire pressure increases required braking distances and dramatically affects steering and handling.
· The Society of Automotive Engineers indicates that 260,000 accidents, resulting in 79 deaths and 10,600 injuries, each year are due to low tire pressure.
Savings
· The Tire Maintenance Council reports that tires running 10% under-inflated lose up to 16% of their tread life.
· Tires under-inflated by 30% lost up to 10% fuel economy.
· The average downtime on the highway due to a flat tire is 3-4 hours.
· Roadside repairs costs average $400+.
· Properly inflated tires preserve casings resulting in the ability to increase retreads.
Peace of Mind
PressurePro can alert the driver to dangerously low tire pressures before they become catastrophic or costly to you, your loved ones, or your possessions.

 

Importance of Properly Inflated Tires to the Correct Tire Pressure (PSI)


Having properly inflated tires on your vehicle, RV, motorcycle, ATV, basically anything that has tires, is very important. Tire pressure is vital for overall performance, longevity, and for safety reasons. If the tire pressure is lacking, it will affect other components of your vehicle, and more importantly, it may also affect your safety. To avoid these problems is to keep your tires properly inflated to the recommended tire pressure.
How Do I Know How Much To Air To Put In?

Always keep your vehicle tires properly inflated.

Every tire has a maximum recommended air pressure that should be in your tires. Tire pressure is measured in PSI, which stands for Pounds per Square Inch. Every tire has a PSI measurement printed on the side of the tire. It will show a number with PSI after it and will generally contain “max” in front of the number. (Example: Max 44 PSI). This number is the maximum amount of air the tire can hold, not the recommended tire pressure for your tires.
Since tires can go on more than one type of vehicle, the tire pressure may vary. The PSI number for your vehicle can either be found in the vehicles information book, inside a vehicle door, trunk lid, or inside the glove compartment.
How Often Should I Check The Tire Pressure?

You should never wait until you start noticing your tire deflating to check the pressure of the tires. You should check the pressure of your tires once per month. Some people tend to check them when they fill up for gas while others just wait until it is time for an oil change. However, waiting for an oil change may be a bit too long.
Tire Pressure Tips

Checking the pressure of tires should be done when the tires are cold. This will provide an accurate reading. When tires heat up, the air expands inside, therefore providing an inadequate pressure reading.
Check your tires with a tire pressure gauge. These are available for purchase and are small enough to keep them in your glove compartment. Depending on where you get air, it may have a pressure gauge on the air dispenser.
Keep your tires properly inflated at all times. This is especially important when you don’t know what weather elements you may be encountering such as rain and snow. Having poorly inflated tires can cause traction problems and your safety is at risk.
If your tire continues to lose air constantly, it should be looked at by a professional auto repair facility. The technicians can either fix the tire or give you a replacement depending on the situation.
Never drive on a flat tire. Fix it immediately!

Remember, if you experience a flat tire while driving, don’t panic. Move the car off to the shoulder of the road safely where you can put the spare tire on. Find a local repair facility or a car dealership near you and have that tire fixed immediately. If you are unable to apply the spare tire, your car may need to be towed by a certified towing company to prevent further damage.

 

I'm always singing the praises of balancing wheels. It probably depends on the wheels, but I've had all sorts of problem keeping my wheels in balance. These wheels seem to throw weights easy (and of course I don't let them use "clip-ons" or weights on the outside). When they're out, there is all sorts of vibration that results. The vibration can do irreversable damage (practically destroy) a unibody car

 

I like to balance mine at every other tire rotation.