One of the most basic car-repair skills you can learn is plugging a punctured tire.
It sounds like a bigger job than it is. Once you understand the process, it’s simple enough that my 9-year-old son can learn how to do it with supervision. This is a great skill to teach your kids before they start driving.
What You Need
- Pliers
- Gloves, if you want them
- An old towel, cardboard, or something to kneel on
- Flat screwdriver if you need help getting under the screw or nail
- Tire plug kit
- A way to reinflate the tire, ideally a small 12V compressor
How to Do It
First, find the nail or screw. If possible, leave some air in the tire because it helps while you’re working.
Use your pliers to pull the object straight out.
Your plug kit should contain a rough, file-like reaming tool. Push that into the hole several times. You’re cleaning and preparing the puncture so the plug can seal properly.
Next, thread one of the sticky rubber plugs through the eye of the insertion tool. Center it so roughly equal amounts are hanging from each side.
Push the plug into the puncture until only a small amount remains outside the tire. This can require some muscle.
Then pull the insertion tool straight back out. The tool releases the plug and leaves it wedged inside the puncture.
Trim the excess plug if necessary.
Inflate the tire to the vehicle manufacturer’s specified pressure and check for leaks. Soapy water works well. Brush or spray some over the repair. Growing bubbles mean air is escaping.
That’s it.
You just plugged a tire.
MEDIC’S MINUTE
Simple skills become emergency skills when you’re stranded somewhere without help. Practice them at home before you need them on the side of the road.
One Important Warning
Don’t attempt the repair while you’re stopped somewhere unsafe. Get yourself and your family somewhere protected from traffic first.
Also, don’t plug a puncture in the sidewall or shoulder of a tire. Plugs are intended for appropriate punctures in the tread area. A plug is commonly treated as a temporary/emergency repair, so have the tire inspected and properly repaired or replaced afterward.
YOUR MISSION
Buy a basic tire plug kit and throw it in your vehicle along with a portable air compressor.
Better yet, the next time you get a repairable puncture, let your kid help you fix it.
You’re fixing a tire today.
You’re teaching them how to handle a problem twenty years from now.