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I’ve had countless flat tires over the years and everytime it happens, I call up the local tire shop and have them repair the tire. It can be annoying having to schedule an appointment, bring the car in, and wait for them to make the repair. I’ve watched many of these tire shops do these tire repairs, and they usually handle the tire repair in one of two ways: either with a tire plug, or with a tire patch.
A tire plug is the easier of the two to perform as it can be done from the outside of the tire. On the other hand, a tire patch requires removing the tire from the wheel and then applying a patch from the inside of the tire. It is generally said that tire plugs are not a “proper” repair and that in order to do a proper repair, you need to dismount the tire off the wheel and apply a patch or a patch and plug combo.
As you’d expect, if you go to a small shop, they might just plug your tire as it saves time. Depending on what equipment they have and how much time they’re willing to spend on repairing your tire, they could go with a plug or a patch. In my experience (and the experience of many others), tire plugs can last the lifetime of the tire, so as long as the repair was done properly.
The nice thing about tire plugs is that you can purchase a tire plug kit and perform a tire repair all by yourself. This is a standard tire plug kit that includes a bunch tire plug strips, reamer tool, a T-handle applicator, lubricant, utility knife, and other small parts. On this post, I’ll show how to fix a flat tire using a tire plug kit.
AUTOWN Tire Repair Kit: Amazon
I got a low tire warning on my truck, so I will be demonstrating how to use a tire plug kit here. Upon closer inspection, I found that I ran over something that had embedded itself into the tread of my tire. Most punctures into the tread of your tire is repairable using a tire plug. As you have probably heard, a puncture in the sidewall or near the sidewall of the tire cannot be repaired safely and will usually require replacement of the whole tire. As a rule of thumb, it is said the tire is repairable if the damage is in the tread, at least 1/2 inch away from the edge of the tire.
How to Fix a Flat Tire with a Tire Plug Repair Kit
First, use some soapy water and spray some onto the damaged area to confirm the exact location of the air leak. You’ll see the leak area actively bubbling as it indicates where the air is leaking out of the tire.
You’ll also need the soapy water after the repair to confirm that the leak has been fixed. To repair the tire, I recommend removing the tire completely off the car. If you keep the tire on the car, you won’t have the necessary leverage to get the tire plug into the tire.
The tire plug kit comes with a set of small pliers, which works for something like a nail or screw in your tire, but may not adequate when you have more difficult-to-remove objects embedded in the tire. On this plastic object stuck in my tire, I had to use a larger set of long nose pliers and a flat head screwdriver to get the object out.
With the foreign object out of the tire, inspect the damage. Ensure that the damage is in the tread of the tire and located at least a 1/2 inch away from edge of the tire. If the damage is in the sidewall or within a 1/2 inch from the edge of the tread, a repair may not be safe to perform and you should consider replacing the tire.
You’ll want the tire inflated as it will offer some resistance when you drive the plug and tool into the tire. If the tire is deflated, the tire will just cave in when you’re trying to press the tool and plug into the tire.
Use the reamer tool to push the whole tool into the opening and pull it several times. The goal here is to open up the hole to the right size, to break up any loose pieces, and to roughen up the edges of the area in order for the plug to grip on and hold. It might be difficult to get the tool in and out, so use the weight of your body behind the tool. After doing this, blow or wipe away the bits of tire that may have come off.
Take your T-handle applicator tool and run a tire plug through the opening so that it is centered in the eye of the applicator. Dip the applicator tip in lubricant so that the tool can enter the opening more easily. When you hold the T-handle applicator, you will need to hold the slider all the way back against the handle as you drive the plug into the opening. You might need to really get your weight behind the T-handle to drive it into the opening to get it through.
It might be difficult to get the plug all the way in. When you drive the tire plug tool in, the whole tip should drive all the way into the hole so that there is about a half inch of each plug end sticking out. When you are able to drive the plug all the way in with the applicator tool, you should see the two ~1/2 inch ends popping out of the tire. Hold only the handle (not the slider) and in one quick motion, yank out the entire tool out of the tire and it should leave the plug will stay embedded in the tire. As mentioned already, only half an inch of each end of the plug should be sticking out of the tire.
The tire is now plugged and the leak should be fixed. Use some soapy water again and spray at the area to confirm that there is no longer air leaking. If you see no air bubbles, then this confirms there is no more air leakage. Use the included utility knife to cut away any parts of the tire plug that is still sticking out of the tire.
Re-inflate your tire and confirm that air in the tire is back to normal. If you previously had a low pressure warning, it may take a bit of time driving before the TPMS resets itself. It may also take a little time for the tire pressure sensors to update the tire pressure after you’ve inflated the tire. It helps to have a portable air inflator on-hand to be able to do this at home.
It is really that simple to fix a flat tire with a tire plug. As long as you have a handy tire plug repair kit on you, you can fix a flat tire easily at home. You’ll just need to be able to safely jack up your vehicle, chock the wheels, and remove the wheel to perform this repair. An air inflator is useful as well. As mentioned before, some folks recommend doing a proper patch from the inside of the tire, so if you don’t feel comfortable driving your car with a tire plug long term, then you at least have a short term fix so that you can drive to a shop to get a tire patch done.
AUTOWN Tire Repair Kit: Amazon
