# Water Ballast



## OldNick (Nov 27, 2017)

Hi guys.I have used water ballast in a couple of tractors I have owned and it works. However I am now reading that I should not do it with modern tyres as it's too tough on them.

Water ballast has always been cheap and easy to apply compared to 50-60Kg steel weights and not all tractors have proper places to hang weights. I reckon I could add maybe 60-80Kg of water to each wheel of my little 32HP job. Not only do I get more traction, but more stability using its FEL.

One claim was that water will make your tyres hotter "because water holds more heat than air"....this gives me pause for thought as holding more heat means water can absorb more heat during use than air (cooler tyres??) and slowly release it when not in use. To me it sounds like pumping up the tyres of a quad so it floats better!

Other arguments, such as that having excess weight all the time is harder on tyres, you can't adjust the tyre pressure properly (although I thought proper filling, only to upper rim height beat that) may or may not have real merit.

But I would appreciate input on whether water is good or bad, why should modern tyres not have it and _especially_ whether water will heat up tyres more.

Thanks for any input.

Nick


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## Thomas (Nov 1, 2006)

Welcome Nick.
Interesting question also looking forward to imput.


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## jhngardner367 (Apr 5, 2011)

_Welcome to the forum,Nick!
Water ballast would only heat the tires,if they were turning quite rapidly.
The biggest drawback to water ballast, is the possibility of freezing,or rusting the rims.
Most ballasted tires use a tube,and some type of freezing protection.
My 1969 Bolens,with the 12" rims,are filled(FULL),and have been for over 12 years.
They have tubes in them._


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## pogobill (Jan 31, 2012)

I prefer the weights on my tractor. I don't use it for a lot of heavy work, just plowing snow, moving round bales, either stacking them in the shed or feeding the horses. Course part of my issue up here is freezing temperatures as John mentioned. I don't suspect you are too concerned about sub zero temperatures down your way!


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## OldNick (Nov 27, 2017)

Thanks for the input.

HAH! There are _some_ cold places in Australia....but yeah not in WA. Zeroes C are rare anywhere here.

The rust issues I get and that tubes are insulating the rims from that. I suppose anti-freeze with its rust inhibitors would help there, although then we are talking $$ again.

My problem is that this is "hobby" work, basically and I cannot really load up for a specific job....I may do 10 different things within hours.

I read another thread and the upshot is that everybody has their own opinions! Mostly totally polarised and often based on what I see as questionable basis. Seems to be a crap-shoot.

The advantage is that so far as I have read, I just do what I want and it's "right" 

Nick


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## jhngardner367 (Apr 5, 2011)

OldNick said:


> Thanks for the input.
> 
> HAH! There are _some_ cold places in Australia....but yeah not in WA. Zeroes C are rare anywhere here.
> 
> ...


Regular anti freeze(ethylene glycol) may affect the tube/tires....but I know a LOT of people are using windshield washer fluid,with good results !


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## Hoodoo Valley (Nov 14, 2006)

There's even Beet juice that people use that's supposed to not freeze, but I hear it stinks bad if you ever have to drain it. Most tractors have just water with calcium chloride as an antifreeze because it's far and away the cheapest but it does trash your steel rims.


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## FredM (Nov 18, 2015)

Go for it Nick, I ran a workshop here in Townsville Nth.Qld. and we had a number of tractors that we filled the rear tyres with water, most had tubes and the last two we received I think were tubeless, but we still filled these with water also, jack the wheel off of the ground and rotate the wheel until the filler is at 12 o'clock and fill with water until level as you mentioned, remove the hose and let the water find the level by draining out of the filler, I must add after rotating the wheel lower the jack until the tyre sits on the ground, this will support the inner tube and prevent the valve stem being torn from the tube, when done pump about 10/12 pound per square inch of air, to much and the ride will be like a rock.


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## pogobill (Jan 31, 2012)

On a side note, I found a tire pressure gauge last year that is specifically for fluid filled tires. Corrosion resistant apparently.... or I may have been had !!


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## FredM (Nov 18, 2015)

you should be ok with the tyre gauge pogobill, I was using one in the late 80's and this seemed to be ok


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## OldNick (Nov 27, 2017)

FredM said:


> Go for it Nick, I ran a workshop here in Townsville Nth.Qld. and we had a number of tractors that we filled the rear tyres with water, most had tubes and the last two we received I think were tubeless, but we still filled these with water also, jack the wheel off of the ground and rotate the wheel until the filler is at 12 o'clock and fill with water until level as you mentioned, remove the hose and let the water find the level by draining out of the filler, I must add after rotating the wheel lower the jack until the tyre sits on the ground, this will support the inner tube and prevent the valve stem being torn from the tube, when done pump about 10/12 pound per square inch of air, to much and the ride will be like a rock.


Yep that was the gen. My FIL taught me that, including the 10psi, which gives not only a better ride, but traction as well. It's a slow process.

Thanks for the description, though. always good to say these things in case somebody is searching for stuff.

I have had people freak at the 10 PSI, but of course that water is a game-changer.



tractor beam said:


> There's even Beet juice that people use that's supposed to not freeze, but I hear it stinks bad if you ever have to drain it. Most tractors have just water with calcium chloride as an antifreeze because it's far and away the cheapest but it does trash your steel rims.


Yeah if that is actually beet juice I would imagine the stink after a few years....mind you wit a bit of care you could just throw a BBQ and drink the tyres' contents! 

I read mention of Propylene Glycol...either that or EG was said not to rust rims.

I was doing some ploughing yesterday and had to do some brush clearing as well (bush block firebreaks) and having the plough out the back turned my little beast into twice its former self....at the cost of tyres oln this rocky ground. Certainly going to add weight. I always knew iut was more important than power for any given machine....traction traction traction

Nick


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## cougsfan (Apr 20, 2013)

People have been putting liquid ballast in tractor tires since tractor tires were invented. The heat thing that the op talked about is totally bogus; might be a problem if you zoom around at 100kph on your tractor for hours on end. Kilo per Kilo, liquid ballast is considerably more effective than metal ballast because it is carried lower and further out from the tractor's center of gravity.

Water will work if you live in a warm climate where it never freezes. I'd still put an anti corrosive additive in it though. 

Sodium chloride and water will provide the heaviest ballast per liter of liquid, will provide freeze protection, and is, over the years, the most commonly used liquid tire ballast. I wouldn't use it on tubeless tires though because of rim corrosion. 

Beet juice is nearly as heavy as sodium chloride, offers freeze protection, doesn't corrode rims, is environmentally safer, but is expensive.

Propylene glycol (automobile antifreeze) weighs about the same as water and will work, but is inadvisable because it is definitely harmful if (more likely when) it is leaked to the environment. 

Windshield wiper fluid (ethylene glycol) is actually less expensive than propylene glycol, also weighs similar to water, is corrosion resistant, and is environmentally safe, It, or beet juice are the arguably the best choices. I fill my tractor tires with wiper fluid, and would highly recommend it, even in warm climates.


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## Rockenroller (Sep 25, 2014)

Greetings from the frozen north. I’ve been involved with Farm Equip since the 60’s. We’ve used ballast in tires regularly. Calcium chloride flaked mixed with water to the level of the valve stem when Tire is inverted. always use in tubed tires. These days tire shops use premixed solutions, I haven’t seen bags of flake for years now. Pros- excellent cheap weight that works in all weather. Cons-messy if you have a leak. Invert the tire & block the tractor up to minimize fluid loss before service truck can pump the fluid out and do the repairs.


OldNick said:


> Hi guys.I have used water ballast in a couple of tractors I have owned and it works. However I am now reading that I should not do it with modern tyres as it's too tough on them.
> 
> Water ballast has always been cheap and easy to apply compared to 50-60Kg steel weights and not all tractors have proper places to hang weights. I reckon I could add maybe 60-80Kg of water to each wheel of my little 32HP job. Not only do I get more traction, but more stability using its FEL.
> 
> ...


m th


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## ABruce (Jun 16, 2016)

Nick, 
If you live in Washington State, google Fuller Brothers tire life. Its a safe alternative,there are several brands but that one is made in Oregon. Calcium should only be used inside a tube or with good condition boots in the rim or you will rust out your rims quickly. I have never used the beet juice but it is made in your area, is cost effective and has almost the same weight characteristics of calcium.


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## Rockenroller (Sep 25, 2014)

ABruce said:


> Nick,
> If you live in Washington State, google Fuller Brothers tire life. Its a safe alternative,there are several brands but that one is made in Oregon. Calcium should only be used inside a tube or with good condition boots in the rim or you will rust out your rims quickly. I have never used the beet juice but it is made in your area, is cost effective and has almost the same weight characteristics of calcium.


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## Rockenroller (Sep 25, 2014)

Yes Calcium is extremely corrosive. Ensure shop ensures all connections to the valve are secure & everything is flushed afterward. Even Brass & stainless stems can corrode over time. Keep an eye out for rusting around valve on rim. I’ve never pumped calcium into a tubeless tire, for the reason stated earlier, bare metal to calcium is a recipe for failure


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## Aircommuter (Jun 12, 2016)

I have been using windshield washer fluid for years and always use a tube. Someone above replied about antifreeze, he has his chemicals mixed up. I buy the windshield washer fluid in a 55 gallon barrel from O’Reillys , good price, auto antifreeze is too pricey. I was a heavy equipment mechanic before I went into the grading, paving and underground business, so I have seen a lot different things.


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## MHarryE (Oct 28, 2011)

Before retirement I worked for an equipment manufacturer that shipped roughly 4,000 machines yearly filled with calcium chloride in tubeless 23.1 x 26 tires. CaCl needs oxygen to form iron oxide and there is a limited supply of free oxygen in water and tire air. Prior to tubeless, we did use tubed tires with the resultant rim problems - tubes leak, CaCl gets between the rim and tube - in this case not sealed against outside air so the rims rust out. Tubeless tires eliminated our problem (check the Firestone and Titan/Goodyear ag tire manuals for verification). Our tire and rim suppliers were the ones recommending the change. Now retired I live in an area where temps down to -40 are not uncommon (no need to differentiate - same temp C or F). I have one tractor with liquid ballast - use beet juice. Reason for liquid ballast is I could not get enough weight on this tractor with cast ballast.


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## OldNick (Nov 27, 2017)

cougsfan said:


> Propylene glycol (automobile antifreeze) weighs about the same as water and will work, but is inadvisable because it is definitely harmful if (more likely when) it is leaked to the environment.
> 
> Windshield wiper fluid (ethylene glycol) is actually less expensive than propylene glycol, also weighs similar to water, is corrosion resistant, and is environmentally safe,


Sorry. What I read says the opposite betwenn Ethylene and Propylene. Ethylene is the crook one. PG is used even in foods etc.


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## OldNick (Nov 27, 2017)

ABruce said:


> Nick,
> If you live in Washington State, google Fuller Brothers tire life. Its a safe alternative,there are several brands but that one is made in Oregon. Calcium should only be used inside a tube or with good condition boots in the rim or you will rust out your rims quickly. I have never used the beet juice but it is made in your area, is cost effective and has almost the same weight characteristics of calcium.


Sorry, not Washington (WA) but Western Australia (WA) 

Nick


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## OldNick (Nov 27, 2017)

cougsfan said:


> Propylene glycol (automobile antifreeze) weighs about the same as water and will work, but is inadvisable because it is definitely harmful if (more likely when) it is leaked to the environment.
> 
> Windshield wiper fluid (ethylene glycol) is actually less expensive than propylene glycol, also weighs similar to water, is corrosion resistant, and is environmentally safe, It, or beet juice are the arguably the best choices. I fill my tractor tires with wiper fluid, and would highly recommend it, even in warm climates.
> 
> Windshield wiper fluid (ethylene glycol) is actually less expensive than propylene glycol, also weighs similar to water, is corrosion resistant, and is environmentally safe,


I think those two are the wrong way round. PG is relatively harmless, EG is pretty bad.

Nick


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## deerhide (Oct 20, 2016)

MHarryE has got it right......at our MF dealership in sw Nova Scotia we used a barrel of water(45 gallons) and a bag of salt(50lbs.) = 500 pounds. Good to about -15C.Rims rust when your tube type tires have a slow leak. Tubeless don't rust. Cowshit and commercial fertilizers rusts your wheels and everything else. With water ballast the weight is on the ground same as wheel weights, suitcase weights transfer weight through your wheel bearings. Another tip; around your valve stem, weld a short 2" pipe nipple and put a cap on it to protect it from getting damaged.


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## dozer966 (Dec 30, 2014)

I like the nipple and cap idea. I will definitely keep that in mind


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## LouNY (Dec 15, 2016)

Liquid filled tires are cheaper initially, in the long run iron is. Price out flat repairs when using anything but plain water. Also rear wheel weights do a better job of increasing traction then liquid filling does for the same weight and tire inflation pressure. If you ever have a chance check out the footprint of a 16 to 20 inch wide tie R4 tire at 12 or 15 psi with iron compared to liquid. If freezing wasn't a concern and I could use plain water I would use it plus iron, it's not so I use iron I can repair a flat in a few hours compared to being down for a day or two.


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## tcreeley (Jan 2, 2012)

I've got beet juice in my 30hp tractor with ag tires. It came that way when I bought it used 5 or so years ago. Never a problem. I see what calcium chloride on the road does to my vehicles here in Maine and I would never willingly use it for anything I own. In the winter I'll use ash before I use salt on the ice. I don't like the idea of a flat and a toxic liquid on the ground. I've never had a flat or any problems. I like the traction. In the winter the tires will spin on the ice when I am pushing snow, so I add chains on the rear.
My old cub used to have cast front and rear wheel weights and chains on year round. It all works, but I like the beet juice.


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