How to fix a flat tyre fast | Don’t get left stranded, here’s how to tackle a puncture with MCN

Discovering you have a flat tyre is one of the worst feelings in biking. If you’re lucky, you’ll discover that you have a puncture in your garage or driveway rather than out and about where your options are more limited.

Getting a puncture (or realising you have one) while moving is infinitely more scary – particularly if it’s on the front – and you can end up in a precarious and vulnerable situation.

Unlike a car, you can’t whip out a jack and quickly swap a wheel on the roadside to get yourself going again. It’s a good idea to carry a puncture repair kit for this eventuality. Even if you do spot your puncture at home, a kit could get you to the local tyre fitters without needing to use a van.

You could, of course, also learn to change your own tyres at home.

If you’re running tubeless tyres, you have two options. The first is the aerosol type that inflates the tyre with a combination of gas and sealing liquid that dries as it is forced out of the puncture area and seals it to prevent further deflation. The other type is where a plug is inserted into the puncture, and inflation is done using CO2 cartridges.

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If you’re running tubed tyres, your only options are a patch or a new inner tube and both of these are likely to mean removing a wheel so could be tricky on the roadside – but not necessarily impossible.

In this guide, I’ll be focusing on the more common tubeless tyres and the two options available for these.

Using a plug type puncture repair kit

There are a few of these types of puncture repair kit on the market now from the brands you know and love like Oxford and Gear Gremlin through to versions from Amazon you’ve never heard of.

We’ve got a list of the best puncture repair kits, but the one I’m using here is called a Gryp kit and is small, light and simple to use. The kit contains CO2 cylinders, plastic repair plugs, valve adaptor, chalk and a pair of pliers. Step one is to find the cause of the puncture and circle it with the chalk, then use the pliers remove the object.

Insert the plug

The Gryp kit has no glue or compound, it’s as straightforward as twisting the coarse-threaded plastic plug into the tyre. It needs to be screwed into the tyre until it reaches the shoulder of the insert. Note: this type of repair is only for punctures with small, round holes.

Other common kit types use a sticky core that roughly resembles a cigar and you use a supplied tool to push it into place. Some also use rubber mushroom bungs and an applicator. Whatever you have, follow the instructions provided.

Snap off the excess

With the plug screwed into its shoulder, the top needs to be broken off. It is designed with a weak spot to break when sideways force is applied. So break it off by applying force at 90 degrees. Other kit types will require using a trimming knife to remove excess material.

Next, fit the valve adaptor onto the valve so that you can screw on the CO2 canister.

Inflate the tyre

Attach the valve adaptor and make sure the CO2 canister has the plastic gauze around it to prevent the extreme cold of the emptied canister freezing to your fingers when the gas is released. Empty the canister and the tyre will partially inflate. You will probably have to use at least four to six canisters to inflate a typical 180-size rear tyre – so it’s no use just carrying a couple.

Some repair kits that seem very cheap online do not include any CO2 canisters so it’s worth keeping that in mind when you make your choice.

Set the pressure

With the tyre fully inflated, make your way to the nearest service station and check the pressure. Remember that this is a temporary repair designed to get you home or to your nearest tyre fitting station, and that you will be bound by speed restrictions – usually sub 50mph – as defined in your kit’s instructions. Get a professional repair or replacement tyre as soon as possible.

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Using an aerosol tyre fix

Products like this Holts Tyreweld may not be endorsed by the tyre makers, but they do admit it doers a job. Your tyre fitter is unlikely to thank you for using it, either, as it makes a right mess when you remove the tyre for a replacement. But if it’s the difference between riding down the road or waiting for The AA, I know which I’d choose.

Look for the culprit

If you’ve stopped because you felt the bike’s handling dramatically change as the tyre deflated, pull over to a safe spot, get down to ground level and listen carefully for a hiss of air escaping. Once located, look to see if there is anything embedded in the tyre. Punctures that have made a small round hole (but not a slash or cut) are what most temporary kits can fix.

Get ready to spray…

If you’re opting to use aerosol tyre weld, make sure you’re ready to ride straight after you’ve sprayed it into the tyre. This is because the sealing liquid needs to be distributed evenly around the inside of the tyre and then find its way to the puncture hole before it starts to dry. So it’s wise to get mostly kitted up to reduce the pre-ride faffing where you can!

Spray then spin 

Remove the offending object from the tyre then position the valve at 12 o’clock. Attach the dispensing tube to the valve, hold the can upside-down then empty the contents into the tyre. Ride at limited speed to the nearest service station to check and set the pressure.

Puncture repair options

Cut through the jargon with MCN’s tyre explainer video here

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