Bubble In Tire - What To Do With Sidewall Bulges

When you drive a vehicle, the main load gets distributed on its tires, and this happens to transmit the load on the road surface, eventually causing traction. This is the main reason why the tires of your vehicle are at risk of deformation. It is worth noting that most deformations can negatively affect a car's performance, increase the hazard level, and, therefore, need urgent measures.

As a thoughtful vehicle owner, you have to check the car at regular intervals before you drive it. While conducting checks, you must have noticed that one of the tires appears to have a bubble on the sidewall. As the bulge is the most common of the damages, it keeps increasing and becomes visible to the naked eye, demanding you to take action.

What are the causes of tire bubbles?

Tires are made up of many layers of rubber and ply. The ply creates a rigid structure, which offers strength to the tires, whereas the rubber is bonded to the plies. There can be various reasons for bubbles to occur, including too much load or lack of air pressure, road conditions, and manufacturing defects.

No matter what the cause, gaps can appear between the sidewall layers. A small bubble will be formed at the start, and as more air and moisture seeps in, the bubble will get larger.

Although there are few chances that manufacturing defects may form bubbles, if it is the main cause, the glue may fail to hold different layers, thus creating a gap for bubble formation.

Can tire bubbles be prevented?

It may be impossible to avoid the speed bumps or potholes that damage the tires, but one can take different steps to prevent bubble formation. You have to inspect the tires regularly and notice if there are any changes in pressure and structure. To check the pressure, you can use a pressure gauge, especially when the seasons change. You also need to check for the bubbles on the sidewalls and feel the tires.

There are pressure monitoring systems already installed in various new car models and are helpful to notify when there is low tire pressure.

By filling the tires with air, you can heed the warning, and once it gets filled, the alarm should disappear. If the warning appears again, the only option is to go to the shop and inspect it.

What to do when there is a tire bubble?

It is quite unfortunate that not many steps can be taken to repair the bubbles. The main action is to take your care immediately to the shop. When a bubble appears, this is a clear sign for you that there is a major problem that you have to address quickly.

Over time, the bubble may start getting much bigger when you happen to drive at different speeds and road conditions. In the end, if you delay it and wait for a longer period, the bubble will get bigger while the layer will burst eventually, leaving you with a flat tire.

Final Words

You have to understand that a sidewall bubble in the tires isn’t the end of the world. The main step is to take the car to the closest shop and immediately sort out the issue. Never try to drive the car for a long time until you get this problem fixed. Therefore, it is always recommended to inspect the tires regularly and ensure that they have enough pressure.