I called a welding supply place to see about getting a CO2 tank for filling tires. He ended up asking me what I was using it for and I told him. He said that nitrogen would be better since it's dry and CO2 (in the tank) is a liquid. The cost of nitrogen was about the same including refills and the equipment.

So I'm sure I haven't made some new discovery and there's a reason everyone uses CO2 instead of N2.....what is it?

 

Correct me if im wrong someone, but i believe that it boils down to you can get more c02 in a smaller bottle because of it being liquid, and not nitrogen,

I may be wrong though.
wade

 

I think your spot on...PLUS! You can always run a Beer Tap at the Trail head! LOL

 

you can't get N2 into liquid form, so it's just a compressed gas, meaning that you can't get as much mass in the tank, and therefore it won't last as long when airing up since it's not as dense in it's stored form.

however, N2 is VERY good for the tires. they run cooler and last longer than if you inflate w/ compressed air.

 

N2 is also much more dangerous then CO2 because CO2 has to boil off if the valve breaks where as N2 can just explode.

 

The others are correct. You can fit up to 3 times more CO2 than Nitrogen in a bottle.

Also, the benefits of Nitrogen are all found in CO2. Nonflammable, Noncorrosive, Nontoxic.

 

The guy said that I would have to refill either N2 or CO2 just as often but it makes sense if CO2 is a liquid then it probably has more in the bottle.

Thanks fellas

 

no, pretty sure you get more fills out of a CO2 set up than an N2.

 

You get about 8-9 cu.ft. of CO2 gas per pound of liquid, so for a similar volume, say 80 cu.ft. the 10 lb. CO2 bottle is probably 1/3 to 1/4 the size and way less weight than an equivalent N2 bottle. I use an 80 cu-ft. gas bottle on my MIG welder and it is very cumbersome.

N2 is a good thing to fill tires with, though. Lots of racers use it and I think also airplane tires use it. Cuts down on oxidation of the tire and wheel since it is a fairly inert gas. CO2 goes into the tire as a gas, but it can mix with any water in there to make carbonic acid. Also, I think CO2 has a slightly higher rate of pressure change with changing temperatures than air or N2.

 

had both Nitrogen and CO2 systems, currently using CO2

Ffor me it came down to simple economics...

The nitrogen tank recharge cost was $16.00, and I had to wait while it was done. From similar sized tanks (20 Lb CO2) I got 8 to 10 tires aired up w/ Nitrogen at roughly $1.60 PER TIRE.

The CO2 tank costs $18.00 to swap out. No waiting...and with CO2 I get 28 to 30 tires aired up at roughly $0.60 per tire.

 

This is true, but it's negligible...i tested this, because while i knew all obey the gas law relatively closely, i was worried about a tire getting way over inflated when i started using the CO2, so i checked very closely after a fill, and then a drive of 75 miles at 55-65...went up maybe a pound, but hard to tell with these air guages. I'd say what type gas you use, or whether you have a compressor or a tank, it's personal choice and what priorities are...i wanted faster fill time, easy hook up, less noise and more fills per bottle, so i went with a tank of CO2, at a risk of possible run out, and cost of fill every time, but all these ways will fill your tires equally as well.