By Russ and Tiña De Maris
If you remember high school chemistry, you may remember our friend nitrogen, the gas that makes up about 78 percent of Earth’s atmosphere. While ordinary compressed air has been used for decades to inflate tires, the trend in recent years has been to use nitrogen in applications where tires experience high stress—think race cars, commercial trucks, aircraft, and even some RVs.
Why nitrogen? While the size difference between nitrogen and oxygen molecules is actually quite small, nitrogen does tend to migrate through tire rubber more slowly than the mix of gases found in regular air. Nitrogen-filled tires also contain very little moisture, which can help maintain more consistent tire pressures as temperatures fluctuate. In theory, that means tires may lose pressure more slowly and run slightly cooler over time.
Sounds like nitrogen inflation is a no-brainer? Maybe not. One concern is that RV owners might develop a false sense of security and become less diligent about checking tire pressures and inspecting their tires. Regardless of what fills the tire, regular pressure checks and visual inspections remain among the most important tire maintenance tasks.
Causes of tire pressure loss
Tire permeation isn’t the only cause of pressure loss. Tire maker Michelin notes that leaks can also occur at the tire-to-wheel interface, valve stem, valve core, or wheel itself. As Michelin explains, these other potential leak points prevent any guarantee of significantly better pressure retention simply by switching to nitrogen. For that reason, Michelin does not specifically recommend nitrogen inflation for most consumer vehicles, although it acknowledges benefits in specialized applications where minimizing heat buildup is critical.
Advantages of nitrogen are modest
For RVers, the real-world advantages of nitrogen are often modest. If you’re already checking your tire pressures before travel days and monitoring them with a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS), you’ll likely see little practical difference compared to properly inflated air-filled tires. Proper inflation, avoiding overloading, and replacing aging tires on schedule have a far greater impact on tire safety and longevity than the choice between nitrogen and air.
Economics also come into play. A nitrogen tire fill can cost anywhere from a few dollars to more than $10 per tire, depending on the provider. If you’re traveling and find yourself with a low tire where nitrogen isn’t available, don’t hesitate to add ordinary compressed air. Most tire manufacturers agree that maintaining proper inflation is far more important than preserving a pure nitrogen fill. In fact, many RV tire experts recommend simply topping off as needed and continuing to monitor tire pressures normally.
The air we breathe is almost 80 percent nitrogen
One final point worth remembering: The air we breathe is already nearly 80 percent nitrogen. So even tires filled with ordinary compressed air contain mostly nitrogen to begin with. Whether you choose nitrogen or regular air, keeping your RV tires properly inflated and regularly inspected remains the key to safe travels.
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RVT1265
If you are flying aircraft that operate consistently above 18k or a race car at high speeds on paved or concrete tracks nitrogen is warranted other then that its hype to get your money. Instead spend the money on a good quality air dryer for your compressor to limit the moisture going into your tires which will limit the pressure changes and save a little something on tire life. If you are lazy about checking tire pressure you will have the same problems with nitrogen as you do with regular free air. JMHO
Totally agreed. Yes, the molecular density of nitrogen compared to hydrogen in air has some theoretical attributes as well as its inert state but I don’t see a benefit of using it in RV tires either.
The lack of oxidation and maybe moisture could be seen as a positive for tires that are stationary but the extra day of deferred deterioration just doesn’t seem worth the cost or hassle of going straight nitrogen. I’m sure some think otherwise, I just haven’t seen the proof.
We carry fix-a-flat mainly because I’m an old Boy Scouter and the motto is always Be Prepared. Flats or severe air loss when far away from alternatives make that only prudent.
Airplanes and race cars only. Just trying to squeeze more money out of your pocket!
Thank you for the discussion, Russ and Tina. Seems an unnecessary additional expense. Have a great week and safe travels!
It’s a waste of money designed to take advantage of gullible people.