Proper Tire Inflation for working compost on dirt pad

[ABruso]

Hi all, I have a 2 acre compost site that is on a dirt surface. The surface holds up pretty well, its not clayey, but the ground can be moist under the piles and in the winter. I have a 99' Cat 928G with its original 2.75yd bucket. We are usually picking up and dumping material, so about the same amount of forward as reverse. Alot of tight turns too because my site is small.
My tires are Michelin, when I spoke with the Cat dealer's tech line they said to inflate front to 30 and rear to 25. The tread on the tires are probably 30% left. Because we do food scrap compost, the ground can sometimes have objects such as knives, forks, and wine bottles. I have 3 questions...

What would be good inflation numbers given my working surface and the potential for hazards?

What would be a safe way to inflate the tires given that there could be a slice or weak point that i don't see before inflating?

If I do find a slice, what kind of repair can be done to preserve the tire.

Thank you!

 

[blowerman]

While we mainly run blower trucks, compost is an product we stockpile & use thousands of yards a year. Our 2 loaders are volvo L70e & L90g. Since I just checked pressure & filled a tire yesterday, the pressure I run on the L70e is 60psi front & 55 rear. Cuts as you describe are also a problem for us. I use a air chuck that I can attach then stand back a few minutes

 

[Jonas302]

Lock on air chuck and a regulator set to your tire pressure then let her run

 

[ABruso]

Lock on air chuck and a regulator set to your tire pressure then let her run

Thanks Blowerman and Jonas, lock on air chuck is what i'll do. How about tire repair when I do find a slice? Is there anything that helps at all?

 

[fast_st]

30/25 sounds low, armed only with a max tire pressure from Michelin of 70 psi we settled on 55/45 for our tires, they look good under load, at 30 and a light load they looked to be flexing too much. I don't think a fork or knife will touch a tire, a wine bottle might cut the outer casing but don't think it'll dig in much. I suppose its possible. I inflate with a lock on chuck and a short hose that has a 100 psi pressure gauge and a 1/4 turn thumb valve, it doesn't take long to adjust pressures. Can also adjust down by unclipping the air line and letting some vent off. The 50psi gauge would peg hard when adding air, so went for something with a bit more range.

 

[ABruso]

The 30/25 was what Cat recommend to me based on the type of tire and machine I had. There was no consideration to the working conditions. What is their benefit in recommending low?

At 30/25 the rear tires bubble out at the sidewalls a bit where they contact the ground. I suppose that would be better in wet conditions, correct?

Would 30/25 be better at running over hazards? or would 50 be better?

 

[Delmer]

In automotive tires, higher inflation pressure makes tires more at risk of punctures. I think it would be the same for you. Lower pressure is better in soft conditions. You could look up what pressure Michelin recommends for the weight you have on the tires. The tire maker might say higher pressure so the tires last longer, Cat might say lower so everything performs smoother?

I agree with Fast, I don't see a fork, knife or wine bottle hurting those tires. The object would have to be supported on something harder than the rubber to puncture the rubber. If a heavy knife or broken bottle got wedged just right, maybe, but that's pretty remote. Tires can be patched from the inside in such cases.

 

[Mike Van]

I had a rock cut on a tractor rear that finally let enough crap in to wear the tube out right there. Should have fixed that cut, was a sad day seeing the calcium run out there. That was a year ago, I fixed the cut with a big patch on the inside from Gemplers, and used Blackjack roofing cement to close the cut on the outside. Something like Shoe-Goo would work too. Has to stay flexable, what ever you use. And it'll cost less than a tire.