Simple Bike Repairs: Punctures

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Unlike a car, a bicycle is often an easy vehicle to repair if something goes wrong: let's take a look at how easy it is to repair a puncture… </br></br> Repair a puncture </br></br> In order to repair a puncture, you will need the following: </br></br> Puncture repair kit </br></br> Bicycle pump </br></br> Tyre levers (or some kitchen spoons) </br></br> Sandpaper </br></br> Chalk </br></br> A spanner (for non-quick-release wheels) </br></br> Step 1) Get the wheel off </br></br> If you have quick-release wheels, this is pretty easy: simply adjust the lever and remove the wheel with the puncture. </br></br> If you have standard nut-locked wheels, just get an appropriate spanner (we recommend carrying a multi-tool if you are on the move) and unlock the wheel to remove. </br></br> Use a plastic bag or latex gloves if you need to mess with the rear wheel, to prevent getting grease on yourself! </br></br> Step 2) Lift one side of the tyre up </br></br> First, deflate the inner-tube by using your finger or by pressing a firm object on the valve. </br></br> Use the tyre levers to slide underneath the tyre wall, right at the rim of the wheel – once a section of tyre has been prised up, hook the other end behind a spoke and work your way round, adding more and more levers until you can lift one whole side of the tyre from the wheel all the way around the circumference. </br></br> If you don't have tyre levers to hand, use some spoons – they might end up getting bent or could even puncture your tube, so only use these in an emergency. </br></br> To use spoons, just use the handle end to slip under the tyre edge and use the bowl end to affix to the spokes. </br></br> Step 3) Mark the spot to repair </br></br> Remove the inner tube from the raised tyre gap one segment at a time. </br></br> Once the tube has been removed, it is time to find where the hole is…this can be tricky, since these holes can be hard to spot…to do this simply and easily, just use a small tub of water and pop the tube in – give it a squeeze and look for bubbles…outstanding! You just found the hole… </br></br> It is a good idea at this stage to look inside the tyre for any objects which may be the cause of the puncture: no point repairing the thing only to end up with the same problem resurfacing! </br></br> Once the site of the puncture has been identified, just dry the inner tube off and mark the spot with a piece of chalk. </br></br> Step 4) Carry out the repair and fit back </br></br> Get your sandpaper and roughen the surface of the area to be repaired – not too much, just enough so that the patch will adhere. </br></br> Read and follow the instructions on your puncture repair kit: most feature a type of glue and a patch, but different manufacturers offer varying methods of repair. </br></br> Once repaired, simply slip the tube back in – it helps to pump it up slightly, rather than leave it floppy – pay attention to the valve: this requires a bit of care to get in the right place. </br></br> When the tube is in place, use your hands to seat the tyre back in place and then pump the inner tube up to inflate: voila! </br></br> Alternatively, for those on the move </br></br> Rather than repairing a puncture, it is much, much easier to install a brand-new inner tube: if you are on the move, do you really see yourself messing around with tubs of water and sandpaper? </br></br> If you carry a spare inner tube with you on your travels, along with tyre levers and a bike pump, that is all you will need (if your bike doesn't have quick-release wheels, you'd need a spanner, but you should really be carrying a multi-tool as part of your kit anyway!) </br></br> Then, once you have installed a new inner tube, you can carry out a repair on the punctured one and keep that as your spare…after a while, you may need to replace the tubes with new ones, but patching will see them through a good few years of use! </br></br> With the popularity of cycling on the increase there are a number of places that you can buy Cheap Kids Bikes and Hybrid Bikes from.

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