Inner bead seat
The leak that survives a repair and brings the car back. Spray the inboard bead line with the wheel turned out.
Bubble Check field guide
One bottle. Eleven leaks.
Seven are in the tire and wheel. Four are in the shop air system that fills it. Pressurized gas escaping through a gap is the same physical problem wherever it happens. Bubble Check makes that gap visible.
01-07 / Tire + wheel
Start at the assembly.
Work from the valve to the bead, then across the tread and sidewall. The order keeps a small leak from disappearing under a wheel covered in foam.
Outer bead seat
Corrosion on an aluminum rim breaks the seal without any visible damage to the tire.
Valve stem base
Where the rubber meets the rim. A slow bleed here reads to the customer as a bad tire.
Valve core
Spray straight into the open stem. A core that seats poorly bubbles immediately and costs almost nothing to replace.
Tread punctures
Finds the nail hole you cannot see, and finds the second one that the first repair missed.
Sidewall
Confirms whether a scuff went through. A sidewall that bubbles is a sale, not a repair.
Wheel crack verification
Before you condemn a wheel, prove it. A hairline crack in a cast wheel bubbles under pressure.
08-11 / Shop air
Then follow the air.
The compressor can run normally while the distribution system leaks all day. The same bottle finds the loss because it is the same physics.
Quick-couplers
Every disconnect wears the seal a little more. Spray the joint while the line is pressurized.
Hoses and fittings
Spray the crimp, the swivel, and both ends. Reels can hide leaks inside the housing.
Tanks, drains and regulators
Receiver tank drain valves can leak after repeated exposure to condensate.
Tire machine air lines
Bead blasters and clamp cylinders can leak into the machine housing where nobody looks.
Use your numbers
What is the leak costing?
We are not going to tell you what the average shop loses, because we do not know your shop. Every figure comes from your compressor nameplate and power bill.
(CFM ÷ 100) × kW per 100 CFM × pressurized hours × electricity rate
If you do not know, shut off all tools, time compressor run time per hour, then multiply that fraction by rated CFM.
Divide motor kW by rated CFM, then multiply by 100. Use the nameplate, not a published average.
Use hours the system holds pressure, including nights and weekends if it is not bled down.
Use total dollars divided by total kWh from the utility bill so demand charges are included.
Annual electricity cost of that leak
Enter your numbers
This accounts for electricity only. It does not include compressor wear, added run time, or capacity purchased because leaks already existed. Nothing here is a CHAOS estimate. Every input is yours.
The check sequence
Seven steps. In order.
Inflate first, work from the valve outward, and mark every bubble before the wheel moves.
- Inflate to the placard pressure. A soft tire hides its own leak.
- Spray the valve core first, straight down the open stem.
- Spray the stem base where it passes through the rim.
- Spray the outboard bead line, all the way around.
- Turn the wheel out and do the inboard bead line.
- Wet the tread, then look across it at a low angle rather than straight down.
- Mark every bubble before you move the wheel. You will not find it twice.
Low foam is the reason the sequence works. A solution that foams everywhere gives you a white wheel and no information. Bubble Check is formulated to stay flat until gas moves through it, so the bubble that forms is the leak and nothing else is.
What is in the bottle. Bubble Check is water-based, non-flammable, pH 7 to 8, with a flash point above 200F. It contains no glycol, so it will freeze. Store it between 40F and 90F. Handle it with eye protection, gloves, and normal ventilation per the safety data sheet.
Made in the USA. Questions on volume, freight, or terms: sales@chaosmoto.com or 480-829-7888.