How often do you top off your tire sealant?

Tubeless bike tire sealant can dry up and/or slowly leak over time, so it's important to check your bike tires regularly.

By Jeff Barber
September 29, 2024

12 comments

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A close-up image of a hand holding a tire with an dried tire sealant stretched between the tire and the hand. The tire appears worn, and the surface is rough and dark. The adhesive is a yellowish color, contrasting with the tire's black surface. The background shows a blurred workspace with bits of material scattered on a light-colored surface.

Apologies for the disturbing image, but this is serious. Friends don’t let friends ride around with dried up tubeless tire sealant!

It always seems like I just topped off the sealant in my mountain bike tires, but the reality is I generally go months without touching them… which is a problem when I finally do get a puncture. Or maybe I’m getting punctures all along, and I only notice once the sealant is dried out and isn’t working anymore…

How do you remember and/or check your tires to see if it’s time to top off? Tell us in the comments below, and share which sealants you’ve found last the longest between refreshes.

And be sure to check out our tubeless tire sealant roundup, which includes long-term testing data.

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12 Comments

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wareagle4130 2010
Oct 1, 2024

How to remember when to add sealant? I ask myself when was the last time I added some. If I can’t remember, then it’s time.

1 reply

Shad Holland 2019
Sep 30, 2024

I thought I would have to do it a lot more often. I use Orange Endurance sealant now and I have literally removed a tire 1.5 years after putting sealant in it and the sealant hasn't dried up. Because of that I check them once every year, usually in the spring, and am good to go.

B Griff 2024
Sep 30, 2024

My stand stays wet all year. I do check during the off-season, wipe down the wet excess sealant then if I have any heavier dried up sealant I peel it off. But it’s really just a light film anyway. But I don’t ride during the winter so I femove the excess so it doesn’t dry in a clump.

0 reply

Daniel Palma California // 2020
Sep 29, 2024

To check if the sealant is dry, I shake each wheel. If I hear liquid sloshing around, I’m good. However, I recently started using Orange Seal branded sealant, which comes with a dipstick that you can insert into the air valve to check the sealant levels, similar to a vehicle oil dipstick. Neat!

AUTHOR

Jeff Barber Georgia // 1998
Sep 30, 2024

I've used the Milkit syringe to do the same. You can suck the sealant out using the skinny nozzle and see exactly how much liquid sealant is in the tire before squirting it back in. Also lets you see if it's been contaminated.

Hap Proctor Florida // 2014
Oct 1, 2024

With inconsistent regularity. Wish I paid more attention, but I do make sure to top off before any road trip (generally). I use to be more careful , but have slipped in my overall bike maintenance.

yb70 Oregon // 2016
Oct 3, 2024

Every 3 months I open the tire suck the remaining sealant out with syringe take tire off clean tire and rim check tire for anything sharp clear valve of sealant put tire back on, seat tire deflate add sealant reinflate.

For those who are wondering how often to check, Stans says their original formula "is the best choice for providing reliable puncture sealant performance over a 2-7 month period, however arid conditions may require more frequent monitoring of liquid sealant levels." Compare that to Stans Race Day sealant which they recommend checking every 2-3 weeks (!).

racinjason88 Virginia // 2023
Oct 2, 2024

I always clean and reseal in March. Then add more sealant in September. It's usually still in decent shape after 6 months depending how often that bike gets ridden and air added to the tires. If it's dry when you check it, you waited too long. If you live/ride out West or store your bike in a hot shed or outside, you may want to go every 4 months.

Henry Nerida 2024
Oct 5, 2024

On the bottle, I use a Sharpie to write the date every time I add/check sealant.

Myere54 Virginia // 2024
Sep 29, 2024

The sealant is designed to stay wet, if it looks like that your wheel is / was leaking.

jvbutter Oregon // 2015
Oct 3, 2024

its part of my winter time maintenance. In the fall the weather is windy rainy nasty.. so i do stuff then... unless i swap tires, then i add new.

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