The air coming out of a normal heater vent doesn't get hot enough to do any damage to tires. If you had radiators on a steam system, maybe, but forced air, no.
2011-01-21 16:37:37
9
Potentially dumb question
So I park my bike in my living room, leaning against my couch. Today, I was changing my brake pads when I noticed that the tires were warm, and that I've been putting the back tire right by a heater vent (about 4 inches away). Is this bad for the tires? right now I'm limited on storage space until I can empty the boxes out of my closet.
2011-01-21 16:33:58
I wouldn't store a bunch of new tires by a vent long-term, but what you're doing won't do damage.
2011-01-21 16:42:09
okay, haha. With all the tire trouble I've had in the past, I was worried. Still, a good excuse to get to work on unpacking and emptying out that closet.
2011-01-21 16:47:14
I had my tires on black pavement near 100 degrees for many hours at a time, in heat above 80 degrees, with a hundred pounds of weight bearing down on them. They lasted for months.
2011-01-21 20:59:41
The temperature usage range for your tires is well within what you'd get from sitting it in front of a vent - however, if you take your bike right off the vent and send it outside into the currently zero degree weather, you are causing a bit of a trauma to the material. Heating it isn't the problem, but the immediate transition to cold can cause cracking.
2011-01-22 14:55:53
Last two posts are definitely things I should have thought of. I've observed firsthand how hot my tires get while riding, and I'm always super paranoid about breaking glasses and such (say, if you drink ice water and then wash it in hot water).
I will keep that in mind for when I set up my closet for storage!
2011-01-22 17:58:24
Keep in mind that as a tire rolls and flexed it releases compounds that help the rubber resist damage from UV rays, heat, and ozone. Storing tires that get used short term, is much different than storing tires that aren't being used long term.
2011-01-22 18:24:07
fwiw, i did have a tire burst from heat once - i had it on a bike rack and somehow the tire got too close to the exhaust. scared the crap out of me when it went...
no idea what the temperature involved was, although i'm sure it was much higher than a vent...
2011-01-22 20:00:08