Bubble In Tubeless Bike Tires-Why they can be dangerous

The small bubble-type pop-outs can cause a bulge from the sidewalls and the outer top surface of the tires, there are many reasons and many factors which are responsible for these bubbles and pops.

Recently I noticed these bubbles on my bike tires as well and just in case I wanted to look into what It meant and if is it something I should worry about turns out

these are important to notice and they can never be ignored because if you ignore them, your bike tire would easily burst without alarming and warning. these are usually caused due to the harder and tougher terrains and the tire is old and when bike tire rolls on aggressive terrains, there are many sharp rocks and hard sharp edges of trails on which tire rubs, as a result, the tire makes 1cc to 4cm long bubble on popping on the surface of the tires.

Tires are made up of many layers and threads which are bound together with each other and these threads become weak and old and breaking of a few threads would create bubbles, it is a sign that the tire is expired and cannot be further used to ride again on the aggressive trails, the outer layer of the tire is better but the inner layers of the tires are totally destroyed and damaged, and the inner layers would not be able to support the internal air pressure of the tire, as a result, bubbles are made, in the form of popping of the tire from the damaged place.

This can happen to old as well as new tires usually when the new tires are made if the process goes wrong at one point or something like that tires turn out bad.

there are many times tires that are not manufactured correctly by companies will leave a space in tires, as a result, the inner layers of tires are not correctly made and it happens from a manufacturer’s fault but if the tire has warranty time left, then you have a chance to send it back with a claim so that they will replace it with a new one. and usually, manufacturers would admit their fault and do give positive responses.

Lower Air Pressure can also damage the tire greatly and they show bubbles :

When tires have lower pressure, and you are running your bike on aggressive trails, then the lower pressure does not absorb bumps and jumps on the trails, as a result, the sidewalls of the tires would continuously rub with the rim beads and the inner layers of the tires are continuously damaged, to avoid this situation always maintain the required and recommended air pressure for bike tires.

Imbalance issues:

If you are running a bike tire with lower pressure and your body weight is more than 80kg, surely the tires would lose their tolerance rates and bubbles start popping on the sidewalls of the tires.

you have to maintain everything so that the tire pressure would be the same as that of your body and your bike weight to avoid the tires from destroying and damaging.

and if your tire has got any puncture or flat on the trails and you still riding on the trails, you are just destroying your tires with your own hands, whenever bike tire has got any puncture, stop and recover the tire flat with sealant and avoid riding.

Difference In Material Of Bike Tires And Heavy Vehicle Tires:

Bike tires have different materials used in their manufacturing which are not stretchy and almost cloth and non-stretchy threads are used in making these tires, and the inner layers have this composition which usually breaks easily if the tire hits anything or due to bad aggressive trails, these inner layer compositions tear apart and the tire becomes slim from the bubbled area.

Internal Tire Pressure Cause Popping Of Tire At Damaged Place:

When the damaged inner layers break then the internal tire pressure pushes the damaged area of the tire in an outward direction and the outermost layer of the tire holds the air which is soft and flexible as compared to the inner layers, and the tire pop from this place which are called bubbles pops in tires.

Cheap Tires With Cheap Manufacturing:

Cheap tires which which have low quality material and you are using them for mountain and gravel biking for aggressive and rocky trails, would not survive and their inner layers would easily break far apart because these are not manufactured well and good  enough and are not able to survive hard terrains.

The material used in their making is not hard and it’s cheap due to which the manufacturers would not focus entirely on making these tires, in the end, avoid buying cheap tires for more aggressive and hard terrains.

Prolonged Folding Of Tires In The Garage Or Mechanic Shops:

If new tires are placed in a folded state for a long time more than 6 to 8 months, or if the tires are seasonal and you have installed them from your bike and placed them in your garage or in your home or in any bike shop without any proper care.

You can read this guide if you are interested in reading more stuff related to Leaving tubeless tires inflated or deflated Here’s everything to know about

then probably their inners layers would be damaged and these become week because the inner thread cloths and nylon material would become week as compared to other tires, as a result when you install these tires in your bikes for riding purposes, these would not survive long miles and at their week points, these will cause bubbles because the inner layers become bent and are not able to give enough support on the trails.

Leaving Bike Tires Exposed To Sunlight:

When you are leaving your bike outside mostly in the summer seasons when the temperature is too high and the tires are constantly facing towards the sun it will also cause negative effect and cause damage to the inner layers of the bike tires and the inner threads and material of the tires become week, which would not support to run your bike with these for long mileages.

If you had like to read more around this topic i did a separate article on How sun affects mountain bike tires & covering it would be worse

Leaving The Tire Flat For  A Long Time:

If you are not a regular rider and you are going for a ride one or two times in a single month or if you are riding a single time within a week, then due to less use of the bike or if bike tire has got any flat or puncture on trails,

and you are so lazy or if you are busy other daily chores, and you are not going to recover the puncture or flat, and you have left your bike in garage or home, then prolonged leaving bike tire with a flat, tires sit constantly on the flat ground surface and the weight of bike totally compresses bike tires in a downward direction

which cause a bad effect on the sidewalls of the tires and also the top flat surface of the tires, and in this way you are decreasing the lifespan of your bike tire with your own hands.

One Side Damage Of Tire:

It is common with tires if any place of the tire including the sidewall or top front surface is continuously receiving jumps and constantly rubbing with sharp edges of the trails due to bad line choice or other aspects

because it is not avoiding the bumps of the trails, then after a few months, the internal layers of this place become fully damaged and destroyed totally, as a result, bubbles come out from that place on the tires.

Piercing Of Inner Cords Of Bike Tires:

It is common that riding continuously on bike tires for long mileages with higher or lower air pressures, sometimes the inner cords of tires become weak from any point or place and they start piercing from that place

if the line is small it starts spreading and expanding widely on the interior section of the tires and finally breaking or separating of a single cord of tire would allow the internal pressure of a tire to push a continuous force toward the outer layers due to which can cause the inner layers to fully torn apart, and finally, bubbles are made.

Can Tire Bubbles Be Repaired (Explained):

Tire bubbles mean the tire is totally ruptured and damaged from that place and just the difference is that the outermost layer of the tire is safe still and it is a single layer that is holding the internal tire pressure, all the internal layers of the tire are also destroyed totally, and after hitting any of shard edges or if you are riding on rough trails, then this part of tire would cause tire bursting.

It shows it is totally impossible to repair this bubbled area of tires and there are no ways to repair a tire once the internal threads are broken, any kind of tool, lubing, or any gummy or sticky material would not be able to repair the bubbled area. inner layers of tires cannot be repaired.

I know it sucks if you have a problem like this but once it happens the tires are useless riding them can be dangerous the tires can blow out if you use it anyway.

Is It Safe To ride with Tire Bubbles :

No, it is not safer to ride with tire bubbles on the aggressive trails, at any time and any place these bubbles would blast on the tires and the other main issue is that these bubbles are constantly touching the side parts and components of the bike tires which includes brakes and frame tube of bike so i wouldn’t recommend riding tires in these conditions.