Calcium chloride/water filled tires?

I've been thinking of adding weight to my 80 (as if it isn't heavy enough!). Water isn't a good idea for Ohio, and the cast iron wheel weights are too pricey for me. I've been thinking of trying WINTER windshield washer fluid (saw it suggested on one of these boards!)

It isn't as heavy as calcium (heck, probably slightly lighter than water!), but there shouldn't be any rust or freezing problems. FITs suggestion of Glycol will work too, but that is basically antifreeze. If it leaks out it can poision animals or children. Just thought I'd mention that.

What about oil? :)

Brandon
My Industrial John Deere website
My JD model 80 website

You're thinking of Ethylene Glycol, which is poisonous. Propylene Glycol is used in many industrial cooling system applications (cooling towers, etc.) and even around food products.

You can't use oil, because it would breakdown the synthetic rubber in a heartbeat. And it's not even as heavy as water.

Now, MERCURY, that would make for some mean ballast ! Of course ingesting it can make you go insane.....

F-I-T

Yes, to both questions. It's also sold in the winter as an ice melt compound.

Up north we used Calcium Chloride and water in tires for two reasons. One it prevented the mixture from freezing (just like Sodium Chloride, table salt, would do...oceans don't freeze, right ?). Two, the amount of Calcium Chloride you can dissolve in a gallon of water raises the specific gravity significantly, so a gallon of Calcium Chloride and water weighs a lot more than a gallon of water alone.

Some folks started to use Propylene Glycol to minimize the rusting problem, but you can't get as much weight in a given tire volume with that solution.

Lots of older tractors will have damage around the valve stem on the rim because of leaking calcium over the years. Some rims can even rust through in large areas.

Frank-in-Tallahassee
70D // 855