Dried sealant question

[bikerboy337]

So I had a new set of wheels that I set up this past spring, rode 1x and then they sat (really nice set of DT240 laced to 35/40mm BTLOS). Mounted 30mm Corsa Controls and used orange seal endurance.


Let them sit, dry out and didn’t rotate them.

Now on the stand the rear wheel has a noticeable wobble/unbalance when spun due to the extra weight inside the tire at what was the low point.

I filled each tire with another 40ml of sealant and was planning to try out tomorrow on a ride.

Question: will refilling with the sealant like I did reabsorb some of the dried sealant? I feel like I’ve heard that before that it should reactivate/absorb the dried stuff…or am I SOL if there is a noticeable wobble on the road tomorrow and just have to take the tire off and remove the dried sealant that pooled and dried…

Anyone have experience?

I’ll be testing out on a 20 mile ride tomorrow so we’ll see what happens but curious if others experience.

Thanks

[catchourbreath]

I've never seen dried sealant return to a liquid state. It's not uncommon, especially for bikes that don't get ridden for extended periods to need a little de-gunking.

[ColonelJLloyd]

Orange Seal Endurance user here. What has solidified will remain so. Next time pull the large glob out before adding more sealant.

[David Kirk]

It's like latex paint....putting a second coat of paint over the first one doesn't soften the first coat.

dave

[bikerboy337]

Thanks all! I’ll test them out tomorrow and if noticeable on the road I’ll pop the dried stuff out…

Thanks!

[benb]

Tubeless is probably not ideal for a bike you let sit like that. If you're not riding a lot the maintenance load vs hours rode starts looking really bad.

Bikes that are ridden regularly the sealant won't all dry in one spot like that and cause the tire to be out of balance.

It's a messy job but cleaning it out isn't that bad.

I have not cleaned my fat bike tires out since 2022... they have got to be a disaster as you use a lot of sealant. But no imbalance. Taking them completely off for a full cleaning will be a whole wasted afternoon as it's a lot to clean and they are difficult to get mounted back up afterwards. I'm going to have to do it eventually though as those tires seem like they last forever and ever.

[bikerboy337]

Update.

So these are wheels and a bike I will regularly ride but just happened to leave sitting for a few months… learned my lesson… either keep em moving or plan to deal with dried sealant…

Took me maybe 25 minutes to just pop the bead off one side of the tire and pull out the hardened sealant that was in the down portion of the wheels as they sat… pretty good clumps from probably like 50ml of sealant… once I popped the bead, I sucked out the sealant I just installed earlier this week, removed the clump that was in there (10mm thick wad from sitting in the same direction for a few months), then popped the bead back on, blast with the compressor, refilled with sealant and good to go.

Was a 25 minute job to do both wheels and now they don’t wobble… easy peasey….

Note to myself…. Don’t leave a set of wheels sitting filled with sealant for months… or just plan to pop the bead off if I do and remove the clump from the bottom, then refill and I’ m good to go…. Would have been much cleaner if I hadn’t just put 40ml into the tires….