How To Repair A Puncture On A Bicycle?

We are sharing with you the best methods How To Repair A Puncture On A Bicycle?

Punctures are part of everyday life for all cyclists. To repair a puncture, you must know and have the right tools for bicycle wheels. We will see how and with what equipment to repair a puncture on a bicycle.

Bike Puncture Repair Equipment

• 1 bicycle puncture repair kit (which contains a dissolution tube, patches, a piece of sandpaper or a scraper)
• Tire levers
• 1 ballpoint pen
• 1 basin filled with water
• 1 bicycle pump

1. Disassemble The Bicycle Wheel And Remove The Inner Tube

• Remove the wheel from the bicycle, then remove one sidewall of the tire.
• Place a first tire lever between the bead and the rim, side opposite the valve.

• Do not position the tire lever too deep, at the risk of pinching the inner tube during disassembly!
• Place the second tire lever 15/20 cm from the first.
• Make a lever movement, then slide one of the tire levers. You can finish with your hands or with your tire levers.

• Finally, unscrew the valve nut (if the chamber has one) and remove the inner tube.

2. Find The Bike Puncture Hole

• Inflate your inner tube to locate the hole. The room will increase in volume; this is normal. Don’t be afraid to inflate enough!

• Then immerse the chamber in a basin filled with water to quickly locate holes, slow punctures or leaks at the valve. 

• Did you find the hole? Mark it on the chamber by making a cross with a ballpoint pen or marker.

• Go on and go around your inner tube! You may have gone through a tricky area! In this case, you risk having several holes.

• Once the inner tube has been thoroughly inspected, deflate it.

For large holes:

You can simply pass the inner tube near your mouth or ear to feel or hear the air leak instead of plunging it into a basin.

3. Repair The Bicycle Inner Tube

• Choose a patch that matches the size of the hole. No need to put a gigantic patch on a tiny hole! on a tiny hole!

• Dry the inner tube near the hole.
• Scrape with sandpaper or scraper. 

• Remove impurities.
• Apply the patch glue: a thin and even layer is enough. 

• Wait for 2 to 5 min: the glue should become matt.
• During this time, you can inspect the tire and the rim (we explain this point to you in the following paragraph).
• Once the glue is ready, peel off the aluminium support patch and place it on the inner tube. The surface to be bonded must remain clean and untouched: no fingerprints, dust, or grease! 

• Very important: you must press hard for a few minutes for a good bond! With your thumb and palm, or a vice and rubber jaws, for example. 

• You can remove the plastic wrap once the patch is stuck.

4. Identify The Type Of Puncture

Determining the type of puncture will allow you to check your tire or rim more quickly and simply:

Puncture by perforation

A thorn, a point, a needle, or a piece of glass can cause the puncture. The puncture is usually located on the top of the tire.  

pinch puncture:

Toe-in is crushing the inner tube between the road and the edge of the rim. It occurs in particular if you have driven with the inner tube deflated and crossed an obstacle at a relatively sharp angle, such as a curb, a stone or a hole in the road. In this case, there is no element in the tire. This puncture made up of two holes is often very fast!  

puncture by internal perforation

The puncture by internal perforation comes from a spoke that protrudes inside the rim or a rim tape in poor condition or misplaced. The hole is always located in the inner part of the air chamber.  

valve puncture

It is also possible for the tube to leak air through the valve. In this case, you can screw the valve core back on with a core wrench.  

5. Inspect The Tire And Rim

Inspecting the tire or rim is an essential step in the repair! Without it, you risk continuing to puncture if the sharp element is still in the tire.

Inspect the tire for a thorn, point or piece of glass. Carry out a Visual inspection and run your hand inside the tire to find small thorns, for example.

In the event of a hole in the inner part of the inner tube: inspect the rim tape. Is it in place, whole and not damaged? Does no radius protrude?

A damaged rim tape must be replaced to avoid repeated punctures. Be aware that to help you out, you can do a few rounds of adhesive tape before replacing the rim tape.

A practical tip for locating the hole quickly:

When removing the inner tube, try not to move the tire from the rim and keep the inner tube in the same direction! You will see that it is convenient to locate the puncture’s location.

Use the valve and the valve hole to locate the exact location of the puncture.

6. Reassemble The Inner Tube, Tire And Wheel

• Slightly inflate the inner tube, then position it in the tire. 

• Now place the tire on the rim. 

• Assemble it by hand at first, then finish using a tire lever if necessary, taking care not to pinch the inner tube! It is often during the last part of the assembly that the inner tube is pinched. 

• Start with the side opposite the valve, and finish with the area near the valve.

For mounting stubborn tyres: be aware that there is a bicycle tire lever: it allows you to use leverage to slide the tire bead into the rim.

It is advisable to wait a bit before inflating again, when possible, so the glue finishes drying. Then inflate your inner tube to the correct pressure, and reassemble the wheel on the bike.

7. Repair Without Removing The Wheel? It’s Possible!

You don’t have to remove the wheel to repair a puncture. Repair without disassembling; it is convenient to go faster or to repair without a key.

On the other hand, be aware that repairing a puncture without removing the wheel is not always practical, mainly because once the inner tube has been inflated to locate the hole, it is not easy to slide it between the frame, the wheel and brakes.

8. Zoom In On The Linear Bike Inner Tube

There are also linear inner tubes, mainly used on electric bikes, to avoid disassembling the wheel!

9. Zoom On The Anti-puncture Tire For Bicycles

To avoid punctures as much as possible, it is possible to fit puncture-proof tires with puncture protection on the tread—for example, Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres, a benchmark among puncture-proof tyres.

Repairing a bicycle puncture no longer has any secrets for you. Equip yourself with a preparation kit, tire levers and pump to deal with unforeseen events.