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7 Best Ways to Get Free Air For Tires In 2023

June 13, 2023

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If you own an automobile, there is a good chance that you know how annoying tires can be. We are not just talking about the care they need, but even small and unavoidable tasks like inflating the tires, applying patches when there is a small rupture, etc. You can inflate tires, and some of you might even choose to go to a mechanic to get it done. That is neither pocket-friendly nor necessary. So it’s understandable that you’d look for ways to get free air for tires.

Table of Contents

Best Ways To Get Free Air In Tires

This guide helps you find the best way to get free tire air.

Buy An Air Compressor

This method requires a little starting investment, but it pays for itself in the long run. Usually, at the gas stations, you need to pay around 2$ to use the air compressor. Now, consider this, if you own an air compressor, you’d be saving all that money that you would have spent at the gas stations.

If you have an air compressor, you also don’t have to worry about having a spare tire in the back all the time. Of course, it is recommended since the deflation of tires is not the only problem you might face.

Having an air compressor is also beneficial in a lot of other ways. You can even use that for your friends’ cars. So you can pool some money with your friends to buy a good portable air compressor.

Check For Free Gas Stations

This might be a long shot, but a lot of regions have gas stations with free air. However, not many national gas stations offer these services, so it might be a little hard to find them. There are many websites to help you find all the gas stations near you that offer free air. So be sure to check them out.

To get free air at a gas station that offers it, all you need to do is ask the cashier to turn the air compressor on. Now, some gas stations always keep them so you can get air there all day long.

Some gas stations offer free-to-air only for bike tires. It will help if you are careful about choosing the right gas station. If you are using standard maps available on Reddit, you should look out for pink-marked gas stations rather than the green ones. Green marked gas stations mostly offer free air services only to the bike tires. So this is a great way to get free air for tires.

Go To Your Oil Change Shop

If you get the oil in your vehicle changed by someone else, it is pretty normal for them to offer free air for the tires. Most oil change places offer free pressure checks for your tires, fluid top-offs, and free air for the tires. This could be a way to get free air near me.

Some national oil change brands offer free services as such on your every visit. Pep Boys, Valvoline, Jiffy Lube, offer free fluid top-offs, free pressure checks, free air, and a lot more free features that make you want to go back to them.

Check Out Your Tire Shop

This is the most obvious method of all the methods. If you got your tires fixed in a shop nearby, there is a good chance that they offer free tire services to you. However, if you bought the tires online, you will have to check if they offer you free services at the service centers.

Tire shops Free air for tires — Tire shops

Some tire brands like Discount Tires offer free air for the tires to everyone. You need not be a customer for this amazing feature. Some brands also offer free tire checkups every month or two. So, it’d be pocket-friendly to get free air for tires and also free tire air near me.

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Check Out Your Car Trunk

If you own a car, the chances are that you already have a small air compressor. Just check out your Car’s trunk once. If you didn’t get an air compressor with your car, you must’ve gotten a tire repair kit when you bought your tires at least.

car trunk Free air for tires — Car trunk

These tire repair kits contain small air compressors that you can use to inflate the tires. However, these air compressors might be a bit less strong than the dedicated ones you can buy online. So you might have to spend a little more power while pumping in the air. Nevertheless, it is free and pocket-friendly.

If you didn’t get a tire repair kit, it would save a lot of your money and effort if you buy one. With a. Tire repair kit, you will also get a tire patch set and other necessary items to repair the tires.

Use A Bike Pump

Now, this method is sweaty and involves some muscle work. If you have a bike pump, you can use it to fill your car tire. It’s hard, but it’s exercise, and it’s a free air pump near me.

bike pump Free air for tires — Bike pump

Using a bike pump takes a lot of time since the pressure inside a car’s tire is far higher than that of a bike’s tire. However, if you don’t mind working out for a few minutes, you will have exercised today and inflated your tire for no money, a double bonanza. It’s a cheap way to get free air for tires.

Portable Car Air Pumps

Imagine you are stranded with no nearby workshops. Instead of waiting for help to arrive, having a tire inflator would be helpful and saves time. Many e-commerce sites such as Amazon, Flipkart, and shopclues provide affordable tire inflators. Amazons’ best tire inflators are the TUSA car tire inflator, iBELL IBL tire inflator, RNG, WINDEK, etc.

Do Gas Station air pumps cost nothing?

Since many places now use coin-activated machines, it isn’t easy finding a gas station offering free tire air. Drivers can, however, occasionally expect a free atmosphere from their neighborhood petrol station in a few specific locations.

According to California law, petrol stations must offer free compressed air to paid customers. In addition, the rule mandates that gas stations give everyone who buys fuel a complimentary bottle of water for their car. To prevent drivers from becoming stranded simply because they lack change for the machine, this is the law of all petrol stations in the state.

Some advice on tire pressure checking

The recommended PSI checking on your tires is a must once a month or before a long journey because tires can lose up to 1 PSI monthly. Here are some guidelines for doing it:

Tire pressure indicator

Make sure to good-quality tire pressure gauge. These can inflate tires, lessen tire wear, and increase tire life. Obtain a tire pressure gauge with a digital display for quick readings. These go for less than $10 on Amazon.

Examine tires once they are “cold.”

Before driving or four hours after you finish, you should use your tire pressure gauge to check the pressure in your tires.

Tire pressure inspection

Enter the valve stem of the tire with your tire pressure gauge. If you’re using a digital tire pressure gauge, all you have to do to start it up and get it reading air pressure is hit the “ON/UNIT/OFF” button. The gauge will pop out and display the PSI of the air pressure if you use a different type of gauge.

Assessing PSI

The measured PSI should be compared to the driver’s side door label. This way, get your tires’ recommended air pressure.

In case of overinflation, deflate your tires until the reading is correct. Use the following advice to add air if you need it.

What does seeing a tire pressure warning light mean?

Modern automobiles have automatic tire pressure sensors built into each tire. The tire pressure monitoring system of your car includes it (TPMS). With the valve comes a sensor where you inflate your tire inside the tire chamber. The sensor emits a radio signal that triggers the tire pressure warning light on your dashboard when the pressure in the room falls to around 25% below the manufacturer’s suggested “cold” pressure.

The warning light still comes on with only one active tire pressure sensor. The warning light can inform that at least one of your tires is “low,” but it is not sure which tire! Therefore make sure you check the tire pressure in each one.

Follow these instructions:

Consult your owner’s manual to learn more about your car’s Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).
Keep your tires properly inflated for the best driving performance.
It would help if you comprehended the ideal tire pressure for both your tires’ performance and your vehicle’s fuel efficiency.

Tire pressure sensors are now standard on newer autos. When the pressure in one or more tires is “low,” you see a warning on your dashboard. Get a pencil-shaped tire pressure gauge to periodically check the pressure in each tire on your older vehicle. Or you may purchase a handheld electronic meter with backlighting.

Use the tire pressure advised by the manufacturer for the best performance overall for your automobile, the most extended tire wear, and the best gas mileage. Check out the information on a sticker on the door column and in your owner’s handbook.

However, this pressure is mainly for “cold” driving circumstances, i.e., first thing in the morning. The temperature within the tire chamber rises over the day as the temperature outside does, and this causes the air pressure to grow as your flexible tires roll along the road surface, causing friction. After much driving, tire pressure in the afternoon may be up to 6 pounds higher than “cold” pressure in the morning before driving.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to get my tires aired up for free?

There are several ways you can get your tires aired up, like by buying an air compressor, checking out for free gas stations nearby, using a bike pump, buying a portable air pump online, etc.

Can I use a bike pump to fill the tires of my car?

You can definitely use a bike pump to inflate your car's tires, but it would be a very hardworking task and also take a lot of time since it will fill up the tire very slowly. But since it's cheap, you can go for it.

Where can I buy car air pumps?

At affordable prices, one can easily find portable car air pumps on shopping websites like Flipkart, Amazon, and Shopclues.

Conclusion

Getting free air for tires can be tricky, especially if you don’t have a gas station nearby that provides free air. However, if you’d want to have more benefits or get free air for the long runs, we suggest you either get a portable air compressor or a tire repair kit.