Random Ramblings

alldatndensum wrote:

We have had the worst luck this year with tires!  I ran over a nail back in the spring and had to have a tire on my truck plugged.  Then, during the summer, my wife ran over a deck screw.  The drove on the tire about a half mile to get to a safe place to get off the road.  That little bit chewed up the sidewalk of her car's tire and we had to replace it.  Then, last night, I ran over some mysterious object on a front tire that made about a 1" gash in the tire.  I took the tire to this little place that fixed my truck tire in the spring.  They discovered the big gash while I was standing there with them, and I had to have a new one.  Sadly, all they sell is used ones and it was late enough I couldn't go elsewhere and buy a new tire.  So, I am out $50 for a used tire and will have to buy a new one today.  GRRRRrrrrrrr!!!!!

Same here. In the last year I had a roofing nail in my front tire. My neighbor had a repair kit and he pulled the nail and plugged it for me. Then I got another one in the back tire a few weeks later. Since I bought my tires at Walmart they replaced it free. Then another one in my other front tire so that is 3 nails for 3 tires in my truck. Then my wife's car had a bolt in it (you could here it click when it hit the pavement). Had to replace that tire. A few weeks later another nail in a different tire. Then my daughter's car had one. Her pressure light came on when she was on her way to school so I had to leave work, get her off the side of the road, pump of the tire with a bicycle pump just to get enough air to make it 2 miles down the road to Walmart then call the school and explain she would be late due to a flat. In the last year I have needed 6 new tires. It can get quite expensive.

Oh and I told my daughter to pull in a gas station with air so we could air it up. She did and when I got there I didn't have any quarters. So I went inside, got change and the stupid machine stole my money! Luckily I had a bicycle pump in my truck toolbox.

Oh bummer!

We've had so many things for our house that SHOULD have been sooooo easy but turned into major projects due to faulty/missing appliance parts, dishonest Craigslist sellers, etc.  BUT yesterday at least one thing was super easy!  The previous owners lost the garage remote so we had to buy another one.  I ordered one off Amazon, it came quickly, and was incredibly simple to program.  We can finally park our car in our garage now!

On a related note, it's really astounding at how much stuff people have here.  It's common for most houses to have two-car garages and yet everyone parks outside because their garages are too full of toys haha.

MikeInFla wrote:

Oh and I told my daughter to pull in a gas station with air so we could air it up. She did and when I got there I didn't have any quarters. So I went inside, got change and the stupid machine stole my money! 

What? You have to pay for air?!! Huh?

^Yeah I thought gas stations had to provide compressed air for free?  Maybe it's dependent on state laws.

In Tennessee, you will be hard pressed to find free air for tires.  Everyone charges.  That's why I keep an electric compressor in my truck and my wife's car at all times.  It takes a little while to air up a low tire, but it is better than paying or pumping with a bicycle pump.

I just find that shocking. I such a little thing. They shouldn't be charging for air.

The air is free, you pay for the use of their compressor. 

The gas station down the street has free air.  Their compressor is some electronic, computerized thing that you set it to the desired pressure and it beeps when it hits it.  It takes a long time to fill a tire.  That is if it is even working.  It's "out of order" a lot.

There's an automatic air compressor tire filler thingie on Amazon.  It's powered by your car battery:

https://smile.amazon.com/EPAuto-Portable-Compressor-Digital-Inflator/dp/B01L9WSTEG/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3S8FL76FHWD4L&keywords=tire+pump+for+car+portable&qid=1573036315&sprefix=tire+pump+for+car%2Caps%2C165&sr=8-3

I don't think I have seen free air in over 20 years. Some of them even take debit cards. I keep a bike pump in my truck, works fine as it has a gauge on it so you can see how much pressure you have. 

As for garages, you are right. People have them full of junk and I don't understand it. We have a carport and always keep the car under it. If I had a garage you could bet the only thing in there would be 2 cars and maybe some storage shelves for tools and such. Even my barn shed is in neat order where you can walk around and get to what you need. It has 2 lofts on each end and that's where we keep Christmas decorations, etc.

Normaniac wrote:

There's an automatic air compressor tire filler thingie on Amazon.  It's powered by your car battery:

https://smile.amazon.com/EPAuto-Portable-Compressor-Digital-Inflator/dp/B01L9WSTEG/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3S8FL76FHWD4L&keywords=tire+pump+for+car+portable&qid=1573036315&sprefix=tire+pump+for+car%2Caps%2C165&sr=8-3

Walmart sells them in stores, too.  I have one in each of our vehicles.  They are slower than the pumps you pay to use at a convenience market, but they work.


Hey, Jen, since you think they should give us free air, do you expect them to fix a tire for free, too?  When I was a kid, any place that did automotive repair fixed a flat for you for free.  Nowadays, a shop will charge anywhere from $10 to $20 just to plug or patch one if you didn't buy their Road Hazard package.  That package is only good if you are close to another location where you purchased that package.

We have that twice, a big nail in the tires.
We needed to call the "help car"
To change a back tire of our car you need a special tool, we don't have that.

There's a place called, Discount Tires, in town and they fix flats for free. They hope you'll come back to buy new tires there.

We have a new Discount Tires but since I have a road hazard warranty I get mine done at Walmart. Normally they patch it for free but if it is in a sidewall they just give me a new tire.

Last time I got truck tires I specifically said "No Chinese tires". When they finished I check and they were "Made In Indonesia". I went to the manager and complained and he was right -- They are not Chinese tires. So next time I will say US made tires. Sometimes foreign tires are over 5 years old by the time they get here and they wear out much faster. I'll pay more for a US tire because I know how to read the codes on them to see when and where they were made.

Les Schwab will usually fix a flat for free, too.

I've never had Les Schawb charge us to fix a flat, even if we did't buy it there.

Like Alldat I have an electronic air compressor in both of my cars.  There isn't a single gas station anywhere in our area that lets you put air in your tires for free.

There's not a single gas station here that I've seen charge for pumping air. I don't know about fixing flats, alldat. I've never had one. Kinda lucky there. I imagine they'd charge, but I suppose it would depend on the shop or the salesperson you get. When I need to replace my tyres I take it to a friend's shop and he gives me a big discount. Very lucky that way.
Hey, did you guys have that odometer fraud nonsense out of Japan about 10 years ago? NZ gets a lot of used cars out of Japan so we had it big time here.

I hadn't heard of any odometer fraud out of Japan.  I think the U.S. is so large that we probably don't import used cars (just new ones)....that is unless you are importing your own personal used vehicle...but I think those are kind of rare.

MikeInFla wrote:

We have a new Discount Tires but since I have a road hazard warranty I get mine done at Walmart. Normally they patch it for free but if it is in a sidewall they just give me a new tire.

Last time I got truck tires I specifically said "No Chinese tires". When they finished I check and they were "Made In Indonesia". I went to the manager and complained and he was right -- They are not Chinese tires. So next time I will say US made tires. Sometimes foreign tires are over 5 years old by the time they get here and they wear out much faster. I'll pay more for a US tire because I know how to read the codes on them to see when and where they were made.

Discount Tire here charges $19.95 plus tax to fix a flat.  Plus, their tires aren't discounted.  They want more for offbrand tires than Walmart does for name brand ones.

Black Rider wrote:

My eighth grade teacher, many moons ago, was going to use rock lyrics to teach us proper grammar but they were so awful she gave up.

My fifth grade teacher was going to teach us music using popular music, but she became too scandalized by the lyrics to "Jack and Diane" that she gave up.

The message of Jack and Diane is pretty sad. And really, a shady tree? Not good cover.

I bought a new digital alarm clock today.  I have been using my phone since my old Tazmanian Devil clock started making weird noises.  However, without putting my glasses on in the middle of the night, I can't read what time it is.  So, I bought this clock as it has 3.5 inch numbers for the display.  I can see it across the room if I wake up in the middle of the night!  Now I will know what time it is and how much longer I can sleep if I wake up to go pee!

Oh, our first world problems!!!

alldatndensum wrote:

I bought a new digital alarm clock today.  I have been using my phone since my old Tazmanian Devil clock started making weird noises.  However, without putting my glasses on in the middle of the night, I can't read what time it is.  So, I bought this clock as it has 3.5 inch numbers for the display.  I can see it across the room if I wake up in the middle of the night!  Now I will know what time it is and how much longer I can sleep if I wake up to go pee!

Oh, our first world problems!!!

Yep, or even better you can look at the clock and see you have 25 more minutes to sleep and just decide to hold in your pee for another 25 minutes!

MikeInFla wrote:

alldatndensum wrote:

I bought a new digital alarm clock today.  I have been using my phone since my old Tazmanian Devil clock started making weird noises.  However, without putting my glasses on in the middle of the night, I can't read what time it is.  So, I bought this clock as it has 3.5 inch numbers for the display.  I can see it across the room if I wake up in the middle of the night!  Now I will know what time it is and how much longer I can sleep if I wake up to go pee!

Oh, our first world problems!!!

Yep, or even better you can look at the clock and see you have 25 more minutes to sleep and just decide to hold in your pee for another 25 minutes!

I am a master of being able to roll over, get the pressure off my bladder, and hold my pee.  I've even gone hours.  Twenty-five minutes is child's play!!!