Tire Ballast with Calcium Chloride

An Economical, Effective Way to Increase Tractor Tire Efficiency and Wear

Today’s farm and construction machinery is larger and heavier than ever, with increased horsepower that requires greater drawbar pull. Adding a ballast to the tires is one of the easiest and most cost-effective ways to improve performance and reduce wear and tear on tires and machinery. Greater maneuverability, improved operator comfort, increased drawbar pull, and longer service life for both the tire and the tractor or machine are among the benefits. Fewer punctures and less air loss, with reduced need for reinflation, are also experienced. 

Tractors, earthmovers, front-end loaders, graders, and virtually all types of similar wheeled machines benefit from inside-the-tire ballasting. Specific benefits include:

• Increased traction and drawbar pull. Tire ballasting provides the increased traction necessary to pull heavier loads using increased drawbar pull. Weighting a pneumatic tractor tire puts the extra weight where it is most effective—on the driving wheels. Depending on soil type, this can increase drawbar pull by up to 80 percent.
• Increased tire life. Weighted tires on drive wheels allow the tread to grip the earth more firmly. There's less slippage and friction, which are prime causes of tire wear. 
• Increased tractor life. The shock effects of up-and-down bouncing and slip-and-grip drive wheel action are reduced with ballast in tires, allowing tractors to pull more steadily. Strain and wear on both the tractor and tires are reduced.
• Increased fuel savings. The smoother, more efficient tractor operation provided by ballasting can result in significant savings in fuel costs.

Liquid Ballast Outperforms Metal Weights

Liquid ballast is a more efficient way to add ballast than bolt-on metal weights on the tractor tires or counterweights on the rear axle. Metal weights are expensive, require the axle to carry the extra weight, and do not allow ballasting the inside tire on dual tires without weighting the outside tire. 

Compared to bolt-on metal weights, inside-the-tire weighting offers these advantages:

• Greater economy and convenience. Cast iron weights are expensive to buy and cumbersome to install. Liquid ballast (ideally water plus calcium chloride) costs little and can be added to the tires easily and quickly.
• Better tire profile. Added weight outside a tire tends to flatten and distort the tire's cross-section profile. Liquid ballast inside the tire—even radial tires—helps keep them rounded-out for more even, longer wear.
• Smoother, easier ride. Liquid ballast puts extra weight at the lowest point possible. This gives the tractor a low center of gravity for less slippage on sharp turns.
• Reduced impact of sharp turns. Liquid ballast slows the diffusion of air inside the tire, creating a smoother ride.
• Selective ballasting. By ballasting only the inside tire of duals, without weighting the outer tire, the outer tire can help prevent sinking in. It is also possible to provide ballast for only the front tires of four-wheel drive tractors.

OxyChem Calcium Chloride Solutions Outperform Water

Plain water can be used as ballast for weighting tractor tires, but it has some limitations. For example, it may not provide all the added weight desired. Plain water also freezes in cold weather, which could potentially damage the tires.

A solution made of OxyChem calcium chloride and water is free of these limitations, making it a superior liquid ballast. Advantages include:

• 30 percent heavier than water. A calcium chloride solution adds extra weight. One U.S. gallon of plain water weighs about 8.3 pounds. One gallon of the recommended 30% solution of OxyChem calcium chloride and water weighs about 30 percent heavier.  For example, in a tractor tire with a recommended ballast capacity of 50 gallons, plain water gives an extra weight of 415 pounds, while 50 gallons of water with a 30% OxyChem calcium chloride solution will weigh 540 pounds. With this solution in two driving tires, the tractor gains a total of 1,080 pounds—250 pounds more than if just plain water were used.
• Increased drawbar pull. Drawbar pull increases about one pound for each two pounds of added tractor weight. In the above example, the weight added by plain water (830 pounds) increases drawbar pull by 415 pounds. However, the weight added by OxyChem calcium chloride solution (1,080 pounds) increases drawbar pull by 540 pounds.
• Freezeproof to -52°F. Plain water, or any other liquid used to weight tractor tires, will freeze in cold weather unless given antifreeze protection. The recommended ballast solution of 30% OxyChem calcium chloride will stay freezeproof in temperatures as low as 52°F below zero.
• Harmless to tires and tubes. OxyChem calcium chloride does not have the potential to harm the rubber of tubeless tires, unlike alcohol and antifreeze. In addition, there's no fouling of tires and no need to make seasonal changes.
• Less chance of overloading. With OxyChem calcium chloride, there is less chance of overloading and loss of inflation control, problems associated with dry or slurry ballast materials such as drillers mud.
• More economical. An OxyChem calcium chloride solution offers five-way economy: 1) initial material cost is low; 2) solution can be reused; 3) tractor performance is improved; 4) tire life is increased and 5) solution can be left in the tire indefinitely.

OxyChem Makes it Easy to Use Calcium Chloride

OxyChem calcium chloride is available in three forms. LIQUIDOW® Technical Grade Calcium Chloride Solution, DOWFLAKE® Xtra 83-87% Calcium Chloride Flakes or Anhydrous Calcium Chloride 94-97% Mini-Pellets can be used to prepare a standard tire weighting solution.

The dealer who supplies your tractor tires should have the equipment to install a ballasting solution quickly and at low cost. Some dealers also provide mobile field service.

When choosing a solid calcium chloride product for tire weighting, use our online calculator tool to determine the amount to mix with water to achieve 30% solutions.

To obtain a calcium chloride product, contact an OxyChem distributor today.