Sunday, November 27, 2011

I Must Be Getting Old

Zephyrhills, Florida

We discovered a big screw in the front tire of the truck.  We went to Tire Plus to have it repaired.  We didn’t think to get a quote for the service since it  just for a tire repair.  The last tire we had repaired was in Georgia at the place we bought the tires from.  It was $10.  That was last month. 

They fixed it and I went inside to pay.   Al said it was going to cost about $12. 

$12 for fix a flat I asked?  When did tires get so expensive to fix?

I went inside to pay, and the guy told me the bill was $24.60.  I thought he got our bill mixed up with someone else.  Or maybe he fixed two or three tires?   I was shocked!  When we questioned the bill, he said $10 of the bill was to re-balance the tire, and the rest was because they repaired it from the inside, and didn’t just plug it.   He said every time you remove a tire, you should re-balance it.  First time we’d heard that!

So $24.60 later we had a repaired tire and we were on our way.  I guess I am dating myself, but I remember when it used to be $5 to fix a flat!

~~~

We had planned on leaving for Fort Myers today, but Al got sick Thanksgiving day.  He has had had a couple bouts of diverticulitis and it flared up Thursday.  He was one miserable guy.  We decided to postpone our trip and leave tomorrow.   He seems to  be feeling better today after doctoring him with some aloe vera, papaya and oregano oil.

So tomorrow bright and early, we’re heading south.  Just in time too, because I hear there is a cold front coming!

14 comments:

  1. We have never had diverticulitis but have friends that have. They were miserable. We wish Al a speedy recovery.
    I also remember tires at $5 a flat. Oh how times have changed.

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  2. I've seen friend with diverticulitis and that is one miserable time. Sure hope Al is doing 100% better tonight. Nothing is inexpensive to fix any more.

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  3. Hope Al is feeling better, it's no fun being sick.
    Incredible the cost to fix a flat now a days. I too remember the $4-$6 cost to fix a flat.

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  4. I had two tires fixed on my van that got punctured with nails, I think it was around $32 a tire. I was shocked & of course, had to pay that as I didn't ask ahead of time either. I don't know what that is that Al has, I have to go google it. But I'm glad he's better.

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  5. In California it would probably cost $100. Not kidding.

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  6. I hope Al is feeling better soon.

    Bummer about the tire, but if they did a good job, that's the main thing. If it isn't one thing, it's another!

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  7. big rig..big money?..or just the way it is in Florida!..it was $10 to fix a trailer tire in Osoyoos, BC a couple of years ago!!..Hope Al is feeling better!!
    safe travels to you all!!

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  8. Oh cripes! Talk about commonality. Mr. D and I are well acquainted. Goes back to Oscar night of 2008. Odd that I should remember the exact time when I had a flair up, but I thought we were going to have a recurrence of that scene from "Alien", when the critter pops out of the guy's stomach? We refer to it as the "alien" now. Had to go on anti-biotics for that one. Gah!
    Flairs up once in a while, but I just try to get through it.

    That 'plugging a flat' thing can be aggravating. One of the reasons I ended up buying a "kit" from Canadian Tire. (yes, they used to deal only in tires, they're much different now) So I could do my own flat repairs. Just got tired of playing the loto game when it came to getting someone to do it for me. found this one
    If it's a big gaping hole, then I guess the tire should be taken off the rim, but your visit sounded more like a 'make work' project to me.

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  9. Sorry to hear Al hasn't been up to par... hope he is doing better. We haven't had a tire fixed in a long time so I don't know the price ~ however I bet my honey would be shocked!
    Have fun & Travel safe
    Donna

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  10. so sorry to hear Al is in a flare..hopefully it clears up soon...diverticulitis is definitely no laughing matter..wow on the tire repair..but if they did a good job it is worth it...take care

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  11. Hope Al is feeling better today. Sounds like the tire repair facility at least did a professional job on the flat tire.

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  12. November 28, 2011
    Hope Al is feeling better soon as sick is no fun for RV'ERS.
    The cost is what it is, and properly balanced front tires in important. The tire prepared from the inside will last longer (leak free) and the patch could cause an out of balance condition. The luck comes in here, you were able to patch the tire. It the puncture was too close to the side repair shops will not patch a tire and you would have to purchase a replacement and there are the $$$
    George

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  13. We also carry around a plug kit. They are easy to use, and you can buy them at Walmart.

    Having said that, if they did have to take the tire off to repair it, yes it should be re-balanced. But they probably didn't have to take it off. Usually a plug will do the trick.

    www.travelwithkevinandruth.com

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  14. We had a tire plugged on the Honda in Orlando last year - $10. Roger usually plugs them himself if possible.

    Hope Al is better now and that the rain quits - could be worse, could be snow and really cold.

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