Nitrogen - As Simple As Air, Great For Your Tires
By Regina Elling

Ron Borchardt, owner of Ron's Tire and Brake, is shown with his newly purchased nitrogen system. Photo by Regina Elling

Even after 30 years in the business, Ron Borchardt is still learning. As the owner of Ron's Tire and Brake in Ramona, Borchardt has seen a lot of innovations come and go.

This year, he is on the forefront of one such innovation - the use of nitrogen in tires.

"Nitrogen can be used in place of 'regular' air in tires," Borchardt explains. "Nitrogen is a 'thicker' air, and is less apt to leak through the tire's pores. As a result, you lose less air from your tires over time."

At least one national bulk discount store is offering consumers the use of nitrogen when they buy gas. At present, Borchardt is the only one offering its use in Ramona.

"This is not a flash-in-the-pan technology," he says. "As automobile manufacturers begin installing tire pressure monitoring systems in cars, the use of nitrogen will become more and more standard, just as air is now."

According to the Get Nitrogen Institute, customers receive numerous benefits. For example, tires keep their pressure longer, fuel economy is increased, tires last longer and there are environmental benefits.

"I spent two years conducting my own research on this product," Borchardt says. "The initial expense has been considerable, but I really believe in it."

The use of nitrogen has some powerful backers.

"The technology is used by NASA space shuttles, Boeing and the U.S. Air Force," he says. "NASCAR, Formula One and Indy race car teams use it. Michelin, Goodyear and General Motors Corp. also endorse its use."

Customers to the tire shop can get the nitrogen a couple of different ways.

"If you buy a set of tires for your passenger car or light truck through us," he says, "we will fill the tires with nitrogen for $2.50 a tire."

For the consumer not needing new tires, Ron's will purge all the air from the tires for $5 a tire, and refill the tires with nitrogen.

"The air pressure in these tires still has to be checked regularly, and we will be happy to do that for our customers," Borchardt says. "We do believe our customers will be pleased with the nitrogen."

As a general rule, consumers can expect to save about $50 a year in fuel costs and $80 a year in increased tire life, he points out.

And there is an additional benefit. "Customers get a nifty green valve cap for their tires if they are filled with nitrogen," he says.

For more information on Ron's Tire and Brake, call 760-789-3600, stop by the shop at 2560 Main St., or visit: www.ronstires.com. To find out more about the use of nitrogen in tires, visit: www.getnitrogen.org.