RV FEATURE
Two kilometres from our campsite at Ruby Gap in the East MacDonnell Ranges , the more remote but equally beautiful sister of the West MacDonnell Ranges in Central Australia , a dreaded warning light came on .
‘ Low tyre pressure ’ flashed on the dash . Bugger . We were aware of a screw that had lodged itself in one of our tyres a couple days prior but hadn ’ t gotten around to sorting it out . Well , now we had to . It was your classic Central Australia day ( clear blue sky , unseasonably warm for the end of winter ) – not ideal weather for changing a flat tyre . Luckily the screw was in the tread , not the sidewall , so we had the option of trying to plug the tyre instead of resorting to the spare .
We had learned how to plug a tyre from a fellow traveller not too long ago , so we figured this was the perfect opportunity to put this new-found knowledge to the test .
We pulled our tyre repair kit from its spot underneath the driver ’ s seat . Once we had taken everything out of its packaging for its very first use , we got to work . Using the reamer tool , we cleared out the puncture of any debris and enlarged the hole a bit to make room for the plug . Then , we threaded the cord through the insertion tool and , after applying a bit of lubricant , inserted it into the hole , making sure to leave the ends of the cord exposed . The insertion tool has a handy release mechanism to take out the tool and leave the cord behind , as long as we made sure to pull straight out from the hole .
Going off-road or four-wheel-driving can lead you to some spectacular campsites , like Ruby Gap in Central Australia , but you must be prepared .
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