Springtime is pothole season!
This year the City of Calgary received 10% more potholes complaints than last year. However,
the reality is that the increase in number of potholes on our roads this year is more than 10%,
and we know the reason - much colder and longer than usual winter.
During precipitation the water seeps into the ground, where it freezes and expands. When ice
melts, it leaves an air pocket which can be easily broken by cars driving over. The potholes can
not be fixed until the roads are dry and the freeze-thaw cycle is over, which may be expected
only at the end of April – beginning of May. Those annoying potholes cause lots of troubles to
drivers and their vehicles.
Every day we fix dozens and dozens of bent and cracked wheels. Some of those damaged rims
can be repaired. They are mostly OEM alloy rims and high quality aftermarket alloy rims. It may
require 6 or more hours of work to get them fixed, and the cost will start at 80 dollars, but they
are safe to drive on. Unfortunately, others can not be repaired at all. Steel rims and low quality
aftermarket rims, commonly called “first pothole rims”, do not only get easily damaged, they
significantly increase the chances of the tire damage. That means you only drive on it till the first
pothole...Once you hit a pothole, in most cases, the wheel becomes irreparable. You have to
replace both, the rim and the tire.
