Tire Sealant Review
Muc-Off "No Puncture Hassle" Sealant Review
Tubeless sealant is messy to work with but it’s a small price to pay to get away from using tubes. I’ve used a few different options over the last couple of years and while they've been fine, I usually fall back to my homebrew. Because of the latex, ATV sealant and water mix, it stinks but costs heaps less and I haven’t noticed a large enough improvement from the others to sway me. But this bright pink sealant from Muc-Off may change that.
Highlights
- Ammonia Free
- Contains a UV Detection Dye
- Muc-Off claims it’s biodegradable and non-corrosive
- Easy to wash off with water
- Works from 15–120psi in temperatures between -20ºC–50ºC
- MSRP: 140ml pouch – 9.99 USD / Kit – 12.99 USD / 1 Liter Bottle – 39.99 USD
It’s available as a 140ml pouch, a kit that includes 1 x 140ml pouch, UV flashlight, top-up cup and valve core remover, or as a 1-litre bottle. For 29-inch wheels the recommended dose is 80–100ml, enough for a single use with some left over for a top up down the road. Installation is made easy thanks to the spout being sized to fit snug over a tubeless valve. There's also a measuring window on the back of the package so you know how much you've used. Removing the valve core and filling the tire took a couple of minutes and was a clean, hassle-free process.
The kit includes a scoop and a U.V. flashlight. It's handy to see if there are any issues missed with the initial seal but not something I would bother to carry on the trails. Generally you know if you've punctured bad enough to stop and look.
Using a brand new set of Maxxis tires and new Specialized Roval wheels, I had no issues with installation. Removing the much-abused tires months later and attempting to reseat them proved just as easy. I didn’t experience any noticeable punctures during testing and while I considered blowing a hole in a tire to test the sealant further, I decided against it. Purposely putting a hole in perfectly good rubber isn't something I can bring myself to do.
The Muc-Off sealant coats the tire's inside wonderfully. Alternatives I’ve used recently lean more to the runny side, leaving little on the inner walls. This stuff forms a thick coat all the way around and there is no pooling at the bottom of the tire. Removing the tires after a winter of riding and a period of no use, I was surprised to find no clumps at all. It had dried some resulting in less active sealant and a need to top up but typically after such a period, I'll find nothing but dry sealant monsters.
A fresh application providing a thick coating to the inside of the tire.
Issues
When I removed the used tire, it pulled up the rim strip because of the bond between the sealant, tire and wheel. Investigating further led me to believe this began on the trail. The rim strip on one side had been pulled away and twisted toward the center of the rim. I haven’t had any issues with Specialized rim strips before but I’m willing to bet the tape wasn’t bonded as well as it could have been to begin with. Nevertheless, this issue, while not unique to the Muc-Off sealant, is something to consider.
It’s not really a knock against Muc-Off, but it’s worth mentioning that the biodegradable claims made are only applicable in Europe. In the U.S. the synthetic latex used doesn’t pass current regulations.
After six months, two where this bike saw zero use, the sealant had begun to dry out.
Verdict
After months of riding, a portion of which was in cold, snowy conditions, the Muc-Off sealant still fills my tires. While it did dry out a bit during that time, a quick top has the tires ready to go for another few months. The top up was also quickly done with the tubeless valve removed. Pricing is similar to Stans and Orange and while I don’t have experience with Orange, Muc-Off has lasted longer than Stans, my home-brew and comparable products from Slime, e*thirteen, and others I've used over the years. It’s also ammonia free.
Will it replace my own concoction? I’m leaning toward yes at this point. The thorough tire coating and longevity are beginning to win me over.
Click to learn more about the Muc-Off No Puncture Hassle Tubeless Sealant.
Comments
Tom1111
4 years, 8 months ago
I have had some experience with the Muc off sealant. In fact I converted all my tyres to run it. But I have now gone back to Stans (one cup normal one cup race).
As a sealant Muc off is very good and does a very good job, perhaps one of the best for sealing holes.
But from using it over time there were a few issues than made me go back to Stans.
For a start it’s very messy to change a tyre, as stated it’s very thick and coats the inside of the tyre. So it also coats anything else it comes into contact with. I used to have to hose my wheels off after a tyre change.
It’s not as easy to reuse. I found with Stans that if you do a tyre change you could reuse most of the sealant and just top it up with a bit of fresh.
With the Muc off it’s the other way round. You can only salvage a bit and you have to use mostly fresh. Then you have to hose the tyre clean. Where as with Stans you can just wipe it out with a rag.
Finally I found that it was burping sealant out, it wouldn’t loose noticeable air pressure bit there was always splattered sealant marks up the side of the tyre. I noticed that on the inside of the rim bed, it had patches of hard dried up sealant had formed under the tyre. I wonder if this was causing the tyre to burp sealant?
My take is that it is very good at doing its job, but it’s messy and it consumes more of the product and time.
If you don’t change tyres a lot then it’s probably not an issue.
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AJ Barlas
4 years, 8 months ago
Excellent point on reuse, Tom! I too tend to pour what I can from others into a new tire. Doesn't work out often but from time-to-time for sure. I didn't find changing a used tire filled with this any messier than others and topping up through the valve made it tidier. Perhaps because it had been so long and dried some by that time?
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Andy Eunson
4 years, 8 months ago
A word of caution to those using non anodized rims. Sealant that contains ammonia will corrode non anodized aluminum such as Dura Ace tubeless road rims. I know from experience. It would seem to be that this Mucoff would be a good sealant for such rims.
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benC
4 years, 8 months ago
Just as an FYI, in my limited experience Specialized rim strips have a habit of peeling off when you remove a tyre - they've not particularly well glued to the rim and the Stan's sealant I use is enough to pull them free.
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AJ Barlas
4 years, 8 months ago
Interesting Ben. I've not had a problem with their strips before but that doesn't mean it isn't happening. To be clear though, the bond with the strip meant I had to carefully pull the tire from its seat. During that, I for sure pulled up more. That bond when pushing into the tires while riding clearly contributed to the strip being pulled away from the edges.
Anyone else noticed similar with Specialized rim strips?
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Brumos73
4 years, 8 months ago
Well the strips on my roval carbon traverse wheels are not actually taped to the rim. They're more like an elastic band that fit snug against the rim. I've had zero issues, and that includes re-lacing the wheels with new hubs/spokes and fresh sealant.
My sealant of choice is Orange... it lasts much longer than Stans and you don't have to deal with Stan Sealant boogers.
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Troy
4 years, 8 months ago
Yea, I had one strip get scrunched and wouldn't lay flat, but like Brumos73 said, I don't think it's tape.
My Roval's came with small plastic plugs for the spoke holes. I pulled off the rim tape and put those plugs in and they work great.
I use Orange as well.
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Reuben.Sandwich
4 years, 8 months ago
I'd be interested to see if would weep out through the side walls of an older maxxis like Stans does. I'm on my 3rd rear tyre and yet the front is still original 18 months later with plenty of tread. Any sealant ends up on the garage floor via osmosis.
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AJ Barlas
4 years, 8 months ago
No weeping yet with an EXO casing, though they're being removed shortly for summer fun!
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Kos
4 years, 8 months ago
AJ, you gotta poke a hole in that tire, and report back.
In the name of science, man!!!
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AJ Barlas
4 years, 8 months ago
Lol. I know! Planning to set up an old tire and wheel purely for testing, but it's going to require more sealant!
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Mathias Felix
4 years, 8 months ago
I miss two things in the review. First what about CO2 compability? Thats the reason I would choose Muc Off over other sealants and because is some kind of bio degredable. Whats your experience?
Second point is cleaning. IMO a very important point. Are special solvents necessary to clean rims, tires and tools?
My tubeless experience is limited to Stans / Schwalbe. I‘m quite a novice on that topic. What do you think?
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Brumos73
4 years, 8 months ago
For cleaning, i just use a rag to wipe it down dry and get all the big particles off then use some rubbing alcohol with a clean rag and wipe it down a second time.
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Mathias Felix
4 years, 8 months ago
Very good, I noticed later that the title says that it can be washed with water.
What are your experiences with Muc Off Sealant? Recessions in webshops have been through and therefore I am a bit sceptical. The price is secondary for me as I only need a little per year but the stuff has to work reliably!
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trustywheels
4 years, 8 months ago
I’m pretty sure I recently worked on a wheel with this sealant in the tire. Does this smell like cheap cologne, kinda like wd40 chain lube?
If so, I would agree with most of the comments above. It did cause the tire to seal to the tubeless tape, peeling it off the rim in this case, which meant I had to retape. It was VERY thick, and was oozing out of various points of the tire bead before I started working. It was also extremely easy to rinse off the rim with just water which was pleasant.
Regarding the roval rim strips, yes, they always lift up. Quite often, if you have to remove it for some reason, you may find the entire underside of it is coated with whatever sealant you used, and if it had ammonia, your nipples may all be little bits of corroded cauliflower. I like to at least cover the spoke holes with a narrow piece of actual tubeless tape on roval rims that use their strips.
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Moritz Haager
4 years, 2 months ago
I'm wondering if you'd be willing to share your homebrew recipe? I'd be interested in trying it.
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