# Cleaning up first tubeless sealant mess...



## Roadrider22 (May 24, 2006)

I have ran tubeless on one of my bikes for a year now with Caffe Latex sealant. In that year never a flat or a sign that sealant had been needed. Probably just lucky. This Monday I returned from my ride to find sealant everywhere on my bike, bib shorts and gloves. Apparently I punctured and never heard or felt the event. The positive is that the Caffe plugged the hole with only a 10lb loss of pressure (and I never knew it happened) and I had no disruption in my training ride. The downside was the 40 minutes of trying to clean the sealant from every nook and cranny on my bike and clothing. As I reflected later on I came to the conclusion that on a training ride I would have rather taken the 10 minutes to change a tube and re-inflate with a C02 cartridge than to spend the 40 minutes cleaning up the mess. Was this a extreme case or has anyone had a similar event and feels the same???


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## natedg200202 (Sep 2, 2008)

Soap and water cleans up Stans sealant quite well. Yours seems a tad over the top


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## MarshallH1987 (Jun 17, 2009)

That does seem like a freak spray. I've never had a mess from sealant, except when shooting it through the valve with my homemade injector (pops off ans sprays around).

Any idea of what solvent would dissolve Stan's?


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## purdyd (Jun 18, 2010)

Roadrider22 said:


> . As I reflected later on I came to the conclusion that on a training ride I would have rather taken the 10 minutes to change a tube and re-inflate with a C02 cartridge than to spend the 40 minutes cleaning up the mess. Was this a extreme case or has anyone had a similar event and feels the same???


That is pretty extreme, but it has happened to me. I usually use alcohol and elbow grease with caffee latex.

Normally it seals up without all the mess

personally i would rather sit at home with a beer and clean my frame, which i do anyway after rides to get rid of grim and sticky stuff, than sit on the side of the road for 5 minutes and install a tube 

just me


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## Roadrider22 (May 24, 2006)

I may not have felt so bad about it if I had added the beer!


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## purdyd (Jun 18, 2010)

for what it is worth, Stan's and caffee latex seem to be very different products

caffee latex is just what it sounds like, latex, and i often find it easier to let it dry and then peel it off,

for instance if taking out a tire it would just let it pool at the bottom and dry out and peel out the glob in the bottom

Stan's takes forever to dry and seems to have suspended particles in it

as a result, i think Stan's stops leaks faster with less mess but caffee latex is more permanent and will stop slower leaks better

i read a post where someone mixed the two, i can see why


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## Bnystrom (Oct 27, 2007)

*Caffelatex vs. Stan's*

IME, Caffelatex is junk; it simply doesn't work. Mountain bike action has out a test in the July 2011 issue that confirms my experience with it. Complete waste o' money!

OTOH, Stan's sealant works great! I use in in clinchers with tubes ('cross bike), tubeless clinchers (MTB) and tubulars (all of my road wheels). I haven't had a flat on a tubie in over three seasons! I did have some pressure loss in one once, so I know the sealant is working and it's not just incredible luck. I haven't had any flats on the 'cross bike, but I've only had it a few months. I can't even remember my last MTB flat.

The only issue I've had with Stan's is that it can be difficult to pump it into a presta valve that doesn't have a removable valve core, so this is something to consider when buying tubulars and tubes. Stan's does have some solids in it, which is probably why it works so well. I may need to filter it through a fine screen to remove any larger, valve-clogging chunks when using it non-removable valve cores.


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