What's causing a slow leak in my soccer ball?

April 23, 2007 7:43 PM

I have a slow leak in a brand new Diadora soccer ball purchased online. Every week or so it becomes too soft to kick and must be pumped up again. Is there a way to home-remedy this, or should I ask for my money back?
posted by deern the headlice to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (8 answers total)

I would ask for my money back, as your alternative is something like fixaflat or that green goo stuff.
posted by IronLizard at 7:54 PM on April 23, 2007

Take your ball in the bathtub, dip it underwater, and see where the bubbles are coming from. You can then try to patch it or return it. Might be a hard sell to return a used soccer ball though.
posted by lubujackson at 8:09 PM on April 23, 2007

You could try injecting some sort of sealant. Here's an example.
posted by chrisamiller at 8:18 PM on April 23, 2007

Most soccer balls, at least in my experience, lose air over time. Depending on the type of bladder in the ball, this can happen over a couple of days or a couple of months.

This link talks about some of the types of bladders.
posted by jjb at 11:11 PM on April 23, 2007

Some softening is only natural, but if it's becoming completely flat as opposed to slightly softer then there's probably a fault. Of course, the ball shouldn't be pumped up to be rock hard, but assuming that you've pumped it to the correct psi measurement, or there abouts, then I would recommend asking for a replacement. If it's damaged, it's likely to be the bladder inside, which isn't really worth attempting to fix on your own.
posted by djgh at 2:21 AM on April 24, 2007

A football (sorry, soccer ball) shouldn't go flat within a week.

My current Mitre is still solid and playable two months after it's initial inflation. If it's going flat that quickly then the air bladder is leaking through fault or damage and you'd need to cut through the stitched panels to see what's up. It is very unlikely you can repair it, it's not like a bike tire where you can whip out the inner tube and whack it back in.

If the ball shows little sign of heavy use and no obvious puncture points then return it as faulty goods.
posted by brautigan at 2:45 AM on April 24, 2007

I've got a 12 year old Mitre 18 panel that intentionally goes flat-ish if not used. I believe it does so to alleviate stress on the shell AND the bladder, thus making it last a lot longer. Case in point, I just reinflated it after about 6 years of no-use, and it's fine.

It's weird, because it doesn't lose air when used daily. Set it down for 4 or 5 days, and it needs pumped.
posted by TomMelee at 4:35 AM on April 24, 2007

Do you live somewhere very cold? In the dead of winter, my soccer balls go flat within a day or two, but otherwise, they should be fine for a couple of months.

I wouldn't mess around with sealants; you should probably save yourself the trouble and return it if it is defective.
posted by emd3737 at 6:05 AM on April 24, 2007