Presta vs. Schrader Valves

When I bought my blue bike in the summer of 2012, I was clueless about bicycle maintenance.

Exhibit A: I had no idea there was a tube inside the wheel of the bike. The first time I got a flat tire, which was about a week after getting the bike, I discovered that the tire wasn't just flat-- there was a hole in it, but the hole wasn't actually in the tire, but rather in the tube inside the tire. Wow! (I know, all you cyclists are laughing at me right now. That's okay.) This is how I tend to learn and pick up new hobbies, not necessarily doing a lot of research prior to starting, but rather just jumping in enthusiastically and troubleshooting as I go. Taking up biking, relearning an instrument, and learning to use a sewing machine-- they all end up being more detailed and complicated that I expected, but I think that just makes it more fun. So, anyway, back to my flat tire. I ended up just taking it to a bike shop and having them replace it and charge me way too much money. I vowed that, next time, I would do it myself.

Fast forward a year, I am riding my bike from class back to my dorm when I hear the tell-tale ppppffffttttt of rushing air and my back wheel starts to squish and squeak. I say a few choice words, get off my bike and walk it to the closest bus stop. After multiple attempts to pump it back up I decide there must be a hole in the tube. A friend of mine used to work in a bike shop and is a fantastic bike doctor/guru. I brought it to him and he helped me patch it. Unfortunately, the tear was in an awkward place, where the valve meets the tube and it held for all of a few days. I had to buy a new tube.

But when I did, I was surprised (again!) to learn that there are different types of valves on the tubes that require different pumps (or at least different nozzles on the pumps) in order to get air into the tire. How did I discover this, you may ask? By buying the kind that was not compatible with my pump. Again, with the leaping before I look... Oops.

Another bike friend lent me her pump and all was well; now my front wheel is a Schrader valve and my back wheel has a Presta valve. In hopes that you won't make the same mistake I did, I'm going to show you (and explain) the difference in layman's terms.

Schrader:

Schrader valves are the more traditional valves-- it's probably the kind that you had on your bike growing up. I bought my pump from Schwinn, the same company that made my bike and it did not say "compatible with Schrader valves" on the packaging. Maybe it did in the manual and I missed it, but it was not advertised. I think it's safe to say that most pumps in big box stores like Walmart or Target are compatible with Schrader valves only unless specifically stated otherwise.

Presta:

Mountain bikes, racing bikes, and other fancy bikes tend to use Presta valves because they're (supposedly) easier to pump. I have not yet experienced that, but then again, I am not a mountain biker or a hard-core cyclist. I have not found a pump compatible with Presta valves anywhere other than in a bicycle shop.

What do you think, fellow bicyclists-- do you have a preference for Presta or Schrader valves? Do you have a funny story, something you didn't expect to happen or a problem you didn't expect to have when you first got into bicycling?

Love, Madelyn

Want to read a more in-depth analysis of the difference between the two valves? Start here.