best travel trailer tires

I need to know expert advice on rv trailer tires.I have read maxxis is the only way to go,and I know from keeping up with this site the maxxis tire is the best tire by far,but by owners of the maxxis how is it on dry rotting from sitting?I am a truck driver I do get a ample amount of off time.But my rv sits a good bit a year,my local tire dealer has a 6 ply tire that is a good quality tire for the money for a rv.The maxxis is more expensive which is not a problem but I am wondering how the hold up is on detoriation and dry rot from sitting? I am just wanting to get the best bang for my buck on tires so is it maxxis or can I go a cheaper route? I will probably pull my rv under 1500 miles a year,any and all advice is appreciated,thx and have a good day.

More important than brand is the care that the tires receive.  Proper inflation (and checking often) and avoiding overheated rubber are the best ways to maintain any RV tire, trailers included.  Add regular use to that as well... tires that sit still for months/years at a time will not have the rubber chemicals circulated, which help to keep the rubber flexible and prevent dry rot.  Some folks don't like the idea of Chinese-manufactured tires, others use them regularly and have had no problems.  It's mostly about maintenance, and 7-8 years is about the most you should safely expect out of any RV tire.

I just bought Maxxis tires.  We have had blowouts the past two years with Carlisle.  They were only 4 years old.  One blowout ripped about a 6 to 8 foot section out of the bottom of my trailer.  Actually, that tire didn't even blow.  The tread came off and held on one end and acted as a saw to saw through the bottom of our trailer.  We were just broken after that.  $7000 worth of damage.

This year, we upgraded to Maxxis.  We leave our trailer pretty much stationary for the entire year and only take it out once a year.  This may be our problem.  I intend to NOT put the new maxxis tires on the trailer until it is time to go.  Do you think keeping them in a stable environment will be better than leaving on them on the trailer?  My rationale is that this should eliminate the possibility of flat spots and sun damage.

Lisa

I purchased a trailer back in March of 2011 with Carlisle tires manufactured around that same time.  maybe  a few months older than the trailer and recently this May 2015 they were completely wasted.  I brought the trailer from out of storage and luckily noticed the ridiculously bulging tires that were separating.  I replaced all 4 which were all equally to an extent pretty bad the same morning we were leaving for a camping trip. 

Anyways, a couple weeks after that trip I ended up trading to a larger 5th wheel, but I think I'll be looking at switching them out around the 3-4 year mark. 

Good thing you noticed!  After the incident that ripped my trailer apart, we noticed the bulging in the other tires as well. 

Lisa

The biggest problem is speed. ST tires are only rated for 65 MPH. If you go over that, you're pushing your luck. Many people are switching over to LT tires. As long as they're rated the same for weight carrying capacity.

In addition to Maxxis, Goodyear seem to hold up well.  We had Goodyear on our previous and current trailer without a problem.  But as mentioned by Scottydl, more important is keeping the speed below 65mph (ST tires) and care of the tires, especially proper inflation.  As part of my maintenance program, I apply Aerospace 303 a very good UV protectant.  When parked at our home or at a campsite for more than 2-nights I cover the tires.

You ask an impossible question.  Maxxis tires are high quality and hold up very well. Whether they hold up a lot longer than those cheaper tires you mentioned is impossible to say. Some Maxxis models have a higher speed rating than the usual 65 mph max for ST tires, another plus for highway driving. Only you can determine whether those likely benefits are worth the extra cost.

Proper tire sizing is at least as important, i.e. making sure the tire has more than sufficient load capacity (max weight rating) for the trailer weight. Often the original equipment tire was barely capable of supporting the fully loaded trailer. That means the tire is operating at its max capability at all times, and (since it's a ST tire) also likely to be running at its max speed (65 mph) most of the time. That's a recipe for a very short life. Since you are changing tires anyway, it's a good time to increase the weight capacity a bit and reduce the stress on the tires (and the driver). You can get a greater load range in the same size tire, or slightly increase the size. Either one should give more weight capacity. You want a tire that has a greater load capability that 1/2 the axle GAWR. For example, if the trailer axle is rated for 5000 lbs, you want a tire with a load rating at least 10% greater than 5000/2. 20% more would be better yet. That gives you a small margin of extra safety.

I purchased Maxxis E rated tires.  My GW is 10,000 at capacity. 

I'd used TowMax and Transporter both, park my RV in the dirt. No issues with blowouts.

Glad you chimed in MoparMan... I knew you were one of the trailer owners with a clean record of China-made tire ownership.  In general, what is the tire maintenance/inflation procedure you follow?

scottydl said:

Glad you chimed in MoparMan... I knew you were one of the trailer owners with a clean record of China-made tire ownership.  In general, what is the tire maintenance/inflation procedure you follow?

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I base my tire inflation off of axle weight. I use the GVWR rate and math out the inflation pressure for the tires based on the tire ratings. Like the first set was TowMax ST's 225/75R15 LR's. The second set are now Transporter ST's but changed up to LR:E's but do not need to inflate to max pressure. So these tires are rated for 2830 @ 80 PSI. So the RV is rated for 8,500 pounds GVWR.

(8500 / 4) = 2125 / 2830 = 0.75 x 80 = 60.07 PSI required for GVWR.

Being a RV weight can vary rapidly with water, cargo, food, etc. I just inflated to calculated max pressure and go with it. Not inflating to the max on the sidewall.

With all the miles and vehicles I've own I've NEVER experienced a sudden tire blow or failure. This being said I must be doing something right. Being I see so many people here with blow out on there tow vehicles or RV trailers. Matter of fact I'll have to replace my spare on the truck soon because its rotting on the rim and its brand new yet (less than 100 miles used).

Also I never run the tires even near 65 MPH I always keep my speed down to 55-60 MPH tops.

No magic in Mopar's method -  keep the pressure up and the speed down. Most everything else you might do is superfluous if you do those basic things right!

There is one thing that is commonly repeated here to just inflate to the max on the side wall. I'm finding to be rather a possible cause of failure too. Where tires a operated at higher than needed pressure they cannot deflect from a sudden road surface change and possibly do tire damage. Then also max inflated tire has very little room for heat expansion and tend to be at maximum stretch making explosive failure more common place. The other two factor possibly being over weight for the tires or running right at max limit of speed on the tires doesn't give any room either and explosive failures occur.

Like Gary said there is no magic... It's just the fact of using the tire within it rated operational span and not at it extreme limits be it weight, speed and/or pressure.

Hmmmmm.  I have mine over-inflated then.  I put Maxxis ST235/80R16 on my Arctic Fox which has an actual axle weight of about 8100 lbs.  Those tires max out at 3420 lbs at 80 psi.  Looks like I should be running them at around 50 psi, and I have them up near 80.  I'll drop them back at least to 60.  The scale I used didn't allow me to get individual tire loads, so that'll give me a little cushion for variance.

Just use the GVWR for the math. Then no matter what the tire pressure is covering at least the max load o the RV. Now you can adjust the tire pressure beyond that.  Like on my tow vehicle I use calculated -5 PSI for the front axle. This corrects a designed steering issues of the truck. So like on the RV you could calculate from GVWR and then add +5 or +10 PSI if you like. If it makes you feel better.

Like I'll say again I've NEVER had a explosive tire failure ever. I've had flats from tire debris but never explosive failure. Like on my Utility trailer its got cheap Maxxon (China made tires) but for what I haul and weight I've got LR:C's rated for 50 PSI but inflate to 40 PSI. These tires are also 3 years old and no failures yet. (7,000 GVWR trailer)
https://scontent.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/1554626_10153524761499306_4151842734558725081_n.jpg?oh=a9c1d449834cedc9b27db47c764cbbc3&oe=565721F6

Looks like I should be running them at around 50 psi, and I have them up near 80.  I'll drop them back at least to 60.  The scale I used didn't allow me to get individual tire loads, so that'll give me a little cushion for variance.

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You are good right there...    For dual axle that figures out for 10,260 pounds of trailer weight @ 60 PSI with dual axles.

There is one thing that is commonly repeated here to just inflate to the max on the side wall.

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That's a "rule of thumb" for trailer tires, for use by those who can't or won't be bothered to learn more. A typical trailer tire, as it comes from the RV factory, is carrying close to its max load, so using the max load psi shown on the tire sidewall is often exactly what is needed. Unless and until you get scaled weights and correlate with the load/inflation table for that tire, it's the best bet. Perhaps not the optimal one, but the safest until you can know better.  I personally do not believe you can cause a premature tire failure by running it at its max load pressure.  It won't overheat, overflex, or explode doing so.

Old Blevins said:

Hmmmmm.  I have mine over-inflated then.  I put Maxxis ST235/80R16 on my Arctic Fox which has an actual axle weight of about 8100 lbs.  Those tires max out at 3420 lbs at 80 psi.  Looks like I should be running them at around 50 psi, and I have them up near 80.  I'll drop them back at least to 60.  The scale I used didn't allow me to get individual tire loads, so that'll give me a little cushion for variance.

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That wouldn't be a wise move on your part.  rvsafety.com below has some excellent advice for those that over tire their trailer beyond recommended 10-15 percent reserve capacity.
I never heard of derating a tires pressure on a trailer till I started hanging out on RV websites.

  Carlisle and Goodyear are our oldest ST tire makers and both say use the max sidewall pressure.
In fact using those minimum pressure charts can void your Carlisle tire warranty.
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Goodyear Tire and Rubber .... weighing RVs                 
                          Special Considerations

  Unless trying to resolve poor ride quality problems with an RV trailer, it is recommended that trailer tires be inflated to the pressure indicated on the sidewall of the tire. Trailer tires experience significant lateral (side-to-side) loads due to vehicle sway from uneven roads or passing vehicles. Using the inflation pressure engraved on the sidewall will provide optimum load carrying capacity and minimize heat build-up.

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  And Tireman9
one of our tire engineers also recommends max sidewall pressures says; from rvtiresafety.com his online tire blog;

"The manufacturers do not take into consideration the side to side unbalance, as to do so would require them to provide larger (more expensive) tires. The other thing RV industry does not take into consideration is the forces to the tire structure due to running close axle spacing. Engineering analysis shows that when turning corners the forces trying to tear the tire apart can be over 20% higher in multi-axle applications than with tires at the corners of the vehicle.
The only options for the trailer owner are to up-size the tires (if there is room) or up-rate and increase inflation (if a higher Load Range tire and stronger wheels are available). Lacking the above being sure to run the tire at the inflation shown on the sidewall (i.e. max) will slightly decrease but not eliminate the overload forces.

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Several RV related websites such as;
rvsafety.com

                          Tire Load and Inflation Ratings
 
Note: Towable ? Travel Trailer/ 5th Wheel owners Due to the severe use conditions experienced by tires when axles are very close together ? tire industry experts recommend maximum (sidewall) inflation pressure for towable tires unless this causes a sever over-inflation situation (20psi+), often referred to as the ?basketball effect?. If this is your situation allow a 10 ? 15psi safety margin above the minimum required inflation pressure.

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fifthwheelstreet.com

Step #5..
  Selecting the Correct Tire Pressure for Your Trailer
We at Fifth Wheel St. no longer recommend adjusting trailer tire inflation pressure below the maximum load PSI rating molded on the sidewall (and only if the wheel/rim is appropriately rated) regardless of the measured scaled weight of individual tire or axle positions for all multi-axle trailers.

However, we do strongly recommend weighing individual trailer tire positions to ensure none of the axles or tire positions are overloaded. Reports have shown that trailers do not have equal weight across all tire positions. Some RV load configurations may reveal as much as 20% difference between the front and rear axle. This especially true for Toy Haulers. It is possible that mismanaged trailer load distribution will cause one end of an axle or a tire to be overloaded. It has been stated, but never confirmed by any RV Weighmaster, that there are many RVs traveling on the road with at least one tire or axle side overloaded. The only way to ensure tires and or axles are not overloaded is to weigh each tire position on your trailer. Unfortunately, attempting to obtain accurate individual tire position weight is practically impossible at all truck scales. View our list of recommend RV Weighmasters here.

- See more at: http://fifthwheelst.com/step5.html#sthash.FIAc3k0Z.dpuf

I see things from a different light. How many "MAX limits" are you reaching to increase failure rate? Max speed, Max Pressure, Max Weight, Max Impact, Etc. So every max you hit you just shorting the life of the tire. Yeah it might be the "Safest way" to just inflate to MAX pressure but just how many max's can these cheap China tire take. Apparently not many if everyone complains about blow outs. Hence like myself I ditch the stock LR's and upsized to LR:E's. No long near max weight, nor do I need max pressure. Being the pressure is reduced the tire does take impact better. Again I'm one of the few with NO failures ever...

Mopar1973Man said:

I see things from a different light. How many "MAX limits" are you reaching to increase failure rate? Max speed, Max Pressure, Max Weight, Max Impact, Etc. So every max you hit you just shorting the life of the tire. Yeah it might be the "Safest way" to just inflate to MAX pressure but just how many max's can these cheap China tire take. Apparently not many if everyone complains about blow outs. Hence like myself I ditch the stock LR's and upsized to LR:E's. No long near max weight, nor do I need max pressure. Being the pressure is reduced the tire does take impact better. Again I'm one of the few with NO failures ever...

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I agree, and besides the 2- travel trailers I have owned, I also have owned and towed boats without a failure either.  The protocol I follow is I keep my speed down under 60 mph, usually at 55, I regularly check the tire inflation, although I have to admit I typically fill to max tire pressure rating, regularly scrub the tires when washing the vehicle prior to applying Aerospace 303 UV protectant and I cover the tires when not in use or when at a campground more than 2 days.  In my book applying a UV protectant cannot be understated because first the process allows for close visual inspection of the tires to look for signs of damage and to help prevent premature drying of the tire.