TIRE AGE VS TIRE APPEARANCE

[SCOTT JORDAN]

HAVING HAD TT AND SMALLER MOTOHOMES, I ALWAYS CHANGED TIRES EVERY 5 YEARS EVEN WHEN THE TIRE DEALER TOLD ME THE TIRES WERE IN GREAT SHAPE.  I JUST COULDN'T IMAGINE THE PROBLEMS OF HAVING A SEPERATION WHILE IN DEATH VALLEY OR WORSE(IF POSSIBLE).  NOW THAT I HAVE A 32'  WITH 19.5'S I'M WONDERING IF THE SAME CAUTIONS SHOULD APPLY.

SHOULD THESE TIRES BE CHANGED EVERY 5 YEARS EVEN IF THERE IS NO SIGN OF DRY ROT OR SEPERATION? 

I WOULD RATHER SPEND ON NEW TIRES THAN CHANCE EVEN MORE EXPENSE ON MH REPAIRS.

THANKS

 

[Ron]

Tires begin aging right after they are manufactured and the maximum exected reliable life of a tire is 7 years.? This could be less than seven years if the vehicle they are installed on is left parked for extended time.? The recommendation is to replace tires between 5 and 7 years from date of manufacture as determined from the date code on the tire.? When purchasing new tires it is a good idea to examine the date code and refuse tires that are several months old.  We recently replaced all our MH tires at a little over 6 years.  removed tires had good looking tread and no visible cracks or other anomalies.  The were replace only because of age since MANUFACTURE.

 

[Steve CDN]

Scott,

Welcome to the RV Forum.  Tires should be replaced at about five years because of UV deterioration regardless of mileage.  For more information check our Library under Maintenance Items | Tire Replacement  for how to read the date of manufacture of your tires.

BTW using all capitals {upper case} in your postings is surprisingly more difficult to read and in the world of cyber communication is interprested as shouting.

Glad you found the RV Forum, and we'll be looking forward to hearing more about your experiences.

 

[woodartist]

Well Scott, I wouldn't go far beyond 5 years. I had "good Looking" tires and they blew in a few hundred miles....on a trailer we bought. The main enemy where we are is the sun...

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Five years is a bit too conservative for me, but by late in  the sixth year I am shopping!

 

[SCOTT JORDAN]

Thanks all for tire advise.  I just wasn't sure if higher load range tires needed the same attention.



Scott

On to the next subject.  batteries

 

[Chet18013]

I just rplaced my 11.5 22R tires after 6 years. Here's a good referance book on truck/bus tires.

http://www.yokohamatire.com/pdf/truckBusRefGuide.pdf

Chet189013

 

[scottydl]

Do tire covers add a substantial amount of life to RV tires?  In theory it makes sense, but if they age out after 5-6 years anyway then what difference can covers make?

 

[Jim Dick]

Do tire covers add a substantial amount of life to RV tires?  In theory it makes sense, but if they age out after 5-6 years anyway then what difference can covers make?

Hi Scotty,

I'm not sure how much tire covers affect the life of the tires but those that are in contact with the tire are not good. If you want to cover your tires use a fabric that is attached to the wheel well of the coach so they do not prevent the tire from breathing. I wouild expect prevention of ultra violet rays from the sun will help extend the tire life to 7 years.

 

[scottydl]

Okay... are you talking about an actual product, or a "home remedy" way to cover tires?  I'm referring to the commercially manufactured covers that are sold, like this:

http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/rv-covers/rv-tire-cover.htm

They seems to be widely used in my area of IL (on MH's parked outdoors anyway) but is there a real advantage to using them?

 

[BruceinFL]

I just rplaced my 11.5 22R tires after 6 years. Here's a good referance book on truck/bus tires.

http://www.yokohamatire.com/pdf/truckBusRefGuide.pdf

Chet189013

Does the load index chart on page 15 of that guide apply to all tires or only to Yokohama tires?

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I am of the opinion that covering a modern tire makes little or no difference in life span. I say that because of these three facts:

1. The max life span of today's tires is about 7 years regardless of what you do.
2. Modern tires made of synthetic materials contain UV inhibitors as well as other chemicals to protect against weathering/aging and to keep the "rubber" supple.
3. Driving them periodically will keep the chemicals distributed throughout the synthetic rubber and yield maximum protection.

From #3 one could conclude that a tire that is not driven on periodically may have a shorter life span than one that is used regularly. Whether covering such a tire will help it to live out its normal maximum lifespan (7 years) rather than some shorter period is unknown.

Most tires will  last 7 years anyway. And using one older than 7 years is a crap shoot at best and not a gamble I am wiling to make.  It's too much aggravation and expense to have a blowout on the road, even if it causes no collateral damage (a real risk!).

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Does the load index chart on page 15 of that guide apply to all tires or only to Yokohama tires?

I've seen the load index numbers referred to as "industry standard load indexes", which would lead you to believe they are the same across tire brands. However, I have found a load index table with slightly different values for a given index, which makes me wonder. 

Example with different values than the Yokohoma chart:  http://www.hogantire.com/tcloadindex.htm

Note that the load index refers to carrying capacity at the max rated speed for the tire, so tires with different speed ratings may have different load indices, even though the tire might have the same carrying capacity at more normal speeds.

 

[scottydl]

I am of the opinion that covering a modern tire makes little or no difference in life span. I say that because of these three facts:

Thanks for summing that up... that's kinda what always seemed logical to me, but I continue to see the tire covers being used, and know other RV'ers who have recently purchased them.  I probably won't bother buying a set, unless someone else has a substantially different perspective. 

 

[woodartist]

Well, I think it depends on the environment. Shorter if in the sun areas and longer in the areas like back East. We had tires last 15 years back East, but didn't make 6 years in the desert sun...FYI and WIISW

 

[Jim Dick]

Scotty,

Those are the covers that fit tightly around the tire. They don't allow air circulation and can cause problems. My suggestion is often put to use as a home remedy but there are some commercial covers available as well.