Summer is a popular season for cross-country travel, especially among RV owners. With the increased mileage comes the need for careful attention to vehicle maintenance, and particularly the tires, which are critical to safety and performance on the road.
One of the first items on any RV travel checklist should be a thorough tire inspection. Key questions to consider include: How old are the tires, and how many miles have they traveled? What exactly is dry rot, and how can you tell if your tires are affected? If it’s time to replace them, what should you know about tread depth and weight capacity?
For RV owners committed to maintaining their vehicles, these are important considerations. In this blog, we’ll take a closer look at RV tire care and address some of the most common issues to help ensure a smooth and safe journey.
Visual Inspection
The first order of business is to do a visual inspection of your tires. Take a thorough look at all the tire surfaces and see if you can spot any cracks, bulges, uneven tread or punctures. These are all signs of wear that could lead to a potential blowout.
Look for dry rot, a tire deterioration problem sometimes called sidewall cracking. This damage is the combination of exposure to the sun, the age of the tires and lack of use. Dry rot weakens the structure of the tire, so even if the tread is fine, you’re still at risk of blowout.
Tread Test
Your tires might look completely undamaged, but is the tread worn down? If you’re like most RV travel enthusiasts, you don’t have a tread gauge, so instead, do the penny test. Simply take your penny and place it so Abe is going headfirst into the tread. If the tread is so shallow that you can see the top of his head, you need new tires. If the tread goes to about eye level, your tires are likely good to go.
RV Maintenance for Tires
Get in the habit of frequently checking the tire pressure. Keep your pressure gauge handy and use it prior to hitting the road. Have your tires rotated and balanced, as this will help prevent uneven wear. Be mindful of your weight limits so you don’t overload your tires and cause premature wear, overheated brakes or a blowout.
Mileage Averages
RV tires should be replaced every five to seven years. Most RV tires are made to last between 30,000 and 70,000 miles, but the type of miles matters, because if you’re covering rough terrain, damage occurs sooner than if you drive solely on pristine interstates.
New Tires?
If you’re in the market for new tires, you first need to know if you should be looking for ST, which is for RV trailers, or LT, which stands for light truck and is used on motorhomes. Load range is also something to take into account, which means you need to account for the weight of everything you’re packing into your RV for your trip.
If you need assistance with your current tires or need to replace them, contact us at Gray Diesel & Equipment Services. We can help you choose the right tread design, size and fit, as well as offer recommendations on the best brands.