RV and Trailer Tires – Are they safe?

Have you looked at your RV and trailer tires, are they safe? One of the first things that you need to do is conduct an inspection of your equipment and gear. Additionally, you need to inspect your tires on your RV, travel trailer, boat trailer or equipment that you are using. The years can go by so quickly, and before you know it your tires are in dire need of replacement. The tires may still look as if they are road worthy, but they aren’t.

Tire Age

Each tire has a date code stamped on it. This stamp indicates the week number and year that the tire was manufactured. The date code consists of 4 digits. Once you know what these numbers represent you can quickly determine if your tires are due for a replacement. Below is an example of the date code you may see:

3415 – In this date code, the “34” represents the 34th week, and the “15” represents the year. So the tire was manufactured during the 34th week of 2015.

I spoke with a tire dealer that has been in business for years. He recommended at year 3 to really give your tires a good inspection. If there are any cracks noticed you may want to go ahead and replace them. If no cracks are noted, as long as you aren’t going on a very long road trip, you may be good. You still need to check the tire pressure to verify that it is within manufacturer specifications.

You should really consider replacing your tires by year 4 and definitely by year 5. It may be premature to replace them at 3 years of service, but keep in mind that they have been sitting in the elements. There is a great chance they are dry rotted. This can be a very dangerous and expensive experience if you have a blowout. There’s probably no worse place to have a blowout than on an interstate with cars going 70+ MPH and not paying attention to your dilemma.

I know a person that had a tire blowout on a motorhome and it cost well over $1,000. The repair wasn’t just from the tire. The blowout damaged their blackwater piping and the piping had to be repaired in addition to a new tire. The tires were in their 5th year of service when this tire blew out.

Inspect Your Spare Tire

Never forget to inspect your spare tire while you are checking out your other tires. This tire can easily have issues such as being underinflated. If the tire hasn’t been covered it could be dry rotted as well. You really don’t want to have a blowout only to discover that your spare tire is no good either.

Ply and Speed Ratings

The ply rating of a tire is crucial to it’s reliability. I know a couple that purchased a brand new RV travel trailer, and on their way home they experienced a blowout. Unfortunately the RV manufacturer had installed some very low end 4 ply tires on the camper. One of the tires just came to pieces on the interstate going around 70 miles per hour. They immediately went to a local tire dealership and had 8 ply tires installed on it, because they didn’t want to experience that again.

You need to check the load rating of the tires and the weight of your camper or whatever you are hauling, and you can match it up so you don’t have to spend as much money. I recommend at least a 6 ply tire, but 8 ply is going to be even better. The 8 ply is more expensive though, and it could be overkill for your particular application.

If your tire has no speed rating designation, such as L (75 MPH) or M (81 MPH), the tire is rated at 65 MPH. This is something that has to be taken into consideration. If you have a loaded camper with 65 MPH rated tires, and you are traveling at long distances going 70 MPH, this could definitely cause you trouble. The tires are going to heat up and eventually fail. I highly recommend becoming familiar with and paying attention to what you currently have on your trailer, and what you purchase when it’s time for a replacement.

In closing, it’s always good to think about your RV and trailer tires, and are they safe?

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Please be sure to check out my other blog posts to find other tips that may be helpful for you.