Raising Montana Tires

[biznsa]

I'm not sure which forum to post this so I'll start here. I'll be parking my Montana 3400RL long term at our RV site in Houghton Lake, MI. I'm contemplating putting a hydraulic jack under the axles at each tire location and raising just enough to take the weight off the tires. Does anyone see a problem or have a better solution?

[1retired06]

For myself, I would use cinderblocks, at the frame.

[CORattler]

Agreed. Long term... support the frame

[Art]

Bill,
Since my 2008 double blowout of the driver's side trailer tires, I have been jacking my Montana off the ground from November to early March each year. I bought a 20-ton pneumatic bottle jack from Harbor Freight with 4, 6-ton jack stands that I place under each end of the axle. Having the tires about 1 inch off the ground, I am also able to check the brakes, and I re-pack wheel bearings easily each Spring.
I have also noticed that my tires (now with 40,000 miles and 7 years on them) seem to show less sidewall stress and cracks. I will be replacing them next Spring anyway because of an anticipated, 8000-mile trip out west.
I hope this provides some perspective on your question.

[Art]

On second thought, I will be switching from the axles to the frame this year.

[richfaa]

Sounds like a good idea although we have never done that when storing any of our RV's

[lawrenceb42106]

When we store ours for the winter I always set the tires on wood to keep them off the concrete. Been doing this for 15 years with no problems.

[jimcol]

Ours seldom sits for more than 3 months during the winter. Have never done anything and the tires have lasted fine only changing them due to age. (except to get the misson bombs off early in the life of the 5'er) My tire guy sees no reason to take the weight off them. If I were to elevate the unit I like blocking under the frame versus the axles. Jim

[Mark N.]

I have a hydraulic leveling system, so what I do is once a month, I lift the wheels, rotate the tires by 1/3 of a rotation (just remember to always go clockwise so you aren't putting them back down in the same spot) and put it back on the ground. There is absolutely nothing about concrete that is detrimental to tire life, so putting anything between the tire and the concrete (or blacktop for that matter) is a waste of effort and just following an old tire myth. Keep the pressures topped to max.
Above all, all times of the year, keep sunlight off of them. Either treat regularly with 303 Protectant, or build or buy tire shades.

Sunlight and sitting still without turning is what kills tires prematurely.

[Artemus Gordon]

As long as your tire's are not too old or one of the "questionable" brands, taking weight off them is my recommendation. Sunlight and environment is a serious issue during storage. Age is the great killer of tire's, both by design I suspect, and pure science. I just replaced tire's on a car with less than 2000 miles on them. Stored on blocks in control storage, purely because of age. Therefore in my opinion, time your new tire purchase around when you bring it out of storage. I might even consider having "sacrificial tire's" just for moving RV in an emergency, then store your good tire's properly, until ready to use RV. Just an idea!

[DQDick]

OEM tires are the biggest problem IMHO and that can't be fixed by anything you do. Before we started full timing we never did anything except cover the tires to protect them from the sun.

[Virginia Young]

Mark N - The couple that did the tire safety class at the National rally last year said that concrete pulls moisture right out of the rubber. I purchased some of those thin, flexible plastic cutting boards and put one under each tire when we are parked at our winter place.

[WaltBennett]

quote:Originally posted by Virginia Young

Mark N - The couple that did the tire safety class at the National rally last year said that concrete pulls moisture right out of the rubber. I purchased some of those thin, flexible plastic cutting boards and put one under each tire when we are parked at our winter place.

Heard that too, but don't think it's proven. If you're leaving it there for an extended period of time, I'd lift the frame up about six or so inches and block it, but you don't have to completely lift the tires off the ground. Then jack each axle to lift the tires, and support them. This would help not having to make an extra step or two to get in and out. Cinder blocks, wood cribbing or jack stands will work. If you're using cinder blocks, make certain the holes are vertical to use their max. strength.

[biznsa]

Thanks, All. Numerous good suggestions to mull over.

[TAKPAK]

A lot of theories on tire care is based on old technology. Nowadays, with the synthetics, different formulations, etc., a lot of that is old school. As mentioned, the big killer is sun/ozone, and chemicals. Of course, never park a rig where the tires sit in gasoline, oils, etc., that may have been spilled or are on the surface of the parking spot. Another reason to "lift" a rig by the frame is to prevent a "set" in the springs (if you have them), but that takes a LONG time to happen. Another problem are the oils in a tire. If tire{s} sit for a long time, the oils used in manufacturing will "settle out" and the tire will actually dry out, hence the cracking. What keeps tires actually healthy is running them, so they flex and keep the oils distributed. Tire experts always say it is far better to wear a tire out, than to let it sit and "rot/dry" out.

The one exception to this is if anyone (I can't imagine who) still has bias ply tires. They will take a "set" quickly, and beat you to death until they get "warmed up" from driving a ways. This is more applicable to us "boomers" who can actually remember bias ply tires!

[Mark N.]

quote:Originally posted by Virginia Young

Mark N - The couple that did the tire safety class at the National rally last year said that concrete pulls moisture right out of the rubber. I purchased some of those thin, flexible plastic cutting boards and put one under each tire when we are parked at our winter place.

This old "theory" started with the advent of steel belts in tires. The thought was, that somehow, the tires would "suck" or wick the moisture from the cement up into the tire and cause those belts to rust. Others postulated that the opposite would happen: That the concrete would suck the moisture out of the tires. That made sense to some, because as we all know, tires show signs of drying out (eg. cracking) with age, so it must be the concrete, right?
The science actually shows that neither case is true. Tires start rotting, cracking, and deteriorating from the moment they are manufactured. It's just that it occurs slowly...Very slowly...at first. The 2 things that really, really speed this up are not being used, and UV (the sun) damage. Not turning means they aren't flexing. Flexing is to tires as movement is to muscles: Vital to keeping them from aging quickly and deteriorating.
The UV damage is no different than what happens to any piece of fabric or plastic or even our own skin, or anything else: It simply causes detrimental changes at the molecular level that result in rapid oxidization and rot.
Now then, setting your tires on some form of vapor barrier certainly won't hurt, so if you feel better about it, go for it.
But, if you really want to help keep your tires young, treat them exactly like we should all be treating our bodies: Keep them moving, and keep them away from long exposure to the sun!
I totally understand you can find a hundred sources in quick fashion that will say you should put something under your tires to protect them. Old myths are just like dandelions in my yard: Hard to keep from spreading! As I learned in school, "Half of what you will be taught in your life will be proven wrong. The problem is, we don't know which half."
Think about the issue of saturated fat in your diet: We have all been taught and lectured about the dangers of saturated fat causing heart disease and cancer, right? Turns out that is wrong. Dead wrong. Science has shown us now that it is actually the opposite: Healthy and needed. But, even Dr.s keep warning us about too much saturated fat in our diet.
Same thing with this myth about vapor barriers under tires. Makes sense on the surface, but in reality, there's no justification for it.

[Mike117]

I am not sure I am buying this premise of jacking your tires off the ground. I have stored a trailer for over 20 years in a pole building on concrete and never had a tire issue. People go to Arizona and park for months on end. The only issue I can see would be issues because of the sun and weather. Show me the scientific proof? I have learned so much from folks on the forum and I guess we each have to do what we got to do. As I tell my officers, "Don't over think it" Guess I will find out with the new rig.

[Dam Worker]

Terry I thought that the bias tires that beat you to death until they warmed up were nylon. The ones I remember were heavy truck tires and that was back in the early 70's. My dad's Cabover Freight-liner had them on it. I had not thought about those tire for a lone time.

As for tire care and after my blowout on my pickup I would say age in general is the killer. My did not have anywhere near the rated miles and had lots of tread left. I am sure the sun does not help either. Any petroleum based product has issues with sun and probably ozone. I have bought some covers for my trailer but they are still in the boxes. Oops.


Tom Marty

[Rondo]

I park the Monte on concrete in our pole barn for the off season. I roll the Monte onto rubber garden stepping stones purchased at Menards while it is parked in there and also put either the rubber stones or boards under the level-up rams also. I did this all winter last year because we were unable to head South last winter. I was told by a Goodyear rep(not a dealer of Goodyear tires) but a rep from the factory that he recommends when parking on concrete to put something between the tires and the concrete because the concrete does leach the moisture from the tires! You take it for what it is worth but I'm going to be putting something under mine no matter where I park on concrete!
Since I'm at the Fall Rally and the RV I'll ask them their thoughts on this subject!

[Twopetes]

As a follow up, does anyone use some type of spray or something like armor-all on their tires? I have covers but wonder if there is any other things that I can do. I live in South Carolina so it is always hot and sunny! Well most of the time!
Thanks. Steve