Tires, when and how to change

[XenoRev]

Well, the five year mark is coming up on our Salem 27DBK. It's time to think tires based on forum wisdom. 5 years is the reasonable life of tires. I have Castlerock chinabombs on two axles, and have had no issues with them--checking inflation each trip and running them at recommended PSI. So brand is not the question.
What I am wondering is this, must I change all 4 (5 with the spare) at the same time, or would it be reasonable to do them in pairs over the season. 2 rear and then later 2 front. Or maybe even 2 next spring as year 5 begins, and two the following year so I'm not forking out money for all 4 in the same year.
Well wise people, what are your thoughts and experiences?

[NMWildcat]

The only time I would even consider not changing all tires at once was if the pockebook dictated I could not afford it.
Never saw the logic in replacing them 1 or 2 at a time. If $$$ is your concern, save up $$$ for a bit to be able to replace all of them at the same time.

[FrankG]

Thursday we traveled from central Florida to Northern Ohio, 1078miles, on I-75. Along the way, there were at least 6 RV's with tire issues, some looked like new. Those 95deg. days bring out the worst in tire performance. Enough said.

[D W]

5 years is 5 years. Replace only 2 and wait longer to replace the others enters you into a crap shoot. In other words, do you feel lucky? I normally replace mine at 4 years, period. I project the cost in my budget and plan for it. With ST tires, it's the nature of the beast.

[Mike134]

You can replace 2 at a time on a car why not a trailer. 5 years is not a hard and fast rule, look at the sidewalls for tiny cracks, my '72 Olds tires are 10 years old and still don't have any cracking. All depends on your own environment/storage/use, don't let somebody from Phoenix tell you 5 years tops when you live in Maine.

Safe travels

[MR.M]

Originally Posted by Mike134

You can replace 2 at a time on a car why not a trailer. 5 years is not a hard and fast rule, look at the sidewalls for tiny cracks, my '72 Olds tires are 10 years old and still don't have any cracking. All depends on your own environment/storage/use, don't let somebody from Phoenix tell you 5 years tops when you live in Maine.

Safe travels

Auto tires and ST tires are not the same which is why the 5 yr rule . just because you don't see cracking does not mean cracking is not present with in the tire . doesn't matter where you live .

[Mike134]

Originally Posted by MR.M

Auto tires and ST tires are not the same which is why the 5 yr rule . just because you don't see cracking does not mean cracking is not present with in the tire . doesn't matter where you live .

What "authority" other than "somebody" on the internet with an opinion says it has to be 5 years. And making you tube videos while you travel does not make you an "authority"

Seems these "authorities" state can be up to 10 years or don't say.

https://letsrv.com/rv-tires-safety-care/
https://www.goodyearrvtires.com/tire...uidelines.aspx

[MR.M]

Originally Posted by Mike134

What "authority" other than "somebody" on the internet with an opinion says it has to be 5 years. And making you tube videos while you travel does not make you an "authority"

Seems these "authorities" state can be up to 10 years or don't say.

https://letsrv.com/rv-tires-safety-care/
https://www.goodyearrvtires.com/tire...uidelines.aspx

you saw my youtube vids awesome . it's not just somebody but a general consensus from hundreds of sources . yes you can find where 10 yrs depending on use , storage , condition of tire . how long does unit sit between use . many variables .

You can take your chances for me 5 yrs with my use is very reasonable use out of the tires . for you it my be 10 or more goodluck

[Mike134]

Originally Posted by MR.M

you saw my youtube vids awesome . it's not just somebody but a general consensus from hundreds of sources . yes you can find where 10 yrs depending on use , storage , condition of tire . how long does unit sit between use . many variables .

You can take your chances for me 5 yrs with my use is very reasonable use out of the tires . for you it my be 10 or more goodluck

Honestly I had not so many out there to weed through......don't need to waste those minutes of my life watching.

[lewisra]

Originally Posted by XenoRev

Well, the five year mark is coming up on our Salem 27DBK. It's time to think tires based on forum wisdom. 5 years is the reasonable life of tires. I have Castlerock chinabombs on two axles, and have had no issues with them--checking inflation each trip and running them at recommended PSI. So brand is not the question.
What I am wondering is this, must I change all 4 (5 with the spare) at the same time, or would it be reasonable to do them in pairs over the season. 2 rear and then later 2 front. Or maybe even 2 next spring as year 5 begins, and two the following year so I'm not forking out money for all 4 in the same year.
Well wise people, what are your thoughts and experiences?

So to answer your question. There is no issue in replacing in pairs as long as they are exact same size as original.

[SailorSam20500]

Originally Posted by Mike134

What "authority" other than "somebody" on the internet with an opinion says it has to be 5 years. And making you tube videos while you travel does not make you an "authority"

Seems these "authorities" state can be up to 10 years or don't say.

https://letsrv.com/rv-tires-safety-care/
https://www.goodyearrvtires.com/tire...uidelines.aspx

I've found Roger Marble, a tire engineer, to provide good advice. I saw a post of his today where he states:

"As an engineer, I would prefer to set aside claims and innuendos and focus on facts and data. CR did offer what they called “9 Tips for Safer RV Travel.” Of those, only three even mention tires. One is the recommendation to replace tires that are 10 years old. Readers of RVTravel.com and of my RVTireSafety blog already know that 10 years is the MAXIMUM tire age, with shorter usage time often recommended. Some are as short as 3 years in certain applications."

The full post is about the recent tire review from Consumer Reports on a long out of production RV tire. https://www.rvtravel.com/rv-tire-saf...ires-rvt-1013/


FWIW, I've come across advice from vehicle and tire manufacturers which have the recommendation that, at a minimum, tires should be seriously be considered for replacement at 5 years and if keeping tires longer than that, the tires should have an annual inspection by a professional. I take that to be a tire off inspection so that the inside of the tire can be checked for damage.

[traveltrailerrookie]

I changed my tires just before our trip to the smokies in June. The tires were 5 years old and didn’t show any signs of cracking etc. As I “broke down” the tires on the tire machine, the cracks showed up along the treads all around the tires. Sure glad I didn’t have to get swapped out along the highway.

[2007 Sabre RnR]

I just blew two tires on our trailer, same trip. They are not overloaded, they were properly inflated and it was hot outside but not scorching. The tires were 6 years old (DOT tire date). It did $4k damage to trailer. Find the $$$ for the tires. New tires are very cheap insurance.

[medalguy]

There's nothing magical about 5 years. It's like dates on food - it can be considered a "best by" date, but the real date to change tires depends on how many miles, inflation adherence, driving conditions, and storage conditions. My MH is in a closed garage when it's not on the road, and we make 3-4 trips of 3,000 miles total a year, so I suspect my tires will be good beyond 5 years. YMMV.

[raysen]

Safe bet! All five at once. Peace of mind.

[GFD47]

Based on my one-time experience, trying to stretch into the sixth year involves a blowout. It was early this summer...not that hot yet...and I always check the pressures. There was lots of tread life left, but that doesn't mean much when the tread is no longer connected to the sidewall.
Was it a coincidence that I always park my TT in the same spot at home and the one tire that blew gets more hours of direct sunshine at that spot than any of the other three? I don't know, but when I replaced my OEM Bombs with Goodyear Endurance I also spent another $40 on Amazon and got tire covers.
Also, the tire that blew was under the main slide out. The steel belt shredded the underbelly wrap but thankfully did no other damage. My trusted independent RV shop charged me $100 to redo the whole bottom of a 3x10 slide and I considered that a bargain. My point is, waiting for a blowout can cost you more that simply replacing the tires.
Bottom line regarding the original question, five years worked for me, six years did not.

[D W]

Originally Posted by MR.M

Auto tires and ST tires are not the same which is why the 5 yr rule . just because you don't see cracking does not mean cracking is not present with in the tire . doesn't matter where you live .

X2. A lot of difference between an ST tire and a P or LT tire. When an ST tire goes it's usually catastrophic with ply separations or just plain steel belts snapping. Forget the tire, replacing it will be cheap. The collateral damage to your rig is what will cost you. There is enough empirical evidence documented in the RV world to establish a five year life.

[Slow Moon]

Experience FWIW:

1-I've blown up a lot of Michelins on cars and light trucks that looked good but were a bit over 5 years old. They were never overloaded or improperly inflated.

2-Not necessarily age, but you should know that all 8 of my 5th Wheel mounted Kenda LRF tires all failed at about 4 years and about 5,000 miles. One blowout, all delaminated sidewalls. They looked OK on the outside (no cracks), but dismounted, the delam was obvious and ALARMING.

3-The foregoing led me to use a hard and fast 5-year replacement rule, but after mounting Sailun Commercial Trailer tires, they all look and inspect like new after 6 years, so I'm stretching the rule a little. I don't like tire risk, so I will probably replace them next January and use the dismounted inspection results to decide whether I can go longer on the next set.

Opinion:

Change all five, or at least the 4 on the ground. What do you really gain by splitting up the process? More risk and complexity in managing your tires, another thing to do later, balanced against some slight delay in cost. With whatever else you can think of, it's your call to do what works best for you.

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by Slow Moon

... Opinion:

Change all five, or at least the 4 on the ground. ...

If changing tires based on age, include the spare. You have to be able to count on it not failing when you need it most.

[Oklamartin]

Originally Posted by Slow Moon

Experience FWIW:

1-I've blown up a lot of Michelins on cars and light trucks that looked good but were a bit over 5 years old. They were never overloaded or improperly inflated.

2-Not necessarily age, but you should know that all 8 of my 5th Wheel mounted Kenda LRF tires all failed at about 4 years and about 5,000 miles. One blowout, all delaminated sidewalls. They looked OK on the outside (no cracks), but dismounted, the delam was obvious and ALARMING.

3-The foregoing led me to use a hard and fast 5-year replacement rule, but after mounting Sailun Commercial Trailer tires, they all look and inspect like new after 6 years, so I'm stretching the rule a little. I don't like tire risk, so I will probably replace them next January and use the dismounted inspection results to decide whether I can go longer on the next set.

Opinion:

Change all five, or at least the 4 on the ground. What do you really gain by splitting up the process? More risk and complexity in managing your tires, another thing to do later, balanced against some slight delay in cost. With whatever else you can think of, it's your call to do what works best for you.

I agree. I learned from many years of blowouts not to push them beyond 4 years when we lived in the Oklahoma heat. My first set of blowouts I thought were just defective tires. When it happened to my next set I leaned about the aging out phenomena. Our trailer had tire covers on religiously and later we stored the trailer in our pole shed to minimize sun damage. I also am anal about adequate inflation and always use tpms. I also switched to D load ratings after the first blowout set of the factory C rated tires.
I figured these tires get pretty bad stresses when backing up with turns, scrubbing heavily. That’s got to work the internal structure a lot. The next set I started to carefully monitor their temperature on our first camp out of the season when they had reached 4 years. Sure enough, they looked good with no cracking and great tread with no uneven wear patterns but one blew out. I checked the other three and two others were hot. Bought some bottled water and drove slow stopping every so often to douse the hot tires to cool them down. Got to the campground and ended up replacing them all before heading back home at the end of the week. I did have one more set (Carlisles) age out without me realizing it. Time flies as I’ve aged. When one blew on the Oklahoma turnpike I called ahead to a Goodyear truck shop in Joplin and limped there on the spare. When we got there I looked at the other tires and another one was ready to pop with a large bulge. Those had made it 5 years before failing.
Do what makes you feel safe. Some folks are just lucky and some are willing to take risks but not me anymore. I now live in Wisconsin so less heat. Also replaced the factory tires with GY Endurance. I’ll still be replacing them at 5 years.