Tires Tires and Levelers

[type2bd]

have two questions:
1. Purchased used Winnie ,gas, Adventurer 1995 chevy. To keep tires from flatening out while unit is in storage, is it a good idea to store unit with leveling jacks in the down position to take the downward weight of the MH pressure off the tires?

2. Tires are petroluem based, along with other various of sundries of compounds. My tires are dated 4/1994 and 5/1997. The older dates show slight signs of crazing. To help lessen IV deteriation, is it at all good to paint or coat the tires with a light weight motor oil?


Thanks

R. Duncan

[type2bd]

have two questions:
1. Purchased used Winnie ,gas, Adventurer 1995 chevy. To keep tires from flatening out while unit is in storage, is it a good idea to store unit with leveling jacks in the down position to take the downward weight of the MH pressure off the tires?

2. Tires are petroluem based, along with other various of sundries of compounds. My tires are dated 4/1994 and 5/1997. The older dates show slight signs of crazing. To help lessen IV deteriation, is it at all good to paint or coat the tires with a light weight motor oil?


Thanks

R. Duncan

[727Driver]

R. Duncan:

No, it is not necessary to put the jacks down while in storage. I have mine in storage for about 5 months and leave the jacks up. I inflate the tires from their normal running pressure (95 psi) and increase this to 105 psi for the winter and cover them to protect from uv rays.

I would not suggest putting anything (such as light oil) on the tires this may ruin them.

I would suggest that you replace all the tires you have as they are too old and even though the treads may look fine the age of them (11 to 12 years) is beyond their useful life. Replace at once or take the chance of a blowout at highway speeds which would be disasterous. Motor home tires should be replaced about every 6 years for safety sake.


Don

[Paulin]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but tires dated 1994 and 1997 are WAY out of date and need to be REPLACED! RV tires usually last only 6 or so years due to little use and long periods of just sitting still. This is because tires need centrifugal force to keep the compunds circulating through out the rubber. The tires may look perfectly good, no cracks, lots of thread, etc. but are actually a hazard when they are this old.

Don't feel bad, we also found this out the hard way when we bought our first (used) MH.

[adj]

True, these tires need to be replaced. However, I have a little problem with the six year rule.

The numerous articles I have read on this subject suggest 7 years as a replacement cycle.
Also, if the tires are shaded from the sun and elements during non-use, the cycle can be extended for a longer period.

[Wallaby Dan]

I don't know about running tires over 6-7 years old. Ify at best as the preservatives in the tire compound will not keep the tires from dry rotting and or coming apart at highway speeds. At very least you will loose the alligator{tread}, at worst,well,lets not go there.
As a bandag tech for alot of years I can tell ya that I had 6 7.50R17.5's on my old Weene. I took them off and put two tires that I was able to find on teh front. I thought that the other tires would cap ok and then I'd put four of the six on the rear axle and sale the others. Good plan, untill 5 out of the 6 throwed the belts when they buffed the tread off. They only were about 8 years old and I wondered when I bought the MH if the tires were safe too drive to the park{10 miles}. I got lucky,Will you? Best of luck,Dan

[Gary RVRoamer]

Those tires are just waiting for you to get to a lonely road before they disintegrate. Get rid of them now.

Somewhere in the 7th year just about any tire made (RV or otherwise) has reached the end of its useful life. Even if it was sitting in the tire manufacturer's warehouse all that time. It isn't worth the risk to attempt to drive on them.

[Bushman512003]

Never coat a tire with any Oil of any kind tires are made with out the oil resitance as say a fuel line has and oil will speed the tire break down...I worked 33-1/2 years with in the rubber industry...Take My word on this Oil is a NO.No.Bushman

[GaryKD]

Michilen has recently gone to a ten year replacement recommendation if the side walls and tread are okay. This information was provided at the Newmar Rally in Essex Junction, Vermont, during a Michelin seminar conducted by Michelin. Seminar attendees were given a sidewall tire template to help an owner check the side walls for cracking.

If tread and sidewalls are okay, not to exceed ten years is now the Michelin replacement recommendation.

Michelin documented this recommendation in their manual titled Michelin RV Tires, document number MWL42739, dated 06/06. You can order a manual by calling 800-677-3322, option #2.

[DSouthw524]

I concur that your tires are definately unsafe. You are primed to have them blow. Several of my friends have tried to be cheap and wound up having expensive and scary problems because of old tires.

HWH (the company that made youor jacks)technicians have told us a t seminars that you should use the jacks to take the lad off the tires and wheel bearings. Jack the unit up until the "bulge" is out of the tires per their recommendations..