Snow Chains

[oldguy70]

I have sock chains that I carry to be legal as in BC you need to carry chains or have
snow tires on between Nov 1 and April 30. I have them mainly if I don't get home after a
trip to make me legal and if I have to put them on, I park. During the winter I have
snow tires on and the coach the coach handles great. I ski so I drive in snow a lot and
right now it's snowing so I will drive a few miles tonight.

[saddlesore]

Originally Posted by Ken C

There is no way I would attempt using chains on our DS. There is not enough clearance between the outer dual and the body for chains.

Yup.. And on Our Foretravel with the "Outboard" Air Bags, There is only 2 or 3 inches clearance between the tire tread and the air bag(s).
I carry the "Tire Sox" just to satisfy the States that Require You to "Carry" during the winter season. I will never use them , but... they are lightweight and easy to store in the drawer under the fold out sofa bed.

[permitwriter]

Originally Posted by lrwinddancer

Howdy, I may need to travel from Phoenix AZ up to Remond OR. I plan to go 99 to I5 to Weed then 97 over to Redmond. The trip would be early Jan 2023. I am concerned about weather and possible snow. So looking for input on snow chains. I have never used them on any vehicle let alone on a 40,000 pound coach. Would be on a 2020 DS 4081. Thanks in advance.

My first MH came with a set of used chains. The first owner had a home near us in Michigan and another in the Colorado mountains. He was driving in the mountains and the police told him that if he wanted to continue on he had to put on a set of tire chains. He said he bought a set, watched the truckers to learn how to put them on, put them on the MH and continued on his way with no problems. He said the roads weren't that bad. The MH had 19.5" tires.

[Werk]

I don’t know much about MH chains and socks but I do know about the road from Redmond to Weed. It is not a good road this time of year. First it is almost 2 lanes all the way with a lot of large truck traffic and when we get snow it is almost always packed snow and ice especially in Oregon from Klamath to Bend. In Oregon we don’t have the road department like they do in California. You could get a break in the weather and the road could be in ok conditions. What you need to do is go on to Tripcheck.com and follow the cameras from weed to Bend and this is what you could be in for, and that is a long way with chains. I wouldn’t even think about it in the condition it is and we haven’t got any major storms yet to speak of. A shorter snow route would be going all the way up I5 to Eugene and over Santiam pass to Bend but that can be real bad because of the higher elevation if you don’t get a good break in the weather. You are going to have to really check the weather including the radar and also the road cameras. I wish you luck in you journey.https://www.tripcheck.com/Pages/Custom-Cameras

[Tugboat]

I don’t know about socks but I would not put snow chains on a MH. If you have ever driven in a Tractor Trailer with snow chains you will know the vibrations from the chains. And most trucks not only have air ride suspension but the cab is hinged in the front with a air spring at the back plus a air seat. The vibration is bad with snow chains I can’t imagine how much you will have to tighten and fix in a MH.

Just food for thought.

[Comanche59]

I would never "plan" to use chains. My plan would be to cancel if the weather turned that bad. Too great a chance the chains will damage your coach, or that you will be involved in an accident.

[Comanche59]

I would never "plan" to use chains. My plan would be to cancel if the weather turned that bad. Too great a chance the chains will damage your coach, or that you will be involved in an accident.

[ColCruiser]

We need to drive over the I-5 mountain passes between Redding, CA and Portland, OR.

We have a 2019 Newmar Mountain Aire with 315/80R 22.5 size drive tires.

Q) Just wondering if anyone has experience with using Truck AutoSocks (AL84) on such large tires?

Thank you!

[twogypsies]

Originally Posted by ColCruiser

We need to drive over the I-5 mountain passes between Redding, CA and Portland, OR.

We have a 2019 Newmar Mountain Aire with 315/80R 22.5 size drive tires.

Q) Just wondering if anyone has experience with using Truck AutoSocks (AL84) on such large tires?

Thank you!

The very best thing to do is to monitor weather closely as you're driving and to stop for a night or so if snowing, icing or just predictions, and continue on when safe without dealing with chains or socks. You really need to build in some misc. days when traveling in winter. They do clear roads as fast as they can on those types of roads but you may be delayed a short time meanwhile. We drove one time in those bad conditions in southern Idaho in May and vowed... never again.

[HMCSW]

Originally Posted by lrwinddancer

Howdy, I may need to travel from Phoenix AZ up to Remond OR. I plan to go 99 to I5 to Weed then 97 over to Redmond. The trip would be early Jan 2023. I am concerned about weather and possible snow. So looking for input on snow chains. I have never used them on any vehicle let alone on a 40,000 pound coach. Would be on a 2020 DS 4081. Thanks in advance.

Going up the. Eastside of Reno but the law says you have to carry chains. The auto sock snow sock are easier than chains. Cheaper, lighter and they work. Also if you do have to use chains, if they break you will cause thousands of dollars in damage. Take the trip and have fun. Just build time in to avoid having to chain up.

[TUCSONRAIL]

I'm also planning to go from Tucson to Washington on that route in January. I did it last year and had clear roads. I carry Auto Socks but have never used them
2 years ago I drove from Boise to Portland over the Blue Ridge mountains and Deadmans pass with no chains or socks in a huge snowstorm. All the truckers were chained up, the only one that wasn't was stopped by the highway patrol. The coach went right over that pass with no problem. I guess all that weight in the rear of a diesel pusher really helps. The cop who had the truck pulled over even followed me for a while. I don't know if I would repeat the white knuckle experience again, like others have said best to just wait until the roads are plowed.

[twogypsies]

Originally Posted by TUCSONRAIL

2 years ago I drove from Boise to Portland over the Blue Ridge mountains and Deadmans pass with no chains or socks in a huge snowstorm.

Aren't the Blue Ridge Mountains in the east?

[mahdi]

Blue Ridge Mountains between Boise and Portland?

[saddlesore]

Those are in the SE Washington/NE Oregon , known as the "Blue Mountains"..Sometimes also grouped with the the "Paloose Hills" of SE Washington...