Under The Tires 4 Winter

[VanDiemen23]

This is actually what the RV Tire Safety guy said on his site:

" If you are not parking on a concrete floor or pad it is suggested you not park on asphalt as the oils in the tar can attack the tread rubber. It is also suggested that you not park on dirt or sand as the moisture can migrate into the tire and possibly cause corrosion of the steel."

As far as your constant insistance that the black marks indicate that the tires "bleed" into the concrete - it's simply tire wear. Tires generate some of their grip through interdigitation - the interlocking of rubber with the ground at nearly a molecular level due to the pressure of the tire onto the surface and due to the fact that the tire deforms into the graian of the underlying surface. As the tire rolls and slips (and there's almost always some slip regardless of what you might think) the rubber shears off and leaves behind the black marks. do that a few hundred million times and you get down to the wear bars.

[60sumtin]

^ Yes I noticed that too that long term parking on concrete is not an issue. For anyone interested in reading the whole article here's the link to the quote:

RV Tire Safety - Winterize

[Domo]

Well, it looks like the RVers have to get together and educate all our tire manufactures! <<---

[Domo]

Originally Posted by VanDiemen23

This is actually what the RV Tire Safety guy said on his site:

" If you are not parking on a concrete floor or pad it is suggested you not park on asphalt as the oils in the tar can attack the tread rubber. It is also suggested that you not park on dirt or sand as the moisture can migrate into the tire and possibly cause corrosion of the steel."

As far as your constant insistance that the black marks indicate that the tires "bleed" into the concrete - it's simply tire wear. Tires generate some of their grip through interdigitation - the interlocking of rubber with the ground at nearly a molecular level due to the pressure of the tire onto the surface and due to the fact that the tire deforms into the graian of the underlying surface. As the tire rolls and slips (and there's almost always some slip regardless of what you might think) the rubber shears off and leaves behind the black marks. do that a few hundred million times and you get down to the wear bars.

I don't mean to disagree, however, I don't understand how tires can "wear" when sitting still to create black marks. No matter, if there is black stuff on the concrete, then something migrated OFF the tire and to the concrete.

Meanwhile, we all know that concrete is a sponge and water wicks through it easily. IF a concrete pad is inside a building - Sure, I can agree the tires won't get wet from the concrete. However, if the pad is out doors under a NON-enclosed carport - then the concrete is going to wick moisture to the tires - which is a no-no.

Bottom line - no matter what any of us do we all share best wishes for everyone's safety while on the road.

[Winemaker2]

Go to a major tire mfg website a see what they recommend...
Or read all the anecdotes here that will cover most all possibilities and you still need to decide?

[777 Driver]

Originally Posted by LSC9901

Is there something better to use ?

Originally Posted by Crasher

For awhile, people were using "Barn Mats" under their tires. You could get them at Tractor Supply or other farm supply stores.

I used plywood until it deteriorated.

Now, I use this: https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/pr...t?cm_vc=-10005

3/4" thick rubber stall mat. Kind of a pain to cut. Use a utility knife and let it droop over a table or sawhorse edge as you repeatedly cut it.

Take care,
Stu

[60sumtin]

A lot of drama here. To suggest concrete is like a sponge is ridiculous. Try soaking up water with a chunk of of concrete and you'll see how much water it can absorb. Bottom line is the small amount of moisture absorbed into a concrete parking pad inside or out is too insignificant to be an issue. Dry concrete has moisture in it but its not wet.

[bruce91]

Our coach is parked outside and the storage yard has grass, weeds and sandy dirt so i wanted something under the tires. I bought a rubber stall mat at tractor supply that measured 3/4" thick and 4'x 6'. Cut easily with a razor knife into 4 pieces, 2ea 2'x4' and 2 ea 2'x2'. Easy to back up onto and plenty wide allowing a good kneeling pad for my aged knees when checking tires.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/pr...tall-mat?rfk=1

[Crasher]

To add to my first response. I can't say that I have ever parked any of our coaches on anything except what was there when I stopped. I've had a 12' X 45' RV port since 2000. It is surrounded by trees. The surface is road base. I was always going to add something to it, but just never got around to it. Until 2007, the motorhome sat under it for 7-8 months of the year. At our AZ home it sits on 1 1/2" stones. I haven't had tire issues on any of our seven motorhomes. Must be my tires aren't smart enough to know the difference. All of the protection and things to park on to preserve the tires might make sense if one intended to run them 10 years or more. I just replaced six year old Michelins and will replace the current Toyo's in 5-6 years. I don't feel a need to to anything other than washing with soap and water and covering them when parked in the sun longer than a few days.

[Domo]

Originally Posted by 60sumtin

A lot of drama here. To suggest concrete is like a sponge is ridiculous. Try soaking up water with a chunk of of concrete and you'll see how much water it can absorb. Bottom line is the small amount of moisture absorbed into a concrete parking pad inside or out is too insignificant to be an issue. Dry concrete has moisture in it but its not wet.

As ridiculous as it sounds, simply ask a competent contractor/carpenter or your local town's building department engineers if a wooden sill plate can be allowed to touch concrete - the answer is NO. - Why? Because concrete wicks water and the wood will rot. (BTW, if the answer is "Yes" they need to go to school.)

The reference to a "sponge" refers to any porous surface that will propagate water through it's body due to surface tension and capillary action.

Lay a piece of cardboard on concrete outdoors and it will surely disintegrate faster than one laying on a nonporous surface.

And yes, you can absorb water with a chunk of concrete and it can be measured and it can help to deteriorate a tire.

As I've said before, do what you want with your own gear - all any of us want to do is provide the best knowledge we can so that others will have a heightened awareness of how simple decisions can add up resulting in degradation of our equipment.

[FatChance]

I just got two 4x6 stall mats at Tractor Supply and cut them up to put under the tires.

[Tireman9]

There are a few things that can hurt or even "kill" a tire.


Heat can accelerate the aging rate of rubber. Rubber is constantly "curing" i.e. getting harder, more brittle, less elastic etc. If you don't want to trust me I suggest you Google Chemical Reaction Rate Temperature
The above is why I suggest tires not stored indoors be protected from the heat of direct sunlight with white tire covers. You can see the data and facts on my blog post on white covers.
This degradation of rubber strength is a major contributor to belt edge separations.



Moisture does and can migrate into the tire construction and can result in decreased adhesion between steel and the surrounding brass due partially to the chemicals in rubber. There was a large passenger tire recall in the 70's because of moisture not being driven out by constant driving. Driving generates heat which can drive the moisture out of the rubber.


Oil can attack rubber. It is suggested to not park on asphalt as there is some data that suggests the oil from the tar can damage the tire surface that is in contact with the rubber.



I find it interesting that some feel they know more about tires than Bridgestone, Goodyear and Michelin but it is their choice if they do not want to listen and will instead listen for the "POP" when one of their tires lets go.


The "Park on something" is aimed at preventing moisture from wet or damp sand or dirt migrating into a tire. If you live in Arizona that is probably somethnig you do not have to worry about BUT in AZ you do have high ambient temp which accelerates the degridation of rubber.


Shield/ protect your tires from direct exposure to heat / Sun & oil or moisture and with proper care, load and inflation monitoring you might get the suggested 10 year max life from your tires.

[David K]

I park my RV on plywood cut to size and replace it when it deteriorates --- I also keep my tires covered to protect from the sun's rays --- by doing this, the tires that I trade in still look like new tires ---- just what I do -- everyone needs to make their own decisions. I like the idea of the stall mats from Tractor Supply and will probably do that the next time I need to replace the plywood.

[nogoats]

I park my RV on concrete, then raise it up on the levelers and place the plastic things for leveling under the tires. They have holes in them. Then I lower the RV slightly. There is some pressure on the tires but not much. Pretty simple and keeps the tires of the concrete. I am looking into some covers for the tires.