Blow-out ...
Yep, it finally happened. 2009 fifthwheel with original tires (D rated) replaced last year with E rated. Not here to complain about or bash the brand of tire. It was the drivers side rear and I know if a tire is going to pick up a nail or screw it will most likely be after a leading tire flips it up. No TPMS so I can't tell you if the tire deflated and then came apart or was a sudden event.
I did get some damage from the tire. It broke off about 6 inches of the rear grey tank drain. Wife couldn't wash dishes for the weekend. And a small patch of the moisture barrier got tore up outside the frame. Also lost some fender supports. Light-weight metal rods holding the fender skirts from swaying in the wind. Actually got off rather well.
My takeaways for others.
1. If your going to have a blow out it will happen at the worst possible location. Like I-695 around Baltimore the evening before a holiday. Be prepared with flares for your own safety.
2. Stay calm and think the situation through. Where I first pulled onto the shoulder it was just wide enough to get the trailer off the road and assess damage. There is no way I would have changed a tire there and lived to tell about it. Looking down the road I saw there was an exit ramp 1/2 mile ahead. I limped down the shoulder to where the off ramp widened out and I had more space. And I used the flares mentioned above.
3. Know how to get your spare lowered to the ground and have the tool to do it. Mine takes a 3/4 inch socket or wrench. And in my case the location prevents the use of a 4 way lug wrench unless you can open the largest slide on the unit.
4. Lug wrench. Do not assume your truck lug wrench will fit your trailer lugs. Yes, I had a 4 way lug wrench.
5. Check you spare tire regularly for proper inflation. I did and this became a non-event.
6. Never trust the guy behind the counter at one of the largest tire chains in Delaware. They had one tire in stock of the correct size and load rating. I dropped the old tire/rim off and told them I would be back for it. 5 hours later I stop in and it is not done. Counter guy goes back and does it himself. He rolls it out to me and says, "I didn't know how much air you wanted in it. I set it at 55 lbs." I know max on my E rated tires is 80. So I told him it should be at or near max inflation. I run 70 because I went up a load rating and don't need full pressure. He stated to me as a fact that "You can not air a tire up to maximum inflation rating because it will explode when when it warms up going down the road." I sent him back to put 70 lbs in it.
It took half an hour for me to change out the tire and get back on the road. 15 minutes of that was lowering the spare with an adjustable wrench. There is now a 3/4 inch socket and ratchet in the trailer.
I did get some damage from the tire. It broke off about 6 inches of the rear grey tank drain. Wife couldn't wash dishes for the weekend. And a small patch of the moisture barrier got tore up outside the frame. Also lost some fender supports. Light-weight metal rods holding the fender skirts from swaying in the wind. Actually got off rather well.
My takeaways for others.
1. If your going to have a blow out it will happen at the worst possible location. Like I-695 around Baltimore the evening before a holiday. Be prepared with flares for your own safety.
2. Stay calm and think the situation through. Where I first pulled onto the shoulder it was just wide enough to get the trailer off the road and assess damage. There is no way I would have changed a tire there and lived to tell about it. Looking down the road I saw there was an exit ramp 1/2 mile ahead. I limped down the shoulder to where the off ramp widened out and I had more space. And I used the flares mentioned above.
3. Know how to get your spare lowered to the ground and have the tool to do it. Mine takes a 3/4 inch socket or wrench. And in my case the location prevents the use of a 4 way lug wrench unless you can open the largest slide on the unit.
4. Lug wrench. Do not assume your truck lug wrench will fit your trailer lugs. Yes, I had a 4 way lug wrench.
5. Check you spare tire regularly for proper inflation. I did and this became a non-event.
6. Never trust the guy behind the counter at one of the largest tire chains in Delaware. They had one tire in stock of the correct size and load rating. I dropped the old tire/rim off and told them I would be back for it. 5 hours later I stop in and it is not done. Counter guy goes back and does it himself. He rolls it out to me and says, "I didn't know how much air you wanted in it. I set it at 55 lbs." I know max on my E rated tires is 80. So I told him it should be at or near max inflation. I run 70 because I went up a load rating and don't need full pressure. He stated to me as a fact that "You can not air a tire up to maximum inflation rating because it will explode when when it warms up going down the road." I sent him back to put 70 lbs in it.
It took half an hour for me to change out the tire and get back on the road. 15 minutes of that was lowering the spare with an adjustable wrench. There is now a 3/4 inch socket and ratchet in the trailer.
