is covering the tires necessary?

[missionman]

i store my TT on a large parking lot =, obviously outdoors. It is in the direct elements. I'm reading a couple threads on here now that flip flop both ways. I use the TT every couple of weeks or so and travel anywhere from 25 to 250 miles.

[Community Alumni]

Always cover mine; it's cheap insurance! :C

[webslave]

If the trailer is going to be sitting for more than three days, I cover them. I use the tandem wheel covers and it only takes a couple of minutes, per side, to slide them on and anchor them with a bungee cord.

An awful lot rides on those tires and I do whatever I can to maximize their life and our safety. The white covers also keep them cooler so when I check the air pressure before heading out, all 4 tires are as close to the same cold pressure as possible (no sun heating on the sunny side).

[JAYHAWKERS]

We cover our tires and park on old rubber door mats ( wood planks will do) to keep the tires from being in direct contact with the ground. Our trailer is parked on a gravel lot.

[DarthMuffin]

I live in a pretty windy place and I haven't found tire covers that will stay on yet. 303 Aerospace protectant for me. It does wash off, so I go and reapply every month or so. It has really helped on my utility trailer, the present tires are at least as old as the previous (unprotected) ones were when they started cracking.

[ol__grouch]

Required? No. Good idea? Yes.

[Sport45]

Dick_B wrote:
There was a recent demonstration of how hot the tires get in the sun vs in the shade ie. covered from direct rays. I'm not sure the vinyl covers really protect from the UV rays but the temperature difference is important.

I think it's the other way around. Anything that's shaded is protected from UV. But the covers can act like solar ovens letting the tire get hot. That's why so many are light colored.

I'd cover them when not in use.

[SCVJeff]

They are covered in storage, as well as at the beach to keep the constant salt off the aluminum. And while there is possibly a heat issue with covering them, UV damage is way worse

[Dick_B]

There was a recent demonstration of how hot the tires get in the sun vs in the shade ie. covered from direct rays. I'm not sure the vinyl covers really protect from the UV rays but the temperature difference is important.

[Jim2007]

Hi: I cover my tires even if it is not in use for a couple of weeks. U
V will cause damage (cracking) to the side wall of the tire. Jim2007

[FrankShore]

gbopp wrote:
I use 303 Protectant on my tires.

Agreed! 303 is great!

[kvangil]

You'll get varying answers on this question. It depends a lot on your climate and your storage conditions. Is it on gravel or grass? Stored indoors or out, in a carport or not? Get shade or no shade? Winter weather or sunny all year? Sits on mostly dry ground or gets a lot of puddles?

We've owned campers for about 11 years now and have never covered the tires. Our storage conditions have always been on gravel, no water pooling as the ground slopes away from the camper. Shade is provided by the nearby campers that dwarfs ours for most of the day. 🙂 We can have bad winters here in the Midwest. In these conditions, we've never had any dry rot or other tire issues, and looking around the storage lot, most of the campers have uncovered tires as well. So....it all depends and there really isn't a right or wrong answer.

[darsben]

Dog Folks wrote:
So if your tires are in the shade all day, one set is under the slide, the other set is under the awning. Would you still cover?

Depends on how long it sits in one place. Long term I would, if only short term then probably not

[gbopp]

I use 303 Protectant on my tires.

[Dog_Folks]

So if your tires are in the shade all day, one set is under the slide, the other set is under the awning. Would you still cover?