F350 tire airing down ranges w/ truck camper

[LosAngeles]

F350 tire airing down ranges w/ truck camper

Hi all

I’m doing research and getting opinions and info about airing down pressure ranges (I know it varies a lot depending on tire, load, rig, conditions, etc)

We have a 4x4 F350 (2020) CrewCab with 8’ bed - single rear wheels (SRW) ….. plus a truck camper about 9.5 feet long on the back.

Tires are the shoes it came with - Load range E - GOODYEAR WRANGLER - “ALL TERRAIN ADVENTURE” LT275/70R18

(and overall i am very happy with them, for what it is worth. I do NOT want to change tires - they ride great, very quiet on pavement, and decently knobby, etc)

Total weight (wet, loaded) is 11,300

Now obviously we won’t be doing any hardcore wheeling…..

and I won’t seek out soft sand or soft deep snow……

and maybe I never need to air down, ever….

but in the future - if we suddenly found ourselves in a position where we wanted / needed to carefully drive off-road, on soft snow, soft sand, and wanted to stack the deck in our favor, I could air down somewhat to make the contact patch bigger.

I believe with these stock rims and these tires I should not go below 20 psi (does this sound about right for this rig?)

and I do know i’d need to air back up before highway driving. 🙂
and yes I’d have a capable air compressor with me….. to air back up….
and likely air back up for any road driving of more than a 1/2 mile or so…..

but any suggestions, just for future reference?

Thanks!

[Grit_dog]

^Meh...
All depends what you’re doing. And by air down, I didn’t mean like 15psi like on sand. Although if you’re spinning out, that super low pressure may get you moving.
One may not need to, but bottom line, not debate able, lower pressure = more traction.
Run em however you want.

[PastorCharlie]

Grit dog wrote:

PastorCharlie wrote:


Snow driving keep tires up to proper inflation and start slow and stop slow and do not make any sudden turns. Reduce speed at all times on snow.

Haven't driven much on snow have ya? Low pressure on snow will help as much with traction on slippery surfaces as it will for traction/flotation on soft surfaces like sand. Both are about maximizing the contact patch.
Spinning out on ice and cant move? Let half the air out of the tires and generally drive away.

I have driven thousands of miles on snow covered roads, many trips from a few hundred miles to some trips lasting a thousand miles and some trips towing another vehicle ( Some in blizzard and whiteout conditions) and I would never drive those miles with tires aired down.

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=168

Several vehicle manufacturer's owner's manuals recommend operating winter tires several psi (typically 3-5) higher than their recommended pressures for summer and all-season tires. While none of them actually provide the reason why, there are several scenarios that would support the practice.

First and foremost is that winter tires feature more aggressive tread designs, softer tread compounds and are often molded with deeper beginning tread depths than summer or all-season tires. While the combination of these design elements allows winter tires to remain more pliable in sub-freezing temperatures to provide more traction in snow and on ice, it often results in tires that have somewhat reduced responsiveness to driver input. The 3-5 psi higher recommended inflation pressures increase tire stability and help offset the reduction in responsiveness.

Additionally ambient air temperatures in winter typically range 40- to 50-degrees Fahrenheit colder than typical summer temperatures for the same location. The lower ambient temperatures allow tires to be more efficient at radiating heat and the tires will run cooler, building up less hot tire pressure. In this case, the 3-5 psi higher recommended inflation pressure increase helps offset the reduced hot tire pressures resulting from less heat buildup.

[mellow]

adamis wrote:
Now, it could be the type of tire I have is prone to it, I'm not a tire geek and just go with whatever Les Schwab mid range tires are.

I run these tires with no issues, I am on the beach at 20-25 psi with an 1191 on the back fully loaded for off grid living for 2-4 days at a time.

General Grabber A/TX - #04508440000
All Terrain Truck SUV
Size: LT235/85R16

[Kayteg1]

you are definitely right about different tires taking flex differently.
Car tires have like 1/16" of sidewall and you can see how they fold when flat.
Out of curiosity I cut the semi-truck tire I had on my previous bus.
It had 3/4" of rubber/fabric/steel mesh on the side.
When I bought my bus, the old tires had side cracks big enough to stick my fingertip in them, yet they would hold 90psi as there was much more rubber behind the crack.

[adamis]

A couple of you have questioned my conclusions on the tire separation due to low pressures. I don't have conclusive evidence, just anecdotal evidence. Went through three tires with separation when they only had 25%to 50% of their life used. In that time, about the only thing I did with the truck was take it to Pismo. Keep in mind that when I'm going to Pismo, I have the camper fully loaded plus a trailer full of toys I am hauling. On the rear tires that is between 4000lb to 5000lb of payload in addition to the weight of the truck.

My unscientific conclusion is the low tire pressure in combination with the heavy payload and leaving it that way for four days was causing the tires to fail. Now, it could be the type of tire I have is prone to it, I'm not a tire geek and just go with whatever Les Schwab mid range tires are.

In regards to Mat's towing (anyone watching the Covair recovery build videos?... Cool stuff) he's in a completely different situation. His tires are designed to be aired down for sand and rock crawling. My tires are designed to be at 70 to 80 psi. He is also on a pretty light weight jeep. You just can't compare the two situations because the tires are completely different.

[Kayteg1]

Talking about Matt's towing from youtube again, he does snow rescue as well.
Don't recall him saying if he adjust tire pressure on his Jeep from normal 11 psi, but all the snow rescue videos show he never bothers to put snow chains.
Having low pressure in oversized tires and locking differentials - he manages to drive into deep snow on the shoulders and pull others on his way.
HERE is good sample. Actual rescue starts at 2:20

[Grit_dog]

jaycocreek wrote:

G-dog wrote:
Spinning out on ice and cant move? Let half the air out of the tires and generally drive away.

Or you could just throw down some kitty lliter and leave your tires alone...lol

In the absence of said kitty litter and enough kitty litter to spread all the way up a hill LOL, I'll go with air down. You may pack a supersack of cat litter with you, most people dont.

[jaycocreek]

G-dog wrote:
Spinning out on ice and cant move? Let half the air out of the tires and generally drive away.

Or you could just throw down some kitty lliter and leave your tires alone...lol

[mellow]

Retread tires?

[BurbMan]

JohnJM wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
I don't think sitting low on air causes tread separation. Interested how you came to this conclusion other than coincidence?

agreed, ive had my truck aired down for a week at a time when ive been fishing. never had an issue.

X3 here

[JohnJM]

Grit dog wrote:
I don't think sitting low on air causes tread separation. Interested how you came to this conclusion other than coincidence?

agreed, ive had my truck aired down for a week at a time when ive been fishing. never had an issue.

[Grit_dog]

I don't think sitting low on air causes tread separation. Interested how you came to this conclusion other than coincidence?

[Grit_dog]

PastorCharlie wrote:


Snow driving keep tires up to proper inflation and start slow and stop slow and do not make any sudden turns. Reduce speed at all times on snow.

Haven't driven much on snow have ya? Low pressure on snow will help as much with traction on slippery surfaces as it will for traction/flotation on soft surfaces like sand. Both are about maximizing the contact patch.
Spinning out on ice and cant move? Let half the air out of the tires and generally drive away.

[PastorCharlie]

I live on an island and drive on beach. For many years I pulled a tandem construction trailer loaded with treated lumber and built stairways, decks access to beach homes. Deflated tires on truck and trailer to 15-20 PSI but never lower than 15. 20 PSI will do fine in most cases. That will be the most recommended PSI. Beach driving is an art very different from highway driving. Drive slow and do not spin the wheels and make no sudden turns. Different beaches have different speed limits. Check with local authorities for permits and local regulations for beach driving.

Snow driving keep tires up to proper inflation and start slow and stop slow and do not make any sudden turns. Reduce speed at all times on snow.