tire pressure

[sign_man]

Should the tires always be inflated to the maximum pressure that it says on the sidewall?

[downtheroad]

I also find the, "get a better ride," argument interesting.
Who cares, no one is 'riding' in a 5th wheel or travel trailer anyway.

[sign_man]

i like it

[Gdetrailer]

downtheroad wrote:
yes...that way you get full weight carrying capacity.

Others will say weigh your loaded rig, weigh each axle, weigh each tire, less wear, better ride....this and that and adjust accordingly...baloney..

Keep it simple and real. Air them up to the max. They will run cooler, and have somewhat less chance of a failure.

This is what I call the K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Silly) method, it WILL work 100% of the time to ENSURE your tires can carry up to the full load..

ALL of the "perfectionists" will disagree with this and use weights, charts, ambient temps, degree of cloudiness/sun and any other "variables" to figure out that they only "need" one or two pounds less than the sidewall rating..

Only very few people will not load their trailer to the near max GVWR so why make it so difficult..

There is no real gain or advantage to using those charts other than not wearing the center of the tires out with less load.. And really unless you are towing 10K plus miles per year, you will be replacing the tires every 5-6 yrs due to TIRE AGE..

You actually can gain a little better fuel mileage when the tires are inflated to sidewall pressure. This also allows the tires to run a bit cooler (due to less drag) which is helpful during the summer with high temps.

To me, not worth the hassle with constant adjustments in pressure..

[ScottG]

For the best safety margin, run them at their max. They will run cooler and get the best mileage.
It doesn't hurt anything and ride comfort is not a factor since nobody's back there.

[kaydeejay]

downtheroad wrote:
yes...that way you get full weight carrying capacity.

Others will say weigh your loaded rig, weigh each axle, weigh each tire, less wear, better ride....this and that and adjust accordingly...baloney..

Keep it simple and real. Air them up to the max. They will run cooler, and have somewhat less chance of a failure.

I for one disagree on the baloney comment!!
Full weight capacity requires max air pressure BUT if you are running way less than full load capacity you may have better results (ride, handling and wear) if you inflate to the pressure required by the actual load on the tire.
Tire manufacturers load/pressure tables are provided for that purpose, otherwise they would be meaningless.
If you are running OEM size tires, use the pressures indicated on the tire placard on the unit - they are established by the engineers to support the vehicle at GVWR.
No guesswork involved!
(FWIW, most TT manufacturers select a tire that can just about support the loaded trailer, in which case Max sidewall pressure IS appropriate)

[sign_man]

good enough-thanks for the advice

[FastEagle]

Your OE trailer tires should always be inflated to the value depicted on the tire placard or certification label.

FastEagle

[Dick_B]

For previous posts on this very popular subject search this Forum for `tire pressure' and read on and on....

[downtheroad]

yes...that way you get full weight carrying capacity.

Others will say weigh your loaded rig, weigh each axle, weigh each tire, less wear, better ride....this and that and adjust accordingly...baloney..

Keep it simple and real. Air them up to the max. They will run cooler, and have somewhat less chance of a failure.