Tires

[Bob2952]

(my travel trailer is 6000lbs dry. With added cargo 2000lbs it has max weight 8000lbs) my tires are ST225/75R15 load range E speed rating 75mph. Load 2830lbs single/2470lbs dual.
If I put 70-80 psi in my tires and average 60mph am I good to go 1000 miles

I just bought my first RV. (Used) I'm planning a 1000 mile trip.
Tires are 2 years old. Trying to be safe. I understand there's always better tire choices but should these work?

[StirCrazy]

According to the shop I bought my newest tires from, look at the charts and if you can get away with inflating to 75 as opposed to 80 then do it. It will be good enough to hold your weight but just a smidgen under max so not testing the limits.

whether this is true or not I don't know. They say when he recommended people start doing that their issues just dropped right off.

[valhalla360]

Just inflate them to what the sidewall states and move on with life.

More important:
- Look them over for any defects or odd wear patterns.
- Check the trailer lights.
- Manually activate the trailer brakes when pulling out to make sure they are working.
- After 50-100 miles stop and check that everything seems good. Feel the tires and the metal wheel hubs to make sure nothing is overheating and everything with the hitch is still connected and appears to be correct. (repeat any time stopping for a rest break...it only takes a minute or two).

[ktmrfs]

QCMan wrote:
Inflating to max load will cover anything you put in it but loading to the max sidewall pressure when not needed will result in a lot of bouncing being that most trailers do not have shocks to stop that.

Inflating to max trailer load if your anywhere near that actual load (from what I've seen, many are at or even above that load given the marginal load capacity of trailers) gives you ZERO margin on tire capacity. Loose a few psi over time and your overloaded.

And don't assume that tire load = (GVW/4)!!! If your going to go on actual tire load, you need to determine ACTUAL load on each tire, which means getting weights on each tire individually.

Better to inflate to cover some % over actual max load, just like cars and trucks do.

[QCMan]

Inflating to max load will cover anything you put in it but loading to the max sidewall pressure when not needed will result in a lot of bouncing being that most trailers do not have shocks to stop that.

[ktmrfs]

QCMan wrote:
Unless they say "always inflate to xx psi" on the sidewall then go to the tire manufacturers site and find their inflation chart for the tires. 8000 max divided by four is 2000 pounds on each tire so that is the load that you need the psi for. If it does say "inflate to xx psi" on the sidewall then that is the only number you need.

really need to inflate ABOVE the actual load.

Look at your other vehicle tire psi and you will find that the recomended inflation pressure is noticeably above the max rated load of the vehicle or each axle.

And many of the ST tire mfg recomend inflating to max psi unless that is way above the actual tire load. I have LRE endurance on my trailers and I use the max pressure, can't tell the difference between that and lower pressure and the still wear evenly.

[Grit_dog]

Bob, no need to ask the same question multiple times in multiple places.
But you’ve got the feedback you need in both threads. Cheers

[QCMan]

Unless they say "always inflate to xx psi" on the sidewall then go to the tire manufacturers site and find their inflation chart for the tires. 8000 max divided by four is 2000 pounds on each tire so that is the load that you need the psi for. If it does say "inflate to xx psi" on the sidewall then that is the only number you need.

[JIMNLIN]

Assuming your 8000 lb trailer is a tandem axle....with those 15" load E tires at 2830 lbs X 4 tires = 11320 lbs capacity.

A 8000 lb TT may have 10-15 % hitch weight = in the 1000 lb range leaving 7000 lbs on the trailers axles.

Typically a over tired trailer with 11320 lbs of tire capacity may make for a rough ride but shouldn't cause any overloaded tire issues.

[deltabravo]

Inflate the truck tires to what the door jamb tire pressure sticker states.

There is no limit to how far you can drive with that pressure.

[trailer_newbe]

Should be fine. Two close inspections if you haven’t done so already. Carefully inspect for dry rot cracks. Most important is check very closely for tire separation. The sigh will be a bulge on the tread. Sometimes it can be a small area and others can be 1/3rd of the tire. The tire will look slightly out of round. This one is way more important than dry rot because it can blow at any time and it is doesn’t just happen to aged tires, it also can happen on new ones.