Maintenance Tips for your Flatbed Trailer Tires

You rely on your flatbed trailer to efficiently and safely carry any cargo you throw onto it, each and every time. In turn, your flatbed trailer will need you to perform regular maintenance and proper care so it can keep running smoothly and efficiently. Proper maintenance happens from the ground up, so True Value Trailers & Power Equipment has provided you some maintenance tips for your tires. Check them out for yourself and then stop by our location to see some flatbed trailers in Colorado. We proudly serve Pueblo, Colorado Springs, Fountain, and Cañon City, Colorado.

Preventing Tire Wear

Tires wear down naturally over time, but there are ways to put this off, or at least prevent it from happening too quickly. You’ll want to take certain steps to prevent fast wear and uneven wear.

Proper Inflation

Inflation plays a big role in the health of your tires. Improperly inflated tires can affect your fuel efficiency, won’t support a loaded trailer as well, and can wear down faster over time. You’ll want to make sure your tires are properly inflated, as recommended in your owner’s manual. To check this, you’ll need a tire pressure gauge to help you measure psi levels. Do this once before every trip, if possible. We recommend doing this before you head out when your tires are cold, because the recommendations in your owner’s manual are for cold tires.

Axle Health

A bent axle can also affect the wear and tear rate of your tires. This one may not be as easy to spot on your own, so if you suspect that there’s something wrong with the axle, you might need to take your flatbed trailer into a professional. This is a good area to turn to if you’ve ruled out all other possibilities.

Weather

Exposure to the elements can also wear down your tires, which can be a little tricky since this is harder to avoid. Harsh sun rays can dry out your tire walls and can lead to cracking. If you have hot days and cold nights, the extreme temperatures can expand and shrink your tires rapidly, creating a new set of problems for you. We recommend putting your trailer in an enclosed area when you’re not using in order to protect it from the environment.

Storage

Speaking of storage, certain storage choices are better than others for promoting tire health. If you know you’ll be putting your flatbed trailer away for a while, you’ll want to do so with the tires in mind. Leaving them sitting on one spot for too long can wear them down in one spot. We recommend either elevating the trailer off the ground using wooden blocks, or rotating the tires once every month or so.

Overloading Your Tires

An easy way to damage your tires is to overload them. Your trailer has a weight limit for a reason and everything is designed around that. That means your using tires that adhere to the weight limit. Going over it can wear them down faster and even put you at risk of a blowout on the road. Proper weight distribution can also be very helpful, as too much weight in one area can overload some tires more than others (not to mention, it makes towing more difficult).

If these tips aren’t quite working for you, then you might need slightly different tires than you were given. Or you might need to chat with one of our professionals about the problems you’re running into. Either way, you’ll want to stop by True Value Trailers & Power Equipment and let our staff know how we can help you. We welcome all patrons from Pueblo, Colorado Springs, Fountain, and Cañon City, Colorado.