Have you checked the tires on your trailer recently? It goes without saying that tires play an integral part of your trailer. Today, we want to talk about some of the common tire problems we see on trailers that come through our shop.
One thing we check when a trailer is in our shop is how the tires are wearing and if the type of wear is consistent. If we see irregular tire wear, diagnosing the problem is usually pretty easy depending on the wear pattern. Here are the most common types of tire wear:
The most common tire wear pattern we see is side wear, typically occurring on the inside of the tire, closest to the frame.
This type of tire wear happens for a number of reasons:
- The alignment of the trailer is toed out. “Toe out” can be caused from overloading or many years of service, which causes the tires to want to turn out with the pressure on the pavement.
- Damage to an axle from hitting a curb or pothole (all to common on our rough Canadian roads!).
- Loss of camber. New trailers axles have what is called positive camber. When there is no weight on the trailer, the tops of the tires will be learning outward (positive camber). When weight is applied to the trailer, the axles will flex causing the tires to lean inwards, creating zero camber. Overtime and especially when overloading, your trailer loses this positive camber which results in side wear on the tires.
If your trailer is showing irregular tire wear and you’re not sure why (or you know why and you need the problem fixed!), schedule your trailer in for an alignment check. We will diagnose the problem and recommend the best repair going forward.
A standard alignment check consists of:
- Checking & Adjusting Tire Pressure
- Measuring Camber & Toe
- Measuring Axle Tracking
- Checking Suspension Play
- Checking Bearing Adjustment
- Check Frame for Cracks or Breaks