Hot Tires

dmac · 04-21-2005, 05:50 PM

On my last trip when I stopped at gas stations I felt the trailer tires with my hand. The front tires felt warmer than the rear. I had set the tire pressures at 65 psi before leaving. The trailer tows just a hair nose low - which I am assuming is the problem. The tow vehicle seems about level. I'm thinking that if I adjust the hitch one notch higher the trailer may ride a tad nose high, but I still need to try it. Other ideas?

Silvertwinkie · 04-21-2005, 05:56 PM

I'm not really sure. I too had it off a bit and did not have any additional heat between the two axles. I would adjust it and see what happens. In the manual, it shows the tow vehicle a bit lower in the back, while the coach is darn near level.

Also check the hubs. Stick your finger in the holes in the rim to the hub and see if those are any warmer. They will be warmer if you just did some braking.

jbond · 04-21-2005, 07:05 PM

Look at this infared thermometer. Just point laser at the tire and read the temp.

http://www.tooldesk.com/shop/raytekmt4.wml

I use it to check the temp of the TV tires as well as the Airstream tire and hub temp at each gas stop. Works great. Tires run around 100 degrees on warm days. 90 degrees in cooler or wet weather.

**overlander63** · 04-21-2005, 07:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Herb Spies

Look at this infared thermometer. Just point laser at the tire and read the temp.

http://www.tooldesk.com/shop/raytekmt4.wml

I use it to check the temp of the TV tires as well as the Airstream tire and hub temp at each gas stop. Works great. Tires run around 100 degrees on warm days. 90 degrees in cooler or wet weather.

I have one of those, and recommend it. A 9 volt battery lasts a couple of years, although it would be better to leave the battery out if you are not going to use it for extended periods, to keep corrosion to a minimum.

66Overlander · 04-21-2005, 07:38 PM

I wouldn't be surprised that the hotter front tires are caused by the unlevel towing.

With the H2 as our tow vehicle, we can't get a long enough hitch drop shank to get our trailer quite level (the front is high by an inch or two) and the rear tires always run a bit hotter than the front for us. So far it hasn't been a problem, but this year I intend to go to a scale just to make sure the weight on the rear tires is still within specification. If not, I'll probably have to go get a custom hitch made to get the trailer level (or I guess I could put new axles on the trailer with a greater angle to raise it up). I will admit that knowing we don't tow quite level is one reason I keep our top speed to only about 60mph. The faster you go, the more the tires carrying the higher load will heat up.

I think the closest you'll get to having the trailer level is an inch or so unless you have a custom hitch made. I doubt that an inch either way would overload your tires, though they will run a bit hotter.

dscluchfc · 04-21-2005, 09:16 PM

I am curious how the tire temps can only be about 100 on warm days?
When it is "warm" in Texas, air temps can be 90 or above. When it is "hot" in Texas over 100 degrees, pavement temps in the 150-200 degree range are easily achievable. Wouldn't the tire temps have to be elevated in this same range as well?
I know mine are hot enough in the summer that you can't hold your hand on them.

**overlander63** · 04-22-2005, 06:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dscluchfc

I am curious how the tire temps can only be about 100 on warm days?
When it is "warm" in Texas, air temps can be 90 or above. When it is "hot" in Texas over 100 degrees, pavement temps in the 150-200 degree range are easily achievable. Wouldn't the tire temps have to be elevated in this same range as well?
I know mine are hot enough in the summer that you can't hold your hand on them.

I am sure Herb is going from his own experience, if you want to find out more about tires than you ever wanted to know, go to www.tiresafety.com
While most items there deal with normal automotive tire issues, there is still a lot of good content for the rest of us, umm, "non-normal" users.

Cracker · 04-22-2005, 06:43 AM

Using the infrared temperature gauge recommended above, I have found that the curbside front trailer tire is always a couple of degrees warmer than the others. This has been consistant enough that I'm now convinced it's due to the heat from the diesel exhaust on the TV. What I look for with the gauge is a noticeable "difference" in the temp of any particular tire relative to its running mates - i.e., all duals should be the same temp, all trailer tires should be the same temp, and lastly, both front wheels should be the same. I also do a quick check of the hub temperatures. This is a great little gadget and I've made its use almost mandatory at every stop.

I have not found a great deal of temperature spread between tires on the "sunny" side of the vehicle and those running in the shade - with respect to North-South trips. As to average temperatures, I've seldom observed temps much higher than 110 deg - and most of the time they're in the 90's. It must be due to the passing air cooling the tires. If we conducted a survey on this factoid it might prove interesting. I'm thinking that, the more heavily loaded the tire, the greater the flex, and the higher the temperature. This could possibly explain why some people have a lot of tire troubles while others seldom have any.

jbond · 04-22-2005, 06:49 AM

Temps quoted were from a sunny day and a cloudy rainy day on a recent trip to Ohio and back. Air temp ranged from 60 to 80 degrees. Tires will get hotter in the summer and in Texas, I'm sure.

dscluchfc · 04-22-2005, 07:08 AM

The greater the flex in a tire when loaded, the higher the running temp.
Tire pressure is the key. Underinflated tires run much hotter than properly inflated tires. If your trailer is max loaded at GVWR, then your tires need to be inflated to near max cold inflated rating for best tire performance.

WayWard Wind · 04-22-2005, 07:33 PM

Dan, I'm also towing an 04- 25' (twin) & like yours I appear to be a tad low at the hitch point. Since we plan on some serious travling this year I need to do the right thing & get some weight factors, so I know where I'm at regarding the total weight thing. I feel that I might have to set the angle of the hitch a notch higher, to bring the nose up to where I feel it should be. Then again I have never found any of the hubs or tires as being hot, even when I had no grease or bearing left

. What W/D are you using? I'm using the Reese HP Dual Cam & in talking with the Reese Techs this weeks, they recommended that I go with 800# bars, although they SAID the 1200# that I'm currently using SHOULD be fine.
Best,

dmac · 04-23-2005, 06:58 AM

The trailer tire pressures were set corrrectly using a digital tire gauge. The trailer was not nearly at gross weight - empty tanks and minimal gear for a 4 day trip. The difference in tire temperatures front-to-rear was very noticable to my hand.

I am using the Equal-i-zer hitch. It is rated at 1000 lb max tongue weight (the next lower is 600 lb, which is too light).

The tow vehicle (2002 Ford Explorer V8) rides level, so I don't want to adjust the weight distribution bars to level the trailer - I think that will just convert a nose-low trailer problem into a tail-high Explorer problem! I will see if the hitch shank will allow me to raise the trailer one notch (ie: has one more hole), otherwise I will need to purchase a shorter shank.

I have not weighed the trailer/TV... where could I get this done wheel-by-wheel?

**Pick** · 04-23-2005, 08:07 AM

One thing I noticed is bias ply tires run hotter than radials. My Airstream weighs in at aroound 7000 lbs total, and the tires seem to run quite warm. I also have an 18' flatbed with Goodyear Marathon Radials, same size as the Airstream tires. I hauled my large John Deere tractor with this trailer to Florida from Ohio, in July last year. I noted that the Goodyears ran quite cool, with 9000 lbs on the tandems, verified on a CAT scale.

The "Load Range C" bias ply tires run 45 PSI max, "Load Range D" bias ply run 55 PSI max and the Goodyear Marathons, run 65 PSI max.

gotair · 04-23-2005, 04:12 PM

when I purchased this trailer I got it home and pulled off the wheels to inspect the wheels and tires and brakes this is all important especially important with a single axel trailer ..... and an unkown trailer.... anyway the rim said 45 max and tire said 55 max .... just to mention I've never ran pressures as high as 65... they do rise that high after driving for a while and also in my neck of the woods I am almost at sea level and everywhere I go is higher... usualy around 4 thousand feet elevation.. thats another issue... pressures should not be juged on a cold tire either check it after about an hour and adjust ...you may have another problem... ballance is important and inner tread seperation is a possability which may not yet be vissable to the eye.... lay them on the ground and place your hand on the tread and slowly rotate your hand around the outside to inspect for small insignifigant (out-of-rounds) ... look them over very closely it may be something your not seeing while on the trailer... look for missing weights that may have spun off... you'll get to the problem sonner or later...I was having a problem with some new tires and didn't find the inner belt seperation for a long time... the tire was to new to see it.... Dan....