Dear Dave,
I read so much about tires blowing out, but it’s never happened to me… until yesterday. Not on my camper, but on my 6X10 enclosed work trailer. It was empty at the time. I could not believe the force with which it blew and the damage it did, blowing the wheel well half off and the running light attached to it. The tire was shredded.
The tire had good tread, and was not old. I think it was called a Trailer King or something like that. It was 14″. There is Grease Buddy on the single-axle trailer. My truck has 20″ tires. I’m just curious to know… Could that be a cause, because it has to rotate faster to keep up?
Now I know it can happen at anytime, and never in a place that is easy. I was on an overpass just about to get on 95. I had a spare but was ill-equipped to get it off its mount. Finally found a mobile repair place after 20 minutes of phone conversations. Two new tires and two hours later, at a cost of $750, I finally got to the job site! —Sharon, 2021 Wildwood 22RBS
Dear Sharon,
Normally I would send this question to Roger Marble, RVtravel.com’s “Tire Guy.” However, I have spent a lot of time working with the RV Safety & Education Foundation (RVSEF) over the years and have some experience on tire maintenance.
Tire size difference between vehicles not the issue
First, the size of the tire on your trailer in relationship to the tow vehicle is not an issue and “more rotation” will not cause a tire failure. An example of a huge tire difference would be A Class A diesel pusher with 22.5” tires towing a small car.
One thing I learned about tire failure or a sudden loss of air pressure is that it is oftentimes difficult to pinpoint the exact cause. It could be something that happened previously or over a long period of time. Also, it is difficult to determine what “good tread” really is. There could be what looks like great tread but it could have cracks between the tread lines. That is why it is important to inspect the tires closely before each trip.
Tire pressure questions
The important information that is missing from your description is what tire pressure are you running in the tire, what is the recommended tire pressure on the data label, and have you checked the pressure before every trip?
Since the trailer was empty, I don’t believe it was an overloaded situation on this trip. However, I would assume the trailer has been filled at some point and that would need to have information on the weight. An overloaded situation would make the tires run hot and weaken components inside and out. Therefore, it’s hard to tell if there was a belt separation, bulging, or other defect after the fact.
Weather-checking
Other factors could be weather-checking on the side of the tire, and age. Roger suggests that any tire older than 5 years should be inspected inside and out by a qualified tire specialist.
Another issue could be a nail or other object that was picked up on the road and cause a sudden loss of air pressure and, ultimately, a blown tire. If you had a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) it most likely would have indicated low air pressure before it became critical and blew the tire.
Most tires don’t “blow out” or explode. They lose air pressure and once they are critically low, the heat and compressed tire on the rim cause a shredding of the tire.
One last item is the sidewall and whether there was weather-checking, which is a cracking effect caused by the sun drying the sidewall out. Michelin has an Ozone Chart that indicates any crack deeper or wider than 2 mm is in danger of creating a tire failure.
My recommendations
Check your pressure every time you hit the road, weigh the trailer when it is full, visually inspect the tire, check the age, and use a TPMS is my recommendation.
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DAVE HAS ANSWERED MORE THAN 1,000 readers’ maintenance and repair questions. Read a directory here. There is so much to learn!
Dave Solberg is a leading expert in the RV industry and the author of the “RV Handbook.”
RVDT2717
Thumbs up.
Not only check the pressure every time you hit the road, but every time you get fuel and when you just stop to take a break. It only takes a few extra minutes. a low tire may not be obvious just by looking at it.
Also, a quick glance at the tread to see if something may be stuck in the tires.
I monitor all of my tires, truck and trailer, by using my EZ Tire TPMS system. It shows me tire pressure and temperature in real time while driving down the road.
https://eezrvproducts.com/eezrv-tpms-info
While better than nothing, external sensors on the valve stem don’t measure the internal tire temps.
I have a TireMinder system with external sensors and it’s the same basic system as the Eezrv. These systems measure temp at the valve stem, which is generally much lower than a working tire’s internal temp.
IIRC, tire pressure changes approx 2% for each 10°F change of internal temp. So watching pressure can help you compute temp. My current MH also has internal sensors and comparing the temps reported shows the difference in accuracy. Same “hot” pressure, but internal sensors show higher temps more in line with the formula.
I have found that my sensors are very close to the readings I get with my Infrared thermometer. I take readings from the wheels and the drums at every fuel stop. Tires on the sun side always read higher temps and pressures compared to the ones on the shady side. My valve stems are metal so the heat transfer from the wheel to the sensor show pretty accurate readings.
What I look for when driving is a great deviation between the sensors that will indicate a problem with a single tire before it self destructs. I am on my second set of Goodyear Endurance tires and they have been problem free.
Thank you for sharing the question and your answer, Dave! Have a great day and safe travels!