When your RV travels wind to a close for the year, it is incredibly important to ensure every aspect of your motorhome is stored properly and safely. One component that is crucial to the life of your RV as well as your safety includes the tires. During the off-season, be sure to keep your tires protected from damage.
Continue reading to learn some of our key tips to ensure your tires are at their top performance levels when you are ready to start your next adventure.
1. Keep Your Tires Clean
One of the first storage tips is to clean your tires when you are ready to retire your motorhome for the season. Removing excess dirt and debris before storing your coach is important because excessive grime can eat away at the lining of your tires and potentially cause leaks.
The majority of RV tires have an anti-ozone and antioxidant coating as well as a tire finish that provides shine. Making sure to wash your tires will help keep these coatings intact. However, washing them too often may remove the treatments, so be sure to only clean your tires one to two times a year, maximum.
2. Keep Up with Necessary Tire Rotation
Similar to a regular automobile, tires on your motorhome should be rotated when necessary during your travels as well as before you pur your RV into storage. While driving, various levels of terrain and highway conditions may affect tires differently, causing some to bear more weight than the others. Just like an automobile, unevenly distributed weight can cause the tread on an RV tire to wear down which may result in a flat tire, or worse, a dangerous blowout. Because of these potential issues, it is important to rotate tires regularly as well as before your RV goes into storage if you do not plan on removing them.
3. Check Tire Pressure
You might expect that tire pressure is only important to keep in mind while on the road, but it can also affect your tires while in storage. Too much or too little air in your tires can cause severe damage, so it is important to check that your RV tires are properly inflated before storing them.
Your particular manufacturer inflation instructions can be found in your owner’s manual, and you can use an inflation gauge to check the pressure. While in storage, be sure to check PSI levels often, preferably weekly, and fill each tire as necessary.
4. Lighten the Load Before Storing
While motorhomes are built to withstand hundreds, if not thousands, of pounds during travel, this weight bears down on the tires and can cause a loss of air pressure during storage. To prevent this, be sure to lighten the load of your RV by removing any equipment that is not explicitly necessary. Anything from camping equipment to kitchen appliances can add up quickly, so removing the excess reduces the total weight and relieves the pressure on your RV tires, lowering the chances of a flat.
5. Cover Your RV Tires
Covering your RV tires during storage may seem like an unnecessary task, however, depending on the location you will use for RV storage, your RV can potentially be exposed to a variety of materials that may cause damage. While some people store their RV in their personal garage or a covered storage facility where damage may be less likely, some motorhomes spend their storage season in a driveway or uncovered RV park. If your motorhome will be stored outside and the tires exposed to the sun it is important to invest in a tire cover to protect the tires from sunlight which can wear down the tires and cause potential rot.
Contact a Lichtsinn RV Parts Consultant to order the correct tire cover for your motorhome with nationwide 1-3 day shipping on all in-stock parts and accessories!
6. Replace Tires When Necessary
Although various tire brands and specific RV tires may claim different longevity, it is often recommended to replace your tires if they are older than six years. The maximum standard age for motorhome tires is six years even if they are meticulously taken care of. As tires age, there is always the potential of hidden damage that you cannot see from regular inspection.
7. Inspect Your Tires Regularly
When it is time to officially put your motorhome in storage, be sure to inspect the tires thoroughly beforehand. This includes taking a look at the tread of each tire to make sure that each tire is worn consistently. Once you complete this inspection, you can then make the decision of whether any of the tires need to be replaced, whether that be due to dry rot, extreme wear, and more. Before storing your RV, it is also important to confirm your RV’s gross vehicle weight rating and ensure that the tire tread of each tire has the appropriate depth according to that information. When it is time to take your RV out of storage, you’ll want to be sure to inspect your tires then as well.
By following these steps prior to storage and performing regular check-ups during your trips, you can provide yourself with the confidence of safe travels in your motorhome, before or after end-of-season storage.
Experience the Best® at Lichtsinn RV, we have been recognized as the #1 Winnebago Dealer in North America each year since 2015. Lichtsinn RV is located 1 mile north of the Winnebago Factory in Forest City, IA and we proudly sell new Winnebago motorhomes and pre-owned RVs from various manufacturers. While at Lichtsinn RV, you can expect no delivery miles on new RVs, a complimentary half-day educational orientation of your RV, excellent guest reviews, an assigned support team from sales, parts, service and the business office, superior accommodations, no-hassle pricing and competitive financing. See our extensive new and used inventory here.
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