Trying to get the most out of your fleet’s tires? Remember that heat is tire enemy number 1 and that heat and under-inflated tires are a bad, bad combination.
An article in the Saturday Evening Post stated that 80 percent of all tire failures were related to under-inflated tires. The article appeared in 1928. Nothing has changed!
“With many areas of the country experiencing record high temperatures, this is a good time to implement a consistent tire air pressure monitoring program. Scorching temperatures can create a tire failure surprisingly fast on under-inflated tires,” says William Estupinan, vice president of technical service for GITI Tires in the Americas (GITI Tire manufactures and sells GT Radial truck tires worldwide).
Under-inflated tires lead to:
Over-inflated tires lead to:
In addition, unequal inflation is a problem that can affect duals. It occurs when tires on the same axle are inflated to different air pressures and can lead to: irregular wear and reduced fuel economy.
To prevent inflation problems, truck operators should check tire cold inflation pressure as frequently as possible, because truck tires lose up to 2 psi (pounds per square inch) per month and change one psi for every 10ÂşF temperature change and every 2,000-foot altitude change. Other sources of air loss include leaks at the bead and rim interface, loose valve stems, and valve core penetrations.