are we prepared for a flat tire on trailer? Just sayin'....

I have been using my 18 ft (I think) 2-axle flat trailer for several years. Factors people may overlook have come to mind:
[A] If you have a small 12 volt air compressor, will it reach from your 12 volt receptacle in the truck all the way to the flat tire? Either the wire or the hose needs to be plenty long!
Do you have a spare tire that FOR SURE fits the trailer, and can you GET TO the tire? If planning to use the spare from underneath the truck, practice removing it from the truck. May be not so easy!! Also be sure your spare fits trailer.
[C] Can you jack up the trailer? Practice with WHATEVER JACK YOU PLAN TO USE, and do this on bad ground like you may be parked on at an event. If planning to use the truck's jack, can you get it out of the truck?? (My Silverado's jack is a nuisance to get out from under the back seat). Will the jack work if the trailer is on soft ground or hilly? Carry wood blocks.
[D]Can you get the trailer wheel hubcaps off with tools you will have with you? I use a 6 inch crowbar with 90 degree bend at the end, bought just for that purpose.

Dennis M. in W. Tenn.
 
Good points Dennis!

I don't normally worry too much nowdays about having a 12v compressor with me, as my spare and all tires/wheels are brand new. However, when I take the 12v compressor with, I also have a 15' hose extension. It has a tire valve on one end of the hose, and the end of my (current) compressor has a locking attachment that clamps to tire valve. I find this works much better as 1) the air hose is much tougher than small electrical wires and 2) that it is better to extend the air hose rather than extending the electrical. To extend electrical, you should really use a size larger wire over what the compressor has.

Eventually I want to install an air system on both my trucks not only for filling tires, but for running air tools and having air horns. Just don't know that I travel enough to justify the costs. ...And no, I don't like those little electric air horns that use the tiny little compressor. If I have air horns, it'll be like what I had on my '76 Ford truck. Sounded like a freight train! *lol*
 
I built a lockable tool box into the front frame of my trailer. Chains, binders, dedicated jack, blocking, and wheel wrench always in there.
 
I carry spare on trailer and have a toolbox for chains ,binders, straps,jack, lug wrench, and chocks. I also carry blocking of differant
sizes and plates of steel to put under jack or jack stand if needed.I carry small tools in toolbox in bad of truck.
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Have spares for both my 32' gooseneck
and 20' tongue hitch. Carry tools in
both my dually and F250. Figure the
truck jacks will work on trailer.
Generally will be able to "limp" the
dual wheel trailer to a tire shop on
the single. Don't change on roadside
if I don't have to.
 
I carry one of those steel ramps with a lower center so I can break the nuts loose and then pull the other wheel on that side up on it. Of course that only works if you have more than one wheel on a side.
 
good thread! I always have my spare on the neck of my goose neck, air gets checked every trip just like the four on the ground do. Also have another mounted spare that I take in the truck bed if traveling too far, saves me from having to buy a tire on the road at some god awful price on Saturday afternoon in the middle of nowhere! My last names Murphy, and if I have one flat and use my spare, the second flat will be the next day when no one is open! I keep a 20 ton low pro hydraulic jack with plenty of cribbing, because I only have flats fully loaded.
I also have a set of bearings & cups pre-greased,8 lug nuts,spindle nut and keeper,wheel seal and one set of shoes. I've only had to use the bearings one time in 20 years, but have given them to other tractor people and RV'ers on the side of the road several times. I guess I get carried away sometimes, but I hate to call for help for something simple I could fix in a short time if I had the right stuff.
If you don't want to carry a set of bearings and such, at least write down the correct numbers and have in glove box so you know what numbers you need when looking for a set broke down!
 
I don't have much use for those 12 volt compressors. I carry one but only used it once on someone else's car when their spare was low. Other than that I check my tires and lights before I pull out of the driveway. So when I have a blowout, it's beyond what that thing can do. I always carry a spare and plenty of tools along with a cheap umbrella. Yeah I have that kinda luck. I've also never had a tire blow because I've hit something. Every tire I lost on the road was because the cheap junk tires came apart. They always look good and have great tread but separate and throw the tread off. Doesn't seem to matter what brand you buy. They're all junk now. My cousin was pulling a stock trailer a while ago when one came apart. He put the spare on and took off again only to have another come apart. He pulled over and looked at the tire only to notice the one beside was getting ready to come apart as well. He had to unhook the trailer go home and take the spares off of 2 other trailers. That was all he had so he had to pray the last surviving tire would make it home.
 
Can't tell you for sure about the stock trailer. They were the original tires when he bought the trailer new. Lasted a couple years and had very little mileage on them. I know for certain on his skid steer trailer he bought radial truck tires and had the same luck. Not 3 at once but one came apart and took part of the fender with it. I've run trailer tires and truck tires and haven't noticed much difference. They all seem to be junk. The tread looks good it just pulls apart from the tire.
 
Just talked to 2 people in the last week had tires blow just like that, 2 years old or so, both were trailer specific tires. I've had a lot of bad luck with trailer rated tires over the years, which is why I asked.
 
My friend in Montana has gone to 16" load range G tires on his stock trailers. He said they seem to hold up better with all the off road and gravel road driving they do. Does anyone else have any experience with the heavier trailer tires?
 
I put some on my stock trailer last year. Haven't been on long
enough to form an opinion yet. I only live a couple miles from the
sale barn so hardly used. The tire dealer said they have had good
luck with them. They are the dreaded foreign made trailer tires.
They replaced expensive truck tires that didn't stand up. I guess
I'll see how well they work.
 
If you've found some that hold up better I would be willing to give them a try. Between my cousin and myself we just seem to have awful luck. Last year I put new airplane tires on my hay wagon. Got it out last week all of them flat and pulled away from the bead.
 
Lol, we had a hay wagon with them on and they were flat for many years til the wore enough to colaps.
 
Before any trip all tires are checked on the F-350 Ford dually and 25 ft gooseneck...I carry 2 spare
trailer tires and 1-2 spare truck tires....I have blocks,2 hydraulic jacks,and all the tools to change the
tires...I carry extra trailer bearings and grease...I have fuses,spare trailer lights,etc..I have spare belts
and radiator hoses for the truck,oil,anti-freeze,etc..I believe in being prepared..
 
after experience, yes, all my trailers have mounted spares, checked before any trip all the trucks have tire changing tools as well as a way to lift the trailer and a lug wrench, at least a breaker bar and socket that fits the trailer , sitting on a loaded trailer in the sun while the wife goes and gets a tire in the nearest town is a experience i had years ago, and dont want to repeat, we're close enough to the boarder here that one doesn't leave untended trailers or tractors if one wants it there when he comes back
 
I have had 2 blow outs on trailer tires while on interstate 81 in VA. Lessens learned buy a bottle jack while the truck jack may get the job done will give you a work out with
a 10k load on it. If you haul heavy loads upgrade the tires Some trailer companies will tell you the tow rig carries some of the weight (they do) and the go cheep on the
tires and the tires don't meet the GVW of the trailer. FYI trailers have a thicker sidewall then regular tires. I prefer a low profile jack and blocks of wood. With a flat you
may not be able to get a jack under the axle and may need to place a block under the tire and lower the jack and add a block under the jack just to get the trailer up high
enough to get a good tire under it. Last Pre Trip I had one tire that just didn't look right I bagged towing the trailer and bought new tires. Turns out a belts had come apart
in the tire and when I looked at the DOT date code the tire was 9 years old . For me I would rather spend $ 600 on tires than mess up a 40K tractor or a 2K tractor with
1000 hours of restoration in it.
 
We have 3 sets of the 14 ply tires.
Holding up real well. Haven't even had a
flat yet. But oldest set is 4 yrs old.
Local tire shop said Try these oil field
guys haven't ruined but a few of.these.
Had me lift a 10 ply then a 14 ply. No
comparison. Just $25 appease more.
 
A really good way to have a spare is get a spindle stub that matches your trailer axles and mount a complete hub, bearings, and a wheel/tire. Weld the stub to the trailer and you not only have a spare tire carrier, you have a complete hub ready to go in the event you have a bearing failure.
 

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