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Do you carry a spare tire for your trailer?

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blacter

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I'm trying to decide whether or not to buy a spare tire for my '96 Challenger trailer. My car jack isn't tall enough to work on my trailer, so I'd need to carry a separate jack, or at least some 2x4 sections. Probably worth the trouble, though, since a flat would be a major PIA on the quiet roads that lead to the lakes around here.

What do you guys do?
 
Yes and Yes
Also make sure to grease the bearings regularly.

My truck has the sisscor jack take fits underneath axle of trailer.
Dangerous but works in case on the side of the road
 
Yes and yes is the best answer. They always go at the worst time ... Like when your moving your boat in the middle of winter ... Murphy will nail your ass someday get the spare tire.
 
blacter said:
I'm trying to decide whether or not to buy a spare tire for my '96 Challenger trailer. My car jack isn't tall enough to work on my trailer, so I'd need to carry a separate jack, or at least some 2x4 sections. Probably worth the trouble, though, since a flat would be a major PIA on the quiet roads that lead to the lakes around here.

What do you guys do?
Click to expand...

I just got a trailer tire flat last Saturday coming back from the lake!!! What a pita! I am so glad and I patted myself in the back I was extremely prepared, spare tire fom harbor freight 5.30 x 12 = $49, tire jack from oreillys (cheaply one) = $29 bucks, I WAS UP AND RUNNING IN 20 minutes wow!!
 
YES, I have three trailers and I just have one spare, I keep it in my Jeep, I just leave it there for the summer. Cheap insurance.

If you don't have a jack just buy one at Harbor Freight.

Lou
 
Absolutely... have a spare, and the tools to change it. I know some people get crazy with carrying an extra hub also... but in all my years fo towing trailers... I've never lost a hub. Basically, the way I see it... if you are looking at your trailer once in a while, and checking things... you will know if you have bearings going bad. Heck... I towed my old sportster home (when I bought it) from Ohio back to Pittsburgh, and it didn't even have grease caps on the hubs. I'm not saying you should try that... but bearings don't just spontaneous explode.

In my younger, dumber days... I had a little motorcycle trailer, and I never had an extra tire. AND... 2 times... I had a flat. One time I was lucky. We were right by a wal-mart, and got a tire. The other time... we were way out in the desert, and I spent 3 hrs driving back to town, and finding a place that had a tire. (Lost half a day that I could have been riding) Since that trailer didn't have much weight... it wasn't a big deal when it went flat... but with the weight of a boat... it could get dangerous if the tire blows.


As far as the pressure... it says right on the side. If you are doing a long trip... run them at max pressure. It will help with MPG, and it will also help keep the tire cool.
 
You could get some run flat tires, keep cans of Fix-A-Flat handy, or put Slime tire sealant in the tires. You can run your tires at 60 psi, but the best option would be to contact your boat manufacturer and give them tire information, the trailer manufacturer may be able to help as well. Aim your mirrors so you can see the trailer tires while driving. If they start getting low, stop and get air. If you keep driving on leaking tires, the pressure will get so low that the beads will break, and then adding air wont work unless you can re-seat the bead, which is not easy on the side of the road.
 
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On every trailer I have ever owned, I carry a spare that is directly bolted to the trailer itself. I have never needed it,,, But I bet that if I didn't have it, I would have needed it for sure...
 
Coastiejoe said:
On every trailer I have ever owned, I carry a spare that is directly bolted to the trailer itself. I have never needed it,,, But I bet that if I didn't have it, I would have needed it for sure...
Click to expand...

This for me as well. At this time, you can internet search and find a tire, wheel, and bracket to mount to your trailer for a really low price. It's worth it to do.

Make sure you have the right wrench for your lug nuts! A couple years ago I got a bubble in one of my jetski trailers, and when I went to change it, I didn't have the right wrench. Limped to a nearby autozone and was able to buy one before the tire went nuclear. Never even realized the lugs would be a different size than my truck's lugs.
 
Heat kills tires. Tires heat up when the sidewall flexes. To mitigate flex/heat I always inflate my trailer tires to the maximum recommended pressure on tire. And boat trailers don't need a comfortable inflation pressure for occupants.

I also don't use trailer tires. I put passenger tires on all my trailers. They have proven more durable to me.
 
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I know a guy that said he does not need a jack, because he would just drive up onto a log or a big rock in order to raise the vehicle up to change the tire................
 
AND... Check the pressure in the spare when you check the pressure on the trailer tires. Nothing would suck more than mounting your spare tire, and dropping the jack down, only to find your fancy spare sitting on the rim due to low tire pressure. I finally got around to checking the pressure in the spare in the trunk of my daily driver. It had 15 PSI...

Mike
 
Mike99 said:
AND... Check the pressure in the spare when you check the pressure on the trailer tires. Nothing would suck more than mounting your spare tire, and dropping the jack down, only to find your fancy spare sitting on the rim due to low tire pressure. I finally got around to checking the pressure in the spare in the trunk of my daily driver. It had 15 PSI...

Mike
Click to expand...



What mike said. :agree:
 
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