If you own or operate an earthmoving equipment such as a tractor, a backhoe loader, a wheel loader, an articulated dump truck, or a wheeled excavator, you understand the importance of the earthmoving tyres. However, maintenance is crucial when it comes to the longevity of your earthmoving tyres. Earthmoving tyres aren't cheap and you will need yours to last long enough. If you are new to earthmoving tyres, below are a few maintenance tips you will find useful.
Maintain Proper Tyre Inflation
The amount of pressure in your earthmoving tyres is crucial when it comes to maintenance. That's because the appropriate inflation is of prime importance to the performance of the tyre as well as the optimum operation of the tyre assembly and the machine in general. Under inflation and over inflation will both have detrimental effects on the tyres. Underinflating the earthmoving tyres will result in fatigue as well as accelerated tyre wear while overinflating them will make them less resistant to cuts and impacts. Uneven tyre wear is usually a common sign that you are inflating your earthmoving tyres with the incorrect amount of pressure. Overinflation causes the middle section of the tyre to bulge, which means it will have more contact with the ground and therefore, wear faster than the sides. With under inflation, you will notice that the sides are wearing down more than the middle.
Therefore, it's always important to inflate your earthmoving tyres according to the manufacturer's recommendations. Also, it's essential to monitor the pressure of the tyres and to do that, you will need to invest in a pressure gauge. Keep in mind, however, that high temperatures can affect the pressure in your tyres, so for the best results regarding pressure measurements, consider doing your pressure test on cool tyres.
Keep an Eye on The Tread Depth of The Tyres
Earthmoving tyres are designed to operate in uneven and rough terrain where traction is of vital importance. The traction itself depends on the tread depth. It's important to monitor your earthmoving tyres' tread depth regularly for the ideal performance of your machine. While the treads should remain deep for quite some time, a range of issues such as poor wheel alignment and incorrect tyre balance can affect their longevity, which is why constant monitoring is crucial.
Adopt Proper Driving Habits
Poor driving can affect the longevity as well as the performance of your earthmoving tyres. Therefore, one practical way to maintain the tyres is to adopt proper driving habits. Excessive speeds should be avoided because they tend to increase the internal temperature of the tyres. Other things you need to avoid include chuck holes, sudden breaking or starting manoeuvres, and strong spinning.
Hi all! My name's Ed, and welcome to my blog. Like many children, my son loved construction vehicles when he was young. However, although he grew out of the toy trucks, he never grew out of his interest in construction. When, at 18, he announced that he was going to be attending a heavy vehicle driving course and applying for jobs in the field, I decided to see what all the fuss was about myself. As it turns out, the world of construction equipment really is interesting! Since I started looking into it, my son and I have bonded over many conversations about bulldozers and excavators. Now I'm sharing some of the things we've talked about here.