Winter Farm Tire Tips 

Winter might be a slow season for farmers but winter elements will be hard at work, and their effects can be disastrous to the health and longevity of your agricultural tires.  Fortunately, a few good moves as the cold weather settles in can help you keep your farm tires in top shape for many seasons to come.

Put ‘em up for the winter

With its traditionally 80 percent-accurate weather forecasts, the Old Farmer’s Almanac is predicting another teeth-chattering cold winter across the United States with above-normal snowfall.

When cold weather rolls in, the most important step is to store your tires indoors (if you’re not using them).  Prolonged exposure to sunlight, water, arid winter air and freeze-thaw conditions can degrade your tires’ rubber compounds. 

Roll unused tires into a shed, or at least cover them up.  Make sure they are store upright, slightly underinflated if they’re on rims, and away from patches of oil or grease. Be careful not to store tires next to electric motors.  Brushes on electric motors create ozone, which reacts with rubber compounds.  As ozone molecules start snapping those long chains, tires start to crack.

Check your pressure

While checking the air pressure on your working tires is an important year-round task, it’s doubly important in the winter when weather changes can cause major swings in pressure.  As a general rule, for every 10-degree (F) drop in air temperature, the pressure in your tires will decrease by about three psi. 

In considering best practices in farm tire maintenance, remember to re-weigh your tractor when you put on a blade or bucket; these attachments put a lot of strain on your tractor’s front axle and on the tires that hold it all up.

Agricultural tires are a significant expense, so be sure to take care of them during these cold winter months.