If your trucks routinely operate in a hot weather area or you’re just experiencing extremely hot weather, it’s critical to inspect tires prior and during a road trip. This advice comes from Bob Ulrich, editor of Modern Tire Dealer. He culled this information from the Ohio Commercial Driver License Handbook.
A quote from the handbook:
“Check the tire mounting and air pressure. Inspect the tires every two hours or every 100 miles when driving in very hot weather. Air pressure increases with temperature.
Do not let air out or the pressure will be too low when the tires cool off. If a tire is too hot to touch, remain stopped until the tire cools off. Otherwise, the tire may blow out or catch fire.”
To check tire pressure the handbook advises either using a tire gauge or “strike the tire with a mallet or similar device.” For tanker truck drivers, however, only use the tire gauge.
Under the regular truck tire maintenance, the handbook suggests these other items to inspect prior to a road trip:
- cut or cracked valve stems
- retreaded, regrooved or recapped tires on the front wheels of a bus. This is prohibited.
- bad wear
- dual tires that come in contact with each other
- mismatched sizes or construction
For a bit more detail, go to Work Truck magazine for the entire article
