Some people feel over-whelmed at the idea of trailering a boat, but those who do it regularly generally find it to be a pleasant experience.  There are certain precautions that should be followed to ensure that it stays that way.

One of the most important aspects to safe trailering involves your tires.  Trailer tires are a special breed, specifically designed to handle the rigors of towing.  Tires made for this purpose bear an ST on the sidewall, which stands for “special trailer”.  While the tire industry has established the ST standard for trailer tires, trailer manufacturers are not required to use them.  As long as the tire meets the trailer’s load and speed requirements, it’s allowable by law.  However, the majority of trailer manufacturers do us STs because of the tire’s inherent trailering benefits.

A benefits of an ST tire when it comes to trailering is that it has about 10 percent more load capacity than an equivalent LT (light truck) tire and nearly 40 percent more than a P (passenger) tire.  Furthermore, an ST’s mold shape is designed to accommodate trailer wheels, which are typically narrower than P and LT wheels.  Being narrow is an advantage on trailer tires but a disadvantage on wheels that steer and wheels that are attached to the drive axle.  Steer and / or drive tires benefit from a larger footprint, which provides the extra traction and performance demanded of them.  A free-rolling trailer tire, on the other hand, isn’t called on to turn, swerve and grab the pavement like a steer or drive tire.  Since it doesn’t need such a large footprint, it performs its task better by being narrower.

For the same reasons, an ST tire does not have as deep of a non-skid tread as P and LT tires.  A deep non-skid is necessary for both drive and steer tires in wet environments because it provides better traction.  Again, since a trailer tire is simply free-rolling, it doesn’t need the same degree of traction on wet pavement, and, in fact, it would be detrimental to its performance.  Having a shallower tread depth offers the ST tire two benefits … it doesn’t wiggle as much, which can help reduce sway, and it also rides cooler, which adds to its longevity.

Generally, ST tires also have stiffer sidewalls, especially in its lower section.  This reduces sidewall flexing, helping it to track straighter and diminish the risk of trailer sway.  The stiffer sides also lessen the risk of sidewall blowout.

The most common cause of tire problems is under-inflation.  It’s estimated that a trailer tire that is 20 percent will cut 25 percent off its lifespan; one 30 percent under-inflated will its term by 55 percent.  Underinflated tires also affect fuel efficiency by as much as 10 percent due to the added drag.

An under-inflated tire puts undue stress on the tire, producing irregular wear, or worse yet, a complete tire failure.  Abnormal tire flexing occurs when a tire doesn’t have enough air, which can generate an excessive amount of heat internally.  Too much heat will exceed the tire’s capabilities and cause the tire plies to separate or result in a blowout.

Merely looking at the tire won’t always tell you if it’s under-inflated.  In fact, some tires can lose up to half of their pressure before it’s noticeable from appearance alone.  And with each pound of pressure loss, there’s a corresponding loss of load-carrying ability.  Therefore, you should check the tire’s pressure regularly with a good quality gauge.  And for accuracy, always check the pressure when the tire is cold.  Driving only a mile will heat the tire and increase the pressure reading.

Another major cause of tire failure is overloading.  That is why it’s important to know the actual load being towed.  That includes the boat, trailer and any gear, including boat fuel, put in the boat.  An overloaded tire will produce an inordinate amount of heat, which leads to tire degradation or blowout.

A good way to ensure you don’t run your trailer tires either under-inflated or over-inflated is to install a quality tire monitoring system.  Many such systems monitor tire pressure only.  A few, however, also monitor heat, which can rise to dangerous levels when a tire, although properly inflated, is overloaded.

A final word on tire care is to be certain to use the right kind of cleaners or dressings.  Many of these products are designed strictly to enhance the tires’ aesthetics by making them shine.  In reality, however, they often contain petroleum products, alcohol or silicones that deteriorate the protective antioxidants the manufacturer puts in the tire during the construction process.  Read the tire manufacturer’s warranty, and you’ll see that using such products can make it void.