Tyre damage during storage

[Brian_5041834]

Hi all,
Could you please advise the best way to store my caravan over winter,in particular the tyres,would it be better to remove them for winter wheels.could I perhaps jack the van up and sit the chassis on blocks, (not sure how this would distribute the weight)
I'm told by my local caravan spares shop I could sit the wheels in a plastic cradle that keeps the tyre off the cold ground whilst distributing the tyre load more evenly.or would I be better visiting the van over the winter and rotate the wheels occassionally.?
Any help would be appreciated.
Thank you
Brian

 

[Damian]

There are several things to consider.
First is if the van is in storage it is probably one of the conditions that the van must be movable in the event of a fire, in which case fitting winter wheels (the type that is a bracket assembly in place of the road wheels) would not be allowed.
An alternative is the use of a second set of old wheels and tyres.

Raising the van off the ground is a good idea in as much as it gives the suspension time to rest and recover, and the best way is by jacking under the axle and supporting with axle stands.

However, radial ply tyres do not suffer with deformation as the older cross ply tyres did, and as long as you keep the van tyre pressures at the max for the van you should have no problems.

Cover the tyres with a hessian sack or similar, do not use black plastic bags.

 

[saint-spoon]

This is something that I was wondering about. My parents had a caravan when we were children and my dad mentioned about the tyres over winter. We fully intend to take the caravan out as much as we can for weekends away; we are taking the kids away for a week over half term and are planning to go mid-November for at least one weekend (tbc weather dependant) but December is just too hectic with stuff and then we are into January and February when the temperature will drop and it may well be pouring down. I was thinking of putting the tyres up on old car mats, the rubber should keep the tyres insulated to some degree from the ground frost.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Looking after tyres is of course a very sensible thing to do, It won't hurt to remove wheel and replace them with winter wheels (Subject to storage site bylaws) , or to rotate them every few weeks, and covering them to prevent sunlight (UV) degradation but I do wonder why some caravanners go to such lengths for their caravan tyres yet do nothing like as much for the tyres on their cars!

We don't cover our car tyres to protect them from sunlight, It shouldn't be necessary as the tyre manufacturers should ensure the materials are UV stable. And we don't stand then on insulating mats to protect them from frost! Yet our cars will be subject to just as much sunlight and frost as our caravan tyres.

As has been pointed out most modern tyres are radial ply , which don't suffer setting long term fatigue if left.

I'm sorry but this is just another unsubstantiated caravan based tradition that simply does not stand up to modern scrutiny.

 

[saint-spoon]

I am very happy to know that it is something that I need not worry about.

 

[Jules_ht]

There are several things to consider.
First is if the van is in storage it is probably one of the conditions that the van must be movable in the event of a fire, in which case fitting winter wheels (the type that is a bracket assembly in place of the road wheels) would not be allowed.

How does this sit with the pretty standard insurance requirement for a wheel clamp to be used when the van is not in use? Fortunately (having reviewed the terms of my storage agreement), this is not a requirement where I keep my van.

 

[Gafferbill]

......this Caravan Club leaflet tells you what you need to know and you can be confident it is likely to be factually accurate.

Caravan Tyres and Wheels