Eliminating Downtime During Harvest
Sep 01, 2020
Brent Colgrove
Tire Manager
During harvest, downtime in the field is frustrating for everyone involved and a flat or blown tire will quickly kill your day. In the next couple of weeks, make sure you inspect your tires on your combine and grain trucks. Look for outward bulges or bubbles on the tire, as well as exposed chords and vertical cracking on the sidewall of the tire. Don’t forget to check the air pressure on your equipment as well since low air pressure is the leading cause of tire failure. Ensure the tire/wheel assembly and the air pressure is enough to carry and exceed the load you are putting on your equipment.
If you need help figuring out what you need, give your local tire service station a call and we will walk you through it.
With harvest nearing, please remember to keep safety at the top of your mind in your farming operation. One specific area we want to ensure you are doing safely is airing up tubeless truck tires. If you check your tire and it is flat, when airing it up make sure you look for bulges and listen for creaks and popping noises. If you hear these noises or see a bulge, please stop immediately and bring it in to your local Farmers Cooperative tire service station to be inspected. If you continue to air it up in this condition, you may experience a zipper rupture at the sidewall of the tire.
Don’t forget to always stay out of the outward trajectory of the tire, at a 45-degree angle, when airing or checking the tire. If you are airing up a split rim truck tire and it is below 35 psi or flat, stop and bring it in to be inspected and repaired by a professional. The lock ring on the tire and wheel assembly may have moved or unseated away from the bead area of the tire. This could result in the lock ring flying off with great force, injuring you or anyone in its path.
Another important thing to remember is the age of your truck tires. If your tires are six years old or older and you drive down the highway at speeds of 60 miles per hour or higher, please be careful! An old tire will not stand up to the heat caused by road friction, resulting in the possibility of the tire separating or blowing out. If you need help checking the age of your tire, give one of our tire service stations a call and we will help you stay safe.
Our top priority is keeping you safe during harvest and to help you eliminate downtime. Please check your equipment and if you need tires, give us a call. Thank you and we’ll see you next time!
