How do I change a flat?
 

Mine didn't come with a jack. What kind should I get? Is it possible to raise wheels off ground via use of both stabilizer jacks or is this not advised?

At age 75, I'd like NOT to ever have to get down and change a flat roadside, but might have to sometime. Tips please. Thanks guys.

Do you recommend a roadside assistance plan such as Good Sam? Ever used? How much does this cost? Recommendations please.

Jerry

miranda, check out your other post. DON'T use the stabs, that may twist the frame. Roadside assist can help, however, they seldom know how to work on Hi Los. Suggest the Trailer Aid and a good lug wrench.
Tree

With a double axle you can run the inflated tire up on blocks like you use for leveling. Loosen the lug nuts first, change to spare, snug the up best you can and tighten when off the blocks.

I have heard negative reports onGood Sam roadside service and with the service I have, AAA, I have had to help and instruct the service drivers both times I have needed assistance, and this is after I had given an operator specific instructions on what was needed to replace a tire.:mad:

Totally agree with you Garry. I learned about the Trailer Aid long time ago here on the forum. One of the best tips for changing tires on a dual axle trailer. I recently had new tires installed and, like you, had to work with the installers to remove and replace the rubber. They wanted to use a floor jack on the frame to remove and replace one side then the other--scary. I also use the trailer aid to repack bearings.
Tree

Ok Tree. No stabs for sure to change a flat. I gotta get Trailer Aid man. BTW, if you don't mind telling, roughly how much are four 13 " tires? Mine will need replacing.

And, as you said, I WON"T have roadside assist jack my unit up and mess things up. Very good point. Thanks.

Jerry

Gary, from what you said, I just don't think I will get roadside assistance as I feel, once I get one of these Trailer Assists, I will be better off to change my own flat and work on wheel bearings to keep clean and lubed. Thanks for letting me know.

Jerry

Jerry, Trailer Aid is a very sturdy heavy duty yellow Plastic, block with studs on the bottom. I'm most sure there is a youtube on proper use, but it's truly self explanatory. As I said, I also purchased a folding "star lug wrench" keeping both in the TV for ready access. I, too, hope I won't have to change a tire (especially streetside on an interstate!), but if I must everything is always ready. Best of luck and hope to see ya soon.
Treeclimber

Tree, sounds good. Might have to get one, as I don't want to rely (or buy) roadside assistance plan. I don't even have lug wrench....yet. What size nuts? Standard or metric?

Hope also to see ya. Got so much to learn

Jerry

The lug nuts on your trailer wheels are SAE. In fact, I think EVERY fastener in your trailer is SAE - mine is. You can change a tire with a standard socket wrench that you would put on a torque wrench handle. You SHOULD use a torque wrench to set the proper torque on the tire lugs. If you don't they could loosen during travel.

- Jack

Jack, thanks. I'll tighten SAE lug nuts with torque wrench attached to ratchet.

Jerry

Good point Jack, it's on my "pre roll" check list. So far I've found two lug nuts (out of scores of checks) that weren't up to snuff.
Tree

Jerry, you can buy an inexpensive ratcheting 20-150 ft-lb torque wrench at Harbor Freight. I know it's probably not a "precision" tool, but I think it will set the torque close enough that the error won't matter. It's what I use. I just checked online and it's less than $30. There is also one at Home Depot that is in the mid $70s.

And, you can buy just a single 1/2 drive socket that will fit the lug nuts too. I think I got mine at Home Depot. Harbor Freight sells sets, if you need other sizes too.

Edit: If you've never used a torque measuring wrench, you apply steady, even pressure until it "clicks". Don't "jerk" it to tighten the nut, that will over-torque the fastener. And, you don't lubricate the threads of the lugs, they are supposed to be dry.

- Jack

Jerry, you might already have roadside assistance through your auto insurance. If you have both your auto and Hi-Lo covered under that insurance, roadside should also be included for your Hi-Lo. Call your insurance carrier to check it out. USAA covers both for us, and we certainly need that assistance if we have two blowouts at approximately the same time and have used up the spare on the first blowout. In addition, we have our homeowner's insurance with them and can bring a little pressure to bear when we need roadside assistance because we pay them lots and lots of money each year. As some people know on this forum, I was not a happy camper this past June when we were towing the camper down to Disney's Fort Wilderness Campground in 105-degree heat to meet family and had a blowout of an almost new tire just before the turnoff to I-4. I was ready to call USAA roadside assistance because of the heat (my husband is 73), but he wanted to change it in order to get back on the road quicker. (Yep, I was so mad about that almost new tire that I was using words, like "crap," on this forum; sorry folks.).

Dee
Summerville, SC

Mad about flat tire
 

I would be mad about a new tire blowing or going flat. Four letter words are okay to use.

Sam, you bet we were mad!! Since we bought all five (including spare) at the same time, we were on pins and needles the rest of the way to the campground and hoping we did not have another blowout before we got there because we did not have another spare tire with us. We spoke with a lot of people in the campground who had been traveling the last couple of days and had blowouts. They thought that the extreme heat those days might have caused their tire problems; we also saw a good number of people on the side of the road changing tires. Some nice young people even stopped in all that heat to help us.

Dee

Dee, your post made me hunt for the one where you experienced the blowout. I see the faulty tire was a Carlyle. I'm not surprised, I've seen MANY posts in other forums complaining about Carlyle tires. As you, and others, possibly remember, I'm also not a fan of Goodyear Marathon (having had two Marathon tire failures due to cord separation on tires that were only about 1 year old with less than 5,000 miles on them).

But, Maxxis tires have been super for me. I just bought some new ones for our trailer because the old ones were a bit over 5 years old and I thought it was "time". Don't know what I'll do if they ever stop making them!

- Jack

One of the biggest causes of tire failure is from under-inflation. People never check tire pressure and it's so easy to do. I don't think they ever just look at the tires based on some the low tires I see on vehicles going down the highways.

Jack, we also had a Marathon tire failure on our old 2000 Jayco Cascade pop up camper before we purchased the Hi-Lo. But to be completely honest, when that failure occurred, we were on the cusp of getting new tires and had delayed getting them. So I guess we "deserved" that flat. You had mentioned before that you had a tire monitoring system, and when we rotate these bad tires on the Hi-Lo to Maxxis, we will buy and install that system. You know the saying, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." As a general rule, we do not have heat here above 100 degrees for days on end (as we did that week in central Florida and southeastern Georgia), but I know you do in Arizona. Arizona heat must wreck a lot of tires or at least lower their life expectancy.

Dee

Rich, Beach checks tire pressure (our load D 15" tires aired up to 65 psi) and other things before we leave home and before we leave a campground. However, from now on, we are going to purchase and install a tire monitoring system and will be slow pokes by driving between 55 and 60 mph in extreme heat. People need to do pre-checks of their RV rig before putting it on the road just as much as someone who does pre-flight checks before putting their plane in the air.

Dee