If you want to prolong the life of your tyres, improve your truck’s fuel efficiency and maintain the safety of your vehicle, regularly monitoring your truck’s tyre pressure is essential.
Why is it important to check your tyre pressure?
Correct tyre pressure is critical for all vehicles, particularly for large commercial vehicles that spend a lot of time on the road.
Knowing the correct truck tyre pressure PSI for your vehicle and how to identify over or under-inflated tyres will help you avoid premature tyre wear, increased fuel consumption, wheel misalignment, and tyre blowouts, which can be fatal at high speeds.
Learn the signs of over and under-inflation and follow our methods for determining the recommended tyre pressure for your vehicle.
Identifying over-inflated tyres
A good indication of over-inflated tyres can be seen on the outer tread pattern. If the centre of the tyre is fading much faster than the outer edges, it means that the truck tyre pressure PSI is too high.
Overinflated tyres can create a bouncing effect and cause an unpleasant driving experience. Braking will also suffer because the tyre has less contact with the road.
Identifying under-inflated tyres
If you can see the edges of your tyre wearing out faster than the centre, this typically means your tyres require more pressure. This is because when there is more rubber against the road, it causes more friction, which makes the engine work harder, consume more fuel, and wear your tyres more rapidly.
What is the recommended truck tyre pressure?
Truck tyre pressure is measured in pounds per square inch (PSI). There are two methods we use to determine what the recommended tyre pressure should be.
Method 1
Calculate the load that the tyre is required to carry and then refer to the Tyre and Rim Association Manual, which will give you the correct pressure for that particular tyre.
For example, 295 80r 22.5 Steer Tyre. Maximum weights over Steer Axle = 6000 kgs. For instance: 3000 kgs per tyre. The pressure required is 750 KPA or 109 PSI.
Method 2
Static Laden Radius. Each tyre manufacturer will specify this dimension. In relation to a steer tyre, the manufacturer will specify, e.g.497mm.
The measurement is taken from the road surface to the centre of the Stub Axle when the tyre is inflated, to give us as per the example 497mm. We now have the correct pressure in the tyre.
Now that you know the signs to look for, and two truck tyre pressure guides, make sure to monitor your tyres at least once a month. Alternatively, let us do it for you. Book an inspection today.