Air-down trailer as well?

Air down trailer tires?

  • Yes

    Votes: 17 63.0%

  • No

    Votes: 5 18.5%

  • Depends (elaborate in your post)

    Votes: 5 18.5%
  • Total voters
    27
Winterpeg

Winterpeg

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When you are taking a trailer off-road do you guys air down your trailer tires as well?

I've heard this can be detrimental as it will add to trailer sway back and forth.

I've got heavier duty trailer tires on my trailer so they have a nice stiff sidewall to prevent the side to side movement.

I go down some pretty rough roads and trails with my 2 quads and camping gear on my trailer. In the first part of my trail I'm going pretty fast in 4Hi... then I'm into 4Lo and crawling over rocks and stuff. It's not as bad as it sounds... for someone that is used to doing a bit of wheeling it's pretty straightforward stuff with no risk of body damage other than minor small brush scrapes.

What is everyone's thoughts?

(I've added a poll)
 
Last edited:
Winterpeg said:
When you are taking a trailer off-road do you guys air down your trailer tires as well?

I've heard this can be detrimental as it will add to trailer sway back and forth.

I've got heavier duty trailer tires on my trailer so they have a nice stiff sidewall to prevent the side to side movement.

I go down some pretty rough roads and trails with my 2 quads and camping gear on my trailer. In the first part of my trail I'm going pretty fast in 4Hi... then I'm into 4Lo and crawling over rocks and stuff. It's not as bad as it sounds... for someone that is used to doing a bit of wheeling it's pretty straightforward stuff with no risk of body damage other than minor small brush scrapes.

What is everyone's thoughts?
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I would say no as the air down is for gripping with drive wheels and since the trailer wheels are not under drive train and merely being pulled they wouldn't see benefit. Just my opinion...
 
The benefit I would possibly see is a less jarring ride for my quads and gear on the trailer.... the trailer only has leaf springs for suspension.

It can get pretty harsh and is tough on the ratchet straps holding the quads down.
 
An additional reason to air down is control. When trailer tires are full they bounce along the trail. This can be detrimental if only one side bounces off of a rock. It can cause that side to launch into the air with a possible flip. Since most trailers only use the stiffer leaf or torsion spring, lowering trailer tire pressure can aid in the shock absorbtion of the road.
 
Gunnermoose said:
An additional reason to air down is control. When trailer tires are full they bounce along the trail. This can be detrimental if only one side bounces off of a rock. It can cause that side to launch into the air with a possible flip. Since most trailers only use the stiffer leaf or torsion spring, lowering trailer tire pressure can aid in the shock absorbtion of the road.
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I would agree, Traction is traction foot print is foot print. But while off road low and slow if bouncing and or sliding is issue air it down.
Great discussion.....
 
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Crappy part for me is I would have to unhook my trailer to air the tires up since my hose won't reach.... lol. Which isn't that terrible I guess... hmmmm.

It does bounce quite a bit sometimes... some damn rough sections.

I'll maybe give it a try next trip... which is very soon.
 
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Winterpeg said:
Crappy part for me is I would have to unhook my trailer to air the tires up since my hose won't reach.... lol. Which isn't that terrible I guess... hmmmm.

It does bounce quite a bit sometimes... some damn rough sections.

I'll maybe give it a try next trip... which is very soon.
Click to expand...
Slow that FJ down!!!
*** As slow as possible, as fast as necessary ***
 
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Winterpeg said:
Crappy part for me is I would have to unhook my trailer to air the tires up since my hose won't reach.... lol. Which isn't that terrible I guess... hmmmm.

It does bounce quite a bit sometimes... some damn rough sections.

I'll maybe give it a try next trip... which is very soon.
Click to expand...

FlexZilla hoses from Amazon are not expensive and very long. I don't have to disconnect. I air down because I get too much bounce off road otherwise.
 
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I keep my Off road trailer down to about 22psi at all times, made a big difference on the highway when you hit those bridge gaps at 70mph, also on the trail it really lessened the bounce I was getting when hitting large rocks or deep tracks. I run 17" BFG K02's on my trailer, these are made for light trucks that weigh much more than my trailer so airing down does not seem to spread out my side walls much. I recommend airing them down. Have not broken an egg in my ARB fridge.
 
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Reasons I air-down my trailer:

1) Protects the tires from puncture on trails.

2) Reduces bounce. (I've had my Turtleback on one wheel a couple times... not a good feeling.)

3) Increases "float" for sand and mud terrains.

I usually run my trailer tires at 12-14 PSI and my rig at 17 PSI. The reason for such a low setting is that the stiff load range E sidewalls still have a bad bounce at anything above that. Every trailer will be different, but I highly recommend airing them down to some degree.

wp-1465484732524-e1465484894576.jpg


My on-road pressures are usually around 28-32 PSI. 35-40 PSI on the rig.
 
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You guys and my broken leaf spring have me convinced.... I'll air down my trailer tires next time.

(My axle was upgraded but the trailer guys put the old leafs right back on! 3500# leafs on a 6000# axle! Not impressed! Now I have to go leaf spring shopping.)
 
When we did our Arctic trip, I aired the M101 down on all the big dirt highways! The Dempster especially..
Standens made all the original gear for the M101 Canadian, try there for good leaf springs
 
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When off road I typically air my Jeep and trailer down...I run my Jeep at about 15 psi and the trailer 20 psi. My side walls on my trailer tires are D and my Jeep has E, so I am pretty stiff. It also depends on how many coolers I have and how much weight I have in my trailer. The more weight I have the psi I run to let the suspension do the work.
 
I see this is a fairly Old thread, and I see some great input for some experienced and knowledgable folks. My Twist on this question is that my trailer, (an Aliner Aframe Pop-up) I just lifted and modified for the rougher roads, has ST trailer tires 15". I'm wondering if a trailer tire is more suspectable to damage from low pressure than a LT light truck tire? I'll change the Tires to KO2 when I do the 4runner, but the 4runner is new and I don't want to toss the new tires, and I still haven't done any mods on the 4runner yet. Suspension and Front Bumper are on order.

So we are still running ST's on the trailer, and cheap LT's on the 4runner. What would you do? How would you air them ??
 
Rick&Dog said:
I see this is a fairly Old thread, and I see some great input for some experienced and knowledgable folks. My Twist on this question is that my trailer, (an Aliner Aframe Pop-up) I just lifted and modified for the rougher roads, has ST trailer tires 15". I'm wondering if a trailer tire is more suspectable to damage from low pressure than a LT light truck tire? I'll change the Tires to KO2 when I do the 4runner, but the 4runner is new and I don't want to toss the new tires, and I still haven't done any mods on the 4runner yet. Suspension and Front Bumper are on order.

So we are still running ST's on the trailer, and cheap LT's on the 4runner. What would you do? How would you air them ??
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We have a Fleetwood evolution pop up camper so similar set up to you. We are also on 15" rims with trailer tires as well. We always air down when we are on dirt with the trailer. It helps with the ride alot. I have never felt as though the tire was going to over heat and cause damage. Mostly cause when we are towing this thing down dirt roads we just take it slow and it is rather large. Once we do find camp I air the tires back up just because I prefer them to not be low and stationary for a long period of time ( we usually find a cool base camp spot and expowjth the truck from there).
 
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