Check your trailer tires

If your boat is on a trailer, make sure the trailer tires are ready for boating season. They’re often overlooked, and we rarely put enough mileage on a set of tires to make significant wear on the tread. However, that doesn’t mean the tires don’t have any wear. Sun, air and moisture deteriorate the cordage and rubber in the tires, making them unsafe for road use and causing catastrophic failure such as a blowout.

Tires come with a Department of Transportation number molded into the sidewall. This string of letters and numbers (starting with “DOT”) ends with four numeric digits indicating the month and year of manufacture. For example, 4025 means the tire was made in the 40th week of 2025.

At what point does a trailer tire become dangerous? The life of a tire exposed to the elements is five years. If the tire has been covered, given load relief and protected from moisture, the maximum lifespan is 10 years.

Tires over six to 10 years old should be replaced. –Michael Maszczenski Jr.