Forklift Repair – Knowing when to replace your forklift tires

One fact that is not well known is that Forklifts don’t have suspensions. As a result, everything rides on the tires. Tires are essential for softening the ride your employee, equipment and product experiences. So when your tires are low so is your forklift. In the past few blog posts we have attempted to educate you on forklift tires and understanding which one is right for your job environment.

When it comes to Pneumatic tires, the issues are different. Here you need to pay attention to;

1. Underinflation: This can compromises stability and accelerates wear. Use the pressure settings on the side of the tire as a guide to what pressure to maintain. Moreover making hard turns under load with an under inflated tire can fold the tire, causing it to let loose of the rim resulting in a violent shift in the equipment and load. Under inflation will also reduce your lift trucks fuel efficiency.
2. Over inflation: This will result in less stopping power due to a lessening of the tires traction. It will also cost you more through expedited wear.
3.  Sidewall cuts from objects struck by the tire threaten sudden shits in the unit with the loss of air pressure, and in the case of foam filled tires will allow the fill to ooze out causing the unit to lean in the direction of the damaged tire.
4. Over worn solid or resilient tires can cause the lift truck to run rough or shake on harder surfaces, reducing the driver’s ability to control the unit, and reducing the stability of the load.

Tires that are worn or low can cause several problems for the forklift owner and operator. Tire wear never happens evenly on a forklift and therefore your forklift can become unstable . Low tires mean that your forklift has a greater chance of a transmission housing becoming damage by hitting a dock plate or debris on the floor.  Also remember the smaller the tires, the faster they turn and the harder your transmission works, which could lead to overheating . Damaged tires will lead to greater vibration of the forklift, which often leads to accelerated equipment and driver fatigue. An overly tired operator is often unsafe and a fatigued forklift will begin to have repair issues.  So pay attention to the conditon of your forklift tiress.  If you are still unsure about your forklift tires, give us a call and we will evaluate them for you.

For those of you who do need tires, have we got a deal for you.  Take a look at our Spring Service Special going on now by clicking the button above

sources: Kyle Thyll – Toyota Lift of Minnesota