How to maintain solid rubber tires

The equipment used for moving and managing waste and recyclables at transfer stations, such as wheel loaders, skid steers and material handlers, are crucial to daily waste management operations. Ensuring the continued efficiency of these heavy machines means consistent maintenance and upkeep, which holds especially true for the tires they are equipped with.

To better understand the best practices for solid rubber tire maintenance, Waste Today spoke with Brandon Machell, national sales manager for Setco Solid Tire, a tire manufacturing company with U.S. operations in Idabel, Oklahoma. Setco has been designing and manufacturing solid tires and rubber cutting edges since 1988.

Waste Today (WT): How long do solid tires used at a transfer station typically last if well maintained?

Brandon Machell (BM): It varies widely, depending on the material and where the machinery is in use, like a material recovery facility (MRF). It also comes down to the equipment and the operator. So, a tire may last six months in one application, or it may last several years in another.

WT: What are the primary factors that contribute to tire wear in transfer station applications?

BM: Floor conditions are a big one. If you've got a brand-new floor that is smooth, it’s not going to be so abrasive on the tire. Your tires are going to last a lot longer [on a newer floor] than on a floor that is pitted and abrasive.

Operator education [also] is important, so whoever [is] using the vehicle [should] know how to drive it. You don't need someone driving into a pile and spinning all four tires and not moving anywhere. At that point, it is wearing the tires out when that happens.

The other thing that can affect tire life is the rotation schedule. Typically, front tires wear faster than rear tires. So, you must rotate those tires to make sure you get even wear across all four tires. When it comes down to rotation schedules, the Society of Automotive Engineers’ specifications (SAE J2204) on tires is 3 percent side-to-side and 6 percent front-to-back, which applies to off-road tires also. You don't want to get outside of a 3 percent side-to-side cross axle or 6 percent front-to-back. It's important to keep those specs in mind because once you start operating outside of those specs, you can do drive-train damage to the machine.

Tire rotation frequency depends on the application, and that is determined by observed wear rates. If you have lower volume stations that aren’t moving that much material, it could be years between rotations, but for your higher volume stations, it could be every few months.

WT: What are some of the best practices for maintaining solid tires in the transfer station?

BM: No. 1, you need to monitor your tire wear, whether that be using our proprietary software or any other kinds of methods that you are using. You can’t manage it if you don’t measure it.

That’s the reason Setco developed its Tire Management System (TMS) platform. It uses an algorithm that advises operators on when to rotate their tires. Our customers have found that following this guidance can save them more than 20 percent on tire costs by maximizing wear.

It’s also important that operators consider the impact of tire wear on the overall machine. Keeping the tires within the SAE specification saves wear and tear on the drive train, preventing the need for major maintenance and/or replacement. TMS helps to ensure that.  

The third thing to keep in mind would be ensuring you’re using the right tire in the correct application. Make sure you have the right tread design installed and make sure you have the right sidewall design, whether that be apertures or just making sure you have the right size, as well. Many machines, in our opinion at Setco, come with undersized tires. The larger [the] tire you can fit on the machine, the more use you get out of it.

WT: What tread designs work best for transfer station applications, and what factors determine tread design?

BM: In most transfer stations, most operators choose to go with a smooth tread design. This is because you get longer wear due to more contact with the ground, and you don’t have tread voids. But if you’ve got an operation that desires actual traction, you can get different styles of staggered lugged tread designs that increase traction and can reduce spinning.

Another thing that impacts tread design is what material is being moved. When looking at C&D [construction and demolition] waste, you may have a lot of wood, rebar or other things mixed into debris that you’re moving. When you have solid traction or a solid tire with no traction grooves, there are fewer points for material to become lodged. … A solid tire won’t have voids where debris can get caught in it like a tire with traction does.

WT: What additional advantages do solid tires offer beyond longer lifespans compared with foam-filled tires?

BM: Less downtime is the key to operating in those environments. If you cut the side wall out of a foam-filled tire, you’re down; you can't do that with a solid rubber tire. Solid rubber tires offer longer wear and less maintenance, which makes them more cost-efficient.