Storing a trailer on jackstands

Frank O

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Nov 2, 2006
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I have a two-axle Loadmaster trailer for my 21' center console. Most of the year the trailer is stored outdoors with the boat not on it.

I've been told it's desirable to put the trailer up on jackstands to prolong the life of the tires. Is it better to support the trailer by points on the frame so that the wheels hang down a bit (but elevated enough for the tires to clear the ground)? Or is it desirable to find support points near each wheel so that they carry the weight, keeping pressure on the leaf springs etc?
 

smokeonthewater

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Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

makes no difference..... not enough weight on the springs to matter
 

180shabah

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Mar 26, 2005
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Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

Just makes it a PITA if you have to move it in the middle of the winter.
 

smokeonthewater

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Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

I think he's talking bout storing in the summer..... I personally wouldn't bother putting an empty trailer on stands.... If you're really worried about flat spots on tires just move it a foot or two every couple months ... Or like I said above If you're gonna put it on stands then put em wherever it's easiest for ya..... if you drop the tongue to the ground and put the jacks under the rear of the frame you can crank the tongue up and be done
 

rjlipscomb

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Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

I agree with Smoke..., why bother putting an empty trailer on jack stands? Unless the trailer is heavy. Just move the trailer a couple of feet forward and back each month.
 

Frank O

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Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

Thanks for the advice. Just to clarify, the boat is in the water year-round here in California, and the trailer is only used two weeks a year when we pull the boat for annual maintenance. Otherwise it sits in a storage yard without the boat on it. The last time I got the trailer out, one of the tires blew, and it was suggested to me that putting the trailer on jacks might prolong their life. I agree that moving the trailer every month or two could be another option to even out the pressure on the tires, but the storage yard is a distance from my home so it's easier for me just to put the trailer up on jackstands, throw a tarp on it and not have to think about it for 11 months. There's no other reason I'd need to move it in between its annual run with the boat.
 

NYBo

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Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

I think the biggest enemies of your tires are the sun and the passage of time, not the weight of the empty trailer.
 

Frank O

Seaman
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Nov 2, 2006
Messages
62
Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

So if the tires are off the ground and the tarp wraps around them, that would help? (Unless, in some way, having them under what is essentially a heat concentrator would make things worse.)
 

cribber

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May 29, 2008
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Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

The sun will destroy pretty much everything given time. Covering your trailer tires to reduce UV exposure will prolong their usefulness. Once you start noticing fine cracks in the sidewalls it's about time to think of replacing them and start saving up for replacements. Tires have a normal useful life of around 4 or 5 years regardless of tread depth here in Florida before the sun ruins them.
 

Jeep Man

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Oct 17, 2008
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Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

Using anything that will keep the UVs off the tires is going to help more than anything, ideally a white material that can breath. I've found that Tyvec house wrap is good...and cheap.
 

JimS123

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Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

Many years ago my tires would get a flat spot over winter, so I started using jack stands. That was a PITA to begin with, then one year I bent a trailer. The proper positions to support the trailer frame are at the coupler and the axle location. I found out the hard way.

The tires they make today aren't as sensitive to developing flat spots like they used to be so I wouldn't worry about it if that is your concern.

Like others have said.....UV is the real killer. You might try buying a set of the white vinyl wheel/tire covers that are sold for RVs and Motorhomes. I used them on my trailer that sits outside an d it doubled the tire life. My "indoor" trailer is 26 years old and the tires are like new. They probably don't have more than a few thousand miles on them. The only time they sit in the sun is at the launch ramp, 3 miles from my house.
 

Frank O

Seaman
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Nov 2, 2006
Messages
62
Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

Thanks for all the replies. Tire covers sound like a good idea -- I'll check that out.
 

MRS

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Jul 10, 2005
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Re: Storing a trailer on jackstands

A lot of times it is the valve stems that go bad from sitting in the sun. They rot out way faster than the tires do.
 
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