Changing tandem axle trailer tires when loaded

[tom91ita]

on the way back from IT SPEC-tacular and seeing various folks on the road side changing tires, i realized that my race jacks are not rated for the one side of my enclosed trailer when it is loaded.

i have a 1.5 ton aluminum race jack and probably ~9000 #'s in the trailer total.

is this why folks use the ramps like these:



i realize that would be more load on the axle but that is basically a static load compared to the dynamic load bouncing down the road.

tia, tom

[JoshS]

I've had to change tires a couple of times. I found that ramp trick didn't work with my torsion beam axles, although it did work on my old trailer with leaf springs & shackles.

My racing floor jack can't lift the trailer, and if you maneuver it under the axle, there isn't clearance to move the lever. The best, most reliable way that will work every time is to use the bottle jack in your truck underneath the trailer's axle ... just lifting that one tire. Works great.

[dickita15]

I had to change one last year. I keep an assortment of short wood blocks in the trailer and was able to successful change the tire by using a stack of 2x6s in the same manner pictured. It was kind of freaky when it was up in the air how much the trailer moved as the trucks whooshed by. I was pretty glad it was not a left side tire.

[seckerich]

I keep a cheap 4 or 10 ton bottle jack in the trailer. Easily lifts one complete side of a loaded 48' trailer. Put it in and forget it is there.

[JohnRW]

I keep a cheap 4 or 10 ton bottle jack in the trailer. Easily lifts one complete side of a loaded 48' trailer. Put it in and forget it is there.

^^^smartest thing^^^.

Carry a couple of chunks of 2x4 to stack under jack, in case your trailer frame rails are higher than the extended height of the bottle jack.

Cheap auto parts store / Harbor Freight / etc. bottle jacks are perfect. I keep one in the big trailer and one in the nose-box of the old open trailer. $20 will get you a 4-6 ton jack. If you have a jack, you won't need it. If you forget it, you'll immediately need it.

Once forgot to return bottle jack to enclosed trailer, and had a blow-out on I81 in PA. Managed to scavenge enough junk & scrap to improvise a "ramp thingy" (like in pix above), but it was a pain whacking thru the undergrowth to find all that crap. Props to PA for never cleaning up their highways.