hankster
11-29-2004, 12:47 PM
Being from the north, it seems that every spring I needed to replace my off-road tires. As they sat in the basement all winter, they tended to harden and loose their stickiness. I finally found a way to store those tires and not only keep them soft, but even make them better then new.
The first thing you need to do is clean them well. Take a scrub brush and clean off every bit of dirt. Not only is this what you should be doing all the time any ways, but it helps keep them in good shape while they hibernate over the winter months.
Next, you need to purchase some tire conditioner. You can get this from a number of manufacturers. Trinity, Pro-Line and BRP Racing are only few of the places your can get them from. You will also need some large freezer zip-lock bags and small 1" x 1" pieces of sponge or a small piece of absorbent cloth.
Place as many tires as you can get into one of the zip-lock bags and still be able to seal the bag. Take a piece of sponge or rag and soak it with the tire conditioner. Place the conditioner soaked rag or sponge and place it in the bottom of the bag. It is best if the rag/sponge doesn't touch any of the tires. Now zip up the bag making sure it is full of air and put them on your shelf for storage.
You should check them once a month to make sure the conditioner doesn't evaporate. If the sponge/rag is dry, just add some more conditioner, seal the bag and put them back on the shelf.
Once spring rolls around, you can remove the tires and you will notice that not only are they still nice and soft, but in many cases they are even stickier then when new. This same method will work for any foam or rubber tire so you can use it on your on-road tires also.
The first thing you need to do is clean them well. Take a scrub brush and clean off every bit of dirt. Not only is this what you should be doing all the time any ways, but it helps keep them in good shape while they hibernate over the winter months.
Next, you need to purchase some tire conditioner. You can get this from a number of manufacturers. Trinity, Pro-Line and BRP Racing are only few of the places your can get them from. You will also need some large freezer zip-lock bags and small 1" x 1" pieces of sponge or a small piece of absorbent cloth.
Place as many tires as you can get into one of the zip-lock bags and still be able to seal the bag. Take a piece of sponge or rag and soak it with the tire conditioner. Place the conditioner soaked rag or sponge and place it in the bottom of the bag. It is best if the rag/sponge doesn't touch any of the tires. Now zip up the bag making sure it is full of air and put them on your shelf for storage.
You should check them once a month to make sure the conditioner doesn't evaporate. If the sponge/rag is dry, just add some more conditioner, seal the bag and put them back on the shelf.
Once spring rolls around, you can remove the tires and you will notice that not only are they still nice and soft, but in many cases they are even stickier then when new. This same method will work for any foam or rubber tire so you can use it on your on-road tires also.