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CapitalPress.com
October 7, 2016
How to maintain ag equipment tires
For the Capital Press
Maintaining the proper
inlation pressure is the most
important thing you can do to
maximize tire performance.
Doing that can more than dou-
ble the life of an agricultural
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By BRENNA WIEGAND
tire that can cost thousands of
dollars to replace.
Too much air decreases the
lexing of the casing and results
in a smaller footprint, increased
compaction and a rougher ride.
Too little air stresses the tire
casing and leads to rapid wear.
Either extreme hurts perfor-
mance and can ruin a tire, the
experts say.
“With all the different types
of farms and agriculture, types
of tires and air pressure recom-
mendations depend on the type
of equipment and its individual
challenges,” said Joe LeBlanc,
manager of Les Schwab Tire
Co. in Albany, Ore. “In harvest
season a farmer may go from
swathing to combining to har-
vest into plowing, disking and
sometimes planting and many
pieces of farm equipment serve
Courtesy Les Schwab Tire Center
A Les Schwab ag tire expert provides on-the-farm service to help
reduce customers’ downtime. A thorough post-harvest checkup is
more than one purpose.”
After the dust has settled,
it’s time for a thorough inspec-
tion of a farm vehicle’s tires and
suspension.
“We just want to make sure
the tires are prepped for win-
ter,” LeBlanc said. “Is there any
checking on the tire? With old-
er tires the rubber gets brittle.
How’s the tread wear? Is the
ballast where it should be? We
look for lug issues and main-
taining the all-important tire
pressure level which, even on
the same tires, varies with the
things it is used for.”
That includes road travel, an
extremely demanding chore for
most farm machines. Adding
a little more pressure may be
called for to help prevent irreg-
ular wear.
Many farmers have learned
to make their own such calcu-
lations, be it with tire charts and
load tables or the use of online
tools that help determine the
ideal pressure based on tractor
weight, what’s being pulled and
the speed traveled.
“A lot of farmers are really
well educated on this and any-
more there are programs, such as
through the ag show,” LeBlanc
said. “Some farmers will check
it every day and everything has
got to be exactly right.”
October 7, 2016
CapitalPress.com
5
Taking care of travelers keeps water coming
By BRENNA WIEGAND
For the Capital Press
Travelers are an irrigation
tool known for their lexibility
and precision. They are also
long-lived machines as long
as they are properly cared for
throughout the year.
Irrigation service techni-
cian Chris Ohler at Ernst Irri-
gation in St. Paul, Ore., works
primarily with such systems.
“Ninety percent of my re-
pairs happen on travelers,”
Ohler said. “They’re basically
giant winches that bring in the
hose and the gun that waters
the ield from up to a quarter
mile away.”
Travelers can be used on
any crop and may be pointed
into a corner of a ield where
no pivots or linears can go.
They are frequently used at
dairies to empty lagoons and
Courtesy Ernst Irrigation
Service technician Chris Ohler of Ernst Irrigation in St. Paul, Ore.,
says travelers are giant winches. The machines are capable of
bringing in up to a quarter-mile of irrigation hose.
distribute manure over ields.
“I’ve got farmers that have
15 machines and farmers that
have one,” Ohler said, “and
they all rely on that machine
to apply water. We want it
turnkey when early spring
hits and not be out there do-
ing drastic repairs at the last
minute.
“It’s like a car; you get in
and the check engine light
comes on and you keep driv-
ing it and you notice that it’s
steering funny and then all
of a sudden it doesn’t stop
as good as it used to,” Ohler
said. “Everything has to work
together right down to the
nozzle and sprinkler at the end
of the hose.”
Ernst Irrigation provides
complete weatherization ser-
vice in late fall and winter
with periodic incentives.
“We grease the ring and
pinion gears, oil the chains,
change the engine oil and
flush the radiator fluid,”
Ohler said. “We drain the
water out of the booster
pump; if you leave water in
there it’s going to crack. …
And you want to blow all the
water out of the hose, too,
because it can rupture if it
freezes.”
Throughout the year it’s
important to pay attention
to your machine, including
keeping an eye on the oil, ra-
diator luid and the purity of
its gasoline. Keep the ilters
clean and the chains tight.
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