Every year, we take at least one family road trip during winter months. This year, we’re taking not one, but TWO! Back in December we drove to Mont Tremblant for a few days of skiing. This week we’ll be embarking on another road trip to Vermont for 5 days of skiing at the beautiful Smugglers Notch. We are so excited!
Living in Canada, though, we don’t take winter driving for granted. I remember about 10 years ago when I went to pick up John from work on a cold and snowy day in Toronto. Most cars were slipping and sliding all over the roads, including a few who couldn’t make it up a hill on a main street. I was so grateful for our winter tires as it was much easier and safer for us to navigate through the chaos on the roads.
That’s why every year we make a point of changing our tires seasonally. Right before we left for our trip to Tremblant, we stopped by our local auto repair shop and put on our winter tires, and got our oil changed. Recently, before we head to Vermont, we went back to get new brakes and windshield wipers. While putting on winter tires is a great first step for safe winter driving, on-going tire maintenance is just as important.
Here are some tips from the Ontario Tire Stewardship on how to properly maintain your winter tires to help save you costs and ensure you are driving safely on slick surfaces:
- Check your Tire Pressure monthly or when the temperature changes drastically. Remember the flash freeze we had this winter? When that happens, check your tires’ pressure levels.
- You should get your tires rotated every 10,000 kilometres. Rotating your tires can help balance the wear-and-tear.
- Your car’s alignment should be checked annually or sooner if you feel like the car is drifting to one side when you are driving. When your car is not aligned, it may lead to uneven tire wear, and that means a shorter life expectancy for your tires.
- Check your tire tread depth to ensure it is at least 3.2 millimetres. You should also examine your tires for any cuts, punctures or irregular wear.
If your tires have outlived their lifespan and are no longer in good working condition, it’s time to replace them for some new tires. As a rule of thumb, winter tires should be replaced every two-to-three seasons. And when the time comes to replace your old tires, make sure to drop off your used tires, free of charge, at a registered Ontario Tire Stewardship collector. This will ensure that your tires will be properly recycled into a variety of rubber products that can be used around your home, garden, driveway, or even in your local arena, community centre or outdoor skating rink. We have a recycled rubber front door mat that has saved our front hall floors this winter and a great big rubber urn that doubles as a hockey stick holder over the winter months.
Do your part to ensure you’re practicing safe tire maintenance year-round, and especially throughout the winter months. Visit www.RethinkTires.ca for more tips on how to make your tires last as long as possible and to find a find a registered collector to drop off your old tires.
Disclosure: This post was sponsored by The Ontario Tire Stewardship. In exchange for this post, I have received compensation. All opinions on this blog are my own.