Uptime is crucial for managing heavy machinery. The longer your equipment is operational, the higher your productivity and profits. This also applies to heavy-duty vehicles like tractors and other farm equipment. With harvest season here, and our dedicated farm tyre category serving Indian farmers, we're sharing important tips for tractor tyre maintenance and usage.

These tips pertain to the importance of proper tyre inflation in your farming equipment. Following these simple steps can not only protect your tyres but also improve your farm's productivity and profits.

Importance of Proper Inflation in Tyres

When dealing with any type of tyre, inflation is one of the key aspects for maintaining performance and longevity. If it's true for car tyres, then it's also true for tractor tyres. By ensuring that the tractor and trolley tyres are properly inflated, you can benefit from ideal uptime while also reducing the risk of mishaps when hauling the produce to the market.

Here are five reasons why proper inflation is important for tractor tyres and other farm equipment.

1. Protecting Your Field and Crops

Improper tractor tyre inflation can lead to soil compaction in the field as the tyre presses down on the earth and prevents budding plants from taking root. Soil compaction can also cause irrigation problems as the water runs off the surface instead of penetrating the earth, especially in clayey soil conditions.

Eventually, these small things combine to impact your yield. So, make sure your farm equipment tyres are inflated to the proper recommendations from the manufacturer.

2. Improved Productivity

Not all tractor tyres are built the same. A high-strength tractor tyre like the Apollo Virat helps you in regular field operations and load-bearing through tricky terrain. On the other hand, a specialist tyre like the Apollo FX-333, which we also call "Puddling ka Champion," will help you in paddy crop cultivation. Similarly, you will need one of our small tractor tyres for orchard operation. The point is, using tractor tyres according to specific use cases has become more common nowadays. It not only improves your productivity but also contributes to better yields and profitability. Moreover, when you are using a purpose-built tractor tyre, you will need fewer tyre replacements over time.

But to use these tyres to their full potential, you need to have proper inflation. Here are some general guidelines for maintaining tractor tyres for different use cases:

• Field Regular Field Operations: Make sure the tyres are not overinflated and are free from tread or sidewall damage.

• For Plowing: Slightly under-inflating your tyres will help in increasing traction and can reduce wear on your tyres and connected farming equipment.

• On Roads & Haulage: Apart from checking your tractor tyres for any visible or invisible damage, it can be a good idea to slightly over-inflate them when using on the road. Inflating the tyres up to 2 extra bars can help in reducing rolling resistance, which in turns helps in maintaining speeds and reducing fuel consumption.

3. Reducing Work Fatigue

Farm operations often require long working hours on the machinery. Overinflated or under-inflated tyres can create rideability issues that stress your limbs, back, and neck. Ideal tyre inflation ensures proper tyre traction, resulting in better steering response, relieving your limbs.

Moreover, well maintained tyres also improve your tractor’s shock absorption capabilities. As tractors do not have a sophisticated suspension setup like a car would, the tyres become an important component in protecting your back and neck from shocks and bumps.

4. Safer Operations

Operating heavy machinery like tractors and combine harvesters always has a certain degree of risk involved. Well-maintained farm tyres help in reducing the risk of tyre slippage and spinning when operating in muddy or wet conditions. Also, a properly inflated tractor tyre will be less prone to blowouts when driven under high stress conditions.

5. Protection from Temperature Changes

Yes, temperature can also increase or decrease the usability and failure rate of your farm tyres.

In India, where we experience scalding hot summers that can reach 49°C or more and biting winters that can dip the temperatures below 0°C, you need to monitor your tractor tyre pressure and health regularly. Overinflated tyres can become a blowout risk when driven on hot tarmac under heavy load, or cause handling issues on cold and dewy winter roads.

Similarly, riding worn-out and under inflated tractor tyres is a common case for tractor tyre failures in India. We often come across tractors and trolleys with blown out tyres on roads. This is not only dangerous for the driver and others on the road but also causes monetary loss in the form of spilled or wasted produce.

Final Thoughts

Awareness about farm equipment maintenance is quite low in India. Often these vehicles are used in rough and tough conditions with the assumption that they can be used without consequence until something breaks down. Generally, maintenance and repairs are only initiated after an incapacitating mishap. This not only creates a hazardous scenario for the operator but also brings uncertainty to continuous operation, often resulting in productivity loss.

This blog is part of our endeavor to educate farm equipment operators and farmers about the importance of basic equipment maintenance, starting with something as simple as your tractor tyres.

Looking for New Tractor Tyres?

At Apollo, we have been serving Indian farmers with great products like the Farmking, Krishak Gold, Virat, and the FX series, setting new benchmarks for performance, safety and uptime.

To browse the full list of Apollo farm tyre range, click here.