When you are doubling up your truck tires, you will need to make some changes to the normal tire installation. Here are a few materials that you will need, along with steps to help guide you through the process.

Tools and Materials Needed

• Wheels
• Tire jack
• Tire iron
• Measuring tape

Step 1 – Measure and Purchase

Measure the size of your old tires and decide how much room you have for your tire replacement. Then, you can purchase two tires for that area that will both fit. Your axle will need to be long enough to accommodate extra tires. You may want to check into several tires to make sure that you find some that fit your driving situation and conditions.

Step 2 – Jack Up the Truck and Remove Old Tire

Use the tire jack to crank up the car. You will want to find a steady section under your car near the tire that you can place the stand. Then, slowly crank the jack up until the old tire is off of the ground and make sure that it is secure. Use the tire iron to remove the rim from the old tire. Slowly take off each nut and then place them on the ground. You will need them to install the new tires. Then, with the help of a partner if you need it, remove the old tire from the car.

Step 3 – Install Tires

Make sure that while you work you are watching yourself so they are not directly under the tire in case it does fall on accident. Now, take the first tire and move it onto the car. You may need the help of a partner again. Then, place the other tire onto the car. Secure the rim on like you took it off. Use the tire iron to screw back on each one of the nuts that you took off. Be sure that everything is secure and that you are tightening it all completely.

Step 4 – Lower Truck

Now that the tires are on, you can lower the car back down to the ground. Use the tire jack again to slowly wind down until the tire touches the ground completely. Once it is down, you can take the tire jack and stand away.

Repeat these steps with each one of the four tires. You will need to do at least both front or both back so that you are driving equally. You will want to test the truck out to make sure that it is driving evenly and that you have installed everything properly and the tires are working how they should. In order to do this, you should drive in an area that is close by and goes at a lower speed. You do not want to test out your new tires and handy work on the highway. If you do experience any problems, check again to make sure that everything has been tightened. If there are still problems, bring your truck into truck into an auto shop to have it looked at.

Having the right truck tires is vitally important. The truck depends on those tires and you want something with a long life and that can stand up to all the wear and tear. That’s why knowing about truck tires matters. There are different types of truck tires for different uses–off-road driving has different requirements from the highway, for example. The more you know about truck tires, however, the more informed your decisions will be.

Sidewall

The depth of the sidewall is important with truck tires. If all you’re doing is street driving and not hauling any big weights, then low profile truck tires will work just fine. They’re more for show than for utility. If you regularly carry plenty of weight in your truck then you need a larger sidewall on the truck tires to take all the load. For off-roading buy truck tires with large sidewalls to avoid bottoming out on the rims as you travel over large objects.

Width

The wider the truck tires the greater the amount of contact with the road and the better the truck will handle. Those are the positive aspects, but you also need to be aware of the negatives. More contact with the road can also increase the possibility of slipping on wet roads, and there will also be more noise due to the truck tries. Wider tires can also mean decreased fuel efficiency.

Size

The truck tires must be able to carry the weight of your vehicle and load quite comfortably. Undersizing in this area for the sake of cost and appearance can be incredibly dangerous as your truck tires might blow out at the wrong time. Know the weight capacity of your truck and select tires that are appropriate for it.

Guarantee

Most new truck tires come with some kind of warranty. Be aware of what’s being offered and look for the best warranty for the money. Make sure that after purchase you keep the warranty handy, either in an accessible secure place at home or in the glove box of the truck.

Price

Price can be a factor when shopping for truck tires and different makes will definitely vary in price. Where two brands are equal in the quality and size of the tire and offer similar warranties, it just makes sense to pick the cheaper one–as long as it’s a brand that’s been well-rated and reviewed. Do your homework before buying an unfamiliar brand of tire.

Driving Conditions

If you mostly use your truck for off-roading then it makes sense to buy tires for that purpose. Otherwise you’re faced with a very wide range of choices. Most people will opt for all-weather truck tires as these will be able to cope with virtually all road conditions.

Tire Life

The life of your truck tires will be affected by the way you drive, how you keep them inflated and other factors. Expect to get many thousands of miles from your tires. Most tire companies will offer a guide to expected tire life. Make sure you consult it before buying.

Truck tires can be very unsafe in snow. It’s all to easy to slip and slide around the road. Putting chains on the truck tires gives more control in snow and ice and lets you drive when others can’t. There’s an art to putting chains on truck tires. Once mastered it only takes a few minutes, and if the weather’s bad it’s a few minutes well spent.

Tools and Materials 

• Truck chains
• T cam tool
• Rubber tarp cord 

Step 1 – When to Put On Chains

Depending on where you live, in winter vehicles might only be allowed on the roads if equipped with studded snow tires or with chains. Elsewhere you might need to have chains for certain areas, such as going over high passes. Be prepared and when winter begins, put the chains in your truck.

Step 2 – Inspection

Before starting to put the chains on your truck tires, lay the chains out and inspect them. Look at the cams to ensure they’re not twisted at all, and check all the links for anything that might be broken or missing. The sharp end on the cross chain link should be pointed upward to be certain you don’t damage the sidewalls of the truck tires.

Step 3 – Draping

Lay the chains on the top of the truck tires. Make sure they’re spread fully across the tire tread. Have the chains having equally over the trie. This will make installation much easier. If possible, do this work somewhere covered, such as in the garage, and out of the bad weather. Very slowly and carefully, edge the truck forward, no more than 2 feet. If you’ve draped the chains well, they will now be under the tires with enough chain on either side to work easily.

Step 4 – Hook

There will be a hook on the chain on the inside wall of the wheel. Fasten this to the opposite end on the chain. When you done this, reach and pull the chain hard toward you in order to remove any slack. This will join the chain around the inside of the tire

Step 5 – Cams

Look for the S-cam hook that will be on the outside of the tire, on the chain. Fasten this to the opposite end of the chain. This joins the chain on the outside of the tire. Now you need to tighten the cams that are on the outside of the wheel. The cam should look like a half moon with a slot. Put the square end of the T-cam tool into the slot and turn it until the cam is locked into place. The chain is now secure on the truck tire.

Step 6 – Tension

To give proper tension to the chains, take a short rubber bungee cord. Fasten it to the chains across the width of the tire, going back and forth until it’s taut. Have the hooks pointing outward so they can’t puncture the sidewalls of the truck tires. Drive about ¼ of a mile then stop and adjust the tension. Keep checking the chains on the trucks tires every 15 miles.

Truck tires do wear out eventually. However, that should not be for a long time after you buy them, assuming you just drive normally. But what kind of life should you reasonably expect from your truck tires and what can you do to extend that life?

Tire Construction

For most trucks, both pickups and commercial, the tires are usually made of  3 or 4 steel belts under a single ply that’s a steel body under the tire itself. The intent is that these tires will manage many thousands of miles on their original treads and then be retreaded (the retread truck tires you can purchase).

Age Limit

There are those who advocate an age limit on truck tires. The date of manufacture is in the sidewall of the truck tires. It’s part of the Department of Transportation number that’s there.

Those who favor the age limit do so regardless of the wear or tread left in the tire. However, many are against this, arguing that with commercial tires in particular, regular inspections will detect any faults that occur and ensure that the tires are legal on tread.

Replacement

Truck tires should be replaced if there are any bulges in the sidewalls as these could be potentially dangerous. In most states the minimum legal tread of trick tires is 3/32 of an inch. To judge the depth, put a one cent coin (penny) into the tread, with Lincoln’s head down. If the tread is at or above the head, you need to replace the tires. Most new tires will have wear bars that will indicate when the tires need to be replaced.

Driving Style

The way you drive will affect how long the tires last. It’s important to keep the tires and the recommended air pressure for the vehicle and the loads. This will extend the life of the truck tires. Accelerating and braking gradually, rather than suddenly, will also help the tires last longer, as well as increasing gas mileage.

Rotating the tires regularly so that all the tires wear evenly will help the tires to last longer. Check the tires regularly for wear. If there’s excessive wear on the inside or outside of the tread the truck might need to be aligned.

Quality

The better the tire, the longer it will last. Good quality can make a difference of between 10,000 and 20,000 miles over the life of a truck tire. Look at the labels; manufacturers will give an estimate of how long the tires should last. Be aware that this is nothing more than an estimate or rough guide. Too many factors come into play for it to be more than that.

Lifespan

As a general rule truck tires should last between 25,000 miles and 50,000 miles. With regular maintenance and attention, however, that figure could increase by up to 50 percent. That could give you a life on the tire of up to 75,000 miles before the truck tires have to be replaced.

Truck tires wear out in time. There’s no avoiding that. After thousands of miles the friction will wear down the tread and they’ll need to be replaced. The real trick is making them last as long as possible. There are a number of things that can be done to be sure that the truck tires don’t wear out too quickly.

Inflation

Having the truck tires at the proper pressure will help extend their lives. Both under-inflation and over-inflation will cause truck tires to wear down sooner. Under-inflation can be the biggest problem as the pressure on the tires from the weight of the vehicle is so much greater, and more of the tread area is meeting the road. These two factors combine to create more friction which leads to more rapid tire wear. It will also cause lower gas mileage, which in turn means greater running expense for the truck.

Over-inflation is just as bad in its own way. There’s much more pressure on the tires. If the truck is carrying a heavy load then the tire is more liable to burst from the increased weight on a tire that’s already under excess pressure. The signs of wear will first be apparent in the center of the tread as this will have most contact with the road.

Driving

The way a truck is driven will have an effect on the wear of the truck tires. Quick acceleration and sharp braking both cause greater tire wear, for instance. Good driving habits, including smooth acceleration and gradual braking will help the truck tires last a great deal longer.

Sharp braking, in particular, is a major cause of tire wear, as rubber is left on the rubber. That rubber comes off the tread of the tire. By learning good driving habits–and in many cases they really do have to be learned–you’ll increase the life of your truck tires, possibly by a few thousand miles.

Load

A truck has a maximum payload. That number is designated for a reason. It’s not built to take more weight that that. The suspension and the tires can only accommodate that amount. By exceeding it, especially on a regular basis, you not only shorten the life of the truck tires, but also of the truck itself.

It’s worth knowing the payload of the truck and being careful not to try and carry of pull anything in excess of that. Doing so gives more drag on the tires so they wear down more quickly and can also end up with the engine burning out – a costly repair indeed.

Tire Quality

Buying good tires means that the tires will last longer. Not all truck tires are created equal. What might seem like a real bargain will prove to be no bargain at all if the tires wear out quickly. Select the correct size of tire for the truck and go for tires with tread that’s suitable for the truck’s use. A truck that’s used off-road often will require different tires to one that only drives on blacktop, for example. Buy the best tires you can afford, and ones with a good warranty. Make sure that the truck is correctly aligned. All of these things will help the truck tires last.

Bearing down: NASA’S Global Hawk flies over the eye of Hurricane Earl. Thus far it has made numerous passes over the eye and will continue to monitor the storm until Thursday evening.   Credit: NASA/NOAA

As Hurricane Earl barrels toward the eastern seaboard of the United States, coastal residents don’t know if they should evacuate in case the storm makes landfall. They rely on forecasters analyzing computer models, but those predictions differ. A new hurricane-monitoring mission that’s now underway hopes to reduce this uncertainty by gathering atmospheric and environmental storm data never before obtained.

NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the National Science Foundation (NSF) are conducting the largest tropical storm and hurricane monitoring mission to date. The mission involves simultaneously flying up to seven aircraft, each equipped with sophisticated instrumentation, to gather data from the time of a storm’s inception to its dissipation.

“There is a lot about storms that we don’t know–why does a storm rapidly intensify? How do things like aerosols, atmospheric moisture, and ocean currents affect a storm’s development?” says Gerry Heymsfield, a NASA mission scientist. “The new measurements we are making will significantly enhance our understanding and ultimately improve forecast models.”

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The collaborative hurricane monitoring project includes three different missions: NASA’s Genesis and Rapid Intensification Processes experiment, which will focus on how tropical storms form and develop into hurricanes; NOAA’s Intensity Forecasting Experiment, designed to better understand and predict intensity changes in storms like Hurricane Earl; and NSF’s Pre-Depression Investigation of Cloud Systems in the Tropics project, which will look at the beginning stages of a storm. The missions began in late August and will continue to the end of September. Hurricane Earl, says Heymsfield, will be one of the first storms to produce enough data to yield compelling results.

On Monday, NASA’s DC-8 aircraft and NOAA’s two jet planes flew through Hurricane Earl as it passed through the Caribbean. Although most of the information gathered will take years to analyze, the aircraft do obtain some real-time data using dropsondes, which are balloons dropped into the storm. The dropsondes measure the storm’s temperature, humidity, and pressure. The information provides a profile of the hurricane that can be assimilated into mathematical models for forecasting its track and intensity. Other instrumentation on the planes measure such things as precipitation rate, cloud distribution, winds, water content, and particle profiles.

A small fleet of privately developed spacecraft will head into orbit in the next few years–assuming that current levels of public and private funding can be sustained. If it happens, this will mark a new chapter in space exploration and research, as NASA comes to rely more on private companies for the technology to put manned and unmanned vehicles in space.

Progress reports from several private space companies at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics’s Space 2010 conference, in Anaheim, CA, reveal new details of spacecraft design as well as testing and flight schedules.

To develop their new spacecraft, these companies have received financial assistance from NASA for reaching various milestones under the so-called Commercial Orbital Transportation Services and Commercial Crew Development programs, which are oriented toward getting commercial providers to deliver cargo, and eventually crews, to the International Space Station. But since supplying the ISS is a somewhat limited market, and subject to the funding whims of Congress, the manufacturers hope to bring in additional revenue by opening up new markets for their vehicles.

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Furthest along in developing a viable spacecraft is SpaceX, headquartered in Hawthorne, CA, and founded by Internet millionaire and energy entrepreneur Elon Musk. SpaceX is developing a reusable spacecraft, called Dragon, and a launch vehicle, the Falcon 9. The Falcon 9 had a successful test flight in June. It went into orbit at 250 kilometers. The Dragon spacecraft, which resembles an Apollo capsule, successfully completed a high-altitude drop test using its reentry parachutes three weeks ago.

Orbital tests of the spacecraft are expected to begin later this year, prior to its first resupply mission to the ISS in 2011. Although the Dragon will initially just transport cargo, it is being designed with human passengers in mind, and should require minimal modifications before it can ferry crews to and from orbit. Beyond missions to the ISS, SpaceX plans to fly refurbished Dragon spacecraft under its DragonLab program, offering scientific or engineering researchers pressurized and unpressurized environments for experiments they want conducted in zero gravity or in the vacuum of space.

MONDAY, Aug. 30 (HealthDay News) — All children and adolescents 6 months of age and older should receive the annual trivalent influenza vaccine this flu season, according to updated recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics.The AAP also says special efforts should be made to immunize anyone who falls into the following categories: all family members, household contacts and out-of-home care providers of children younger than 5 years of age; children with high-risk conditions such as asthma, diabetes and neurological disorders; health care workers; and pregnant women.

These groups are most vulnerable to flu-related complications, the academy pointed out in a news release.

Two influenza vaccines were recommended last year but only one trivalent vaccine is being made for the 2010-11 seasonal influenza vaccine schedule. In this year’s trivalent vaccine, the 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) strain has replaced last year’s influenza A (H1N1) strain. The new vaccine also includes two other strains of flu virus.

The seasonal flu vaccine policy statement was released online Monday and will be published in the October print issue of the journal Pediatrics.

Other recommendations included in the policy statement are as follows:

• Children younger than 6 months of age should not receive influenza vaccine because they are too young.
• For children 9 years of age and older, only one dose is needed.
• For children younger than 9 years but older than 6 months, a minimum of two doses of 2009 pandemic H1N1 vaccine is needed. If they already received the H1N1 vaccine during last year’s flu season, one dose of vaccine is needed this year, otherwise they will need two doses of seasonal influenza vaccine this year.
• Those under 9 years of age who have never received the seasonal flu vaccine before will need two doses this year.
• Children younger than 9 years who received seasonal flu vaccine last year for the first time, but only received one dose, should receive two doses this year.
• Also, those under 9 years who received a flu vaccine last year, but for whom it is unclear whether it was a seasonal flu vaccine or the H1N1 flu vaccine, should receive two doses this year.
• All children who are recommended to get two doses this year should receive the second dose at least four weeks after the first dose.

– Robert Preidt

Copyright © 2010 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

SOURCE: American Academy of Pediatrics, news release, Aug. 30, 2010

MONDAY, Aug. 30 (HealthDay News) — A number of factors put patients with abnormal fatty deposits in an artery at high risk for heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular death, a new study shows.Patients in various stages of this condition — atherothrombosis — are at increased risk for heart attack and stroke stemming from reduced blood flow from the artery blockage, but some are at greater risk than others. In an analysis of more than 45,000 patients, the researchers found that patients with abnormal fatty deposits in an artery were at highest risk if they had a prior history of heart attack or other emergencies linked to an artery blockage.

Narrowing of the arteries in various locations also substantially increased the risk for patients with atherothrombosis, as did diabetes for all the patients — even those with only the risk factors for atherothrombosis.

Knowing that these factors boost the risk can help physicians take preventive action, according to the researchers, who are from the VA Boston Healthcare System, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston.

The researchers analyzed data from 45,227 patients enrolled in an international study known as Reduction of Atherothrombosis for Continued Health (REACH) between 2003 and 2004. They collected detailed information from the patients when they enrolled and conducted follow-ups one, two, three and four years later.

They found that 81.3% of the patients had hypertension, 70.4% had high cholesterol levels in the blood, and 15.9% had polyvascular disease (narrowing of the arteries in numerous locations). In addition, 48.4% of the patients had “ischemic events” — prior heart attacks, unstable angina or other problems related to the artery blockage, with 28.1% of those patients having had such an event within the previous year.

During the follow-up period, 2,315 patients suffered cardiovascular death, 1,228 had a heart attack, 1,898 had a stroke, and 40 had a heart attack and a stroke on the same day.

The researchers found that patients with atherothrombosis with a prior history of heart attacks and other events related to a blood vessel blockage had the highest rate of subsequent cardiac emergencies linked to blood flow problems. Patients with stable heart, cerebrovascular or peripheral artery disease had a lower risk, while the risk was lowest among those with risk factors for atherothrombosis but without established disease.

“Among all categories of patients, diabetes substantially increase the risk of future ischemic events,” the study authors wrote. “In those with established atherothrombosis, polyvascular disease was a particularly strong independent risk factor, even stronger than diabetes.”

The findings show that “there is a whole spectrum of [emergencies relating to artery blockage and blood flow] in patients with risk factors or with established cardiovascular disease — easily ascertainable clinical characteristics are the prominent factors associated with a high risk of future ischemic events,” they concluded.

The study appears online and in the Sept. 22 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association and is slated to be presented Monday at the European Society of Cardiology meeting in Sweden.

– Robert Preidt

Copyright © 2010 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

SOURCE: Journal of the American Medical Association, Aug. 30, 2010, news release.

French patio doors are a pair of tall double doors with long window panels inset in the middle of each door. They are sometimes called French windows or casement doors.

Design

French patio doors will generally stretch from floor to ceiling height, so they will need to have a weather strip at the bottom to stop rain water and drafts from coming through. They are designed so that the long glass panes, often known as lights, will let in as much natural light into your home as possible.

French Doors in the Home

French doors are often used to open up a room onto a patio or balcony. However they are often used inside the home too to link adjoining rooms and create a feeling of space and airiness. This is more desirable than having a solid wall.

Modern French Doors

The French door style has been adpated to give many options for your home. If you are purchasing French doors, you will find that they are available in a variety of designs. Rather than a simple inward or outward motion, doors are now manufactured to slide open, or open in a concertina fashion. This may suit you if you are lacking space in your house.