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Continental tyre specialist Tom Godwin offers some top tips to  get the best from autumn cultivations after a challenging season. 1. Load pressure The... 5 top tyre cultivation tips

Continental tyre specialist Tom Godwin offers some top tips to  get the best from autumn cultivations after a challenging season.

1. Load pressure

The load a tyre can carry is provided on the sidewall – as a number for the load index, and as a letter for the speed index.

Using these details and the tractor’s manual to establish its axle weight tolerances and gross weight provides most of the information needed to calculate pressure for load.

From this data and a load/inflation table – or a mobile app – it is possible to accurately measure the load for each axle Our Continental TireTech App makes this relatively simple calculation can save hours of time and gallons of fuel, while protecting soil health.

2. Reduce compaction

Calculating pressure for load can be used to increase machinery performance and efficiency while reducing soil compaction. This is vital to crop establishment, soil health and machine efficiency.

Reducing tyre pressure can reduce slip. This will improve grip and forward speed while reducing fuel consumption. It also reduces the impact of the tractor’s weight on the soil.

When pulling cultivation equipment, the weight of both implement and tractor should be calculated to establish the optimum pressure for the combined load. This will ensure both tractor and implement work to their full potential.

3. Save fuel

Red diesel prices are only going one way – and that is up. This means even small savings can become significant savings over the course of a year.

In a series of tests with Continental TractorMaster tyres, we ran a Fendt 724 Gen 6 with a Kuhn Optimer at 21 psi and 12 psi. The difference saw the slip drop from over 50% to below 10% when the pressure was lowered. This is represents a significant fuel saving across a wide area and well worth the short amount of time needed to adjust tyre pressures.

4. Ploughing

There is often a need to plough in some areas to either alleviate soil compaction or provide a suitable seedbed. Whether using an on-land or in-furrow plough, the same need for grip remains.

Self-cleaning tyre lugs will help tyres shed soil. However, more important is the choice of tyre. A narrow tyre will suit in-furrow ploughing, whilst a wider tyre will be better for an on-land plough.

6. Road and field

Reducing operating pressure when transitioning from road to field will help all aspects of tractor operation, especially in soft, wet conditions.

Retrofitting a central tyre inflation system (CTIS), or making the most of an onboard OE factory-fitted air system, can provide significant improvements to grip and operating costs.

With grants available for up to 50% of the cost of a CTIS, the benefits far outweigh the investment cost.