Smallest tires to swap onto Escape for getting in and out of garage

[nerak31]

Can anyone provide direct links to the smallest tires that we can temporarily install on our 17A to roll it in and out of our 8' garage door? NOTE: not for driving purposes!

Here's our saga: we were able to get the 17A into our garage for the winter by removing the tires, setting the hubcaps on wheel skates, and very carefully pushing it into our garage. It wasn't easy, though, and it took us a long time. Once in the garage, we put the tires back on, and it's been happily stored in our heated garage and out of the elements for the past 6 months. Now, as the snow starts to melt and we're dreaming about summer camping trips, I'm thinking about how to get the trailer back out without repeating this whole ordeal. I got 3 recent quotes for raising the door header, and they range from $7k to $8k. Ouch. I'd rather put that money toward a new tow vehicle.

Our next thought is use smaller tires instead of the wheel skates, since they were so hard to maneuver. We'd only have to swap them out twice a year, for winter storage in our garage. I had originally bought 8" tires on Amazon with the right 2.5" lugnut pattern, but the recess pattern on the hubcap didn't match. Has anyone else bought/found smaller temporary tires for their Escape? Which ones worked for you?

On some other threads, some have suggested just wheeling the trailer on the rims or swapping out old rims for this purpose, but I don't want to scratch up our driveway or garage floors. Also, we had tried deflating the tires and were able to clear the solar panel, but not the fan! Looked into removing the fan, but that seemed a bit more involved and not as straight-forward!

Thank you!

[tractors1]

I'd go with bare rims on 1/4 inch plywood (move sheets as you move the trailer along). I had one I hauled backwards with a boat winch mounted on the back wall of the garage and a rope threaded through the rear receiver (where the cross pin goes.) Going forward no problem - just hitch it to the tow vehicle!

[Eggscape]

Yup...can’t go wrong with rims on plywood to get as low as you can. Just leave them on all winter. Should be able to get a cheap set on Facebooks Market place for around $25 a pair. They just have to fit over the brake drum. Take a measurement of the drum or cut a bucket that is the same size as the drum and take it with you when you go to pick them up to make sure they fit.

The other option if you have room is to find two small temporary spares. Usually they have big rims to clear the drum but thin tires. Something in a 13 inch or less might work. However you will probably have to go to an auto wrecker to get a matched set.

[NEWYORKHILLBILLY]

I had this same issue with my casita . I found 12" tires on rims at tractor supply in my case it worked. Still a PITA .I guess it depends on how much room you need. I also seen a thread where thru made wheels out of 3/4 plywood and rolled it in that way. 7-8K to raise door seems high. for that price i look into digging down two tracks as you enter door. have to cut some concrete out . I seen this done also.

[Bobbie54]

I had the door raised, but if I could have raised it to 10 and put in a regular door it would have been cheaper- it was still less than $7K but carriage doors made it more than a roll up door would have been. Worth it to me as I don't just go in for the whole winter and out for the summer.

[TimJan]

I use 12 inch wheels with tires from tractor supply on our 17B to fit under an 8 foot garage door. We don't have an air conditioner on the trailer and it fits nicely through that door opening.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by NEWYORKHILLBILLY

I had this same issue with my casita . I found 12" tires on rims at tractor supply in my case it worked. Still a PITA .I guess it depends on how much room you need.

Originally Posted by TimJan

I use 12 inch wheels with tires from tractor supply on our 17B to fit under an 8 foot garage door. We don't have an air conditioner on the trailer and it fits nicely through that door opening.

Are these what you guys used? Has the proper bolt pattern for Escape hubs.
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/pr...-in-tire-wheel

[TimJan]

Sure looks like it. I haven't had any problems using those smaller wheels to fit under my door opening. I just leave the small wheels on until I pull the trailer out in the spring. It is a little bit of extra work swapping wheels on and off, but worth it to be able to store the trailer inside through the winter. And much cheaper than trying to raise the door header to get a taller door.

[C&G in FL]

Walmart sells smaller rims with smaller tires (same 5 bolt/stud pattern) as the stock wheels. My only question is why would you put the “regular” wheels back on once in the garage, only to have to repeat the process at extraction time. Get 4-2X4 pieces and a set of 4 stacker jacks, put one jack on each corner of the frame to eliminate all of the weight on the smaller wheels/tires. Much quicker to remove the stackers and less of a PITA swapping tires 4 times for ever in-and-out cycle. I agree with TimJan on that. You can probably get the wheels and jack for around $100, + or -.

[nerak31]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Are these what you guys used? Has the proper bolt pattern for Escape hubs.
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/pr...-in-tire-wheel

THANK YOU, Rubicon! I'll take a closer look at these and may give them a try!