The trick to chaining up your tires is to know when to do it. “Let’s put it this way,” says Roy Craigen, manager of the general freight division of Economy Carriers, in Edmonton, “if you wait until you’ve got a problem, you’ve waited too long.”

Chains should be used only to get you from a tough environment to a safe zone. That could mean just getting out of a loading yard, or across an icy patch of pavement. Unless you’re on ice roads or on steep grades where they’re required, you shouldn’t be driving long distances with chains on. “If the roads are that bad, get off the highway, find a safe place, and call it a day,” says Craigen.

If you have to keep the rig moving, here are a few things to keep in mind when putting the chains on so you don’t end up wrestling with them.

Watch where you stop. There are two good reasons to pull well off the road and away from traffic. First, driving conditions are obviously dangerous enough to put you at risk from other vehicles. Second, if your tires are warm and start melting the ice, your wheels might end up sitting in little ice cups, making it tough to move the truck. Worse, if the truck is on an incline, or being pushed by high winds, it could begin to slide. Imagine a 50-mile-an-hour side wind on a set of A-trains, with no load, on a 6% grade, with warm tires. That truck might not sit still, and you don’t want to have your hands underneath it when it starts to go.

Learn how to handle them. Know what you’re doing. Craigen tells of a veteran trucker who’d run from Vancouver to Quebec City for 30 years and still didn’t know how to put chains on properly. Without the proper know-how and training, a simple job can turn into a messy, and potentially dangerous, chore. Practice installing a few times before you actually have to. Use proper chain hangers that slide out from under the chassis, so you’re lifting with your legs, not your back. And put them on tight. If there’s even a little clearance between the tire and the chain, centrifugal force will accentuate it, and could slash close-fitting body panels and moldings. Of course, tire pressure must be adequate to ensure a proper fit.

Play by the rules. There are areas in North America where if you run on chains, you’ll go to jail. There are other areas where if you don’t have them, you’ll go to jail. There are dozens of variations concerning how to use them, and on what axles. In some places, you need to have chains available, even if they’re not needed at the moment. Some jurisdictions, such as Colorado, don’t allow cable chain products on heavy-duty vehicles. In other jurisdictions, cable chains are legal, but their use may be restricted at times, due to local conditions.

Go easy. Avoid spinning the tires, and locking the brakes. And, of course, avoid quick manoeuvres on packed snow and ice, even easy turns or braking can start a dangerous chain reaction which could cause you to lose control. Remember, chains aren’t meant for high speeds, or quick starts. Take off slowly, using very little throttle, and let the chains do their job.

Depending on what style of chain you use, be aware of the driving limitations. Ladder-style chains, for example, offer the least amount of traction (and produce the most noise) since they don’t maintain continuous contact with road surface. Diamond or X-pattern chains, on the other hand, offer better contact are create less confusion for the ABS system. The most effective is a diagonal-pattern chain, which offers constant contact with the road surface, for the best grip.

Take the chains off as soon as they’re no longer needed. On a clean road, not only will they damage the pavement, but chains will reduce your contact with the road.
Chains are not inexpensive. If you put them on when you’re not supposed to, you’ll burn them up and wreck them. A full complement can cost up to $1000 per unit. To help them last longer, wash them after prolonged use and coat them regularly with an all-purpose lubricant.

Winter traction products may be a hassle at times, but they have their place in the arsenal of responsible drivers. As Craigen points out, “A professional truck driver will not put at risk his own safety, the safety of others on the road, and the valuable truck, for the sake of the 15 minutes it would take to put the chains on.”