Whenever the RealAg team gets to visit Agritechnica in Germany, central tire inflation system technologies seem to be everywhere.
It’s not as common over on this continent, and there’s a lot of discussion surrounding the “why not” of having it. However, our resident agronomist Peter “Whete Pete” Johnson recently found some evidence of the positives of having the system.
“For anybody who doesn’t understand central tire inflation system, basically it means you can change your tire pressure on the go,” says Johnson.
For highway travel, a harder, more inflated tire is desirable. If you’re in the field, though, you want a soft, less inflated tire, as more contact area on the soil surface means more traction. The central tire inflation system allows the switch between high and low inflation pressures, which makes for safer road travel, and less tire wear.
Hear the full conversation between Johnson and Haney, story continues below:
The cost of the system? Nobody really wants to pay around $25,000 to $30,000, but if you’re on the road a lot between fields like the farmers Johnson talked to, you can make your tires stretch further — getting almost 9,000 hours out of one set of tires, according to some.
Not only does a system like this save your tires, it also saves on fuel — about a 15 per cent improvement on fuel economy. On top of that, Johnson didn’t even mention the yield gains from less compaction, which in certain years (and years forward) could add up to a major recoup of the initial cost.
Related: A look forward to Agritechnica 2019
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