Guide: Will Studded Tires Damage Your Garage Floor?

Studded tires are often a must if the area you live in is subject to heavy snow often; however, studded tires come with their own set of pros and cons. People commonly wonder whether these studs will damage their driveway or garage floor.

Studded tires will eventually cause damage to your garage floor and driveway, creating little ruts where the studs dig into the ground. The damage will be more extensive if you have a coated garage floor.

There are a lot of pros and cons of studded tires. The rest of this article will go into depth on why studded tires might be right for you and how to reduce damage to your garage.

Just What Are Studded Tires and Why Do They Damage the Floor?

Studded tires have 80-100 small tungsten carbide protrusions that allow greater traction in weather conditions where the road is slippery or icy. They are designed to make driving easier, particularly during the winter where road conditions are extremely volatile.

Naturally, the tire marks and ruts they make can also affect your garage floor, regardless of the material your floor is made of.

Going in and out of a garage on studded tires will eventually cause those ruts to become visible. The effect will be much more noticeable if you have coated garage floors.

What Are the Cons of Studded Tires?

Studded tires are great where they’re intended, but there are some things you should keep in mind when using them. First, studded tires have a much longer break-in period where you should avoid going above 30mph for the first 60 miles or so.

Avoid rapid acceleration or hard braking. Accelerating quickly can damage the studs (and the road). Since studded tires have a slower average braking time than a regular tire, you want to avoid needing to stop quickly as well.

Useful as they may be, studded tires have a history of damaging roads they are used on, leading some states to limit their use.

Some states permit studded tires to be used in the winter season, while others ban them entirely. Indeed, studded tires wear down the road much faster than their smooth counterparts and wear out a lot faster, too.

Because of these downsides, some companies are attempting to innovate by making retractable studded tires that can be used year-round.

Are Studded Tires Worth the Damage?

In places that have dangerous winter road conditions, studded or chained tires are an absolute must have, providing essential traction and handling.

On the other hand, there are also smooth winter tires that may prove to be more versatile since studded tires perform poorly in rainy conditions where they actually reduce the amount of traction you have.

When used outside of their intended conditions, studded tires have a much shorter lifespan and can cause much more damage to the road.

They are also more expensive than regular tires, so studded tires are only for you if you live somewhere that has frequent icy or snowy weather.

Thankfully, if you believe studded tires are the best choice for you to keep you safe on the road, there are several precautions you can take to help protect your garage floor from studded tire damages.

How to Protect Your Garage from Damage Caused by Studded Tires (and Regular Tires)

If you’ve put any effort into polishing up your garage floor, then you’ll know just how frustrating it can be when those tire marks start to show up. Add the little ruts caused by studded tires, and you might find your otherwise tidy garage looking a bit messy.

There are plenty of options when it comes to protecting your garage floor.

Concrete Sealers

Concrete sealers are your first line of defense against tire damage. Penetrating sealers can help stop any water brought in by your tires from seeping through the concrete and damaging it from inside.

Topical Sealers

Topical sealers can help keep your floor looking pristine, but these require regular reapplication or a mat protecting the film. The most beneficial kind of sealer, however, is a high build film sealer, which are often made from epoxy.

Epoxy Sealers

Extremely impact resistant, epoxy sealers are ideal for keeping the finish on a garage floor and protecting it from studded tire damage; however, some argue that epoxy isn’t ideal in very hot or cold weather and recommend a polyaspartic floor coating instead.

Either way, if you’re looking for a floor coating, you’ll probably spend anywhere from $1000 to $2500 for a professional job.

Other Options

Another valuable solution for protecting your garage floor (and maybe your new floor coating) is to invest in some protector strips. Mats, rugs, and parking pads are all useful, too.

The primary use for these is to put one more layer between your car and the garage floor, but they’re also useful to contain excess moisture brought in from the outside. Just be sure to keep these clean by emptying them out every once in a while.

Lastly, as a general tip for tires both studded and non-studded, if you’ve been out on a long drive, be sure to hose off the tires before bringing them into the garage.

That way, you’ll remove any dirt and grime that’s built up on the tires as well as cooling them down to prevent tire marks.

Conclusion

It’s no doubt that studded tires are invaluable in places where roads are often subject to ice and snow, but make no mistake, studded tires will damage your garage floor if you don’t take preventative measures.

Most common protection methods are useful for studded tires as well. Using concrete sealers to add a layer of protection or an epoxy or polyaspartic floor coating can help protect your floor.

In addition, there’s nothing simpler than getting a mat or floor strip for your car to rest on so that it’s not digging into the concrete or dripping water on your garage.

Hopefully, with some straightforward precautions, you are well equipped to protect your garage floor from being damaged by studded tires.

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Guide: Will Studded Tires Damage Your Garage Floor?