Buying Guide for Snow Chains
Driving in snow or mud is difficult and most people prefer other ways instead of going on snowy roads. However, if you have equipped wheels of your vehicle with the right quality snow chains, you don’t have to avoid driving on snow or ice. A snow chain is a chained device that can be attached to your vehicle’s wheels or tires to provide extra traction and maximum grip while driving on ice, snow, or mud. Snow chains are usually attached to the driving wheel of the car, SUV, or truck.
Due to snow chains, the kinetic swing of the driving wheel never stops. These chains can be made from a variety of materials and come in various sizes and patterns. Explore our wide range of snow chains to find the best options for you.
Benefits of Snow Chains
Traction in Snow
Snow usually is slippery and driving becomes difficult and dangerous in heavy snowy conditions. But, if you have a snow chain on your car’s wheels, you can easily cross snow or ice on roads. Snow chains grip the road perfectly and provide better traction when the tire comes in contact with snow and ice.
Breakdown of Ice
Another beneficial factor about snow chains is their ability to break down snow on roads. Snow chains are made of hard materials and when they come under the tire, they crush the snow present on roads or ground. All because of the heavy weight of the vehicle combined with the strength of the snow chains.
Take Safe Turns
Driving on snowy roads without proper attachments or devices is like being on an adventure ride. Especially, when you take turns, the tire of your car slips and lose grip. However, by installing snow chains, you can take safe turns easily. Snow chains maintain a constant grip on roads, which allows you to take even sharp or speedy turns, safely.
Speed and Efficiency
People often prefer long routes instead of short ones, when there is snow in the middle. However, the snow chains not just allow you to drive on snowy roads safely, but also speedily. This saves you a lot of time and you can reach your destination quickly and fast. Even in terms of efficiency, snow chains offer an excellent solution. Taking quick routes will allow you to save on your fuel cost and also, it will reduce your travel time.
Factors to Consider Before Buying Snow Chains
Check Your Wheel’s Clearance
Before buying a specific model, remember, not all vehicles come with wheels, which have enough clearance space for snow chains. And, some vehicles only support specific snow chains. The clearance is the space between the wheel and the tire. If your vehicle doesn’t offer such clearances, equipping your tires with any tire chain can be risky.
Select the Right Size
Choosing the chain that fits perfectly with your car’s wheel is the most important consideration. Every snow chain comes with a size number that includes the tire’s width, height ratio, and wheel diameter. For choosing the right size, you must know all these sizes properly. You can check your car’s manual to get precise information about your car’s wheels.
Choose the Right Type
Snow chains come in different variants. Choosing the right one depends on how and where you are going to use them. Whether you are looking to use them on moderate ice or deep snow or looking to buy a model that you can use on and off-road easily, it is best to keep the size in mind while buying snow chains If you are looking for deep snow driving, then you should look for square chains, and for breaking the ice, look for chains with extra spikes or studs.
Installation and Tensioning
Now, after selecting all other specifications, it’s important to determine how often you will use these snow chains. If you have to install and remove these chains, much more often, then you should go with models that are easy to install and come with automatic tensioning. Else, if you just want to buy them just for emergency use, you can also consider buying budget-friendly chains that come with manual tensioning.
Conclusion
Snow chains are the best convenient and efficient solution for driving your cars or other vehicles on snow and ice. But you need to know that these chains are not suitable for all conditions. In non-snowy conditions, you can not drive with these chains. Thus, you need to ensure you buy the right model as per your usage and requirements.
Do check the installation guide to see how to install and set up these chains, easily. To know more about your buying options, look through some of the premium snow chains that we have listed in our featured section above. They are reviewed and recommended based on their quality, performance, and durability. After reading hundreds of reviews, we recommend top snow chains.