Tractor Mike's video: Don t Let Tractor Rollover Ruin Your Day 10 Ways to Keep You Safe

Most of us who run small tractors have to deal with hills. The farmers are keeping the rich flat ground, those of us who "homestead" in the country get the hilly ground. Slopes and tractors don't go well together. If you just bought your first tractor, or if you grew up farming, you can never be too careful when operating on slopes. Today I give you ten ways to avoid a rollover, or at least keep turning your tractor over from ruining your day. The first four things revolve around how to prevent a rollover before you even go to the field, and the top one of all is to have a tractor that is properly ballasted. Ballast can come in the form of a non-corrosive fluid in the tires, or weights added somewhere on the tractor. I like tire fluid as the first option, and if that's not enough, hang some weights on the tires, or on the front of the tractor. You want about a 50/50 front to back weight distribution and as much weight low to the ground as you can get. The second way to prevent rollover is to widen your tires and wheels. On many tractors, you have an offset solid rim dish and you can widen the footprint by swapping sides with the tires. Others have a rim that's bolted to the center section and you have multiple options for tread width. Consult your owner's manual for your options. Number three on the list is proper maintenance. Make sure the brakes work, the 4wd engages (if equipped), and especially make sure that the tires have adequate tread. The fourth thing you can do will help insure you survive a rollover. Anytime you're running the tractor, make sure your seat belt is fastened and your roll bar is in the upright position. If you'll do those two things, your chances of surviving when the tractor turns over are better than 99%. Those odds go way down without those two safety devices. The remaining precautions concern how you operate your tractor. Number five, is go slow on slopes. One of the biggest contributors to tractor rollover is speed, so take it easy when you're on hills. Number six is to know your terrain. Drop a tractor tire in a hill, or run over a big rock on a slope and you can tip over. Try to fill in big holes and remove all obstructions in your fields. Seven is to always keep your load low. When operating a front end loader, the position of the weight in the bucket can drastically alter your center of gravity. The lower the load, the greater the stability on hills. The eighth thing you can do to prevent rollovers is to back up and down hills versus trying to drive across them. If you're brush hogging, it takes longer to finish when backing up and down, but it can be a lot safer. Number nine is to take care of yourself. Fatigue, distraction and impairment are huge contributors to farm accidents. Many of us have jobs in town and when we get out to the property to work, we may be tired, and/or thinking about the day. Combine that with a couple of beers and you have a recipe for disaster. Finally, weather conditions can greatly contribute to rollovers. Try not to get the tractor out when it's wet or really windy. If you're feeding round bales in the winter you may have no choice, but if you're brush hogging, that's not a job that has to be done, and is not worth the risk of an accident to get done. Be especially careful about driving across newly-mowed wet grass. That can let the tractor get into an uncontrollable slide quicker than anything. I don't want to scare anyone away from using their tractors, but if you have a healthy respect for the dangers of slopes, and take these precautions, you'll avoid tipping the tractor over. Stay safe my friends! LINKS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT... The Tractor Fun Store: https://asktractormike.com/products-for-sale/ Support the Tractor Mike Channel: https://www.patreon.com/TractorMike Visit the Tractor Mike website: http://asktractormike.com/ Visit Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/Ask-Tractor-Mike-312112962245304/ Copyright 2022 Tractor Mike LLC