Ginebrosa;n9546 said:I have been shot down in flames so many times on this subject. So here goes nothing.
we live in Andorra and know snow pretty well. We also take our MH to the alps every year. OH is from Bavaria so knows his snow well for a looooong time.
socks are great. They are fantastic on snow. They come in all sizes and qualities. We only buy the best for our bus ( for a truck essentially, although they fit our 5.5t sprinter base ). We also carry very good quality chains. If there is hard packed ice then chains are your only hope.
up here in the mountains we drive 4x4s. ( disco and merc glk). We have socks for both as they give better grip than the best winter tyres...but even this week you were buggered without chains. Our neighbour overturned her Merc ML ...
so. If you just want to do a few kms safely and get on and off a pitch, then get some socks. If you will be in winter conditions frequently then get the best quality socks for your vehicle along with chains. Socks are better on snow...we would not use chains unkess there was ice. In general , with winter tyres ( we drive the bus all year in winters ) we rarely need help.
Rockburner;n9664 said:Any chance of links to the good quality socks and chains? (or brand names)
Rockburner;n9664 said:Any chance of links to the good quality socks and chains? (or brand names)
I'm interested in learning how many people (skiers?) who drive to the wintery mountains have actually had to use their chains. We never have - have we just been lucky so far? We do tend to stay on campsites and not drive around once we're there. Roads to the "resorts" have been snow free although that could be down to our choices - our thinking is if the buses get there safely so can we. We carry a generator so if the weather is so bad that the road requires chains we'd be looking to pull over in a safe spot and wait for the ploughs to sort it out.
Any thoughts from more experienced snowhounds?
fatwelshbuddha;n9847 said:I've been going skiing in the motorhome for about 12 years or so and until last year had never used my chains - and only the socks once. Depending on the amount of snow, you can get away with just good tread M+S winter tyres rather than a need to use additional traction. But last year we were on a campsite after a lot of heavy snow, and although I think I could have exited without chains, decided to use them for the 1st time and carried on up the main road for a while until I could find a spot to de-chain.. No problems at all and all worked well. I have a set of Spikes Spiders - http://www.spikes-spiders.com/ - which are easy to fit in snow, if you have the plate already attached to the wheel (I do this before leaving home).