Why loose tyre stacks cause problems
Tyres piled on a floor lean, collapse and spread. They take up aisle space, they are slow to count, and the bottom of the stack carries the weight of everything above it. Retrieving one size from the middle of a pile is a two-person job.
Storing tyres in steel stillages fixes all of that at once: the frame carries the load, the stack stays square, and a whole size or customer's order forks off in one lift.
Stacking and load
Tyres are light individually and heavy in bulk. Work to the frame's rated load rather than filling to the top, and keep columns square so the load runs straight down through the corner posts.
Loaded stillages interlock and stack, which turns the vertical space above a workshop floor into storage without installing racking. Keep stacks within the rated stack height and make sure the slab can take the column.
- Load to the frame's rated safe working load, not to the brim
- Keep columns square and interlocked
- Check slab loading before planning tall columns
Airflow, heat and sunlight
Rubber ages faster in heat, direct sunlight and ozone. Store tyres away from direct sun, off hot surfaces and out of the path of electric motors or welding equipment that generate ozone.
Open mesh and post frames let air move around the stock, which is better for the rubber than a sealed, tightly wrapped pallet sitting in a warm corner.
Fire separation and access
Bulk tyre storage is a recognised fire load. Keep stacks clear of sprinkler heads, maintain the separation and aisle widths your fire plan specifies, and never block exits or extinguisher access with an overflow pile.
Because stillages hold a defined footprint, they make aisle discipline easy to maintain — the stock cannot creep out into the walkway the way a loose pile does.
Handling and sorting
Sort by size, brand or customer at the point the stock lands, and give each stream its own frame. That way picking is a look-and-lift, not a search, and stocktakes read off the frames.
Car, light truck, truck and tractor tyres all need different frame sizes. Larger agricultural and earthmover tyres should stand supported in a longer frame instead of leaning against a shed wall where they deform.
Seasonal swing and returns
Tyre stock swings hard — wet season, changeover periods, container arrivals. Stillages let you add capacity for a peak and fold the frames flat when it passes, instead of paying for racking that sits empty half the year.
For distributors running stock out to fitters, foldable frames mean the return leg carries roughly four times the stillages the delivery did.