Snow Chains in Ireland?

Nash Bridges

Similar to the studded tyres thread, has anyone ever used snow chains in Ireland? Can buy a cheap set on ebay for ~€40 delivered. These may be a easy solution to the occasional bad weather we get. Should be easier to change than a full set of tyres, however I wonder if these would be any good on icy roads, rather than snow. Anyone have any experience?

Pdfile

thats overkill, its not that bad.


learn to drive a little slower and you'll be grand.

Paulw

I don't think I've ever seen roads in Ireland bad enough for snow chains.

You'll ruin your tyres, ruin the road, never mind the fact it won't improve your driving.

Just learn to drive properly in the conditions. Slow down.

cnocbui

Paulw wrote: »

I don't think I've ever seen roads in Ireland bad enough for snow chains.

You'll ruin your tyres, ruin the road, never mind the fact it won't improve your driving.

Just learn to drive properly in the conditions. Slow down.

So tell me, with a steepish hill covered in ice, how do you get up it in a FWD or rwd car without an LSD or winter tyres fitted to it?

Interested to know what sort of driver skills can improve the friction twixt tyre and ice.

Paulw

cnocbui wrote: »

So tell me, with a steepish hill covered in ice, how do you get up it in a FWD or rwd car without an LSD or winter tyres fitted to it?

Interested to know what sort of driver skills can improve the friction twixt tyre and ice.

You go around?? If you can't go through/over something, there's bound to be a route to go around.

While tyre chains may work in that one instance, the rest of your driving on the road would be a problem.

Are tyre chains even legal to use in Ireland?

cnocbui

Paulw wrote: »

You go around?? If you can't go through/over something, there's bound to be a route to go around.

While tyre chains may work in that one instance, the rest of your driving on the road would be a problem.

Are tyre chains even legal to use in Ireland?

You need to get out and about more if you think there is always a way around.

Why would the rest of someones driving be a problem when they improve traction?

Why would snow chains not be legal if they are so safety critical in snow and iced conditions that they are mandatory in countries like Switzerland?

What weird bent logic is going on that people think there is something wrong with snow chains when they are used extensively in countries with more severe winter conditions than Ireland usually experiences?

ironclaw

cnocbui wrote: »

You need to get out and about more if you think there is always a way around.

Why would the rest of someones driving be a problem when they improve traction?

Why would snow chains not be legal if they are so safety critical in snow and iced conditions that they are mandatory in countries like Switzerland?

What weird bent logic is going on that people think there is something wrong with snow chains when they are used extensively in countries with more severe winter conditions than Ireland usually experiences?

I think the problem is in Ireland as opposed to in Switzerland, France etc you could have 40 miles of road where snow chains are required. In Ireland, you might need 2 miles tops. Then you need to take them off. Driving with them on, on a road, probably is illegal as you'll destroy your tyres and the road. I've never seen conditions where snow chains were even remotely required and I live fairly high in the mountains.

To be honest, if a hill is so steep that you need snow chains, I think you'd be best off staying at home or if its that critical walk / call 112.

And I have to disagree on that one, I think 9 times out of 10 there would be a way around. There are no critical dead end roads that I'm aware of.

bazzachazza

cnocbui wrote: »

You need to get out and about more if you think there is always a way around.

Why would the rest of someones driving be a problem when they improve traction?

Why would snow chains not be legal if they are so safety critical in snow and iced conditions that they are mandatory in countries like Switzerland?

What weird bent logic is going on that people think there is something wrong with snow chains when they are used extensively in countries with more severe winter conditions than Ireland usually experiences?

You summed it up in your last post MORE severe. What we are getting compared to those countries is laughable its merely a frost and a bit of ice. My relatives live in Montreal they can get temps of -30c and 6 FEET of snow overnight over there its common sense to put on winter tyres they don't put on chains.

To the OP and any one else supporting there use in Ireland buy the chains and tell us what its like to try put them on and drive on them under normal road conditions for most of your journey and what its like for the little bit of the trip on ice. Have a look in your car manual max speed for cars with chains is between 30-50km/h or they fail and imagine the damage a loose chain will do.

Paulw

cnocbui wrote: »

Why would the rest of someones driving be a problem when they improve traction?

Because they only improve traction on ice, thick ice. We don't get enough ice for that, usually. On a normal road, you will destroy the road and your tyres very quickly.

cnocbui wrote: »

Why would snow chains not be legal if they are so safety critical in snow and iced conditions that they are mandatory in countries like Switzerland?

Maybe because countries like Switzerland get a lot of snow/ice which we don't. They can only use tyre chains under specific conditions, when the road conditions are bad enough for their need.

In Ireland, I believe that tyre chains are illegal, because of the damage they do to the roads.

cnocbui wrote: »

What weird bent logic is going on that people think there is something wrong with snow chains when they are used extensively in countries with more severe winter conditions than Ireland usually experiences?

You nailed it there - used extensively in countries with more severe winter conditions. Our winter conditions are not nearly severe enough to warrant use of tyre chains.

Abelloid

cnocbui wrote: »

So tell me, with a steepish hill covered in ice, how do you get up it in a FWD or rwd car without an LSD or winter tyres fitted to it?

Interested to know what sort of driver skills can improve the friction twixt tyre and ice.

I live at the end of a cul-de-sac at the top of a steep hill, to access it I have to drive down a longer steep hill. Cars have been abandoned here regularly over the last week due to ice.
Coming down hill in first or second gear without touching the pedals at all, and up in second works for me in a Golf Tdi, our Focus needs a light brake pedal coming down and light throttle on the way up.

ChocOneill

Halfords reccomends a visit to their store to get advice on the correct size of chain suitable to your vehicle - if i could get to their store - or even manage to get up my hill in a 4X4 or fwd vehicle I wouldnt need the chains in the first place!

recedite

Snow chains are brilliant, I got them 10 years ago; the best 20 quid I ever spent. I use them to go up the mountains in search of snow. It does take a few minutes to attach and remove them at the start of the snowline; a cold and dirty job. They are not suitable for normal driving where you might only encounter the odd patch of ice. On snow however, any old banger with them can outperform most of the 4x4s. Equally good on ice or snow(or usually hard packed snow) but not good on tarmac.

Pkiernan

As mentioned by many above, there are few situations here where tyre chains would be needed or even useful.

They are a pain to fit (you will be kneeling down in the dirt to get them on and off), and once on, you can't really drive over 20mph.
If you dont fit them correctly, the damage they can do to your cars bodywork is pretty horrendous (have seen it myself in the States).

You would be better off with a set of cheap wheels with good winter tyres on them.

ChocOneill

i wouldnt use a chain on the road - but i'd like to be able to get to the road...or even turn in the yard without taking out a wall..

peasant

This



http://www.rud.com/en/produkte/schneeketten/pkw/softspike.html

might make more sense for temporary use in our conditions.


(unfortunately they don't do them in my size or I would have been able to give you a test report)

windfan

Paulw, check photos below from today, taken in the west (county Sligo). You will see that snowchains are necessary at times in ireland, although not often. At the moment we have packed snow and ice on the the road which is not treated/gritted etc. I can easily understand how this seems alien, I was in Dublin yesterday myself and you would have no inkling of the conditions down the country. I got my snowchains in Halfords in Sligo, but they had very few of them.

recedite

Nice pics Windfan; makes me want to head Into the West.
As I said, snowchains give any old piece of crap outstanding performance under these conditions.

cormie

peasant wrote: »

This



http://www.rud.com/en/produkte/schneeketten/pkw/softspike.html

might make more sense for temporary use in our conditions.


(unfortunately they don't do them in my size or I would have been able to give you a test report)

They look pretty handy! Where did you see sizes/prices? Would probably get them myself if they aren't crazy money! have you read any honest reviews on them?

peasant

cormie wrote: »

They look pretty handy! Where did you see sizes/prices? Would probably get them myself if they aren't crazy money! have you read any honest reviews on them?

I just googled the product name and happened on an online store that had them.
They're not cheap and their durability is also still a bit questionable ...but chains don't last long either once you drive them on tarmac or very thin ice/snow (and they do quite some damage if they split)

congo_90

Snow chains in ireland?
f*ck me I've only seen one case of driving to justify their use and only for 0.6km up a steep hill in heavy snow a long time ago in a fwd. Honestly, Just the hassle of buying, fitting and removing the chains and travelling around 40-60km/h max it seems a waste.

put that 40euro towards some decent tires op.

SpannerMonkey

i wouldnt bother buying them for how infrequently it happens however i can see the use for them i had to drive 23 miles to work at 15 mph and had absolutely NO TRACTION car was all over the road , no type of driving style can compensate for the weather around here last week hence all the deaths on the roads over the since it started , granted there are some complete morons out there:mad: and i personally witnessed 2 crashes this week one quiet bad , , but i have seen numerous small dings because cars cant stop and they were driving very slowly, me personally i was coming down my driveway at about 2 miles an hour and i couldnt stop went straight out onto the road luckily no cars coming but anyone that says they arent justified is living somewhere probably in a city:rolleyes: where roads are busy and they are gritted dozens of times a day, so ice cant build up, a lot of rural ireland is in Chaos roads completly impassible , even dangerous to walk on with 2 inches of solid ice in many quieter roads , i have a friend who hasnt been able to leave home since it started and he is 7 miles from nearest town hows he going to walk ????

ei9go

http://www.autow.co.uk

95 Pounds for a pair!

cnocbui

windfan wrote: »

Paulw, check photos below from today, taken in the west (county Sligo). You will see that snowchains are necessary at times in ireland, although not often. At the moment we have packed snow and ice on the the road which is not treated/gritted etc. I can easily understand how this seems alien, I was in Dublin yesterday myself and you would have no inkling of the conditions down the country. I got my snowchains in Halfords in Sligo, but they had very few of them.

Excellent photos.

I wonder what the city slickers smart answers are going to be? Oh thats right, we already had that, I think it was walk. :rolleyes:

oldyouth

I live at the top of a fairly steep hiil. One day, back in the late '80s, we had terrible snow and I could not get up to my house. I ended up walking the mile and a half in foot deep snow. Suddenly, a car came up past me at a steady rate with snow chains on. Following on from that, I invested in a set for myself for future winters. Every year since I've hoped for snow so I could use them but no joy. Bleedin' sunny Southeast

Dan Jaman

If you're stuck and, like me, carry some cable in the boot, you can improvise some temporary chains from flat twin and earth by simply feeding some cable in through the wheel rim holes and out over the tyre tread, twisting it together to finish a loop. Do this four times on a wheel and repeat. It'll get you out of trouble and cost next to nothing

vw4life

wife seen a car yesterday with snowchains,she thought he was clamped until he drove off:eek:

Silvera

I used snow chains in New Zealand (around Wanaka) in 2004. It's compulsory to carry them in certain parts of NZ. They are brilliant in snow, but obviously have to be taken off when the snow is very thin..or they will damage the car and tyres.

Saw a Citroen van using them around Gorey the other day....they made a bit of a racket as the snow was a bit on the thin side at that stage:D

GreeBo

windfan wrote: »

Paulw, check photos below from today, taken in the west (county Sligo). You will see that snowchains are necessary at times in ireland, although not often. At the moment we have packed snow and ice on the the road which is not treated/gritted etc. I can easily understand how this seems alien, I was in Dublin yesterday myself and you would have no inkling of the conditions down the country. I got my snowchains in Halfords in Sligo, but they had very few of them.

Lucky your car has front fogs, looks like visibility was down to 12 miles at one stage there...:rolleyes:

ShadowHearth

cnocbui wrote: »

You need to get out and about more if you think there is always a way around.

Why would the rest of someones driving be a problem when they improve traction?

Why would snow chains not be legal if they are so safety critical in snow and iced conditions that they are mandatory in countries like Switzerland?

What weird bent logic is going on that people think there is something wrong with snow chains when they are used extensively in countries with more severe winter conditions than Ireland usually experiences?

dude, are you seriuos?! chains in ireland?! i came from lithuania where we have -25 to -30 in winter, and i havent seen even one person with chains!!!

you got small bit of ice and snow here and you think of chains?! you will destroy roads with those things, and you wounr be able to move more then 10km/h with them on road!


they must be illegal aswell...

Dan Jaman

This isn't Lithuania - this is culchie territory and begod it gets up to your ankles in some places.
Anyway, chains aren't illegal - whatever gave you that idea? What is illegal is damaging the road surface but that's a matter of common sense and easily addressed by taking them off.

Donnelly117

tyre chains are for snow, they dont help on ice AFAIK. (and will ruin you tyres)