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A trailer tire blow out is almost always a complete disaster! I will never know what came first but on my way from Maine to NY I had the misfortune. Tire blew or the leaf spring broke and by the time I got stopped the fender was torn right off the trailer and the tire and wheel were junk. It actually bent the axle and I ended up buying a new trailer after all the expense of towing and temporary repairs to get me home.

If you tow your boat any distance then it is imperative that you keep up on tires, bearings and springs. If your boat spends most of it's life sitting on the trailer then it is smart to have a system in place that gets the weight off the axle, wheels and tires and protects the rubber from the sun and ground.

The 5 year max is a good plan but you can stretch that if you take some precautionary measures. Always allow some time for your wheels and bearings to cool before dunking them after a long drive. If your lights are the old style bulbs then it's a good idea to unplug before you dunk. Also a good idea to check the lug nut size of your trailer wheels and have the correct wrench with you. It is probably not the same as your vehicle lug wrench.