How to Install Tire Chains

Step 1 of 7

Get Ready

Chains go on the drive tires, and the job goes fastest on flat, firm ground with the engine off. Do a test fit at home before you ever need them.

Which tires get chains?

How to Get Ready

1. Check your owner's manual. It says which tires take chains and whether your vehicle needs low profile Class S chains for tight wheel wells.
2. Match your tire size to the size list on the chain listing, then test fit the chains in the driveway. Fit can vary with the tire's brand and wear.
3. When it's time, pull onto firm, level ground well away from traffic. Shut the engine off and set the parking brake.
4. Take off any wheel covers so nothing gets caught under the chain.

Why It Matters

Chains add grip where the engine puts power to the road, so they belong on the tires that pull you. Chains are sold in pairs: one order covers two tires.

Step 2 of 7

Lay Out the Chain

Spread the chain flat on the ground with no twists or tangles, so it looks like a ladder: two side chains with cross chains running between them.

How to Lay It Out

1. Untangle the chain and straighten both side chains so every cross chain lies flat.
2. Turn it so the open side of the cross chain hooks faces up. Once it's on, those openings face away from the tire, so they can't cut into it.
3. Find the two fasteners. The inside fastener closes the side chain that goes behind the tire. The outside fastener closes the side chain that faces you.
4. Line the chain up beside the tire with the inside side chain nearest the vehicle.

Why It Matters

A twisted side chain or a flipped cross chain won't sit flat on the tread, and it can't be pulled tight once it's on.

Step 3 of 7

Drape It Over the Tire

Lift the chain over the top of the tire so the cross chains sit across the tread, with both ends hanging down near the ground.

How to Drape It

1. Hold the chain by the side chains, inside side chain toward the vehicle, and drape it over the top of the tire.
2. Center the cross chains on the tread so the side chains hang evenly down both sidewalls.
3. Tuck the inside side chain behind the tire and let both ends rest near the bottom of the tire.
4. Keep the side chains and fasteners out from under the tire. Only cross chains go under the tread.

Why It Matters

A chain that sits off center runs up onto the sidewall, where it can't grip and works itself loose.

Step 4 of 7

Hook the Inside Fastener

Reach behind the tire and connect the inside side chain first. It's the hardest one to reach, so do it while there's still slack.

How to Hook It

1. Reach around behind the tire and bring the two ends of the inside side chain together.
2. Hook the inside fastener in the link that pulls it as tight as it will go.
3. Check that the hook is fully closed.
4. Pull the chain toward you so the cross chains lie flat across the tread.

Why It Matters

Doing the inside first leaves the outside side chain loose, so you take up the rest of the slack from the side you can see.

Step 5 of 7

Hook the Outside Fastener

Now connect the outside side chain, pulled as tight as you can get it by hand.

How to Hook It

1. Pull the outside side chain snug around the tire.
2. Hook the outside fastener in the tightest link that still closes.
3. Check the drape: the side chains should hang at least 2 in. down each sidewall from the edge of the tread.
4. More than 2 extra links hanging off a fastener? Wire or zip tie them back so they can't swing.

Why It Matters

Loose links swing out with every turn of the tire and can hit the fender or the wheel. A chain with too little drape rides up and works loose.

Step 6 of 7

Add the Tensioner

A tensioner pulls the outside side chain in tight all the way around, so the chain stays snug as it settles. Quik Grip LSH chains need one on every tire.

How to Add It

1. Hook the first tensioner hook to the outside side chain at the bottom of the tire, then the next one at the top.
2. Work around the sides, spacing the hooks evenly like the spokes of a wheel.
3. Keep the open side of each hook facing away from the tire.
4. The side chain should pull in evenly into a round shape with no slack spots.

Why It Matters

Chains loosen as they settle into the tire. The tensioner takes up that slack, so the chain doesn't slap the tire or come loose.

Step 7 of 7

Drive and Retighten

Drive forward slowly for a short distance, then stop and tighten everything again. Chains always settle in once they're rolling.

How to Finish

1. Drive ahead slowly for a short distance so the chain settles all the way around the tire.
2. Stop, set the brake and recheck both fasteners. Take up any slack, adjusting both sides evenly.
3. Stay under 30 mph. Start and stop gently, and don't spin the tires or lock the brakes.
4. Take the chains off once you're back on bare pavement.

Why It Matters

Speed and spinning are what break cross chains, and a broken cross chain can whip into the vehicle. If one breaks, stop and remove or repair the chain right away.

All 7 Steps Done

Chains On, Ready to Roll

Here's the whole install at a glance. Run through it once more after the first short drive.

Which Tires

The drive tires

Lay Out

Flat, hook openings up

Drape

Centered on the tread

Inside Fastener

First, as tight as it goes

Outside Fastener

Tight, 2 in. of drape

Tensioner

Evenly spaced hooks

Drive

Retighten, 30 mph max

Example based on Peerless QG2228 Quik Grip LSH chains with QG20074 tighteners on a 265/70R17 tire. Always follow the instructions packed with your chains.