New Nevada controls may force you to buy chains

The new Nevada chain control rules for the Mount Rose Highway, Spooner Summit and Kingsbury Grade mean 4-wheel drive or all-wheel drive vehicles with snow tires can continue down the road.

All other vehicles, no matter what kind of tires they have, must be chained up.

Rarely will chains be required in the city limits. But traveling out of town this time of year is a different story.

Fortunately gone are the days of driving over chains and linking them. For the past 15 years or so, so-called "Quick Fit Chains" have saved time and frozen hands.

“The number one thing is you don't have to drive up on them. You don't have to move the car when you are installing them. Which that is, especially when it is snowing slushy and cold, it is one of the biggest attributes to this style,” says Brett Shore, the manager with Les Schwab Tires' south Reno shop.

Shore says before you ever have to use the chains, take them out and practice with them on your car at home.

The chains are easy to handle and color coded. He says slip the chain behind the tire, with the yellow portion of the chain sticking out the other side. A red keeper should be sticking out in front of the tire as well.

”Your cable end on the one side in your right hand, your cable end on the left side, in your left hand. You are going to bring them up over the top of the tire, and you are going to hook them through the cable slot end,” says Shore.

The chain's diamond shape pattern should sit flush on the tire to make an even fit.

“We can hook the outside top. You can tighten this particular one (hook) up one or two or three chain lengths… to get it snug before you take off,” he says as he points to a red hook at the top of the chain.

He then points to the bottom of the chain.

“Take our red keeper chain, and our red keeper and we are going to slide that chain up through the slot and notch, we are going to run it through the slot, and put one of those chains in that notch,” he says.

The red chain goes through the metal circle, and is pulled in a diagonal pattern to the opposite site of the tire. It may need to go through the second red metal circle to make a tight fit.

Shore says drive 10 feet and check to see if the chains are still tight around the wheel. Make adjustments if needed.

Don’t drive faster than 30 miles an hour. Don’t drive chains on pavement.