Checking Tire Pressure

[Ray D]

OK, confession time. I've been trying to figure out a way to get into a whole lot of raging/ranting, real trouble on RVForum. I think I found a way! I came up with the idea for this thread. 

PUNT!

I have owned my 2005 Damon Challenger more than five years, now. I HAVE NEVER CHECKED THE TIRE PRESSURE! I know what they are supposed to be, but I have no idea what pressure they are at, now. Tires coming up on six years old. I'm shopping.

I have, several times, gotten ready to check pressures. I went as far as buying the most novel new truck tire pressure gages, several times. Still have all of them. Have not been able to use them!

Well, actually, I do, sort of, check the tires, more or less. Methods follow:

Get Somebody Else To Check Them Method: When I take the MH in for any kind of service, I ask them to ?check the tire pressure.? They tell me they do check them and they are fine. Make that two to four times a year.

Use The Gage method: Get one or two of the gages, get down on all fours, crawl around and attempt to find valve stems. Works for front two tires.

The Driving Method. I drive it, and let the seat of my pants rule. Drives nicer than any of our cars. Rides smooth, like a Cadillac. Controls well, hugs the road and stays nicely in my lane even when a big truck passes. (I almost never pass anything.)

IR Method: I have an Infra Red gun. I check the tires with that, immediately, every time I stop. The temps, so far, have always been consistent and reasonable for the road conditions and weather.

Thump The Tire Method: All of the tires always have a satisfying ring. Ages ago, when I had a small fleet in LA, CA, I used this method on all of our trucks, frequently. Yeah, I know it doesn't work, but we didn't know that.

Front Tires are easy enough to check. Have to crawl, hurts, but can do.

Outside Duals are just a little bit beyond my capability. I can see the valve stem. Can't get my hand in there to unscrew the cap, no way, no how. Tried many times.

Inside Duals are impossible! I have never even seen the valve stems. They are not visible looking through the holes in the wheel. Inside, laying on the ground, I cannot see the inside wheel, except for the outer rim. A large assembly that houses the brakes is in the way, and only a couple of inches away. I cannot see the wheels, looking between the tires. Can't fit my hand between the tires, nor between the wheel and brake assembly. Regularly, I wonder how the professional folks do it. They tell me they did it! Pressure's fine.

At my last alignment, I ask about valve extenders. He didn't, at first, know what I meant. Then, advised against installing them. Been to two more tire stores. Same advice. Asked each about longer stems, to be installed with purchase of new tires. Was advised against them, as well. Each told me that if I wanted the tires checked to bring the MH in, and they would check them for me. Great, unless I'm on a trip ? and they don't charge. I don't feel comfortable having them check the tires, for free, every trip. So, I don't do that.

I keep the speed close to 55, when we can travel. Haven't traveled in two years. Looking good for travel, starting soon.

TPM ? I'll get to that in another thread, later. Under intense consideration.

My physical condition is an issue. May be why they don't want me checking my own tires. ??

Your turn.

Ray D 

Tres are Goodyear RV G 670 245/70 R19.5  DOT ** 3304.

 

[carson]

Ray,  no offense but I was giggling through he whole story.

  I think you should become a novelist writing satire. But you hit the nail on the head... what are we gonna do?

  There must be a thousand stories out there, we have seen them on the net here.

Why do I find it funny?    A very typical day in the life of an RV'r.

Thanks for your post.

Carson FL

 

[Ernie n Tara]

Ray; I also found it amusing and I sympathize with you. If we were honest, most of us would admit we don't do it most times, let alone every time we leave and frankly, doing it every day is overkill! (let the flaming begin). How often do you check your car tire pressure? Twice a year and look closely in the AM is about right.

My solution is a TPMS and the hassle that went with it to get every one working at the same time. The problem then is: is pressure  really low (or high) enough to matter? This given the hassle of removing the sensor so air can be added. Frankly, tire companies are so paranoid about lawsuits that their recommendations are way over the line. For example: recommended inflation pressures are likely to be high as that reduces the fatigue on the tire so that their warranties have a larger margin of safety (at the expense of our ride) - I make my living designing tire like parts - Fact is:

    Heat kills tires - don't run so low as to let them heat up
    Fatigue kills rubber and fabric - See rule 1.
Note: Ozone and UV do bad things to elastomers as well.

Ernie

 

[Ray D]

Gee Whiz, Carson! Now I feel terrible!  :-[ :-[

Satire?  : 

I really would like to learn a way to do it right! I'm no longer a newby, here, more of a juvenile. But, I'm still a newby at MH maintenance. 

I have read many posts on how important checking your tires is. I'd like to do it. Most posters recommend checking them each time you start driving. That's a lot, since we stop, often. I'd like to check them at least once a day, if I could figure out how.

Some advise installing a TPMS, solving the problem. I'd like to do that, but if I could install TPMS, I could use a gage, even easier!  :  So, I have been to several tire supply stores for installing a TPMS. When the guy asks what a Tire Pressure monitoring system is, I don't like the idea of having him install it, even after I tell him what it is. Same thing for longer valve stems or valve stem extensions. If he doesn't know what they are, I don't want him installing mine!   

Found one store that had TPMS brochures on the counter. Never heard of the brand, and don't remember it, now. Anyway, I asked.

"Huh?"

I grabbed a brochure and handed it to him. "Oh, these are new. We haven't sold any yet." That answered my question, just fine.  : :

Asked a couple of them about Equal or DynaBeads. Which is best? They didn't know what those were, either. Real confidence building exercise!  : 

Went online. Checked both Equal and Dynabeads. No dealers, for either, within 100 miles of Boise. Closest was SLC. So, if there's a problem after install, help is only 400 miles away!  :  

Oh, the tech at one dealer said he found golf balls in one trucker's tires. Said the trucker thought those were good for balancing the tires. He rolled his eyes up, and kinda grinned. I am not going to have him install my golf balls!  :  Not going to give him a chance at Equal nor DynaBeads, either!  : ;D ;D 

So, you see, I'm completely serious, here. I'm thinking maybe I just need to drive the old tires til someone in Boise advances their knowledge. I figure fifteen more years.  : 

Ray D  ;D

Conversation with Tech:
"What's DynaBeads?"

So, I explain DynaBeads.

"Oh, we use lead weighs for that."

Me: "Look, I'll give you their URL. You can read about them online. Maybe you'll decide to stock them, first in Boise!"

"Nah. We use lead weights for that."

End of conversation.  : :

 

[carson]

Ray, now we know you are a good novelist.. By the way I believe everything you are saying. So it can't be fiction.

Carson

 

[Ray D]

Ernie, thanks. Reduces my apprehension a little bit. Still would like to solve the tire problem in something approaching a timely manor.

Carson,

By the way I believe everything you are saying. So it can't be fiction.

now who's being satirical?  ;D 

Ray D 

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I religiously check my tire pressure every... once in awhile.

I guess I lack technical purity myself, but this" check 'em every day before leaving" business just seems a bit much to me. If my tires leaked air so badly I couldn't trust 'em for at least several days, I would be replacing them.

Now if you check  them and find them low, then it behooves you to check a bit more frequently until you can get an idea for how long they maintain the proper pressure.  My current set of tires rarely ever shows any change, but to stay on the safe side (road hazards and all), I use a TPMS so that I will get a warning of a problem starts to develop.

 

[BernieD]

This given the hassle of removing the sensor so air can be added. Frankly, tire companies are so paranoid about lawsuits that their recommendations are way over the line. For example: recommended inflation pressures are likely to be high as that reduces the fatigue on the tire so that their warranties have a larger margin of safety (at the expense of our ride) - I make my living designing tire like parts - Fact is:

    Heat kills tires - don't run so low as to let them heat up
    Fatigue kills rubber and fabric - See rule 1.
Note: Ozone and UV do bad things to elastomers as well.

Ernie

I think you are being too cynical :-X . Normally, tires need to have air adjustments just a couple of times a year, if that. I doubt that I have pulled my sensors 2 times in the last year to adjust the tire pressures.

The tire manufacturer recommendations for tire pressures are based on the weight exerted on the tires and the maximum "footprint" the tire produces at that weight and pressure. I have seen any change in format for tire pressure recommendations.

 

[scottydl]

I am fairly "regular" at checking tires before any long trips.  But our small town service station has free air and a nice dual-head chuck on the air hose, so it's easy for me.  They service a lot of grain semi trucks so the "air drive thru" is set up for them, but it works great for RV's too! 

My tires have *never* been more than a couple pounds off from 80psi where I need them.  This past winter I overfilled them a bit (maybe by 5 pounds) expecting a little leakage while the rig was stored and not wanting them to flatten out too much.  I rolled up to the service station on our maiden voyage of this year, and found that I had to let air OUT of every single tire!  I've never had a car with tires/rims that hold air as well as my 16 year old RV.  :

 

[pixurit]

I'm sorrry, but your original post made me laugh as well.  I've spent a lot of time looking for a perfect solution to tire valve accessibility, so I feel your pain.  I'm not quite there yet but have improved the situation a lot.

I was lucky to find a tire shop with excellent, well trained personnel when I was shopping for new tires last month.  They only had one type of valve extension that they recommended for inside duals.  They had found that most developed leaks.  I purchased the recommended extensions and am extremely happy with them.  The valves on my inside duals are now as easily accessible as the ones on my front tires.

The outside duals are still pretty tough.  They have short (~1") extensions.  I need the extensions to get an air chuck onto the valves to adjust the pressure but have to remove them to use my pressure gauge.  They are much better than before (when I had to use a straight tire chuck on a hose threaded between the duals) but there has to be a better way .  Has anyone tried those "U" shaped extensions that they sell in RV parts departments?

So, my humble advice is to keep searching for a tire shop that understands the issue and can provide a tested solution.  For me it was my local Fountain Tire.

 

[DonTom]

If we were honest, most of us would admit we don't do it most times, let alone every time we leave and frankly, doing it every day is overkill!

I check my six tires'  PSI every time I get in the RV. It's not too hard to press a button on a Pressure Pro.

-Don-​

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I have the U-extensions on my outer duals (inward facing valves). My Pressure Pro sensors are mounted on the U extension, making them reasonably accessible and also allowing air pressure adjustments if needed.

 

[John Canfield]

When we new tires put on last fall, I had the guys turn the outer duals valve stem to where it is aligned with the wheel circumference (not pointing to the inside) - now I don't have to lay on my back to reach the TPMS sensors.  There is no reason for the valve stems to point inward since we don't swap tires around like a truck would (our outers are aluminum and the inners are steel of course.)

 

[taoshum]

OK, confession time. I've been trying to figure out a way to get into a whole lot of raging/ranting, real trouble on RVForum. I think I found a way! I came up with the idea for this thread. 

PUNT!

I HAVE NEVER CHECKED THE TIRE PRESSURE!Tres are Goodyear RV G 670 245/70 R19.5  DOT ** 3304.

Based on your posting, and it is a great posting IMHO, B4U spend the big $$ on a TPMS consider the possibility that you will introduce a multitude of new "failure modes" into the basic question of the OP.  If the TPMS works perfectly, forever, consider yourself fortunate... it will alert you that a tire is leaking.  If it doesn't work perfectly... as most electronic gadgets don't... then consider making a list of the potential failure modes (1. a tire leaks but the TPMS fails to detect it; 2. the TPMS says there is a leak but there isn't; 3. the TPMS stops monitoring but doesn't tell you; 4. the TPMS display fails; 5. the TPMS wiring fails; 6. The power to the TPMS fails; 7. a single tire sensor fails; 8. a single tire sensor sends a erronous signal; 9. etc, etc, etc...) who know how many failure modes there really are? 

Then make a list of the potential secondary events if the TPMS fails (1. The TPMS alarms and you stop on a busy hiway and get into an accident; 2. the TPMS doesn't alarm and should have so you get a flat that you would have noticed by looking at the tire; 3. etc, etc)

Then consider the veteran trucker tire check system: an ax handle or long handled hammer... when you feel like it... do a walk around in the morning B4 you drive away and look at the tires, thump them with your stick... if they look "normal" and sound "normal"; chances are they are "normal".  As you drive, and the more you drive the more likely you'll know how the coach drives "normally", if you feel something unusual, like a change in the steering or an unusual sound; stop and check the tires... or the engine... or the awning... or the slides... or the mirrors... or the toad... or any of the other things that could be going wrong.

I don't know which "approach" is more safe or reliable... and I don't know if there are any data to help understand the situation but B4U change what you are doing now, which seems to work ok..., I'd think about it for a while.  It is not a "PUNT" to use your common sense, IMHO.

thanks, Gary.

 

[BernieD]

Gary

Wow, you have me so scared about so many things that can go wrong, I'd better go back to bed and stay there the rest of my life. Hopefully, the bed doesn't collapse

 

[Marsha/CA]

Me too, Bernie. 

Toashum, no offense, but you paint a very bleak picture.  I know this is all personal preference; but I'd much rather stop and check an inaccurate TPMS response than to drive along and all of a sudden be in trouble.  Plus with my hearing not being a good as it was when I was younger and my grip strength waning; thumping a tire with an ax handle would be a pretty subjective test.

Ray, before we got the TPMS system, Tim would check the tires about once a week when we were in route.  This was a time when we were new to big Rigs and really didn't know what to expect.  Plus we didn't panic when it was a few pounds too high or too low.  There were too many factors to allow for: one tire in the sun, one tire in the shade, elevation and the list goes on.  It really is nice to press a button in the morning before we take off and get all the reading.  I feel a lot more secure with a TPMS system than without one.

However, Taoshum is correct about one thing, you always run the risk of any electronic failing.  That was a big question my husband asked his cardiologist at his last checkup...what happens if this "new" pacemaker stops working....

Marsha~

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Biggest nuisance with our TPMS is false alarms.  We get them on cold nights (tire pressure drops vs warm afternoons), or when the inner rubber core in our Pressure Pro sensors gets worn or brittle (time to replace the core, which is a three minute job).  Can't say I've ever had another type of problem in the nearly 6 years we have had ours.

 

[taoshum]

Me too, Bernie. 

Toashum, no offense, but you paint a very bleak picture.

However, Taoshum is correct about one thing, you always run the risk of any electronic failing.  That was a big question my husband asked his cardiologist at his last checkup...what happens if this "new" pacemaker stops working....

Marsha~

"bleak" or "realistic"... depends on your perspective I guess.  Since we have no data to use, one way or the other, we have to guess.  The TPMS salesmen paint an extremely bleak picture of what will happen if you don't buy their system and no one takes the time to ask, like your husband did, "What happens if this electronic pacemaker stops working?"; OR "What happens if this TPMS stops working?"

I'll bet that Mike checks his pulse with his finger pressed against an artery... you can feel the pulse and the rate and after a while you know what's normal...  kinda like a vehicle's SOH.

I also bet that he gets the pacemaker checked out every 6 months or so.  If you rely on a TPMS, do you get it checked out every 6  months, recalibrated and tested by a pro?

Like I wrote B4: I don't know which "approach" is more safe or reliable... and I don't know if there are any data to help understand the situation but B4U change what you are doing now, which seems to work ok..., I'd think about it for a while.  It is not a "PUNT" to use your common sense, IMHO.

 

[taoshum]

Gary

Wow, you have me so scared about so many things that can go wrong, I'd better go back to bed and stay there the rest of my life. Hopefully, the bed doesn't collapse

At least you have a choice and will probably use "common sense" to make the decision... if you decide to "stay in bed," you might consider a Bed Pressure Monitoring System (BPMS) so you will get a warning if the bed is about to collapse.  LOL.

Please forgive me for being a skeptic on most of these electronic "safety" gizmos.  I sometimes ask myself, if some aftermarket company sold electronically fused air bags for cars without any test data would I buy one?  I don't know, but I'm very happy that the car companies and the NTSB tests automotive air-bag systems, extensively...?    I don't know that I'd buy seat belts from an aftermarket company though.

thanks, G.

PS: the OP ask for some "opinions"...

 

[Terry A. Brewer]

Get a Crossfire system..... http://www.dualdynamics.com/crossfires/index.shtml and your problems will be over.

I have used them over 11 years on this coach & 6 years on prior RV's.