Ya it's really a pain to not be able to enjoy our RVs.
But There are a couple of "Projects" that may make life a bit better down the road.
Tire Inspection
Recording your DOT Serial
Testing your TPMS
Reading to increase your general tire knowledge.
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First is Tire Inspection. Here we are focusing on possible separations. This is a bit easier for Trailers but also it may be more important for them because of higher separation rate. First off you need to be safe. This means ensuring the trailer or Motorhome can not move. It may be best to hook up the trailer to the TV and set the brakes. Motorhomes can use the parking brake and put the unit in gear. For either type of RV you should block the tires that are on the ground so the unit does not move. Not everyone will be able to do these steps, but if you can, here is what I suggest.
Jack up one end of one axle (motorhomes this means one end of the front) You then want to place a reference bar or pointer or stick near the tire, then rotate the tire watching the space between the reference pointer and the tire. Do this for the side of the tread and center of the tread. If you can see the relative movement of more than 1/4" you have a suspect tire. Mark the location where the tire is moving outward. you might snap a picture where you can also read the words on the sidewall at the location of interest for future reference. You might even consider a 10 second video that shows suspect movement. I cover the general visual inspection and have a youtube VIDEO in THIS post. I have a series of posts with more details on tire inspection HERE.
While Trailer owners can do this for each of their tires Motorhomes are probably limited to just "spinning" the front tire and even then need a HD jack. Remember if unsure or do not have a solid surface to work on, or the proper tools, you may not want to do this rotating inspection.
If you have a suspect location you should contact your tire dealer. If you have a video you can show them that. Since they can see the tire close up if necessary they are in the best position to confirm there is a problem or to say all is OK.
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DOT serial. If you haven't recorded your full DOT serial numbers and kept that information with other important papers, this "downtime" might be a good opportunity when you have a nice weather day. Having this information might save you some time in the future if you hear there is a recall on your tire brand and size. Recalls are based on the DOT sericl and tires will be replaced for free if covered by a recall.
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Testing your TPMS. I bet almost none of you have tested your TPMS. This should be done at least once a year. Some nice afternoon when you have nice weather with your traveling companion in the driver seat. AND when you have access to air of high enough pressure to top-off your tires. Go to each tire and unscrew the external sensor and have the person in the driver seat let you know that they can see and hear the warning for each tire position. you don't even have to completely remove the sensor. Just unscrew enough to hear air leaking out. As soon as the monitor in the cab sounds you can screw the sensor back in to stop the air leak. Once you know that every sensor works you then need to go around and add back in the 5 psi or so that leaked out.
Doing this will also confirm you have your low pressure warning level set properly as the warning should go off as soon as you lose about 5 psi. I cover how I suggest you set your warning levels in THIS post.
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Finally, with all the time on your hands, you might consider simply reading through all the posts on my RVTireSafety blog. I don't expect you to remember everything but I believe that if you have reviewed the entire blog you will then know where you can go to get an answer to just about any question you might have on tires, tire pressure, valves, TPMS, weight and inflation.
Be sure to sign up for the weekly RV Travel Newsletter, published continuously every Saturday since 2001. NOTE By subscribing to RVTravel you will get info on the newest post on RV Tire Safety too
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Showing posts with label TPMS testing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TPMS testing. Show all posts
Friday, April 10, 2020
Friday, May 10, 2019
Have you "tested" your TPMS?
Like anything mechanical or electrical, parts can die, wear out or malfunction. While I am not aware of a lot of reports of failures of TPM Monitors or sensors I would be surprised if the only problems were related to battery life or improper set-up.
This post is limited to TPMS that use externally mounted sensors. i.e. the ones that screw onto the end of your valve stem.
Batteries. They eventually will die. The early warning of loss of signal from a sensor that previously was working appears to be an occasional intermittent loss of signal, followed eventually by almost constant no signal on the display. This is easy to fix as most of these systems have user replaceable batteries. I always carry a couple but also I don't stock up as batteries may lose power even sitting in their original packaging.
"O" ring: Under the screw-on plastic cap there is a very small O-ring. As with any rubber component they can simply die ( crack or tear) just from normal use as rubber does "age-out" due to exposure to heat an Ozone in the atmosphere. I would suggest having a few "O" rings on hand as, unlike the batteries, you can't just pick up a replacement at CVS, Walmart, or Walgreens. You will probably have to get them from your TPMS dealer. When you screw the cap on the sensor don't overtighten the cap as that can distort the O-ring and shorten its life
Plastic cap. This part should last longer than the rubber O-Ring but plastic ages too. Again this is special and unique to your brand TPMS so having at least one on hand from your dealer is a good idea. Also, don't over tighten the cap. It might be possible to seal a cracked cap for a short time with Silicone seal or glue but be careful not to glue the cap to the sensor.
Sensor electronics. All you can do here is get a new replacement sensor. Some brand TPMS offer a longer-term warranty (Lifetime) others only 12 months. I do carry a spare sensor but not in my toolbox or parts box but I added a sensor to my spare tire. in my Class-C. This gives give me a replacement I could use on a ground tire if one of those sensors ever failed. It would only require a quick program change when I move the sensor from a spare position to the ground tire. I could do without a sensor on the spare for the week it might take to get a replacement sensor. The reputable dealers I have talked with all offer single sensor sales or replacement under warranty. A sensor on a spare tire would probably last longer than the other external sensors as it isn't exposed to potential strike from road debris or heat from the tire or brake drum. If I had a sensor fail I would plan on keeping the cap and O-ring if in good condition as a future spare part.
Monitor. Well if this part fails I don't know of any repair a user could do. You just need to get a new monitor from your dealer and hope you have a good warranty and that your dealer will sell the monitor by itself so you don't have to buy another complete system. I have to admit that I did manage to damage my older monitor after four years of reliable use. I grabbed the wrong power cord and connected it to a 12v source which fried the monitor that only wanted 5V. My Bad. Luckily I was able to get just the sensor and didn't have to buy a bunch of new sensors at the same time.
Replacement parts: If you bought your TPMS from a dealer that specializes in the RV market and attends RV shows then you should be able to get individual parts with little problem. If on the other hand, you purchased mail order from Amazon or eBay or similar, I have no idea what parts or service you can expect.
Testing: This is something I doubt any have done but after some consideration, I think I have an easy and workable plan.
I suggest at least once every 6 months when you are at a location where you have nice weather and a bit of time you conduct an operation test.
With the system on, I would record all the readings from for both pressure and temperature. With the Co-Pilot in the driver seat, I would go to each tire position and unscrew the sensor. The Co-Pilot should signal the tester as soon as a warning is given on the monitor. You might use your phone or walkie-talkie or maybe a 3rd person, as honking the horn as a signal might become bothersome for your neighbors. If all the sensors give a warning within a few seconds (read your manual on the claimed warning time) all is OK. If there is a delay or no warning after say 10 seconds then there may be a problem in either the sensor or monitor or programming and you MUST learn the why and take corrective action as you are depending on receiving prompt warning of air loss.
You can also use this opportunity to confirm your cold tire pressure with your calibrated hand gauge. (See THIS post on how to confirm your gauge is sufficiently accurate) and you can also "top-off your cold pressure with your normal margin of air.
##RVT896
This post is limited to TPMS that use externally mounted sensors. i.e. the ones that screw onto the end of your valve stem.
Batteries. They eventually will die. The early warning of loss of signal from a sensor that previously was working appears to be an occasional intermittent loss of signal, followed eventually by almost constant no signal on the display. This is easy to fix as most of these systems have user replaceable batteries. I always carry a couple but also I don't stock up as batteries may lose power even sitting in their original packaging.
"O" ring: Under the screw-on plastic cap there is a very small O-ring. As with any rubber component they can simply die ( crack or tear) just from normal use as rubber does "age-out" due to exposure to heat an Ozone in the atmosphere. I would suggest having a few "O" rings on hand as, unlike the batteries, you can't just pick up a replacement at CVS, Walmart, or Walgreens. You will probably have to get them from your TPMS dealer. When you screw the cap on the sensor don't overtighten the cap as that can distort the O-ring and shorten its life
Plastic cap. This part should last longer than the rubber O-Ring but plastic ages too. Again this is special and unique to your brand TPMS so having at least one on hand from your dealer is a good idea. Also, don't over tighten the cap. It might be possible to seal a cracked cap for a short time with Silicone seal or glue but be careful not to glue the cap to the sensor.
Sensor electronics. All you can do here is get a new replacement sensor. Some brand TPMS offer a longer-term warranty (Lifetime) others only 12 months. I do carry a spare sensor but not in my toolbox or parts box but I added a sensor to my spare tire. in my Class-C. This gives give me a replacement I could use on a ground tire if one of those sensors ever failed. It would only require a quick program change when I move the sensor from a spare position to the ground tire. I could do without a sensor on the spare for the week it might take to get a replacement sensor. The reputable dealers I have talked with all offer single sensor sales or replacement under warranty. A sensor on a spare tire would probably last longer than the other external sensors as it isn't exposed to potential strike from road debris or heat from the tire or brake drum. If I had a sensor fail I would plan on keeping the cap and O-ring if in good condition as a future spare part.
Monitor. Well if this part fails I don't know of any repair a user could do. You just need to get a new monitor from your dealer and hope you have a good warranty and that your dealer will sell the monitor by itself so you don't have to buy another complete system. I have to admit that I did manage to damage my older monitor after four years of reliable use. I grabbed the wrong power cord and connected it to a 12v source which fried the monitor that only wanted 5V. My Bad. Luckily I was able to get just the sensor and didn't have to buy a bunch of new sensors at the same time.
Replacement parts: If you bought your TPMS from a dealer that specializes in the RV market and attends RV shows then you should be able to get individual parts with little problem. If on the other hand, you purchased mail order from Amazon or eBay or similar, I have no idea what parts or service you can expect.
Testing: This is something I doubt any have done but after some consideration, I think I have an easy and workable plan.
I suggest at least once every 6 months when you are at a location where you have nice weather and a bit of time you conduct an operation test.
With the system on, I would record all the readings from for both pressure and temperature. With the Co-Pilot in the driver seat, I would go to each tire position and unscrew the sensor. The Co-Pilot should signal the tester as soon as a warning is given on the monitor. You might use your phone or walkie-talkie or maybe a 3rd person, as honking the horn as a signal might become bothersome for your neighbors. If all the sensors give a warning within a few seconds (read your manual on the claimed warning time) all is OK. If there is a delay or no warning after say 10 seconds then there may be a problem in either the sensor or monitor or programming and you MUST learn the why and take corrective action as you are depending on receiving prompt warning of air loss.
You can also use this opportunity to confirm your cold tire pressure with your calibrated hand gauge. (See THIS post on how to confirm your gauge is sufficiently accurate) and you can also "top-off your cold pressure with your normal margin of air.
##RVT896
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