Weight/Pressure per tire/TPMS/Tire Valve Extensions

[millionroy]

I still feel like a neophyte regarding tires, pressures, et al even after nearly 20 years of  RV'ing.

Our first RV was a 1996 Rexhall Rexair 37' with a tag axle and I think 19.5 tires.  During our 15 years with it we incurred two blowouts, both on the rear, one inside dually and one tag.  I drove it like a pickup rarely checking tire pressures, (tread was good!!), duh.

Bought a 2001 HR Endeavor in October 2017 and what an education since then.  Overheating (undiagnosed by anyone until while looking for the coolant filter, I discovered a big hole in the muffler which sent exhaust directly up to the fan and radiator), jack problems, toilet problems, et al.

Have read a number of posts on this forum regarding tire pressures recommended based on weight per wheel.  I am curious as to how much deviation there is in those pressures per wheel.  I have been inflating the steering tires to 100 pounds and the duals to 110 pounds.  Is this problematic?  

What TPMS do you folks recommend?  Like so many things, everyone has the best!

This post was initiated because my passenger inside dually has a slow leak.  I have valve extenders on the rear tires.  These tires are new Toyos (May 21) which are driven on weekly.

Intent on wearing it out long before I check out!!

 

 

[Bob Jones]

I've never weighed mine per wheel so I can't help you there but we did install a tire pressure monitoring system for the motorhome and the toad. I got rid of it. Be careful when buying one. I would suggest getting as close to OE as you can, ie, valve stems with monitors on the inside of the wheel. The ones that got were highly recommended, fit on the outside of the valve stems, and were not worth it. They caused a lot of problems. 

Edited February 14, 2022 by Bob Jones

[millionroy]

Thanks Bob.  Appreciate your input on this.  

Roy

[Ivan K]

Not sure what problems can decent TPMS cause. Suppose sensor oring can develop a leak? I, for one, would not leave home without it on every wheel in the train. Slow leak can develop into fast leak and should be easily fixed. Would be a pain to constantly check and air up. Extensions can be problematic, solid long stems are available to avoid them. Scale weight per axle, if not per axle end, can be printed at most any truck stop and pressure table is on every tire manufacturers website.  Better than going by the vehicle's placard. 

[Bob Jones]

The one we used was one that was highly recommended by hundreds of owners. At the time it was the most popular. We had to clearance the rims on the toad so the sensors would fit. We had leaks and then changed over to real truck-type solid valve stems. Even then, after it was all sorted, it was unreliable and we took it off and burned the $600 or so it cost. This is why I suggest anyone looking into adding one do their research and try and get one as close to an OEM design as possible. The OEM's put them on the inside of the rim as part of the valve stem. They ARE reliable. Whether they are available in the aftermarket, I'm not sure. 

[willbo777]

I don't know what problems you've had but our TST 507 flow through system has been on our coach and the non flow through type on our toad since 2014 with no problems.  And I have only replaced the batteries 3 times.  Peace of mind.

[Blacknight]

I just had a leak fixed on my coach this past Saturday. 2007 Knight with Hankook ah37 tires. The inside dual tire would leak down to around 85 lbs. after being filled to 105lbs. I always check the tire pressure when cold before each trip and that is how I discovered the problem. Went to the tire shop to have things checked out, found no tire damage, no nails etc, but the valve stem, metal truck type, was leaking so it was replaced. While the tire tech was putting things back together, he found the stainless steel hose extensions also had a slight leak ( all four had been sprayed with soapy water and all leaked) so i had those removed. Now I have ads pop up from Camping World on facebook trying to sell me a new set! Im now trying to decide whether to get a new set of extensions or just get a new extended pressure gauge and inflater tip. 

[Dr4Film]

I will only run with Borg Tire Stems for ALL wheels. The use of extensions is an accident waiting to happen. I prefer to have corner weights versus single axle weights, but the latter is better than NO weights at all. Once you have the weight of the fully loaded coach you can calculate what your Cold psi should be for each tire on the axle. There are forms that will guide you through the process. Also use the inflation tables for your brand & model of tires you have installed on the coach.

For a TPMS that will be a personal choice. There are many to choose from. I chose the Legacy Pressure Pro 12 Tire System for our recently purchased 2006 Monaco Dynasty we are picking up this month.

Safe travels! 

[Bill R]

1 hour ago, Blacknight said:

I just had a leak fixed on my coach this past Saturday. 2007 Knight with Hankook ah37 tires. The inside dual tire would leak down to around 85 lbs. after being filled to 105lbs. I always check the tire pressure when cold before each trip and that is how I discovered the problem. Went to the tire shop to have things checked out, found no tire damage, no nails etc, but the valve stem, metal truck type, was leaking so it was replaced. While the tire tech was putting things back together, he found the stainless steel hose extensions also had a slight leak ( all four had been sprayed with soapy water and all leaked) so i had those removed. Now I have ads pop up from Camping World on facebook trying to sell me a new set! Im now trying to decide whether to get a new set of extensions or just get a new extended pressure gauge and inflater tip. 

Just purchased PressurePro Pulse FX for my '06 Windsor and Toad.

I regularly check tire pressure with a pressure gauge and usually pressure is good.  Until one morning before leaving out I just happened to look at my inside rear tire and it was flat as a pancake.  Aired up and obviously could tell that the valve stem was leaking on the extender (must have stuck after I checked the tire pressure the day before).  So not a fan of those extenders.  After tightening the valve stem I was good to go.  Since then I spray each valve stem with soapy water after checking the pressure.  

I am hoping the new TPMS will work as advertised.

[Bob Jones]

1 hour ago, Dr4Film said:

I will only run with Borg Tire Stems for ALL wheels. The use of extensions is an accident waiting to happen.

This is what we found. We ended up getting solid extensions from a truck-specific shop, ie, the entire valve stem is a solid one piece extension. The difficulty with them is that you have to remove the tire to install them. The benefit is they never leak. That put an end to our issues on that front once and for all. Years later, they never leak. Same pressure every time I check them. 

[GypsyJo]

I have been using a TPMS, Tire Minder. I'm still not sure how to properly set it on my phone. If I set it to what the pressure is cold,  one on the road the tires warm up and I have a continuous alarm.  Also the pressure changes with the heat . What do you set yours at to not have the alarm driving you crazy? 

[Guest Ray Davis]

35 minutes ago, Bob Jones said:

This is what we found. We ended up getting solid extensions from a truck-specific shop, ie, the entire valve stem is a solid one piece extension. The difficulty with them is that you have to remove the tire to install them. The benefit is they never leak. That put an end to our issues on that front once and for all. Years later, they never leak. Same pressure every time I check them. 

You call them extensions but then you say the entire valve stem is one piece, not sure I understand which you have.  It sort of sounds like you have the Borg stems that Richard mentioned above, that's the stems I use too. They are the real deal, pretty much fool proof plus they have rubber donuts to fit the odd shaped holes in our wheels.  Those are to stabilize the long stem coming from the inner wheel.

 

[Bob Jones]

It's an extended length steel valve stem. All one piece. Typically used on some truck applications. You have to dismount the tire to install them. Like this, but much longer. They were hard to come by.

 

[Paul J A]

Yep. That's one of the benefits of having a tire shop that does lots of truck tires install your NEW tires.They always have them on hand, BUT, you usually have to ask for them. The rubber stabilizers that you  insert into the openings in the outer dual are a good and essential thing to do.

[rustykramermetalfab]

I installed a TST 507 system. Coach and 3 axel trailer 3 years ago. I chose the none flow through sensors.  Nothing better than being able to see your pressures before you pull out from the racetrack or overnight stop without the need to get out check 12 tires, or warn you if you have one going down while on the road.  I advised one of my racing buddies he should have the system so he bought a TST. 

So far it has saved him from shredding two trailer tires that picked up nails. (On a big coach you just have no idea a multi axel trailer has a tire going down until you see smoke from it dragging.)  These were very good shape newer tires so his system has almost paid for itself.  

If set up correctly there is no reason a TPMS should not be a great addition to your coach.  I would highly recommend TST and the Pressure Pro must be a solid choice as well. 

 

[W7BE_Bob]

PSI should be set based on the weight for that axle. Over psi means less road contact and under psi means higher temperatures which effects braking and stability. This is why tire mfg's publish load inflation tables. Weight each axle with fully loaded cargo, people, fuel, water and propane. If possible weight each wheel position and use the highest side for the axle psi. 

I installed metal valves including the dually setup and all valves are easy to access. Installed at tire replacement time and added TST 507 TPMS. Checked that there was no toad distance related issue and OK as expected since these are used on trucks with multiple trailers.

I'm not aware of internal sensors for my tires. Ford has a wired kit for trailer TPMS. Also not aware of a way to use the Jeep internal sensors nor have I found metal stems that will work with the internal sensors.

[Dr4Film]

A follow-up from my previous post in regard to the Legacy Pressure Pro TPMS that I had purchased recently.

The vendor called to say that the Legacy model is no longer available. He suggested purchasing the Pressure Pro Pulse model which I did. This new model monitor has many more useful functions than the old Legacy model that it was a no brainer. The other choice was the Pulse FX which uses your smart phone as the display. I am an "old school" guy and like my phone to be primarily used as a PHONE. I don't need it to run a million apps in the background. Don't get me wrong, I have a number of very specific apps that I use but for a TPMS I like to visually SEE what is going on with my tires as I am driving in real time. If I need to take a handsfree call or make one while driving with the Pulse monitor, I can see what is happening even while using the phone. 

[millionroy]

Thanks for the update. Really appreciate it.

[Guest Ray Davis]

3 hours ago, Dr4Film said:

A follow-up from my previous post in regard to the Legacy Pressure Pro TPMS that I had purchased recently.

The vendor called to say that the Legacy model is no longer available. He suggested purchasing the Pressure Pro Pulse model which I did. This new model monitor has many more useful functions than the old Legacy model that it was a no brainer. The other choice was the Pulse FX which uses your smart phone as the display. I am an "old school" guy and like my phone to be primarily used as a PHONE. I don't need it to run a million apps in the background. Don't get me wrong, I have a number of very specific apps that I use but for a TPMS I like to visually SEE what is going on with my tires as I am driving in real time. If I need to take a handsfree call or make one while driving with the Pulse monitor, I can see what is happening even while using the phone. 

👍

[Roger 2006 HR Endeavor PDQ]

FYI for everyone. The Ramblin' Pushers owns a two-pad truck scale and can measure weight of each axle end separately. This service is offered at the time of arrival. The coach weighing crew can measure roadside and curbside weights for the steer, drive, and tag axles. We do request a $20 donation to pay for the annual maintenance and calibration of the scales. 

As part of our Educational Program, we offer a seminar on the subject of tire safety and how to use the measurements and the tire manufacturer's data sheet to set the tire pressure for each axle (not each wheel). We also discuss tire safety in general with topics like when to replace tires, and other equipment that is available to prevent or assist in the event of a blowout. We try to avoid the subject of "my tires are better than yours," but you know how that goes.

The Ramblin' Pushers Maintenance Session (MS 2022) schedule is as follows:
Wednesday, 4/27 Early Parking (optional)
Thursday, 4/28 Arrival Day
Friday, 4/29 MS Day 1
Saturday, 4/30 MS Day 2
Sunday, 5/1 MS Day 3
Monday, 5/2 MS Day 4
Tuesday, 5/3 MS Day 5
Wednesday 5/5 MS Day 6 (with closing dinner)
Thursday, 5/6 Departure Day

The Maintenance Session takes place at the Elkhart County 4H Fairgrounds, 17746-D CR 34, Goshen, IN 46528   (GPS: N41.5807 W85.8007)

The Ramblin' Pushers Maintenance Session welcomes Class A diesel pushers and Class Super-C motorhomes produced by the following manufacturers:
American Coach, Beaver, Entegra, Fleetwood, Holiday Rambler, Monaco, Newmar, Renegade, Safari, and Tiffin.

For more information please visit our website www.ramblinpushers.org  In the Big Blue Box you will find links to our Invitation Packet of information about the Ramblin' Pushers organization, the complete Program Book for our 2019 Maintenance Session, and a link to our 2022 MS. As you might have guessed, the 2020 and 2021 Maintenance Sessions had to be cancelled to be in compliance with Covid-19 mitigation requirements. We are eager to be back.

Please take the time to visit our website and see what it is that we do. Our entire mission is centered on proper coach maintenance and safe operation. We are a 100% volunteer organization. That is reflected in our registration and camping fees--you would be hard-pressed to find an equivalent RV rally with a comparable price.

If you have questions about the MS, please call or text to 618-593-5352 or email rogersmalley@ymail.com. 

See you in Goshen!

Roger Smalley
Vice President and 2022 Maintenance Session Coordinator.

 

We hope to see all of our Monacoers friends in Goshen. The MS begins in 69 days!

 

[saflyer]

On 2/13/2022 at 8:22 PM, Bob Jones said:

I've never weighed mine per wheel so I can't help you there but we did install a tire pressure monitoring system for the motorhome and the toad. I got rid of it. Be careful when buying one. I would suggest getting as close to OE as you can, ie, valve stems with monitors on the inside of the wheel. The ones that got were highly recommended, fit on the outside of the valve stems, and were not worth it. They caused a lot of problems. 

What kind of problems?

Ed             
‘05 HR Ambassador         
TST TPMS

On 2/14/2022 at 8:57 AM, GypsyJo said:

I have been using a TPMS, Tire Minder. I'm still not sure how to properly set it on my phone. If I set it to what the pressure is cold,  one on the road the tires warm up and I have a continuous alarm.  Also the pressure changes with the heat . What do you set yours at to not have the alarm driving you crazy? 

Keep in mind my understanding that low pressure warning is more important than high.

Ed       
‘05 HR Ambassador        
TST TPMS

Edited February 17, 2022 by saflyer

[granvillebarker]

On 2/14/2022 at 8:57 AM, GypsyJo said:

I have been using a TPMS, Tire Minder. I'm still not sure how to properly set it on my phone. If I set it to what the pressure is cold,  one on the road the tires warm up and I have a continuous alarm.  Also the pressure changes with the heat . What do you set yours at to not have the alarm driving you crazy? 

Typically, you can set a low and high point for alarms.   To set it properly you need to know your coach weight per axle and proper pressure for each tire position.   On my coach, the front tires are at 115psi cold, so I have the alarm set for 114, I don't want them any lower.   On a typical long day of driving, i've seen them reach 130 psi, so I have the upper alarms set at 135 for those tires.   If I start getting too many alarms for the upper  side, I'll bump it up a bit, slow down, or stop and let the tires rest a bit.   As Ed says, we aren't as worried about over pressure as we are under pressure.

I have had TPMS on my coach and toad since I started RV'ing in 2002, and my Dynasty has two systems.   A smart tire system installed in 2005 that shows up on my silverleaf box; it has bands around the inside of the wheels.   I have one of the cheap made in china systems from amazon for the new toad, but after loosing a tire on a trailer with no notification in a reasonable time last year, I'm replacing the china/amazon system with a pressure pro.   

I wouldn't leave the house without a TPMS, I don't think any of us would know about a flat on our toad until it was way too late without one.

 

--

Granville Barker

05 Dynasty / 21 Jeep 4xE

 

[W7BE_Bob]

TST recommends setting the low pressure 10% below the cold pressure per axle and setting the high pressure 25% above the cold pressure per axle. No alarms for me with these settings.  

Tire manufactures recommended cold tire pressure is based on axle weight at about 70 F degrees, generally morning before driving. 

TST recommends to not change their default high tire temperature setting. I called them about the external sensors temperature being much lower than internal tire temperature (had both types at that time). They were vague and didn't answer as I expected.

Logically the external sensors are subject to lower ambient air temperature on the valve stem, brass in my case than the internal tire temperature. The difference was significant. This would apply to any mfg external sensor. Hopefully for TST their high temperature alarm correctly detects excessive high temperature.

[GypsyJo]

18 hours ago, granvillebarker said:

Typically, you can set a low and high point for alarms.   To set it properly you need to know your coach weight per axle and proper pressure for each tire position.   On my coach, the front tires are at 115psi cold, so I have the alarm set for 114, I don't want them any lower.   On a typical long day of driving, i've seen them reach 130 psi, so I have the upper alarms set at 135 for those tires.   If I start getting too many alarms for the upper  side, I'll bump it up a bit, slow down, or stop and let the tires rest a bit.   As Ed says, we aren't as worried about over pressure as we are under pressure.

I have had TPMS on my coach and toad since I started RV'ing in 2002, and my Dynasty has two systems.   A smart tire system installed in 2005 that shows up on my silverleaf box; it has bands around the inside of the wheels.   I have one of the cheap made in china systems from amazon for the new toad, but after loosing a tire on a trailer with no notification in a reasonable time last year, I'm replacing the china/amazon system with a pressure pro.   

I wouldn't leave the house without a TPMS, I don't think any of us would know about a flat on our toad until it was way too late without one.

 

--

Granville Barker

05 Dynasty / 21 Jeep 4xE

 

Thank you for your help.  

Have a great day.  

[moxy1962]

Lots of good advise here, I’ve been using TST for 12 years, well worth the expense and I highly recommend, I use 8 flow through on coach and 4 non flow through on car hauler with a repeater. system has detected several minor leaks and even hinted at bearing problem on trailer which proved to be minor but  needed correction. Weighing all 6 positions on the coach is recommended, this allows running lowest safe pressure for each axle which should be based on heaviest weight per axle. Same Pressure across axle. I have found steer tires typically require highest pressure cold. Followed by drive and tag. I have extenders on inner drive axle only, they have not leaked on 10 years. As far as other maintenance, welcome to the club, if you were hoping for plug and play,  get out of the motor coach game,  

Edited March 13, 2022 by moxy1962