Tire Pressure Monitor Systems
After seeing another post asking about TPMS I felt compelled to jump back up on my soapbox. A friend of mine recently avoided disaster when a quite new front tire blew on his Class A putting him in th...
Forum Discussion
The current problem with TMPS systems is the increasing number of devices in automobiles/ trucks using the same frequency band as the tire sensors.
Five years ago, the small tire mounted internal or external sensors had no problem communicating with the monitor in the vehicle some 20-35 feet away. Today with wireless backup cameras, and other type monitors - the signal competes with those devices, many of which have stronger power sources than the small batteries in the wheel sensors.
I've found that a booster is required on my rig, and talked RVers with the same issue.
I've used the Tire Minder system in the past, but the setup on the company sensor was quite picky.
Currently I use a Tire Minder system which uses my iPhone as the display/ monitor details. The individual tires sensors communicate to a booster placed under the trailer behind the batteries. That communicates to a monitor device we keep near the dash which uses bluetooth to talk to my phone.
A TPMS is a wonderful safety device but will not warn you of every issue.
You need to read and understand how the system alerts and what it will and will not alert you about.
My system requires the tire temp to reach 248 degrees before it alerts.
A friend had a tread come off a tire, damage the trailer. The TPMS did not alert him because the tire never lost air pressure.
I've had a low pressure warning due to a nail in a tire, which the TPMS did warn me about when the pressure dropped 10% in less than 1 hour. But the system did not warn me about a 15% pressure loss overnight.
I had an overpressure alarm once when I drove from 8,000 ft @ 35 degrees - tires properly inflated to 80 PSI, down to 2,000 ft @ 102 degrees about six hours later. Tire was up to 95 PSI.
I check my tire pressure just before I start towing every time, and at every fuel/restroom stop with a very good manual gauge. I check my tire tread for wear, and feel for any bumps, or such at every stop.
Five years ago, the small tire mounted internal or external sensors had no problem communicating with the monitor in the vehicle some 20-35 feet away. Today with wireless backup cameras, and other type monitors - the signal competes with those devices, many of which have stronger power sources than the small batteries in the wheel sensors.
I've found that a booster is required on my rig, and talked RVers with the same issue.
I've used the Tire Minder system in the past, but the setup on the company sensor was quite picky.
Currently I use a Tire Minder system which uses my iPhone as the display/ monitor details. The individual tires sensors communicate to a booster placed under the trailer behind the batteries. That communicates to a monitor device we keep near the dash which uses bluetooth to talk to my phone.
A TPMS is a wonderful safety device but will not warn you of every issue.
You need to read and understand how the system alerts and what it will and will not alert you about.
My system requires the tire temp to reach 248 degrees before it alerts.
A friend had a tread come off a tire, damage the trailer. The TPMS did not alert him because the tire never lost air pressure.
I've had a low pressure warning due to a nail in a tire, which the TPMS did warn me about when the pressure dropped 10% in less than 1 hour. But the system did not warn me about a 15% pressure loss overnight.
I had an overpressure alarm once when I drove from 8,000 ft @ 35 degrees - tires properly inflated to 80 PSI, down to 2,000 ft @ 102 degrees about six hours later. Tire was up to 95 PSI.
I check my tire pressure just before I start towing every time, and at every fuel/restroom stop with a very good manual gauge. I check my tire tread for wear, and feel for any bumps, or such at every stop.
