Valve extenders safe?

The last thing you want to do is put those flexible extenders on your valve stems. They have a tendency to leak and if they get loose from the anchoring point they can flop around and not only do damage to your wheel but suddenly deflate the tire causing a catastrophic loss. I can speak from experience,this happened with my old Class A.

What is needed is a extended valve stem that will let you quickly check your tire pressure. They add no extra weight like the Extenders would and balancing is no problem, TPMS works on them as well

Something like the Duallyvalve I have a set like them and I never have to take my simulators off to check the air pressure.

I have the long valves on my Itasca with TPMS. Its not recommended to run extenders if you plan on using TPMS as they pressurize the extender all the time instead of only when airing up. They tend to not seal well and leak.

Dave

I knew the braided valve stem extenders were problematic so I made sure to purchase what I though was the best (Wheelmaster) at CW. I've used them on previous motorhomes without an issue. This July, as I was about to leave a campground to come home after a week away, I checked the tires by bouncing a hammer off them. Sure enough the inner dual was flat. I'd noticed as I left home on the way to the campground I wasn't getting a reading on my recently installed TPMS from that tire but figured it was a transmitter/battery/receiver issue. Sometimes it takes awhile for all the sensors to connect/show up on the display. Using my compressor, I tried putting some air in but from all the hissing, I thought I didn't have the chuck aligned right. Then as I ran my hand down the extender, I felt the air escaping just under the extended valve stem where the inner tube failed and let all the air out of the tire. The extenders were about 3 or 4 years old.

I called my roadside assistance number and they told me they'd have someone there in 1-1/2 hours. I figured rather than sit around doing nothing I'd take the wheelcover off. After I had it off, I thought maybe I'd use the jacks to get the tire off the ground. Then I used my (favorite) Ryobi 18v battery Impact Wrench to spin off the lugnuts. I kept hoping help would arrive soon. I wrestled the outer tire off and then managed to get the inner one off too. That's when I noticed the tire had come loose from the rim! Putting air back in was no easy feat but after several failed attempts I spayed the rim & tire with the wife's "Shout" and managed to get it to hold the air I was putting in. 20 minutes later (small compressor) I had 90psi in and it was holding it! Still no help, may as well put the tires back on while I waited. Got them back on and fastened with the impact wrench. I called a cancelled the service call about that time (about 1 hour after I called) only to look out toward the entrance to the park and see the tow truck sitting there for a few minutes before turning around and leaving - never even came back to say hi or give me a good cussing! At least I wasn't stuck along the road. I managed to force my hand through the handhole several times and screw the TPMS sensor back on (on the 3rd or 4th attempt). It's doable but not easy and I don't have big hands :M. I wish the hole was a bit larger and see no reason it shouldn't be.

I'll run with the 1 inch valve stems with my TPMS sensors screwed on them until I can get some solid extension tubes but I won't be using the flexible extenders anymore - lesson learned! Use them at your own risk and if your TPMS isn't communicating with one tire, take time to check the air in the tire before continuing on down the road. I've been on a couple of trips since that event and the tire seems to be okay but running them flat like I did is not a good idea.

The TPMS will let me know when I need to add up the tires and I'll just need to pull the wheelcovers off to do that.

Lots of people use extenders without issue. Personally I solved the problem by putting my wheel simulators in the garage. :B

gatorcq wrote:
I have used the braided hose and the extenders, never a problem.

Yeah, me too.

if the flex type are installed right, they last and work well. had two big tire companies put them on my MH both leaked in about three months , tried one more shop. and the guy showed me what they were doing wrong. thats four years ago they still work great . and my tires don,t leak down.

Most valve exteners are ok but some leak a bit. If you do not have a TPMS I'd recommend against.. And I have one that won't let me air up the tire.

When I had the tires replaced a couple years back (or was it last year) I went to Duly Valves on the rear. Nice Long valve stems bent so they extend out and it's as easy to check or air up as it is on a car.

I've tried 3 different brands of flexible valve extenders, including the braided hose. None worked for more than a year or so. One of them leaked immediately, one lasted a couple weeks, and one lasted about a year. The braided hose one almost wore a hole in the sidewall of the tire from rubbing against it.

No way would I ever rely on them to hold air.

I have used the braided hose and the extenders, never a problem.

See if there is a long valve stem that can be used for your setup. Check dually kits etc. My steel valves now extend out so that they can be easily reached.

I do not recommend any type of valve extension.