# Tpms Experiences



## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Ok, so I just installed the system on the 5'er after I got the tires changed. My first towing experience was interesting. I was especially interested that one tire seemed to gain >5 psi, two gained ~3psi, and one held steady. Of course as I was driving, monitoring the system, the obvious question came up: Ok, now I have all this knowledge, but what is normal, what is good and what is bad?









So, here's how we started:

I screwed on the pressure sender units and immediatly realized I had 1 tire at 85psi, 2 at 79-80, and 1 at 74psi.








Oh well, I'd just top them off at the campground as I was only towing 40 miles.

Temperatures were measuring ambient air as we headed out: 68 deg.

After 2 minutes on the road, the 74 psi tire was down to 72 (Uh Oh....)

After 20 minutes at highway speed, the high pressure tire was at 90psi, the 2 were 83psi, and the one was back to 74psi.

The highest pressure tire was up to like 88-89 deg, the other's were sitting in the high 70's.

Everything seemed to stabilize, and we drove the last 30 minutes wondering what things should be looking like.

So, now everyone else with experiences can post them and see if mine is abnormal or typical, or......
Please remember that my trailer is running 235 85R16 E tires (Truck tires), so the performance may be different, but I also think that would be interesting to look at (Bias Ply Trailer vs. Radial Trailer vs. Radial truck).


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## sengo (Apr 14, 2008)

On my TT I have original tires size 14.
I set tires at 50 psi, driving 55 to 60 mph for 30 minutes ,outside temperature low 70's.
Tires pressures goes up to 58/59 psi. Reading from tire to tire may vary about 2 psi.
Tire temperature is about 86 F. + -
I imagane as the outside temperatue goes up the pressure and temperature tires will rise.
How much dont know since I just used the sytem twice.

sengo


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## Herbicidal (Aug 29, 2003)

Just curious, what brand is your TPMS? I have one from Pressure Pro that I bought back in 2006. I have radial trailer tires on our 2004 26RS. I've had the trailer on the scales and ready for camping she comes in at 5,600 lbs. Max tire inflation for the trailer tires is 50psi, which is what I set them at cold. Typically during summer travel the tire temp increases by about 5psi consistently across all four. Once in a while I'll see one tire maybe 1psi less and another 1psi more, but not quite as dramatic as what you saw. I'm not sure what to make of that. We leave tomorrow for Oregon and Washington on a two week trip so I'll make a mental note to check those numbers again. Weather forecast for the Sacramento Valley is in the mid to uppper 90's as we head north on I-5. That should get the tires good and hot!


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

I beleive mine's the TST? I got in on the group discount that was set up this spring.


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## sengo (Apr 14, 2008)

this is my system
http://shop.tsttruck.com/product.sc;jsessi...mp;productId=26

Sengo


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## Herbicidal (Aug 29, 2003)

Looks good! We covered almost 500 miles today and I regulary checked the tire pressure on the fly. My base pressure was 50 psi. I saw 56psi on one tire while the others were 55 (2) and 54 respectively.


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## Joonbee (Jan 18, 2008)

Set the pressures at home with a good gauge, tires cold. You may read off little on the sensors, just the difference in gauges. I have a good digital I used on my race bikes, so I trust it for accuracy over the sensors. I have used them for 2 trips now and pressyres raise up 10psi and temps raise up to 20*. I actually noticed the side that was getting sunshine was a degree or two higher than the shaded side. That was pretty cool. no pun intended.

make sure they are tight and check them regularly!! Gonna start another thread to explain, so all that just purchased see what happened to me.

To try and guess at what you found on the lesser psi tire. It may have been being carried by the other tire that was much higher, so it wasnt getting the load adn building upi heat and pressures as much. Tires will heat up more if they are low and yours wasnt necessarily low, just lower than the others.

oh and i am running radials. I think 225/75/15's at 60psi.

Jim


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## Herbicidal (Aug 29, 2003)

Well yesterday my Pressure Pro TPMS came to the rescue! We were on the last 3 hours of our two week trip (2,400 mile) trip and the alarm started screeching! A quick glance showed the right rear tire was losing pressure rapidly 43psi...42.....41...0! By that time I was on the shoulder of I-5 and slowly crept into a shady patch. It was 103 degrees out! Oh well, time to change a tire. I also grabbed and lit a couple of safety flares for good measure. I made the tire change but the spare was reading 19psi. No problem, fired up my on-board air compressor and filled it up to 50 psi and mounted the TPMS sensor to the spare and all was good again. Made the remainder of the trip home safely. The tire was repaired as well, looks like a screw went in and out.

There was NO indication that I had a flat. I absolutely did not feel any difference. Eventually that tire would have come apart throwing chunks everywhere and I'm sure causing some damage to the trailer. Anyway, I can't stress enough the importance of having a TMPS on your trailer.


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## Ridgway-Rangers (Apr 18, 2008)

We just finished a 4300 mile trip with the TST TPMS.







The outside temperature ranged from 30 to 97 degrees. We started the trip with cold 50 lbs in the TT and 80 in the TV. I actually used the sensors to bleed off air and provide a pressure reading until I reached the correct pressure. We hit Yellowstone and 30 degree weather, when the tires cooled the alarms sounded for low pressure.

I ended up with one low tire on the trip that was easily inflated but the monitor alerted me to the problem. The monitor was nice to have especially after hitting a few road hazards.



My brother had a shorter 600 mile trip. 2 catastrophic blow outs, the alarm sounded within 2 seconds of each big BANG. One slow leak, with the alarm sounding where it was set. His tires were 5 years old and he knew he was pushing the envelope. He now has 5 new tires on the TT and is happy with the TPMS.


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## Wolfpackers (May 31, 2007)

Just had our first trip with the TST system. Pulling a 10k lb 5'er with tires at 65psi cold. After installation, I noticed that the sensors do not all agree, so next time I'll inflate to 65psi, install sensors and record the sensor readings. I'm sure there is a reason the monitor displays one axle, then another, but I'd rather see both left side tires, then right side tires since sunlight/heat typically affects only one side.

I saw pressures in the 75-80psi range and temps in the 95-102 range as we were traveling 350 miles from home and back. Outdoor temps were in the high 80's, low 90's. I finally got the monitor turned off by pressing/holding the minus button for 6 seconds, but now it won't come back on. Will recheck the manual to make sure I'm doing it correctly and then call factory if it won't come on.

Brent


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## Y-Guy (Jan 30, 2004)

Took a bit of time to get everything setup on the motorhome, needed to replace the braided valve stems with ridged ones. Got them all setup and first trip everything worked great, did notice one tire a bit low so I aired it up. Just before our next trip I fired up the unit and immediately got a low pressure warning, sure enough same tire. Ran back to the tire shop, no leaks in the tire. But eventually found the valve stem extender had a microscopic crack that when under pressure allowed a bit of air to seep out. Since then, all works great. I feel much better having the TST system installed and monitoring the tires now.


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Ok, an updated experience. Now 1 week into the vacation and I'm back to standard valve covers. Over the first 2 days, I had 2 false alarms. Each time I removed the offending sensor, found air pressure at 80-85 psi, and went on with a standard cap. 2 days later, the 3rd sensor tripped the alarm in camp. It read 62psi, but the tire was 79psi according to a good digital gauge. At that point I removed the two remaining sensors and stowed them. All sensors stayed tight, but couldn't maintain an accurate reading. When reinstalled, they will read correctly for a while, but then begin to drift. I'll worry about dealing with it after the trip.


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## Ridgway-Rangers (Apr 18, 2008)

"When reinstalled, they will read correctly for a while, but then begin to drift. I'll worry about dealing with it after the trip. "


When you get home, call Dan with TST. I am confident he will make it right. Remember, we got the extended 2 year warranty thrown in.
Brian


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## swanny (Oct 31, 2007)

I just traveled 2950 miles and everything worked great. As stated before the tires on the sunny side ran a little hotter. all pressures seemed to move up and down uniformly. In the morning all pressures were 78 to 80 psi. Within a short time on the road all we gaining pressure equally. While in NC at the camp ground i plugged the unit in and went about getting things ready to travel. That's when I heard the dreaded beep beep beep. I checked it out and it said i had a low tire on my truck 69psi. I didn't believe it cause i just checked all my tire out visually. So i got my digital gauge and the tool to remove the sensor. As soon a i touched the valve stem it hissed. Sure enough a bad valve stem. As i said all looked ok. I would have been back on 95 south after leaving the CG in about 10 minutes and without a doubt somewhere on the side of the road. Instead I took care of everything in the CG.

As a reminder there was another post about checking the sensors for tightness. I checked mine every morning and sure enough some were a little loose.

Swanny


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