Reviews for a Doran Rv Tire Monitor System

Monitoring Our Ride -> Review Of The Tire-Safeguard TPMS

June two, 2014 by

We've finally got our butts on the coast (and aye, we are loving it), but before I reveal all the juicy details I wanted to complete a web log mail that's been on my pending list for a while. Those of you that follow the blog closely will recall that I put a TPMS (Tire Pressure level Monitoring System) on my "big v wish list" late last year. For those not in the know, TPMS systems monitor how your tires are doing (pressure & temp) existent-fourth dimension on the road and can warn and potentially save you from serious/costly tire mishaps. I don't consider them a "must have" item, but they sure are peachy & provide nice peace of mind. Well, you'll all exist relieved to know we finally got one! In fact it's been ~ii months since we've had it on the rig and so that we could thoroughly test it out before writing about it.

After much ado hither's my full review:

Nearly Of The Major Suppliers Offer "The Nuts"

The 10-cap sensor from Tire-Safeguard

I should start by maxim that about of the major TPMS suppliers (TST, Force per unit area Pro, EEZ, Doran etc.) provide very like systems and I honestly don't think you can become wrong with any of them. I was able to see (and hold) just about every model out at that place during the big RV show at Quartzsite earlier this year and they were all very similar in price in features. Pretty much all of them cost around $450 or so (for ten sensors) and provide the following:

• Temperature & pressure tracking
• Audible & visible warnings for low pressure, dull air leak and high temp/force per unit area.
• Flow-through or cap sensors with support for ten sensors or more
• Auto and transmission set-up of threshold alarms
• Warranty of at to the lowest degree 2 years

These are the nuts. That said in that location are some differences betwixt suppliers and a few reasons we got the item model we did….

Positive Features of the Tire-Safeguard:

I really like the size of our screen as well as that little green light on the tiptop correct. Plus the range is excellent.

• Larger Screen -> These guys offered a much larger screen than most of the other suppliers and that'southward something I liked. I don't want to squint to see what the system is doing while driving.
• Much Longer Range -> When we bought this system the salesperson bodacious us we would not need a repeater for our MH+toad. I talked to all the major suppliers and Tire Safeguard was the simply one who could guarantee that for our size. In fact I was down to choosing between TST 507 (besides an excellent system) and Tire-Safeguard and this item feature was the one that knocked me to Tire-Safeguard. I really like this since information technology'south ane less piece of electronics to worry about. The great news is the claims were accurate. The TPMS has had no trouble picking up all our sensors and was fifty-fifty able to pick-up our tow car while I was driving ~25 feet backside the motorhome out of a campsite.  We've been very impressed with the range and it's probably my #1 "like" feature of this system.
• User-Replaceable Batteries -> The batteries in the sensors for our organisation are easily changeable by the user. Older TPMS models didn't offer this option significant you had to send in the sensors (or buy new ones) when the battery ran out. Pretty much ALL the new TPMS systems offer this now and I consider information technology a "must have" feature.
• Light-green Calorie-free -> This is a minor matter, but when plugged-in this TPMS monitor puts out a prissy piddling green LED calorie-free at the meridian right when everything is OK (goes ruby-red if things are not OK). While I'm driving I really like the convenience of only glancing over and seeing that green light rather than looking at the screen for details. None of the other guys had this not bad picayune feature.

Details Specific To Our Prepare-Up

Pic of the cap sensor on our dorsum dually

We bought the caps (0.45oz) rather than the flow-throughs by and large because they are lighter and I don't like the idea of a heavy thing rotating around on the end of our tire-stems. Many, many RVers buy the flow-throughs with no problems at all, and then this is purely a personal preference. The caps come with a "collar" which is used to secure them to the stems simply we chose not to use information technology. That way we tin easily spiral off the caps anytime we demand to add air. There is no danger of the caps falling off, and the collar is generally a security feature (and so folks don't steal the caps). We are OK with by-passing this for convenience and my inquiries on the forums reveals many other RVers exercise the same.

A fiddling cheap anti-sieze is worth using before you spiral on your sensors

When we got the organization information technology was an easy task of taking off the existing caps from our tires and screwing on the sensors. Nosotros took the precaution (which I recommend) of using Anti-Sieze on all the caps before securing them onto the stems. This prevents potential galvanic corrosion issues between the metal of your stems and the internal threads of the sensors. Galvanic corrosion is a trouble that happens when unlike metals come in contact with each other (e.yard. aluminium and brass) and it basically causes them to "weld" together. It doesn't happen to all metals (it depends on their Anodic Alphabetize), but it tin be very plush if it does and it seems to be a particular trouble with Honda CR-V's (I've read of folks with CR-Five's who had to saw off their stems & supersede them because of this very issue). Using anti-seize, or some kind of insulating grease like Vaseline is easy insurance. Also taking off the caps (if sitting nevertheless for a long time) can forbid this problem.

For installation we used the motorcar-programming feature and it was perfectly painless. The pressures on all the tires came inside one PSI of the measured pressure level (equally taken past our transmission pressure judge) and temperatures matched very closely too (as taken by our handy peachy infrared gun). The entire set-upward took less than 20 minutes.

Negative Features of the Tire-Safeguard:

• Customer Service Was So-Then -> Nosotros had a bit of a rough beginning with Tire Safeguard trying to contact the customer service and not being called dorsum. Nosotros were buying the system with ii other RV friends and they also had the same issues. That said, since nosotros received the TPMS in that location has been no trouble & we've had several additional conversations with customer service which were very well handled. Nosotros even returned one of the caps (suspected leak) and received the replacement promptly with no questions asked.
• We've Had One Simulated Alarm -> Nosotros had one tire show a false temperature of 144 degrees. Resetting the system cleared the alarm. From the forums I gather the occasional faux alarm is non unusual in TPMS systems.
• Acquisition takes Time From "Slumber Mode" -> Nosotros've noticed when sitting nonetheless that the sensors take a while to acquire after the unit of measurement is switched on. This is pretty typical of almost all TPMS systems since the sensors go into "sleep mode" when not in use to save battery life. Once the RV starts moving the sensors acquire rapidly, but if we want to measure pressures before moving the rig (which we pretty much e'er want to practice) we take to remember to plow on the unit of measurement ~xx minutes before we pull out. Not a big deal, just just something to be enlightened of.

Actress Tire Tips:

A TPMS is a pretty good safety system, merely I think it'due south important to understand some tire nuts before you buy one:

We got our rig weighed at a True cat scale when we first bought it & have since had 4-corner weigh done too.

Get Your Rig Weighed: Before you install a TPMS system it'south critical to understand WHAT your tire pressure should be for the size of your rig. The #i reason for blow-outs are either nether-inflated or over-inflated tires. The only way to be accurate on this is to load your rig upwards, become her weighed (preferably iv-corners, merely per axle is a good kickoff) and and so fix the tire pressures equally recommended past your tire manufacturer for your specific tire make at your specific weight. In that location's no better mode effectually this. Loading and so weighing your rig should be one of the very starting time things you exercise when you get an RV. Don't skimp this!

Understand How Pressure Varies With Temperature: Once you get your rig weighed and set your tire pressures, it's important to empathize how these pressures might naturally vary under unlike conditions. Pressure level increases with temperature (it's called The Ideal Gas Law PV = nRT) and then as you're driving your tires will get hotter and your tire pressure will increase. Similarly if your RV tires are sitting in the middle of Pheonix in summertime the tire pressures will exist naturally higher than if they're sitting in the heart of Fargo in winter. To put this into numbers, air pressure in a tire typically increases 1-2 pounds for every 10 degrees of temperature rise (and visa versa for drops). Big (sudden) changes in temp are signs of a problem, but these minor changes are all perfectly normal and nothing to freak out most if yous understand it properly.

EVERYONE should carry a simple truck tire gauge

Always Take Redundancy Gauges: No thing how much yous love your TPMS you should not forgo the simple redundancy of a transmission tire force per unit area judge. What if your sensors fail? Or yous need to check if they're working? For under $20 everyone should take one of these in their rig. Nosotros've used a manual judge for the past 4 years, checking our tire pressures before each trip in the rig. Piece of cake and fast.

In addition, although non a requirement it's dainty to have an simple infrared gun every bit a back-upwardly to check tire temps. As I mentioned to a higher place tire pressures will rise normally while driving, but if i of your tires is significantly hotter than the others this can indicate a serious trouble. Also having an infrared gun is only obviously cool 🙂

Know What To Do In A Blow-Out: I've linked to this video before, but information technology's important enough to practise it again. Did y'all know you should accelerate earlier you brake if you have a blow-out? Counter-intuitive right? Anybody should spotter this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkwOE1yKY5c

Tire covers are super-inexpensive insurance

Protect Your Tires During Down-Fourth dimension: Anyone who's left stuff sitting out in the hot lord's day knows how dissentious it tin exist. Tires exercise all-time while driven and will deteriorate with UV and ozone exposure. There'southward not much we can do about ozone (well, apart from not parking next to something obvious like welding equipment), but for the UV side we regularly protect our tires with Aerospace 303 and comprehend them with inexpensive tire covers whenever nosotros're sitting still for a few days. Overkill perhaps but it's easy, cheap insurance in my mind.

PHEW! That concluded up waaaay longer than I expected, simply I hope it was helpful. Nosotros'll get back to beach and easy, fluffy posts next 🙂

Related Posts:

• Tire Maintenance and Handling Tire Blow-Outs
• Pre-Flight Bank check – What to do Before You Hit the Road

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