Good morning! We have a slow leak in one of the tag axle's Michelin XZA3 tires. It will hold air for about a day. We have CoachNet. Our coach is close to home at the storage place.
I'm not sure how to proceed since we're home and not on the road. Am I better off calling CoachNet or just airing up and driving to some place that can service the tire?
Check to make sure the tire's stem is tight. I had the this issue and this was the cause.
I would air up and drive. Then you can pick the time and place for repair.
Rich
Ideally with TPMS installed so you can keep a continuous eye on that tire.
I would air up and drive someplace close.
Could be a nail in the tire, a bad seal on a tpms sender, a bad shraeder valve, or a bad stem to rim seal. I've had them all (one at a time). Best to have it fixed at a tire shop, although a mobile truck tire repair man should be up to the task.
I found a place about 25 minutes away. Will drive over.
If you have been checking/adding air to the tire, the gauge/chuck could have damaged the schrader valve. I had the same problem with a gauge from overseas and had to install a new valve.
You could fill a dollar store spray bottle with a soap mixture and check both the valve and tire at the same time.
Pierce
Good point. I did check and adjust the tires before and during our recent Florida trip. I keep a spray bottle with bubble fluid in the coach and sprayed the valve and valve stem a couple of days ago when I first noticed the problem.
Can nail holes in the tread area be plugged like passenger car tires?
They are removed and patched from inside if not in sidewall.
BTW, no tire on an over the road application should be plugged, patch from inside.
People still plug tires all the time, I have also seen combo plug/patches. All not recommended.
Mark, they generally don't plug truck tires. The tire should be dismounted and patched.
I carry a plug kit with us as part of the tool kit. They work for airbags and if you don't have a spare or are a ways from a tire service shop, they can be used to stop a leak. Like Tim says, they are used all the time but it's best to have a tire shop pull the wheel and patch from inside. Cheap insurance.
Tires that lose pressure on the rear will overheat and then should not be used again. Loss of front tire pressure will be worse, much worse.
If you take your coach to have the tag repaired, don't let them gun the nuts back on with excessive torque. Insist on them torquing before they start the job. Some shops may try to BS you.
Pierce
Most run in with gun and then torque. Last shop did that to me, ruined three front studs.
Had to order in, was a pain
Torque wrench is the way to go, not the truck gun
I check mine, but don't really dwell on it. When our Michelins were replaced, they were forced balanced, new aluminum valve stems, seal caps, and wheel studs. I notice tire pressure change when in colder or hotter temps, but within my specs. ^.^d
Mark,
"Holding air for about a day" is pretty vague. If you mean a dead flat tire in 24 hours, that's a severe leak and should be very easy to find with soap bubbles. If you mean the tag tire is down 5 psig in 24 hours, that could be much more difficult to find.
At any rate, agree with patching from inside and if soap bubbles don't present a leak, then the tire should be broken down which CoachNet won't recommend doing in the field. A good tire service center will do a better job for you than a "road warrior" would probably be able to, anyway. So I definitely second airing it up and making a beeline to a good tire service center.
It's always better to find what you can on your own, so that you know better what you're dealing with, so you've been over the tire very carefully with soap bubbles, Right? Nails, screws, gator wire shards, etc. in the tread (particularly on tag axles) and valve stem problems are usually pretty common and easy to find. But very slow leaks can be a real challenge. See thread below:
Inside Dual Tire Leak (http://www.foreforums.com/index.php?topic=13667.msg76631#msg76631)
Good Luck,
Neal
It drops from 70 to about 30 psi in 24 hours. Seems to hold at about 30. I think at that point the drive wheels have taken the weight.
Mark
Got the tire fixed today. Had a 1/4" bolt and a nail through the tread!
That will do it!!!
Speedbird 1
wow....I can see the nail....but a 1/4 bolt?
I know! I was shocked. The repairman's been doing tire service for 10 years and wasn't the least bit surprised.
When you do it you did it up right!!
Had a 1/4 inch bolt in our tire about 9 years ago. Lots of other stuff since and right now have a very small nail in the right front on the high side of the tread. Like with the insect removal we do with our coaches, maybe we should charge for cleaning up the streets, also.
Bolts are more common than you would think. Weirdest thing I have seen was a set of those old steel kitchen scissors everybody used to have. Jammed through the tread and bent when it hit the rim.