Tire pressure

And thumping on the hood will tell you if the engine oil level is Ok...........

 

I don't know. I've noticed allot of people heading out without checking fluids. "Darn Guagers".

 

http://fleetowner.com/equipment/tiretracks/fleet_thumping_doesnt_work

 

Yea and Id be willing to bet that most of the carcasses on the road are from tires that just go completely unchecked over tires that are just thumped.

Anymore I'd just be happy if other drivers took the time to thump the tires when they drop a trailer. I drop and hook 3 times a day. And at least 2-3 times a week I'm filling low tires.

 

You mean like these? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jYcX_D09ig

 

Now imagine driving a tanker with those. Between the surge and the tires you'd be sick at the 3rd stop light.

 

i check my tires once a week......

but i have a TPMS "Tire Psi Monitoring System" so i can see in real time what my tire psi and temp is

if they go over or under the psi or temp goes over what i set a alarm goes off and tells me what tire it is and why

 

because tpms is so reliable....

in my experiance they mess up so often after they get some age the drivers learn to ignore it

 

I check my pressure every day. The secret is having the caps that you can check pressure and add air without removing the cap. I imagine everyone has those caps these days? I would take forever to check pressure if u had to remove caps. I have 24 tires and check them all in like 3 minutes.

 

Good link, the article is right, but it also points out the value of the thumper, simply to check if they are excessively low or flat.

Most drivers won't do a good pre-trip with an air guage first thing, and it can only be done once a shift, and that is when the tire is cold, so it has to be done first thing after the 10 hr break, after that, the thumper is justified as just an inflated check.... When the tire heats up, so does the air and the pressure so they aren't accurate after rolling a mile or more.

And like the article points out, and the poster above me (edited this) points out, if the tires have Double Seal Valve Caps more drivers might check their tires during pre-trip if it was easier, but as always, drivers may not and most companies don't like to pay for these things that increase their costs...pound foolish in my opinion. Personally, I hate valve caps so I buy my own for my own convenience and check my tires in the morning.

Almost forgot, kneepads make the job a little bit easier.