low air warning

Emphasis on the ASAP.

What's going to eventually happen is the low air buzzer will go off. And suddenly, the brakes are going to pull you to a halt. You wont wreck. But you may be on a long bridge or in a tunnel. Then the danger begans.

Since the problem isnt consistent, odd are you won't hear an air leak.

 

lol 3 million is plenty for me. haw.

You enjoy those games. Tomorrow is a new day.

 

My guess (as I sit here LOL) is a purge valve also.

 

Air leaks are often hard to hear. This is why I carry a spray bottle of water with a splash of Dawn detergent. Spray down your air lines, especially the connectors. Leaks will bubble.

Sometimes in order to hear a leak I park and wait for the cutoff at 125 psi (if it will get there), then turn off the engine. However, the leak can be bad and bleed out the air so quickly you don't have time to find it. The psi might drop to a point the leak is barely audible. Get a length of hose and use it. Hold one end to your ear and probe the lines with the other end.

For emergencies I carry spare connectors, air line of all sizes, and emergency tape that can withstand high psi. Usually leaks happen at the connectors, not because the connectors are bad but because the lines were installed without properly making smooth ends. Shop hands normally cut the hose with a special tool, but it always leaves a sharp point on one side. Inserting it into a connector like that puts a dent or even cut in the rubber O-ring and it's just a matter of time till it starts to leak. Cut that sharp point off and make sure the end of the air line is flush and smooth before inserting into the connector.

 

Maybe just a defective gauge. I doubt its a live gauge. I had air drop to zero on gauge in a 2010 truck. Now I suspected electronic issue since the brakes did not apply. So I stop truck and check things out,,,nothing. Get back in truck,,its a Automatic and because gauge says I have no air transmission will not shift into drive! In that instance I immediately abandoned truck and got ride to town with a fellow driver who was following me. Technology really sucks. The only thing that seems not to fail these days are that friggin low air bell!

 

This time of year? When was your air dryer serviced?

I've had this happen when a leveling valve was going south. It would just stick open, occasionally. If you have water in the system, ice can make valves stick open, even if they are otherwise ok.

 

My guess would be air purge valve or a leveling valve as mentioned above. If you are below freezing you just might have some ice in the system. Do you drain your air tanks when the weather is above freezing on a regular basis?