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Old 03-22-2020, 08:34 PM   #1
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Brand: Entegra
Model: Accolade 37TS
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THOR #1469
Installed the TireMinder Repeater

I installed the repeater for my TireMinder TPMS today.

First when I crawled under the coach I noticed this

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That is the steel shield that protects the rear lower portion of the 100 gallon diesel tank. A lock nut was missing and after checking it out it appears the nut and flat washer were never installed. This I believe is a Freightliner issue. I went to O'Reilly Auto Parts and they didn't have a lock nut but they did have a nut and lock washer which will work for now.

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For installing the TireMinder Repeater I found the 12VDC and Ground lugs on the back of the Onan Generator which worked great for the power connection using some 3/8 inch electrical connectors.

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I mounted an illuminated switch just inside the generator compartment door and zip tied the repeated to the trailer hitch.

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Now to install the sensors on this coach and go through the setup procedures again. The current setup is based on the prior coach.

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Old 03-23-2020, 01:53 AM   #2
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THOR #1469
Installed the sensors and setup the system

This evening I installed the sensors on the coach and setup the system. Something interesting happened and I sent Minder Research an email requesting their input.

Before installing the sensors used a Tire Minder stick pressure gauge and set all of the tires to 105 PSI. The gauge I used was

https://www.minderresearch.com/tirem...year-warranty/

which is supposedly accurate to +/- 1PSI

After installing the sensor I had three that were reading 111 or 112 PSI. To me that is a heck of a discrepancy. I changed the batteries in the sensors and reinstalled them and got the same result.

My question to Minder Research is which should I consider accurate and what are they going to do about the item that is not accurate since both times should still be under warranty.
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Old 03-23-2020, 03:19 AM   #3
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The sensors, if I remember correctly, have a +-4 or 5% accuracy. On 105 psi that could be 6 psi

The sensors are only used to alert you of a slow/fast leak, and high temps which could mean inner tire separation.

What tireminder told me a long time ago was to use a quality gauge to set temp. Then sensors for the warning

In your case if you're worried check the pressure with another guage.


Also very important to not tighten the sensor to much. As you tighten the sensor stop 1/4-1/2 turn after you hear the air stop. If you tighten to tight you wont get a reading from the sensor. well you'll get one but it wont change, raise, as it should when you start driving

Jerry
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Old 03-23-2020, 04:13 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by halfprice View Post
The sensors, if I remember correctly, have a +-4 or 5% accuracy. On 105 psi that could be 6 psi

The sensors are only used to alert you of a slow/fast leak, and high temps which could mean inner tire separation.

What tireminder told me a long time ago was to use a quality gauge to set temp. Then sensors for the warning

In your case if you're worried check the pressure with another guage.


Also very important to not tighten the sensor to much. As you tighten the sensor stop 1/4-1/2 turn after you hear the air stop. If you tighten to tight you wont get a reading from the sensor. well you'll get one but it wont change, raise, as it should when you start driving

Jerry
The manual for the TM 77 allows 3 percent deviation. A difference of 7 PSI is outside the margin of error even with 3 percent allowed at the. transmitter and 1 PSI allowed for the pressure gauge (Minder Researches values, not mine). Based on their info the difference should not be any greater than +/- 4 PSI (5 at the most).

I'll see what they have to say if they respond to my email. If not I'll give them a call.

FWIW, the pressure gauge on my compressor's inflation chuck and an older truck stick gauge I have are all within 1 PSI of my Tire Minder digital gauge so I do not believe the gauge is the issue. That was the first thing I checked when I noticed the issue.

Also, when the system was installed on the Challenger, during the last trip I got a few erroneous high pressure errors and lost sensor signals so I think I might have a couple bad sensors.
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Old 03-23-2020, 06:37 AM   #5
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Originally Posted by EA37TS View Post
The manual for the TM 77 allows 3 percent deviation. A difference of 7 PSI is outside the margin of error even with 3 percent allowed at the. transmitter and 1 PSI allowed for the pressure gauge (Minder Researches values, not mine). Based on their info the difference should not be any greater than +/- 4 PSI (5 at the most).



I'll see what they have to say if they respond to my email. If not I'll give them a call.



FWIW, the pressure gauge on my compressor's inflation chuck and an older truck stick gauge I have are all within 1 PSI of my Tire Minder digital gauge so I do not believe the gauge is the issue. That was the first thing I checked when I noticed the issue.



Also, when the system was installed on the Challenger, during the last trip I got a few erroneous high pressure errors and lost sensor signals so I think I might have a couple bad sensors.
I had an older unit for my 5th wheel. I started having problems and called them. I ended up sending everything to them. They did a bunch of tests and found a couple bad sensors. They offered me an upgrade unit and new sensors for a reasonable price. All is good now


So call them. Email has never worked for me with any customer service

Todd and Marlon at tireminder have always been great. They will help you.

Jerry
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Old 03-23-2020, 07:39 PM   #6
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Mine tend to read about 5 lbs too high. I just got used to it and adjusted the warning alert levels accordingly. They are consistent though so if I see that they have dropped some I can be sure the actual pressure has dropped the same. It’s mildly vexing but not really a problem.
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Old 03-24-2020, 02:08 AM   #7
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Got a response back from TireMinder and they are requesting some additional info which I sent. This includes pressure readings and TM77 sensor readings for each tire position to include the ones that are over 3 percent off.

After I set all tires to 105 PSI and reinstalled all sensors I got the following readings

LF - 103 PSI (DIFF - 2 PSI)
LRO - 112 PSI (DIFF + 7 PSI)
LRI - 110 PSI (DIFF + 5 PSI)
RF - 109 PSI (DIFF + 4 PSI)
RRO - 111 PSI (DIFF + 6 PSI)
RRI - 107 PSI (DIFF +2 PSI)

Also, I used the TireMinder TMG-AAA-RV pressure gauge when setting the pressures and all tires read 105 PSI on my compressor air chuck's gauge, the TireMinder gauge and another trucker's stick gauge I have which tells me the pressure in all tires was 105 PSI.

Also, after installation while cycling through the TM77 display to check readings the sensor on the LRI failed and the tire pressure dropped to 49.5 PSI before I could get the sensor off. I had to take a sensor for the TOAD and reset it for the coach so now I'm a sensor short for the TOAD. Starting to wonder if it would be safer to travel without this system than having it installed.

Oh well, I'll see what they have to say after receiving the additional info.
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Old 03-24-2020, 02:14 AM   #8
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It's a very good system. You just need to get used to it a d get the bugs worked out

Jerry
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Old 03-25-2020, 05:14 PM   #9
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Tire Minder said they will replace the defective sensors but now when I was setting up the TOAD the top half of the TM77 display screen went blank before I could set the. Jeep's baseline pressures.

What a worthless pos. We'll see what they have to say about this.
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Old 03-25-2020, 05:24 PM   #10
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Fast response, a new monitor is being shipped with the replacement sensors.

Also I sent them this observation.

"I will tell you that the sensors going on the Jeep were right on the money with one sensor reading 1PSI high.

Question, I have 10 sensors. 6 of the sensors have black plastic valve actuators inside and the other 4 have what appears to be brass. The ones on the Jeep that are right on the money are the brass ones and the ones giving me problems have the plastic. What is the difference between the two and could that be an issue? The 4 brass ones were the four I ordered outside of the initial 6 sensor system."
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Old 03-25-2020, 05:40 PM   #11
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Originally Posted by EA37TS View Post
Tire Minder said they will replace the defective sensors but now when I was setting up the TOAD the top half of the TM77 display screen went blank before I could set the. Jeep's baseline pressures.



What a worthless pos. We'll see what they have to say about this.


My experience with Tire Minder is that they have utterly outstanding customer service. I’ve not had many problems but they’ve been exceptional. One time sending me a new sensor when I had a problem even though it turned out that the original was still fine. Try contacting them with a more hopeful tone!
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Old 03-25-2020, 05:46 PM   #12
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THOR #6826
Installed the TireMinder Repeater

Quote:
Originally Posted by EA37TS View Post
Fast response, a new monitor is being shipped with the replacement sensors.



Also I sent them this observation.



"I will tell you that the sensors going on the Jeep were right on the money with one sensor reading 1PSI high.



Question, I have 10 sensors. 6 of the sensors have black plastic valve actuators inside and the other 4 have what appears to be brass. The ones on the Jeep that are right on the money are the brass ones and the ones giving me problems have the plastic. What is the difference between the two and could that be an issue? The 4 brass ones were the four I ordered outside of the initial 6 sensor system."


Oh, sorry. I see they came through for you too. They say right in the owners manual that the sensors are only accurate to 3 or 5 % (or some such, I don’t remember). Really, it’s not a problem once you know how they read. Also, they change a bit over time and you may (or at least I do) get an occasional alarm on the road. Maybe once or twice in a season. My false alarms always have been an indication of a slow leak so no need to panic and they always have cleared up in 10 minutes or so. These things are not intended to be precision instruments and do not eliminate the need to check with a gauge every now and then. Good luck.
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Old 03-25-2020, 06:34 PM   #13
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Originally Posted by Pete'sMH View Post
Oh, sorry. I see they came through for you too. They say right in the owners manual that the sensors are only accurate to 3 or 5 % (or some such, I don’t remember). Really, it’s not a problem once you know how they read. Also, they change a bit over time and you may (or at least I do) get an occasional alarm on the road. Maybe once or twice in a season. My false alarms always have been an indication of a slow leak so no need to panic and they always have cleared up in 10 minutes or so. These things are not intended to be precision instruments and do not eliminate the need to check with a gauge every now and then. Good luck.
I respectfully disagree. At 105 PSI the difference between 3 and 5 percent is approx 2 pounds. In a high pressure situation 2 pounds can be significant especially if the ambient temps during the trip have gone from 68 at 7:00 Am to 115 at high noon in the desert.

If they say they are accurate to plus or minus 3 PSI then they need to be accurate to plus or minus 3 PSI and at 105 PSI that gives them 101.85 (102) to 108.15 (108). I should not be seeing readings of 109, 110, 111, and 112. I'll surrender 109 for rounding.

I am more inclined to give an RV manufacturer the benefit of the doubt on loose screws or misaligned cabinet doors than I am a TPMS or other safety device manufacturer being off by over 2 percent outside of their published tolerance. As I asked them, if I can't trust the readings when the tires are cold and the vehicle is stationary, how can I trust the system to alert me when the tires are hot and I'm rolling down the road at 65 MPH.

It may be acceptable for you or others but when it comes to the lives of my family members it is nowhere near acceptable to me.
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Old 03-25-2020, 06:39 PM   #14
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Earlier I sent Minder Research this question

"Question, I have 10 sensors. 6 of the sensors have black plastic valve actuators inside and the other 4 have what appears to be brass. The ones on the Jeep that are right on the money are the brass ones and the ones giving me problems have the plastic. What is the difference between the two and could that be an issue? The 4 brass ones were the four I ordered outside of the initial 6 sensor system."

I just received this response

"The transmitters with the brass insert are an updated version. They should be within 1-2psi from your gauge, where out rubber insert transmitters can be up to 6 psi +/-. You still shouldn't have issues with your original transmitters."

6 PSI is outside their stated accuracy of plus or minus 3 percent which is clearly stated in the system's operators manual.

At least everything has shipped and they sent me a tracking number. Unfortunately the tracking number is for the USPS so who knows in which decade it will arrive. We'll see what happens when it gets here. I may still use the system for target practice.
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Old 03-26-2020, 12:29 AM   #15
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Originally Posted by EA37TS View Post
I respectfully disagree. At 105 PSI the difference between 3 and 5 percent is approx 2 pounds. In a high pressure situation 2 pounds can be significant especially if the ambient temps during the trip have gone from 68 at 7:00 Am to 115 at high noon in the desert.



If they say they are accurate to plus or minus 3 PSI then they need to be accurate to plus or minus 3 PSI and at 105 PSI that gives them 101.85 (102) to 108.15 (108). I should not be seeing readings of 109, 110, 111, and 112. I'll surrender 109 for rounding.



I am more inclined to give an RV manufacturer the benefit of the doubt on loose screws or misaligned cabinet doors than I am a TPMS or other safety device manufacturer being off by over 2 percent outside of their published tolerance. As I asked them, if I can't trust the readings when the tires are cold and the vehicle is stationary, how can I trust the system to alert me when the tires are hot and I'm rolling down the road at 65 MPH.



It may be acceptable for you or others but when it comes to the lives of my family members it is nowhere near acceptable to me.


Best of luck.
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Old 04-02-2020, 04:05 PM   #16
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Returned from our long weekend 859 mile three leg trip and when the USPS delivered my hold mail the replacement Tire Minder sensors and monitor were in the mail. I say replacement and not new because the sensor looked as though they are used. The sensors also have the black plastic inner valves which, according to Tire Minder, are older and not as accurate as the newer sensors with the brass inner valves.

We'll see what happens when I install these.
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Old 05-11-2020, 11:51 PM   #17
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Well it took awhile but I re-installed the TM77 TPMS today. Now all of the pressure are <= 3 PSI of each other.

I set all pressures to 105 PSI on the coach and 35PSI on the WK2. I then installed the sensors and recorded the TPMS sensor readings on a sheet of paper. After installing all of the sensors I then set the pressure in the TM77 system to the reading for each tire's sensor. This way if there is an over pressure alarm at 10 percent it will go off based on the initial TPMS pressure and not on the stick gauge pressure.

Going to take a long weekend and go RV'ing so we'll see how it does on the 250 mile trip on Thursday.
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Old 05-21-2020, 02:00 PM   #18
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Well, after the re-install we took a long weekend and went to Floyd, VA. The TM77 worked well and this time there were no false alerts or dropped signals.

While driving and with changes in elevation (Central Virginia to the mountains) the tire pressure increased by approximately 14 percent in the coach and TOAD tires.

Now that I have all sensors that are within Minder Research's published tolerance I am a little more confident in the TPMS.
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Old 07-04-2020, 10:35 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by EA37TS View Post
Well, after the re-install we took a long weekend and went to Floyd, VA. The TM77 worked well and this time there were no false alerts or dropped signals.

While driving and with changes in elevation (Central Virginia to the mountains) the tire pressure increased by approximately 14 percent in the coach and TOAD tires.

Now that I have all sensors that are within Minder Research's published tolerance I am a little more confident in the TPMS.
Did you stay at Chantilly Farms?
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Old 07-04-2020, 11:48 PM   #20
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Originally Posted by The_Breeze View Post
Did you stay at Chantilly Farms?
Yes we did.
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