With road accidents happening left and right, it pays to be extra careful.
Thoroughly check your RV for anything that can cause accidents before you next hit the road. Making sure it’s equipped with a fully-functioning tire pressure measuring system can make a big difference.
They are built to let drivers know the current status of their tires. So if something’s wrong, they can immediately take action and get off the road.
Having tire problems while traveling can get you in serious trouble.
A TPMS can help you make sure your tires will safely and smoothly get your car going and that they’re strong enough to bring your car to a halt when you hit your brakes.
TPMS are important to any vehicle, but especially to recreational vehicles that usually travel long distances.
So if you have an RV, and you’re planning to go on a long vacation, make sure you have a great TPMS installed in your car. It can literally save your life. That’s why they are included in our recommended rv parts and accessories list.
Here’s a guide on what to focus on when buying TPMS. We also included a list of our top picks of the best systems for RVs and what we do and do not like about them.
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- Pros
- It can monitor more tires than the average TPMS – 26 tires!
- It can deal with a maximum pressure of 210 pounds per square inch
- Easy to clean and maintain
- Displayed and audible alerts
- Cons
- Stressful installation
- Pros
- You can connect your phone to it regardless if it’s android or IOS.
- Has anti-theft nuts attached on the sensors to prevent them from getting stolen
- Has a Bluetooth adapter
- Has an automatic search and control feature
- Powerful signal. You won’t need a repeater or booster.
- Cons
- Can only monitor a couple of tires.
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- Pros
- Real-time readings and instant alert if either pressure or temperature is beyond normal
- The monitor is huge!
- The monitor display is very user-friendly.
- Dead accurate readings of both temperature and pressure.
- Has an anti-theft feature to prevent burglars from stealing its sensors.
- Also, detect air leaks no matter how small
- Cons
- Pricey
- Pros
- Very customizable. If you’re very knowledgeable about cars, and you’d like to make changes in your TPMS, this one is for you.
- You don’t need a repeater. The signal it produces is powerful enough.
- The monitor is bigger than average.
- The units of measurement on the display monitor can be changed.
- Alarm instantly goes off the moment something in the tires’ values goes beyond or below normal.
- Cons
- Challenging installation
- Pros
- Strong and durable.
- Waterproof
- Easy installation
- If you like little details, you can program each and every sensor that comes with the kit.
- Sensors don’t need to be removed to inflate or deflate the tires.
- Cons
- A little complicated. You’ll need time to get used to it.
- Pros
- Decent-sized monitor
- Real-time readings and instant alerts if either pressure or temperature is beyond normal.
- Increase safety while traveling.
- Has both displayed and audible alarms to make sure you don’t miss them.
- Cons
- It has an antenna. Why?
- Pros
- Has a year-long warranty
- New status report every 4-seconds
- Waterproof
- Can monitor each tire at the same time not by batches
- Cons
- You need to get your own charging cable.
- Pros
- Huge screen
- It’s wireless
- Has both sound and displayed alarm
- Monitors tires by batches of four
- Waterproof
- Cons
- Not for every vehicle.
- Pros
- Monitors tires by batches of 6
- Huge screen
- Wireless but can still monitor sensors from far away
- Very customizable.
- Can handle a maximum pressure of 215 pounds per square inch
- Cons
- The signal is strong but not far-reaching. You’ll need a repeater for when your tires get too far away from your monitor.
- Pros
- Can be charged quickly
- Monitors tires by batches of four
- Wireless but can still monitor sensors from far away
- Can be charged through the heat of the sun
- Not stressful installation
- Cons
- Pricey
- Pros
- Monitors tires by batches of 4
- Wireless but can still monitor sensors from far away
- Fairly easy to set up
- Sensors powered by CR1632 battery which has long lifespans
- Real-time readings and instant alert if either pressure or temperature is beyond normal.
- Cons
- It can deal with a total tire pressure of 70 pounds per square inch
- Pros
- Very customizable
- Easy to set up
- Waterproof and dustproof
- Long warranty-18 months
- Displayed and audible alarms
- Cons
- For selected types of vehicles only
WHY TAKE OUR ADVICE ON RV TIRE PRESSURE MONITORING SYSTEMS?
We understand that you’re cautious, but it’s okay to let your guard down. We’re all just RVers here who want to share what we learned with our fellow enthusiasts. We really just want to save people from making the same mistakes that we made when we were starting out. This guide is the product of years of trial and errors so hopefully, it will serve as a shortcut for you.
The products in this list are carefully chosen based on our experiences traveling. It’s a list of what we would choose if we were the one buying. We also took into consideration the factors that we discussed in our buying guide.
This article is made by a group of well-traveled RVers. We talked about the ways on how we choose our RVs’ accessories, how we maintain them, and any specific products or manufacturers that we prefer to buy from. We compiled our answers and put together the list of the products that we think are best and why we think they’re good.
We’re hoping that this guide can help you pick out the best kit for your RV. Read each product description carefully and get the kit that you think will work best with you and your RV.
WHAT IS A TIRE PRESSURE MONITORING SYSTEM AND WHY DO YOU NEED ONE FOR YOUR RV?
TPMS kits are monitoring systems designed to alert drivers of the overall status of their car’s tires. To use it, you have to install small sensors in your car’s tires, which will send status reports on a monitor where you can see them. These kits are designed to display an alarm if and when any of your wheels reach a dangerous level-either in its temperature or its pressure. Some smarter kits even have audible alerts to make sure that drivers are properly alerted.
HOW CAN YOU USE IT WHILE YOU’RE TRAVELING?
TPMS lets you know every change in your tires’ conditions that may affect you while you’re traveling. It’s little sensors on each of your wheels accurately report the amount of pressure, and the current temperatures of their tires are in.
The kits also alert drivers of leaks in their card, even small ones. They send out alarms when any of the tire’s pressure or temperature reaches a dangerous level so the drivers could get off the road and do something about the problem.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES?
TPMS has been around for a while. It’s been developed by so many different companies that so many variations of it exist. It’s important to familiarize yourself with the types of TPMS you can get before buying one for your RV.
TPMS is classified into two categories- the indirect and the direct. They are both wildly different and will give you different experiences while traveling.
Direct systems are the more popular choice among RVers. It’s more accurate, especially in sending pressure reports to the driver. It alerts drivers the moment any of the wheel’s pressure went above or below the values it considers normal. Unlike many of the products on this list, direct TPMS puts a tube sensor inside your tire instead of just sticking a cap on it. This allows you the extra ability to adjust your tires’ pressure to whatever value you want it to be.
Indirect systems are not known for their accuracy. This is the main reason why they lost to their direct counterparts. This system uses your vehicle’s performance to guess the status of your tires. It doesn’t actually have a sensor on them. It could only tell you if something’s not right and what’s going on with your tires but not how bad or good things are going.
Both direct and indirect systems can increase your safety traveling. Although, it’s obvious to see why direct systems win over the indirect ones. Sure, the later is cheaper but this is your safety at stake and no amount of money can buy that. It’s best to go with accurate and smart direct systems. Plus, direct systems comes with ABS(Anti-Lock Braking System) and most indirect ones don’t.
WHY GET ONE?
No matter how good of a driver you are, you’re never really 100% safe from road accidents. While we can’t stop accidents from happening, we can at least take precautions to minimize their chances of happening to us. A really TPMS can save your life. It’s what the kits are designed for-to alert dangers if any of their tires are in a bad condition. That’s why it’s important to find the one that works for you and can really deliver fast and dead accurate information so you can fix the problem and get off the road before you get into an accident.
It’s well known that though underinflated tires can still get you to where you want to go, they can be seriously damaged, and their lifespan will be slashed by almost half. Having a great TPMS on your car can alert you of over and under inflated tires so you can immediately do something about them.
A TPMS can sense if there’s something wrong with your tires. With it, problems can be fixed before they get worst. It will help you maximize your MPG. Underinflated tires burn more gas when you’re traveling. With normally working tires, you get to save fuel and money.
A TPMS can get your job done for you. The system is reliable and accurate. Trust in its numbers and the data that it gives you.
The device automatically checks on the pressure as well as the temperature in your tires. Don’t bother checking if it’s working or not. The sensors never stop sending data to your monitor. The device doesn’t have a knob or switch. It will keep doing its job until batteries run out or it’s uninstalled from the vehicle.
TPMS also ups your car’s value. With it, the car’s value increases. The safety that the device can bring is valuable, and insurance companies know it too.
HOW TO INSTALL ONE
HOW WE COMPILED THIS LIST
Before picking a favorite and running to the store to buy it, think very clearly if it works with your vehicle. Don’t focus on the impressive features, take these points into account and decide on which product would work best for you.
THE MONITOR SCREEN
No matter what information the sensors pick up from your tires, you won’t be able to use it if you can’t see it clearly. This is why your TPMS’ monitor matters. Choose one that’s large enough to display all the data you need and that doesn’t abbreviate or cut terms too much to fit everything on the screen. Its icons should be easily recognizable and understandable.
Take the monitor’s design into consideration. Is it readable and from how far? Are there any alert lights that can be easily seen? Can you read the information displayed even at night? All these things will matter once you’re traveling so while you’re shopping for your TPMS its best to ask them early.
STRONG AND DEPENDABLE
RVs go everywhere. They’re made for long distance traveling and are usually subjected to different kinds of weather. When choosing a TPMS, take the strength of the material into consideration. The last thing you need is to have to buy another one so soon. Find out how the product will react to being submerged underwater or being soaked under the sun for too long. Research on what materials they’re made of. If you’re lucky, someone somewhere already bought and experienced that TPMS and you can just base on their experience to decide whether your choice is good or not.
THE BATTERY STRENGTH AND LIFESPAN
After figuring out what type of TPMS you want for your RV, the next thing you should fuss about is the battery. TPMS comes with many different battery requirements. Some offer solar charging while others stick to the old cable and socket. Whichever you choose to go with, the battery will greatly affect your overall experience with your TPMS.
Check if your system’s batteries are durable. Make sure they can keep up with different weather and temperature changes. Always consider the battery’s lifespan. You don’t want to lose power in the middle of the road. If you can, chose a TPMS with a reusable battery. They’re everywhere these days so you won’t have a hard time choosing one for yourself. Some TPMS also offers solar-powered charging. It’ll cost you a little bit more, but it’ll be worth it in the long run.
EASY OR HARD INSTALLATION PROCESS
Did you notice that many products on this list have installation as their bad downside? If you’re not a crafty person and you’re not into DIYs you might need to pay a little more attention to how these kits are assembled and installed. It won’t be easy, but it shouldn’t be hard enough that you’ll need a technician just to get it working on your car.
There are many pressure monitoring systems around. If you really think that a product would eat up your time and your energy just with its installation just skip it and find the next good one.
Read product descriptions and review carefully. The TPMS kit should come at least already assembled and ready to be plugged to your car. You shouldn’t have to put it together yourself. Gravitate towards products that don’t have a complicated installation process. You might end up wasting your money if you damaged or destroyed it.
That’s just about everything that you need to watch out for when buying TPMS. Of course, over time, you’ll also add more factors to this list when buying TPMS. Don’t get easily swayed by cheap products. Focus on the usability, features, and peace of mind that a great TPMS will give you while you’re traveling.
FAQS
How important are Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems to vehicles?
The answer is very. So much that its become a must in the US for every vehicle to have them. There are certain rules and factors that dictate what kind of TPMS are allowed for certain vehicles. Be sure to read up on that so you don’t encounter problems in the future.
What are the difference between sensors that are flow through and those that are anti-theft?
Actually anti-theft and flow through are two different features. Anti-theft secures your tires to prevent burglars from taking them and flow through allows you to re-inflate or deflate your tires without needing to take the sensors off. You don’t really have to choose between them. Many kits have sensors that are both anti-theft and flow through, especially the top ones.
Who are the reigning TPMS manufacturers today?
The products on this list all come from reputable brands. The CACAGOO, the Bellacorp, the EEZTire, and the TireMinder are all great brands that offer high-quality products. If you’re really curious, try reading reviews about them online to find out more.
How much money should I set aside for a good TPMS?
We can’t really say. Price varies depending on how feature-packed your choice of TPMS is. The list that we compiled has products with varying prices. Best choose a product and then check out their price, at least get a concrete idea how much your money’s worth in terms of TPMS quality.
How reliable are those temperature and pressure readings?
Very accurate. Even the products that are wireless give dead accurate readings, real time. Remember that TPMS has been around for a very long time. Many companies have run off and experimented on technology over the years. The ones we have available today are end product of years of efforts. They’re very accurate down to the very last digits. You can trust the data that they’ll provide you.
How do I know that my sensors’ batteries need replacing?
We’ve mentioned a lot that sensors’ batteries need constant replacing. There’s really no certain time when the batteries would run out of power. It really depends on what battery is inside the sensor that you chose. Once you find out what battery brand and model is in your sensor, google its average lifespan and replace it at least two weeks before that, just to be sure.
Ok, I have my TPMS. How do I get it in my car?
Your chosen product should come with its own installation manual. Just follow it carefully. If you’re at lost or unsure, try youtube. There are many enthusiasts that discuss how some TPMS are installed step by step. Sometimes, they even have demonstrations that you can follow in setting up your own.
How do I use the data that my TPMS provides?
If you’re entirely new on using this device, it’s going to take some getting used to. There should be a guide that comes with your product explaining what each icon is for and what the values on the monitor display area. Pay attention to the guide. Don’t just read it once, take it everywhere until you’re familiar enough with your device.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
Just be very critical when buying TPMS. Use our guide to find one that suits you and your RV. Take the factors into consideration before buying one. Don’t just pick the product that seemed more impressive. Compare and contrast products in terms of accuracy, speed, and affordability. You should also include the installation when deciding whether to get it or not.