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The PressurePro package was compact and easily unpacked. The directions were fairly well laid out and we were able to follow them without much confusion. The kit came with a monitor, 4 sensors, a power cable and an antenna wire. Our truck already has pressure monitors built in for its tires and our purpose for the PULSE is to monitor our 5th wheel's tires.
We were getting ready to leave for our first outing of the spring and wanted to test the monitoring system. The first step made sense -- fill the trailer tires to the desired pressure, in this case, 80 psi. I have a nice portable compressor and each tire was about 10 lbs. low from sitting through the winter. Once filled to the proper level, we proceeded to run the detection process, which entailed placing a sensor on a wheel's tire pressure valve, starting with the left front. The monitor connected with the sensor and we moved to the next, then the next, and last was the right rear tire. The first three tires showed 78 psi each, but the last one only showed 68. When the alarms were set, one immediately went off because it detected more than a 10% difference across the axle, in other words, the right rear tire was more than 8 lbs. less than the left rear. That was a problem, because that "low" tire wasn't low. We had no choice but to turn off the system until I could double-check the pressures. Once at the campground, I checked the tires and even slightly over-inflated the problem tire. We tried to repeat the process but the monitor didn't detect the sensors, even with the antenna wire outstretched as far as possible, until I tried turning on the truck engine. Magically, it began to work fine. The over-inflated tire now showed the over-inflation and I adjusted it back to normal. The sensor also adjusted its reading. I am assuming the PULSE monitor will continue to work as advertised. It did the rest of our trip home and since then. The safety factor should not be ignored. Tires often show signs of an issue before they blow, i.e. overheating or loss of pressure, and the PULSE monitors for these and other factors. We has a sense of security knowing they are being monitored while we are on the road, often in the middle of nowhere. I rated this 3 out of 5 stars due to the difficulties we had during the installation. I don't know whether our experience with this product is common, but overall I believe it works very well, so I am giving them the benefit of the doubt. You can purchase the PressurePro PULSE monitoring system directly from the manufacturer using this link:
Update (6/27/18)
I had to post this update (and upgrade the rating) since this monitor saved us a tire or worse yesterday. The monitor has been working well for the past few weeks. We were traveling on Interstate 196 yesterday morning on our way back to Buchanan, MI, from our short stay in the Mackinac Island area. Also in the truck were my wife, daughter, son-in-law and our Cairn terrier, Lucy. The alarm sounded when the left rear tire pressure went from 80 to 70 psi, then we watched it drop to 45. I immediately got off the freeway and pulled over. By that time the pressure was 0 psi. I got out to inspect the tire and, sure enough, that tire was completely flat. All five of our 5th wheel's tires had been replaced with a new set just about a month ago. We called Good Sam's Emergency Roadside Service and a tow truck was dispatched out of nearby Grand Rapids to swap the flat tire with the spare. Within a couple of hours we were back on the road without any further damage done. Evidently the flat was caused by a bolt or screw we hit in a construction zone on the Interstate that punctured the tread but didn't stick in the tire, thus the quick deflation. Without the monitor installed and working perfectly, that tire would most likely have blown apart, since I never heard or felt anything when it happened, or even after it lost pressure. Who knows what damage that would have caused? Serious accidents can occur due to blowouts, so it may well have saved us from a catastrophe. I can now positively recommend the PressurePro PULSE!
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AuthorJack Huber is a new full-timer and an author and photographer. He and some fellow RV'ers will be sharing their favorite (and not so favorite) travel technologies and accessories in this review blog. Archives
August 2019
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