Air bag pressure

[Wild Horse]

Mine have been on for about 3 weeks now...had the pressure at 30 last week when I hauled the monty and left it there for a week...didn't leak down at all. I dropped it to 15 for not hauling, hasn't dropped down either yet. This is with airlifts tho'.

[8.1al]

Our Airlifts do not leak at all and your Firestones shouldn't either. I would suspect a leak at one of the fittings. Try a little soapy water on each one and wiggle the line a little.

[Clyde n Deb]

As I stated I found the leak. I just have experienced that it seems to be going through an intermittent occurence now. I was curious to what my expectation level should realistically be. I appreciate the input. It is apparent I need to continue to improve the results I am experincing. Thank you for your inputs.

[steves]

My air bags never loose a # even over a couple of months. My Rancho Shocks which also are air controlled never loose air.
So....I hope I answered your question....any leak is not good...it will only get worse,

[jackel1959]

Our Firestone's do not leak. If you have found a fitting that is leaking intermittently, I would suggest re-doing the air line going into the fitting and ensure the end of the air line is cut squarely before reinserting it into the fitting.
Jack

[Clyde n Deb]

Done that. (Redone the ends of the lines). Also had Firestone send a new fitting for the top of the bag, as i think it may have gotten damaged @ install. Going to replace it tonight.

[jackel1959]

I hope the new fitting takes care of the problem for you. Good luck.
Jack

[Clyde n Deb]

New fitting cured the leak problem as I figured. Just playing with different air pressures now. I also tow an auto transport trailer, and it's characteristics and adjustments are significantly different than the Monty. Load changes drastically too according ton what I'm hauling. Surprised to find I am not needing nearly as much air pressure as I anticipated. Easy to kick the rear of the truck too high with either of the trailers behind. Running down in the 20# arena empty now for the Montana....sometimes that's almost too much when load is added on. Like several people mentioned, every truck is certainly different.

[jackel1959]

I am glad the new fitting took care of the leak problem for you. I too was surprised at how little pressure was needed to keep the truck level and comfortable given the pin weight of the fiver. You will eventually get it dialed in. Take care and travel safe.
Jack

[Montana_10714]

What size compressor are you using for this purpose ?
Do you carry a 1 or 2 gallon compressor unit with you ?
Any suggestions appreciated....
Having the Firestones installed today...
Thanks

[pineranch]

Bought this at Walmart, works well.
http://www.slime.com/product/71/Heavy-Duty-Tire-Inflator-(COMP-06).html

[Art-n-Marge]

Nice Christmas present for yourself Joe in Tx.

I use and carry a Porter Cable 6 gallon compressor and with the gennys I carry I can air up (or down) my TV tires at will. It doesn't take me more than a couple to three minutes to air up each tire as I need it. It takes me more time to set it up, power things up and drag the hose around to all corners to distribute air. My BILs like to borrow my units too since it's pretty quick. Their compressors are much smaller and take longer and will do in a pinch but when more is available then why not.

I have a small compressor under the TV that is dedicated to the Firestone Ride Rites. With the dual digital controller in cab I alternate each side up and down as needed. I read that the best way to inflate or deflate is to alternate by 5 to 10 pounds when airing these bags up. I try and never go below 10psi for the air bags and my controller doesn't allow me to go below the 7psi minimum anyway. My TV tires are 58psi in front & 62psi in rear when not towing, and airbags usually at 15psi. When towing I use 65psi and 75 psi for tires and air bags around 55 to 60 psi.

Your rig combination will definitely vary. My Monty tows front heavy (it's where ALL the storage the closets, pantry and loaded fridge are located. The rear has the fresh water and some furniture and is lighter per the scales. The scales show I'm good all around (TV and RV) and at the pin and the air pressures I use seem to work great.

On edit: about that leakage. I am happy to read you fixed your leakage problem. They should not leak. Imagine towing your load and they are leaking! Not good. Mine have not leaked one pound since I got them 4 years ago and no matter what the inflation, or at least it's too small to even notice. The RV or TV will lose a pound or two over several weeks, but every vehicle I've owned has done that, except for one set of Michelins on an SUV that only lost air because I checked the pressure every couple of weeks. Not bad, and I recall the guy who mounted these actually cleaned and wiped the rim very thorougly and then did a great job on the bead. Best set of tire experience I ever had.

[Slufoot733]

Had Firestone aribags on my '99 F250 diesel, hauling a 30 foot Fifth Avenue fiver with 2071 pounds on the pin. I ran 60 lbs in the bags when hauling and it rode grate. When running solo I dropped the pressure to 10 pounds. I picked up a small air compressor at Harbor Freight and kept it in the front cargo compartment. When hooking up I had an air hose within 5 feet of the air bags so I could air 'em up right then. My newer F-350 doesn't need air bags but it rides much rougher solo.

[thor]

if your running with low presure like 10 or 20 pounds ,do you really need air bags?

[Lee F.]

quote:Originally posted by thor

if your running with low presure like 10 or 20 pounds ,do you really need air bags?

My rig has a relatively light tongue weight and the rear end of my truck only dropped about 2" when towing, but that was enough to raise my headlights enough to be bothersome to other drivers at night. I installed the bags mainly for that reason, but found that the rig seems to tow much better also when it is in the leveled out position.
I run the recommended 5psi when empty and 17psi when hooked up which levels me back out and the headlights are aimed correctly. I have a wireless remote controller for the onboard compressor which has presets. All I do is tap a button to change to the preset pressures. It also lets me know if there is a problem and the system is losing pressure. It works great and I couldn't be happier.

[twindman]

My Firestone air bags slowly lose pressure. Empty I put in about 21 pounds. In about 10 days it was down to 16-18, if I remember correctly. I contacted Firestone and they said 4-5 pounds a month is standard. Also said testing pressure can lose 1 pound.
I just check them every 2 or 3 weeks and add air. I think maybe they are leaking faster than when new (2 years ago).

[jliveit]

I put 30 to 35 psi in my firestones and doesnt matter if its hooked up to 5th wheel or not it still only has and shows with gauge 30 to 35psi. Same with the tires, if I run 70psi on the truck then hookup the 5th wheel I still only have 70psi not 100psi?? If what some are saying is true the pressure in your tires would increase or decrease by the load and thats not true.

[dieselguy]

I run 5 - 8 lbs unloaded and 18 - 20 lbs prior to hooking up the fiver. I installed a gauge right next to the air fitting and pressure does go up as the weight of the fiver presses down on the truck. Mine increases to about 35 lbs. Since the volume of these air bags is so small, that would be only natural. Another thing I've noticed is the pressure changes a pound or two depending on air temp as in say 70 degrees as compared to 32 degrees. As pretty much indicated in 3 pages of posts ... put in enough air to level out your rig +/- personal comfort. Just for an example, if I put 60 lbs in my air bags as some have indicated ... my truck would look like cars in my teen years when we jacked the back ends up with Hijacker air shocks and rode around with the ride quality of an old lumber wagon