Air-bag leak? Should I be worried?

[WheelingIt]

Hi all,

Well turns out this happens while hubby is out, I'm alone and I've got to move the rig tomorrow. I know nothing about this so wanted to ask around so I can prepare myself for what I might need to do.

We've been sitting at a campsite here in S.CA for ~5 days. We didn't use the jacks and I noticed the right backside of the coach (2008 HR Endeavor 40PDQ) has "dropped" almost as if I deflated the airbag on that side. I haven't tried to fire-up the coach to see if the bag reflates (that'll happen tomorrow), but I'm just trying to understand what I might need to do.
Here's my questions

1/ Does it sound like an air-bag leak?
2/ If I fire up the coach and the air-bag reflates am I OK to drive it?
3/ Does this need to be seen to ASAP or can we wait a while (we'll be stationary again once I move the coach tomorrow)?
4/ If the bag DOESN'T reflate do I need to call for a tow? Can any RV repair facility then do the repair or should I be picky about where we take the rig?

Sorry for all the idiotic questions. Just freaking out a little 'coz I'm gonna be on my own for it all.

Nina

[Grumpyyyy]

You should be ok once started... It will raise back up after the air pressure reaches 100 psi on the gauge on the dash, if not have someone look at the Clearance on the wheel well to make sure it's not rubbing and then move it slow
If it doesn't come back up there will be problems with driving it very far to be repaired... Good luck ... Remember it has to pump up to a minimum of 100 psi to come back up

[WheelingIt]

Thanks so much Grumpyyyy...that gives me a good (and easy) target to aim for.
I'm assuming we need to get this fixed at some point even if I'm able to move the rig tomorrow?
Is there any such thing as a "normal" airbag leak?

[KIX]

The leak down you describe as being only on one side is going to be relatively easy to find. If I am correct you have a single ride height valve on the rear axle. The leak will be between that valve and the air bag that is deflating. It is not likely to be the bag itself. If you have dual ride height valves on the rear axle then the problem is even easier to find.

With a deflated air bag the drive shaft angle is not correct for travel (on a diesel pusher). Unless the bag fully inflates I would advise that you not drive over 5 - 10 mph, and then for only a short distance.

Now, the good news......It will likely re-inflate when air pressure builds. Your dash air pressure may reach as high as 125 psi but the bags don't start raising the coach until pressure is around 100.

Oh, and yes, you should get this fixed. If it's leaking as you're driving then the engine air compressor is having to replenish the lost air. When the air compressor runs the engine has to use more fuel although not a lot more. But, leaks don't fix themselves.

[WheelingIt]

Thanks KIX! I am going to see how the air-bags inflate today. If they inflate OK, then I'll move the rig to our next site and wait for hubby to get back before we go get it checked out.

Really appreciate all the input!
Nina

[Billieg]

Good luck and really enjoy your blog!

[WheelingIt]

OK everyone....here's the update.

Fired up the coach this AM at 8 to see if the airbags would reflate, and thankfully they all aired up to normal ride height and pressure. Turned off the coach to listen for air-leaks...nothing...then waited around another 3 hours to see if she was gonna lean any on that side...still nothing.

SO...ALL LOOKS GOOD! I felt safe to drive and even managed to back-in to our new site without breaking anything. Hubby was very relieved over the phone, even tho' I DID tease him by telling him the fib that I'd torn off part of the roof-vent (yes, I'm so mean)

Thanks for the help (and the lovely comment too Billeg )

Nina

[caymann]

Unlikely you have a airbag leaking on a newer coach. Likely one of the air lines/connections is leaking......just use soapy water to detect that leak and fix that line or connection.
You will have to get under the coach to do this so make sure you take precautions/jacks under/wait for further help.
Also sudden drop in temperature can cause it.

[jimkate]

I'm sure someone else can chime in with the recommended air pressure loss rate for the air bag system on the coach.

Having said that, if it took 5 days for the air pressure to leak down enough for the air bags to begin to lose air, that is not at all uncommon. Nor is air pressure loss at that rate dangerous.

If I'm parking for a few days, I always dump the air from the air bags, then use the jacks to level the coach. If I'm parking overnight only, often I'll not bother dumping the air and I won't bother using the jacks.

I know if I let my coach sit for five days, it will have lost enough air to let the coach settle down, sometimes unevenly. Not uncommon for one side to begin to settle down before the other side.

[DennisZ]

Nina
I have the same coach as you, sometimes when it gets cold ouside the air bags will deflate over the period of a couple of days. That kind of leak is not a worry, as long as they air up and don't come down when you shut down the coach.

Where in So Cal are you located?

Dennis

[Billieg]

Quote:

Originally Posted by WheelingIt OK everyone....here's the update. Fired up the coach this AM at 8 to see if the airbags would reflate, and thankfully they all aired up to normal ride height and pressure. Turned off the coach to listen for air-leaks...nothing...then waited around another 3 hours to see if she was gonna lean any on that side...still nothing. SO...ALL LOOKS GOOD! I felt safe to drive and even managed to back-in to our new site without breaking anything. Hubby was very relieved over the phone, even tho' I DID tease him by telling him the fib that I'd torn off part of the roof-vent (yes, I'm so mean) Thanks for the help (and the lovely comment too Billeg ) Nina

Glad it worked out for you. You are one heck of a Gal to drive and back into that site alone. After reading about your Az. goldmine trip I bought a map of gold mines in AL. and will think about you both when I pan for gold there in May. Thanks!

[WheelingIt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DennisZ Nina I have the same coach as you, sometimes when it gets cold ouside the air bags will deflate over the period of a couple of days. That kind of leak is not a worry, as long as they air up and don't come down when you shut down the coach. Where in So Cal are you located? Dennis

Thanks for the info Dennis. I DID notice that the pressure was waaay down when I fired up the coach, just as if I'd dumped out all the air from all the bags. So, it's very possible all the air simply deflated (out of all bags) over time and I just "happened" to notice it more on one side (perhaps because our site was slightly out of alignment?)

We're in San Diego (Santee Lakes) at the moment. You close? We're always love to meet folks on the road so if you're interested & around lemme know.

[WheelingIt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Billieg Glad it worked out for you. You are one heck of a Gal to drive and back into that site alone. After reading about your Az. goldmine trip I bought a map of gold mines in AL. and will think about you both when I pan for gold there in May. Thanks!

I was waaaaaay nervous (as was hubby long-distance), but it worked out fine. I did get a nice young gentleman to come spot me, so it wasn't all solo

GREAT idea for the goldmine map. Where did you get it?

[WheelingIt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimkate I'm sure someone else can chime in with the recommended air pressure loss rate for the air bag system on the coach. Having said that, if it took 5 days for the air pressure to leak down enough for the air bags to begin to lose air, that is not at all uncommon. Nor is air pressure loss at that rate dangerous. If I'm parking for a few days, I always dump the air from the air bags, then use the jacks to level the coach. If I'm parking overnight only, often I'll not bother dumping the air and I won't bother using the jacks. I know if I let my coach sit for five days, it will have lost enough air to let the coach settle down, sometimes unevenly. Not uncommon for one side to begin to settle down before the other side.

I think that's what happened. I'm going to do some "testing" with soapy water just to be sure, but I'm thinking your idea that the bags just lost air (with temp changes) over a period of 5 days and the coach settled off-kilter is right on. We USUALLY use the jacks when we're stopped anywhere more than a day. Don't know why we didn't do it this time (it's a total fluke). Still it became a great learning experience for me.

Jacks are down now...needless to say