Air Bags Question

[scrnt]

Just put the airlift load lifter 5000 air bags on the tt last weekend. I just hooked to 5ver had to put 65lbs air in drivers side, and 75 in passenger. Noticed when I took all measurments before install that passengers side sat almost 1" higher to start. After hooking up to 5ver I noticed before air the passenger side was 1 1/2" lower than driver. Is it normal to put 2 diff amounts of air in and is it ok to do so

[christopherglenn]

sounds like one springpack is stiffer then the other. Usually truck campers weigh different from side to side, trailers tend to be centered.

[Jim W]

Did you also install the extra air lines to manually inflate the air bags? If so use an air gage and measure the air pressure there. I find that the readins are different from the sensors at the manifold, I have seen as much as 20 psi difference between readings.
I also normally use about 40 PSI in both bags when towing my 5er with my truck.
Jim W.

[tlw3989]

I have the same air bags on my 2004 Chevy 2500 HD and am pretty much level side to side. I agree with Jim W that 40-45 psi seems to be the best ride for me. At 65-70 psi, I get too much bounce"bouncey:

[Georgia Rambler]

I have the Air Lift Air Bags on my F350 and love them. Last summer I pulled my 31' Rockwood TT (I no longer have it) and put 450 gallons of fuel in the bed of my truck From Savannah GA to Fairbanks AK. The Air Bags made all the difference. I want an onboard air system now, I just use a compressor with fittings at the bumper.

[tlw3989]

Georgia Rambler...I have the Wireless One on board system and it works great so far! Had the setup for about a year and allows to you to find the sweet spot for your particular setup by small adjustments while in the cab. This is how I found that above ~60 psi is too much for me.

Also, I found that on an interstate trip this summer with just the truck, family & luggage, I can go up to about 20 psi and smooth the ride...seems to take the hard springs somewhat out of play smoothing the ride on the GA and AL concrete interstates.

Here is my hitch up routine:
* Airbags set to 8 psi (low memory setting on wireless One remote)
* Back up to engage pin & hitch, lock hitch
* Press high memory switch on Wireless One remote - onboard air pump starts and inflates bags to 45 psi
*while pump is running, connect FW wire harness & raise landing gear
* perform walk around check and ready to go.

The truck starts to take the load while the bags inflate and the landing gear come up.

All in all, I am very pleased with my Air Lift 5000 system!

[walker247]

Hey tlw3989, that's a real nice system you've got! I just put airbags on my truck (pump by hand.... not the on board system), and it makes a much smoother ride. :cool:

My question for you, or anyone else with airbags experience is: After installing airbags, did you lower your hitch to level out the trailer?

With my airbags at 80 psi, my truck no longer squats, so now my 5th wheel sits a few inches higher in the front than the back (actually, measuring from the ground to the frame, the front is 7" higher than the rear of the trailer). It used to tow fairly level without the airbags. I'll make the adjustment, but hadn't thought about this before installing the airbags.... just wondering what everyone else's experience is. Thanks!

[Htfiremedic]

I'm considering a set for my F250. What is the best bang for the buck?

[SteveC7010]

I'm considering a set for my F250. What is the best bang for the buck?

Air Lift is currently offering a $50 rebate on their air bags and a $50 rebate on a compressor. http://www.airliftcompany.com/

I have not decided whether to go with the Air Lifts or the Firestones yet, but the rebate might make a difference.

There is a discussion on this question going on at the moment over in the Ford Truck Enthusiasts forum. http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1203623-firestone-or-airlift-air-springs.html Both seem to get good reviews.

[davidjsimons]

I've had the same set of bags and compressor in two trucks now, over eight years of service. I have the Firestone bags.


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[audio1der]

@walker247; I have the Airlift system ready to be installed on our truck in the spring, and anticipate lowering our hitch height to compensate for the truck not squatting. I want to tow not only level, but reduce the frontal area presented to the wind at highway speed to help mpg as much as possible. Esp. with a 5er I would think those savings would be even moreso.

[tlw3989]

Walker247...sorry I have been away for a while.

I did not have to adjust my hitch after finding my rig sweet spot for ride comfort at ~45 psi. If I inflate to your setting of 80 psi, I would be unlevel like you and would have to evaluate changing my hitch height if I even had the room...my FW to truck bed distance is good now and I don't think I want to lower it. But as I mentioned, I get too much bounce when inflated in the 70+ psi range.

[davidjsimons]

I would suggest adjusting the hitch to where the trailer is level while the truck is as well. When hauling extremely heavy loads, I run my bags at about 60 psi. You need to take into consideration that the pressure fluctuates as the suspension works up and down from the motion of the highway. On my set, max pressure is 100 psi. I do not exceed a pressure that will cause a shock load on my bags over that maximum rating. I hope that makes some sense as I tried to explain it.


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[hankpage]

Because of the small size of the actual air bag the up and down motion is limited at higher pressures. This causes less dampening from shocks that shows up as "Bounce". I recently read an article in Turbo Diesel Register magazine (http://www.turbodieselregister.com/?) on adding "Ping tanks" to greatly lessen this effect. I will be looking into this since I have experienced this "bounce" on large sharp bumps at highway speed and never considered it to be caused by the air bags. They are used on luxury buses and motor-homes for this reason. You learn something new every day (hopefully) , Hank

[PerryB]

To the original poster, its completely normal and acceptable to run differential air pressures to achieve a level vehicle, whether its the truck or trailer. Trailers are often imbalanced side to side due to the location of slides and other various equipment/accessories. Ping tanks are the hot set-up for airbags. Anybody running greater that about 60 psi should consider them. I am running about 50 loaded and am considering them because I think they will improve ride quality. For those of you talking about lowering your hitch, remember to keep adequate clearance (6" in my opinion) between truck and trailer. Sometimes the only proper solution is to raise the trailer.