[Rev.Vassago]

Originally Posted by Useless

My hat is off to anyone who insists upon checking tire pressure every five hours, whether it is mandated, or not

Checking tire pressure on a hot tire will give a false reading. Tire pressure should only be checked when they are cold.

[Myth_Buster]

Uturn2001

There is no longer any mandatory tire/safety/load checks. The TSA has issued a ruling that has been endorsed by the FMCSA the removes the mandatory checks.

§392.7 Equipment, inspection and use.

No commercial motor vehicle shall be driven unless the driver is satisfied that the following parts and accessories are in good working order, nor shall any driver fail to use or make use of such parts and accessories when and as needed:

Service brakes, including trailer brake connections.

Parking (hand) brake.

Steering mechanism.

Lighting devices and reflectors.

Tires.

Horn.

Windshield wiper or wipers.

Rear-vision mirror or mirrors.

Coupling devices.

Some disagree with the thought the above section applies to any time the vehicle is stopped. However, the fact is Part 392 is operation of a CMV and applies at any time.

There is also:

§ 392.9 Inspection of cargo, cargo securement devices and systems.

(a) General. A driver may not operate a commercial motor vehicle and a motor carrier may not require or permit a driver to operate a commercial motor vehicle unless-

(b) Drivers of trucks and truck tractors. Except as provided in paragraph (b)(4) of this section, the driver of a truck or truck tractor must-

(b)(1) Assure himself/herself that the provisions of paragraph (a) of this section have been complied with before he/she drives that commercial motor vehicle;

(b)(2) Inspect the cargo and the devices used to secure the cargo within the first 50 miles after beginning a trip and cause any adjustments to be made to the cargo or load securement devices as necessary, including adding more securement devices, to ensure that cargo cannot shift on or within, or fall from the commercial motor vehicle; and

(b)(3) Reexamine the commercial motor vehicle's cargo and its load securement devices during the course of transportation and make any necessary adjustment to the cargo or load securement devices, including adding more securement devices, to ensure that cargo cannot shift on or within, or fall from, the commercial motor vehicle. Reexamination and any necessary adjustments must be made whenever -

(b)(3)(i) The driver makes a change of his/her duty status; or

(b)(3)(ii) The commercial motor vehicle has been driven for 3 hours; or

(b)(3)(iii) The commercial motor vehicle has been driven for 150 miles, whichever occurs first.

(b)(4) The rules in this paragraph (b) do not apply to the driver of a sealed commercial motor vehicle who has been ordered not to open it to inspect its cargo or to the driver of a commercial motor vehicle that has been loaded in a manner that makes inspection of its cargo impracticable.

The tire checks in Part 397 were removed, however, Part 392 still has requirements for load securement checks and vehicle condition checks during operation.

§392.7 Equipment, Inspection, and Use


Question 1: Must a driver prepare a written report of a pretrip inspection performed under §392.7?

Guidance: No.

Question 2: Must both drivers of a team operation comply with the provisions of §392.7 before driving?

Guidance: §392.7 states that a driver must be satisfied that the vehicle is in good working order before operating the vehicle. If a driver is satisfied with a co-driver's inspection, or a safety lane inspection, then the requirement of this section will have been met.

FYI, the driver inspection section is different:

§396.13 Driver inspection.


Before driving a motor vehicle, the driver shall:

(a) Be satisfied that the motor vehicle is in safe operating condition;

(b) Review the last driver vehicle inspection report; and

(c) Sign the report, only if defects or deficiencies were noted by the driver who prepared the report, to acknowledge that the driver has reviewed it and that there is a certification that the required repairs have been performed. The signature requirement does not apply to listed defects on a towed unit which is no longer part of the vehicle combination.

Be safe.

[kjax]

FMCSR 397.17 (hazmat)

[allan5oh]

Originally Posted by Rev.Vassago

Checking tire pressure on a hot tire will give a false reading. Tire pressure should only be checked when they are cold.

Yes they will be high, but what if one tire is 15-20 psi lower then the rest?

[yoopr]

Originally Posted by allan5oh

Yes they will be high, but what if one tire is 15-20 psi lower then the rest?

You'll hear it or feel it with a Tire Thumper

[Myth_Buster]

kjax:

FMCSR 397.17 (hazmat)

that reg isn't just for hazmat loads-it's for every load

Part 397 is dedicated to hazamat loads that require placarding:

§397.1 Application of the rules in this part.


(a) The rules in this part apply to each motor carrier engaged in the transportation of hazardous materials by a motor vehicle which must be marked or placarded in accordance with §177.823 of this title and to —

(a)(1) Each officer or employee of the motor carrier who performs supervisory duties related to the transportation of hazardous materials; and

(a)(2) Each person who operates or who is in charge of a motor vehicle containing hazardous materials.

(b) Each person designated in paragraph (a) of this section must know and obey the rules in this part.

While Part 397.17 doesn't specifically mention hazmat, Part 397 applies only to placarded loads.

Be safe.

[Useless]

Originally Posted by yoopr

You'll hear it or feel it with a Tire Thumper

Well, Yooper & Rev.,

You guys have both been driving for a very long time, so I can't call either one of you wrong.

I was taught by a man whom I consider to be an excellent trainer, and even during our first week together, we seldom stopped long enough for the tires to cool down!! No joke here, we ran as a team from day one, and we ran very hard. If we had waited for the tires to cool down to check them, then they would not have been checked more than twice a week.

[Rev.Vassago]

Originally Posted by Useless

Well, Yooper & Rev.,

You guys have both been driving for a very long time, so I can't call either one of you wrong.

I was taught by a a man whom I consider to be an excellent trainer, and even during our first week together, we seldom stopped long enough for the tires to cool down!! No joke here, we ran as a team from day one, and we ran very hard. If we had waited for the tires to cool down to check them, then they would not have been checked more than twice a week.

Checking tire pressure once a week is plenty - checking for tire PROBLEMS every day is a necessity (deflated tires, nails, etc). Overchecking tires will lead to them losing air as well - every time you check the pressure, you lose a bit in the process.

In most cases, if you are losing 20 lbs of tire pressure in one week, it is due to another problem that can be seen without checking the pressure, and should have been found with a proper pre-trip or post-trip inspection.

I am sure that in the above scenario, the truck was parked at a dock from time to time for more than an hour or so, in which case, a more accurate reading could be found.

[Useless]

Originally Posted by Rev.Vassago

I am sure that in the above scenario, the truck was parked at a dock from time to time for more than an hour or so, in which case, a more accurate reading could be found.

Again, as I stated earlier, you know far more about this than I do. As a bed bugger, I'm sure that you keep the same trailer; Most of my team driving was either drop/hook, or drop/swap on a relay run, so we seldom had a trailer for more than a couple of days at a time; thus, we had to check trailer tires on a regular basis anyway.

A quick question for you, Rev!!

During the Summer months, I used to roll the desert quite a bit. Would one hour really be sufficient time for the tires to cool down??

I understand what you are saying about the heat causing expansion. I was not aware that checking tires once a week could be considered sufficient.

[Rev.Vassago]

Originally Posted by Useless

Again, as I stated earlier, you know far more about this than I do. As a bed bugger, I'm sure that you keep the same trailer; Most of my team driving was either drop/hook, or drop/swap on a relay run, so we seldom had a trailer for more than a couple of days at a time; thus, we had to check trailer tires on a regular basis anyway.

In a situation like that, you should be checking the tire pressure when you hook to the trailer, and doing a visual inspection of the tires at least once a day.

A quick question for you, Rev!!

During the Summer months, I used to roll the desert quite a bit. Would one hour really be sufficient time for the tires to cool down??

Yes - what you are looking for is to get the temperature from a rolling temperature down CLOSE to the outside temperature. What causes a mis-reading is when the temperature of the air INSIDE the tire varies greatly from the temperature OUTSIDE the tire.

I understand what you are saying about the heat causing expansion. I was not aware that checking tires once a week could be considered sufficient.

Once a week is plenty, unless you are having a problem with a tire, in which case you should check it closer until it is repaired (which should be VERY soon after the problem is noticed).