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Old 11-25-2018, 05:45 PM   #1
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Public Service Anouncment

That little fire extinguisher that comes with the trailer is WAY TOO SMALL.
Tire pressure monitoring system A MUST.
ALWAYS travel with friends.
Keep valuables in your tow vehicle not the trailer.

packing up to go home after having a great thanksgiving week at Campland on the Bay in San Diego, i noticed the right rear tire on the trailer was low(35psi), pulled out the pump and got it up to the recommended pressure of 65psi, inspected all around and saw nothing inspected the valve stem and no leak, so while i was at it i checked the rest of the tires and made sure they were good to go, an hour and a half into our journey home on the 405 a car passed me and the drive was frantically pointing to my trailer, i looked in the mirror and saw nothing, looked back again this time with a little bit longer gaze and noticed a little puff of smoke, immediately pulled over, jumped out to inspect, the right rear tire was completely shredded and the rim and tire were on fire, grabbed the fire extinguisher from inside the door and emptied the whole thing onto the wheel and tire and was able to get it out, so i thought, after a couple crackles and small pops the tire burst back into flames, now i have an empty fire extinguisher, by the time i was able to hook up the external spray port and turn the water pump on the whole side of the trailer was in flames, a big thank you to a guy and his fiance(forgot their names in the commotion, so sorry) for stopping and helping me and my family get the truck unhooked and the tanks off and away to safety, and at that time the fire dept. were on scene and jumped on the blaze, and a huge thank you to all of the amazing Orange County fire fighters from station E47, they were so amazing in helping us go through and finding salvageable items and helped us load it all in to our friends rig,
now i know there are going to be all of these "what ifs" and "why didn't you" and "you should haves" all of that it is fine but i just have put this out there, i never felt a thing, never heard a thing (my wife is the first to point out anything and everything and she felt or heard nothing) the trailer was tracking strait and true,

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Old 11-25-2018, 06:31 PM   #2
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That is really scary. Sorry to hear. I know how you can get a flat and not notice it on a two axle trailer as it has happened to my wife and she actually trashed the rim too. She only found out when she happened to stop and get out of the truck.

I became so paranoid I bought remote tire pressure monitors that seem to work great as they monitor tire pressure and temperature so if a tire was losing air but heat was increasing the pressure you would have an increase in temperature that should alert you to a problem (like sidewall is flexing and making contact with the road and heating up on its way to a blowout).

Good luck with your trailer repair and thanks for sharing. I think I will throw another extinguisher in the trailer now.
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Old 11-25-2018, 06:42 PM   #3
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I had TWO blowouts on the tires that came with the RV. Quickly changed them to something better (hopefully). I am happy to hear that everyone is OK and hopefully the insurance will pay for the repairs. I'm going to take your advice and prepare more carefully.


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Old 11-25-2018, 08:09 PM   #4
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That is really scary. Sorry to hear. I know how you can get a flat and not notice it on a two axle trailer as it has happened to my wife and she actually trashed the rim too. She only found out when she happened to stop and get out of the truck.

I became so paranoid I bought remote tire pressure monitors that seem to work great as they monitor tire pressure and temperature so if a tire was losing air but heat was increasing the pressure you would have an increase in temperature that should alert you to a problem (like sidewall is flexing and making contact with the road and heating up on its way to a blowout).

Good luck with your trailer repair and thanks for sharing. I think I will throw another extinguisher in the trailer now.

Throw the larger/better fire extinguisher in the truck where it's accessible, not in the trailer where you may not be able to fetch it.
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Old 11-25-2018, 08:22 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by sundancer 87 View Post
Throw the larger/better fire extinguisher in the truck where it's accessible, not in the trailer where you may not be able to fetch it.


I already have one in my ram box but you’re right that a second one in the truck is still better.
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Old 11-25-2018, 08:55 PM   #6
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Glad your ok we will also send thanks to from rv community first responders
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Old 11-25-2018, 10:02 PM   #7
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So sorry this happened.

FWIW, the tire re-ignited due to the heat build up. I don't think any single fire extinguisher would be adequate for that type of fire.

I too have a tire that for some unknown reason loses air whenever it feels like. I pump it up and can go for a couple weeks trip without losing air. Then, after a night parked is low again. Pump it back up and it'll be fine for the rest of the summer.

I've got in the habit of checking every morning as well as a couple times during a travel day. I'll have to get a monitoring system one day for sure.

Geez though, scary story!
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Old 11-25-2018, 11:27 PM   #8
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I know nobody here has the answer for this but have you considered this could have been a brake fire?
What kind of road were you traveling on (mountain hills flat?).
Since you did not see or feel anything, it might not have been a blow out as root cause.

Glad you walked away safe!!!
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Old 11-26-2018, 12:50 AM   #9
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So sorry this happened.

FWIW, the tire re-ignited due to the heat build up. I don't think any single fire extinguisher would be adequate for that type of fire.

I too have a tire that for some unknown reason loses air whenever it feels like. I pump it up and can go for a couple weeks trip without losing air. Then, after a night parked is low again. Pump it back up and it'll be fine for the rest of the summer.

I've got in the habit of checking every morning as well as a couple times during a travel day. I'll have to get a monitoring system one day for sure.

Geez though, scary story!

One day you may want to remove the tire and wheel and top off the air pressure. Soap the inside of the wheel, not just the bead but the wheel proper. I had the same problem until I tired of messing with it. Soaped the inside and tiny bubbles appeared. The cast material can leak, mine did and it was replaced after doing the dance for the manufacturer.
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Old 11-26-2018, 03:26 AM   #10
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Originally Posted by sundancer 87 View Post
One day you may want to remove the tire and wheel and top off the air pressure. Soap the inside of the wheel, not just the bead but the wheel proper. I had the same problem until I tired of messing with it. Soaped the inside and tiny bubbles appeared. The cast material can leak, mine did and it was replaced after doing the dance for the manufacturer.
Huh, that's interesting. Thanks for this!
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Old 11-26-2018, 03:34 AM   #11
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I know nobody here has the answer for this but have you considered this could have been a brake fire?

What kind of road were you traveling on (mountain hills flat?).

Since you did not see or feel anything, it might not have been a blow out as root cause.



Glad you walked away safe!!!


Thom, the OP said his tire was really low and he topped it off before he left so while it could have been a brake it was more likely a blow out from either a bad rim or tire or valve stem or something related to the tire and or wheel if I was to guess.

Sounds like some really bad luck and timing too as most flats will tear up a trailer or brake something else but his actually caught on fire and then the trailer started to burn.

But so glad he and his family are okay.
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Old 11-26-2018, 04:51 PM   #12
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So sorry to hear Glad everyone was safe.
I’m a Big believer in larger fire extinguishers.

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Old 11-26-2018, 10:07 PM   #13
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I bought a larger fire extinguisher before taking my TT on a trip, mounted it in same place as the "original" useless one. Tire minders are a must. And good US made tires are also a must. Low pressure and overload are he most reason for tire failure. Glad you both are OK .
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Old 11-28-2018, 10:47 AM   #14
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Glad all the family is ok. Sorry to hear about your mishap, hope you get your rig back to new again soon.
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Old 11-28-2018, 11:19 AM   #15
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1. I don't buy fire extinguishers to save my trailer, I have them to buy us time getting out in a fire. Insurance will replace the trailer.

2. Get rid of any trailer tire made in China. They are not well made and are prone to fail. I use truck tires on my trailer.
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Old 11-29-2018, 02:39 PM   #16
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Glad everyone is safe and Big Shout out to the all First Responders. I am a ARES member and all my vehicles carry a complete responder kit including a 5 lb. fire extinguisher. Those little ones in the trailer are for small stove fires - if you tow always carry a larger bottle in the tow vehicle.
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Old 12-01-2018, 08:45 PM   #17
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We had a TPMS before we bought our RV which we knew would have 3 axles with 14 transmitters:6 on the trailer plus spare tire and 6 on the truck plus spare tire. We also added 2 additional fire extinguishers in the bedroom and a large extinguisher in the back seat of the truck. The bedroom extinguishers are larger than the 2 which came with the RV (and those were recalled). The spare tire transmitters are so we do not have to crawl under the truck to check pressure. Our TPMS is Tire Minder, and after adding a signal booster and not leaving monitor plugged in 24/7, it has been outstanding. I check the monitor readouts against the gauge when I check pressure and it has been spot on
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Old 12-02-2018, 12:17 AM   #18
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If i may add to the OPs original post about a public service announcement, and a mention of a fire extinguisher recall in the previous post.

I recently had this recall issue discovered when I was surfing the net for RV info.
Apparently Kidde had a recall on Many of the small fire exringushers. I went to the kidde website, and sure enough, my RV extingusher had been recalled!
A quick call to kidde, and they had a new replacement shipped to me free of charge

So please folks : CHECK YOUR KIDDE FIRE EXTINGUISHER FOR A RECALL.

It could be a matter of life and death

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Old 02-25-2019, 12:55 AM   #19
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When I bought my trailer, during the walk through the guy said, there's the fire extinguisher. If the trailer is on fire, get out, don't even bother with the extinguisher! It's sole purpose is to buy time. I carry one in my truck just in case, but in the end, if it starts to burn, once the living are out, let the damn thing burn, thats what insurance is for.
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