What is the best ride in pounds on the air bags to ride on i now some like it hard and some like it soft lol
but whats in the middle?, The other ? i had i start the bus up does the bus automaticaly set the ride hight and ove ride the leveling system or do i have to reset all air bags to driving hight? befor leaveing to go on the road?
My airbags operate at 60 lbs for a standard ride height.
If you have a manual leveling system, unless some method is in place to override the manual when on the road, you'll have to set the bus to the correct ride height. That will give you a sort of default pressure. Whatever it takes to get to the standard ride height will be repeatable.
If you have the OEM leveling system intact, the bus will level itself when aired up.
The term "leveling" is used to describe both campground leveling and OEM air ride leveling, yet the functions are quite different.
The OEM system levels the bus to the axles no matter the weight distribution. An aftermarket or campground leveling feature overrides the OEM air leveling system and allows one to level the bus body relative to spousal needs. Relatively... ??? Now that ought to confuse everyone. :D
Post a description of what sort of equipment you have and what you are trying to do.
Best, JR
First a question for you. Does your bus still have the OWM leveling valves? If not, then air pressures will definitely have to be set. If your bus still has the OEM leveling valves, you will have to determine if the bus automatically defaults to the OEM valves when started. If your leveling system uses electrically controlled solenoids, it probably does. If your controls are manually operated knobs, it probably does not. Jack
There is no pressure requirement on air suspension. There is a specified ride height that should be followed. The manufacturer sets this height to get the best combination of ride quality without bottoming out or hyper extending the air bags. I run with my air suspension 1 inch from the top just to get better ground clearance. But-I also run the risk of blowing an shock absorber since the shocks are used as the retainer preventing the air bags from over extending and blowing out. If you don't know your ride height, you can get an approximate measurement by measuring the bus fully aired up at the top of the suspension travel and then measure it at complete bottom. Then adjust it to 5/8 of that measurement, and you should be good. If you have to get under the bus to disconnect the connecting rods to the automatic adjusting valves, make sure you have elevated the bus up at least 6 inches so when the bus comes down it doesn't crush you!!! The best is always from a pit.
If you have a manual system only, you can do the same thing, just don't have to get under the bus. Once you have the right ride height, then yes, you can use the pressure gauges to obtain the same height again-as long as you weigh the same. This can be tricky since Diesel weighs 7 pounds/gal and most carry 130gal. So right there you're talking about 8-900lb. Also, if you have water in the gray tank and black tank and take on more water in the fresh tank before emptying the tanks. So for instance, I have a 130gal water tank (8.4 pounds/gal). That's 1092 pounds worth. If I have my 85 gal of gray water and my 45 gal of black water full, thats another 1092 pounds. So there is a ton that the weight can vary with the water. Factor in also 100 pounds of propane and you have with fuel, water, propane the possibility of over 3,100 pounds of varying weight in the duration of as little as a week. And believe me, a ton and a half of weight will make a difference in the ride height. This is why I highly recommend you keep the automatic leveling valves and supplement them with a switchable manual system that can be used as a leveling system when camping. I have such a system on my bus and it takes less than a minute to level. Good Luck, TomC