Did you know that 20% of all company vehicle accidents involved at least by a percentage of cause, under inflated tires? It’s true, and under inflation does not just decrease fuel mileage, it can make the vehicle less responsive on slick roads or under excess loads.
Far too many business owners fail to check the tire pressure of their vehicles, and then a hot-dog employee pushes the vehicle past its design limitations in adverse conditions – that spells disaster for the company’s insurance policy, not to mention a black mark on the once stellar workplace safety chart.
Everyone should check the air pressure in their tires, unfortunately even though most people know this, few do. It seems rather silly that people complain about the gasoline prices yet do not make sure their tires are properly inflated. Did you know that under inflated tires can cost up 2-4 miles per gallon; it’s true and that adds up to a good amount of money each time you fill up. Perhaps, the analogy of flushing money down the toilet is the right one to drive home at this point?
Now then, how do you go about checking the air pressure in your tires? Well, it’s simple. Go to the Dollar Store, Walmart, Pep Boys, or any auto parts store and simply buy a little silver tire gauge, the kind that looks like a ballpoint pen with a white measuring stick which pops out, and put it into your glove box. I am actually surprised our government didn’t send one to every household in America to help us conserve oil. Below are tips in checking the air pressure in your company vehicles:
1. Take the air pressure gauge from your glove box every time you fill up your car, and push it onto the valve stem, after removing that tiny little cap. Make sure that it is the proper pressure.
2. You can find the proper pressure one of two places. Either on the tire itself, or in the operations manual (provided these are the same tires that came with the car or duplicates of the same).
3. Remember that depending on the season, there may be different inflation pressure recommendations by the manufacturer, so pay attention to this.
4. If any of the tires are not within 1-2 lbs of pressure of required, put the proper air pressure in them. Do not rely on the pressure gauges at the gas station on the pressure hose, often they are warn and/or inaccurate. If they look brand new, and read about what you expect, chances are they are okay however.
If you will recall even the President of the United States has recommended that people check their air pressure in their tires to save fuel. Imagine if everyone did – how much oil we could save? Please consider all this.
Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank. Lance Winslow thinks you should check your delivery vehicles routinely for safety purposes and to save money, he also thinks you ought to check your phone service to make sure you get the customer’s calls; local phone service
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lance_Winslow
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