Replacing Tires with TPMS can be costly.

Vehicle owners who have a newer model car or motorcycle equipped with The TPMS (Tire Pressure Monitoring system should beware of the added cost that you may incur by taking your vehicle to a local tire shop for tire replacement. If you have such a vehicle still under factory warranty and your tires are worn as indicated by the tire's tread becoming flush with your tire's wear indicators than I recommend that you have this job performed by a dealership whom is certified by the manufacturer to work on this vehicle . You may even purchase the tire else where and get them to do the installation for you. You may think that this is a more expensive route but what can happen if you don't will cost you double as witnessed first hand by a friend. This friend after shopping around for a good deal on tires that were hard to come by, found that Petboys offered them at a sale price of 4 for the price of 3. Of course not knowing the careful attention to detail required in replacing tires equipped with the TPMS he figured they should be able to handle it. The outcome was a vehicle returned to him with new tires unable to stay inflated for longer than a trip. Initially it was only two tires loosing pressure but after making his complaint and returning for his vehicle once again Pepboys handed him 4 TPMS sensors and blamed it on corroded valve stems which in this case is part of the sensor and recommended he replace all 4 valve/sensors. Corrosion can possably cause a valve stem to leak but on this newer vehicle with only 30,000 it is most likely that the valve stem was bent or crossthreaded (stripped) on installation. It is also possable to contact the sensor on the valve stem with the ram bar of the Tire bead breaker upon removal of tire.
What ever the cause Pepboys insisted it was due to corrosion and could not do anything for him except sell him 4 new sensors at $95. a piece. His dealership recommended they install standard valve stems so that he can drive the car to them for a look. Pepboys replaced all 4 sensors with standard valves. At the dealer ship he was told that the valves would not be covered since the work was performed elsewhere. His charge for the valve/sensors, installation and calibration was $700. about the same as the cost of the tires. So do yourself a favor and save the headache and extra cost involved should your mechanic have a problem with the sensors on your wheels. By taking your vehicle in to the dealership they should be covered under the vehicles warranty. If you are not sure if you have the TPMS sensors see the pictures below for a view of what they may look like installed or removed from a tire. Some types of sensors may differ with manufacturer but in researching I found this type is more commonly used on many vehicles .


To give you an idea of how the system works, the pressure sensor is attached to the tire valve and is installed from the inside of the wheel with the valve protruding through a hole in the wheel as normal. This assembly is kept from leaking by a grommet which seals the unit against the wheel when a nut is installed over the stem and tightened on the outer side of the wheel. The sensor contains a small long life battery, generally lasting 5 to 10 years. This battery keeps the sensor operating and sending a signal to a receiver mounted in the car that is wired to your instrument panels TPMS tire indicator. When your vehicle is parked the sensor is hibranating to extend the life of the battery, above a predetermined speed the transponder in the sensor sends a signal about once a minute to the reciever an if the pressure of a tire drops below 26 PSI your low tire indicator will illuminate. This light does not yet tell you which tire is low so they must all be checked and adjusted. For more information on different types or TPMS systems I found the following site to be helpful http://www.aa1car.com/library/tire_monitors.htm . Also the TPMS tire pressure monitor system light may illuminate due to changes in outside temperatures. As colder seasons approach you may find that the cooler temperatures may cause a decrease in tire pressure and the warning light to go on. This is normal and tire pressure should be checked and corrected seasonally.

Service engine light on? (Don't spend unecessary money)

The (Service engine soon) or (check engine) light in your vehicle is intended to alert drivers of an emission control problem. This system is monitored by a computer in your car called an ECM (electronic control module). This is the brain of the car that receives all measured parameters of a running vehicle and adjusts engine performance accordingly.

99% of the time a vehicle's (check engine light) or (service engine light) is caused by a common problem. This problem normally occurs when people are in a rush or are simply distracted at the pump when refueling and forget to fully tighten the fuel cap. The fix can be as simple as re tightening the cap, until several clicks are heard, and allowing some driving time to pass in order for your engine light to reset. Your engine light will reset once certain checks have been completed on your fuel/emission system and your vehicle's computer realizes the problem has been fixed.

This simple fix is worth trying before taking the vehicle in for service, even if its a new vehicle. If after trying this your service engine light goes off and returns then most likely you have another problem besides a leaky fuel cap allowing gas vapors to escape from the tank. It may also be that you simply over serviced your tank with fuel and the fuel is entering your evaporator system which is intended to purge gases from your tank. If neither of these simple problems were the cause then you have a problem that will cost you some time and money to repair. These problems may range from a pin hole in your evaporator system causing a leak, a battery or alternator output problem, a faulty fuel system component, a faulty oxygen sensor, or any engine problems picked up by sensors monitoring your engines performance and emission control system. The later would be preferable because almost all vehicles including old have long lasting warranties on emission controls through its original factory warranty. I'm talking about 7 years average depending on vehicle manufacturer.

Regardless of what the problem may be, trying the above simple fixes will eliminate the gas cap and give your mechanic a reason to take a closer look. It may also save you valuable time and money spent at the repair shop just to find out it may very well have been operator
mal-function. That's a little embarrassing to me. Well not as much as driving around with my fuel cap completely off.

For the more persistent mechanically inclined person another avenue you can take to save money in trouble shooting this problem is to first buy a repair manual for your vehicle's make and model. Then go to your local automotive parts store, such as Discount Auto Parts, and for a small refundable deposit or maybe leaving your I.D with no deposit you should be able to borrow, free of charge, an OBD II, which is an On Board System Diagnostic Scan Tool.
This tool should be plugged in to a connector usually below the drivers side dash (If not found look in the repair manual for location) and with the ignition switch rotated to acc the position just before the cranking position you can begin a scan test on your vehicle. When ready the OBD II will prompted you what to do and give you a caution about the position of the ignition switch. Answer the questions on the testers screen by entering yes or no. If memory recalls the tester will ask if you are ready to run a test answer yes or run and Waite for the results. The results will be a code number followed by a short description. It will also state whether the code is pending or not. Pending means the ECU Electronic Control Unit or brain of the car has not yet finished testing the parameters of that particular system. write down the codes that are not pending meaning the ones that have failed.Look up the meaning of this code in your repair manual, OBD II CD Rom if new, or on line on the many useful sites providing codes. The repair manual should give you an idea were to start looking on your vehicle for the problem related to this code.

Note: This may not be a simple find because many times the problem is underlying within a certain system. Most problems relating to the light are not a part that has failed but what system is being affected by the failed part. On the other hand Some problems may turns out to be just a broken wire or an electrical plug that someone had disconnected and forgot to reconnect. This has happen to me with a map sensor which needed to be disconnected in order to perform preventative maintenance on the engine. Yes! even your mechanic can make a mistake. Some codes may be as simple as (map sensor) which you could then find its location in the manual and check out with an ohm meter to isolate the problem. But some may be a little more bewildering as (Bank sensor 1 circuit slow) this one may be pointing out an oxygen sensor that has gone bad, but you will not know for sure until you have isolated the problem, replaced the defective component and given the computer time to monitor the systems after a reset.

It may very well be that the engine light may return with the same fault code after thinking you have fixed the problem with a costly item. For this reason it is important that you follow procedures step by step in trouble shooting the faulty system. The codes may be cleared with a touch of a button (clear) on your OBDII Tester. Once cleared it will take a few trips at different driving conditions before your vehicle's computer is ready to monitor again. This may take days or weeks since it is not normally part of your daily commute.

For general information most vehicle's (check engine) light may also be reset by disconnecting the positive lead of the cars battery and reconnecting it after 2 seconds. To verify whether the system has been reset start your car and see if the check engine light stays illuminated. If it goes out the system is reset and as mentioned above will take a while to be ready to monitor again. Important: if your vehicle is equipped with an anti-theft radio and you disconnect the battery, which eventually you will in the event of replacing a dead battery, be sure you know your radio's code. The theft feature is active if the red light by the radio is flashing.
Be warned:If you don't know the code, your radio will not allow you to control it until the proper code has been entered. You can enter a new code (change the code) only when the radio is in a controllable state, by following instructions in your owners manual for this task.
Good luck, hope this information was use full!

Building a cement pond

Building a 75 -150 gallon, outdoor, cement pond may be cheaper than you think. Save hundreds of dollars by doing it yourself. The size pond described here is a 75 gallon , 4x5x2 pond and should run you about $300.dollars or less depending on what you may already have, for example shovel or wheel barrel. By making it just a foot or two deeper, or wider, it will hold a lot more. Of course it will cost you more too, but the added cost is minuscule.

On a scale of 1 through 10 the complexity of this task is a 4 if your male or 5 if your female. The hardest part of this job is the work out you'll get digging a 4' x 5'x 2' minimum size hole in the ground for the 75 gal pond. If you have a bad back don't attempt this task or get a friend to help you. The two foot depth listed above is for warmer climates where temperatures rarely dip below 35deg. If you are up north or in a state where temperatures dip below 32deg freezing point than I recommend you dig a deeper hole by at least a foot. This will provide a warmer space below the forming ice that will help keep your fish from freezing in cold winter days.
Fish need a temperature of 78deg, plus or minus 2. Use a heater if necessary.

Note: If it is not necessary to dig deep, then spare yourself the hard work. I tell you this because after digging a three foot deep pond and stocking it with fish, I realized I was not enjoying the fish because they spent most their time below view. After a year I ended up temporarily re-housing the fish, draining the pond, filling it with dirt and resurfacing it with cement. Luckily it was previously a plastic molded pond and not a waist of cement. It had developed a leak anyway.

For a pond of this size I recommend a fiber reinforced, water retention cement. It will last longer than liners or molded ponds because cement strengthens with ageing and fibers prevent cracking. For larger ponds liners are the way to go.

Included in the cost of the pond you will need about (14) 50lbs bags of fiber reinforced surface bonding cement made by Sakrete @ approx ($4.50 per bag), also a wheel barrel ($40.)and shovel ($20.) if you don't already have one. these can be found at Home depot, Lowes or your local home improvement store. The cement alone will cost you about ($60.) dollars plus tax. That's not bad for a 75 gallon cement pond when compared to a plastic molded one that can eventually dry rot and develop leaks.

Then you will need a submersible pond kit able to pump 250 Gph or more.
I recommend the Danner pond kit. If you shop around especially on line you can find one for($88.99) at many pet supply stores. This kit includes the 250 Gph pump and a large area filter container that's 1.5' by 1.5' by only 3'' high. The pump may be stronger than this the stronger the better.It also contains the tube to connect the pump to the filter and a horn shaped discharge pipe that can be adjusted to discharge water in an umbrella like form up to 1.5 '' in circumference this looks pretty neat. The pump provides an additional outlet which i use to hook up a water fall made from a large clay pot with a hole in the center. This pot has also been included in the cost, Approx. ($20) dollars or less. Along with a 3/4'' ID tygone tubing required for the connection of the pot, ($10).

Also needed are some thin brick pavers of your choice to complement the perimeter of your new pond. For a pond of the above size you will need roughly 60 pavers at about .58Cents each,($35.) To decorate and help algae get established you should cover the bottom of the pond with large pond stones. Large stones make cleaning or vacuuming easy because they are heavy and large enough to prevent getting vacuumed up. In case of smaller stones a screen on your wetvac's hose will also help.
Note: It is not necessary to clean your entire pound periodically, this combined with a change in water will stress the fish and you may lose some. Always add chlorine remover to new water being added even if its only a couple gallons of fresh water to bring up the water level. I use prime chlorine remover found at Petco, about ($7) dollars a bottle. Only clean your pond when there is excessive sludge, leaves or other debree accumulating at the bottom.
Algae is a sign of a healthy eco system it will make the pond look natural and is a source of oxygen and food for your fish.

Buy 3 bags of porous rocks (found at any garden center) @ about ($3.75) ea. These will be used to spread on the bottom of the pond as a sub base for the cement. Save 1/4 of a bag for future use in your filter.
I recommend replacing the cloth filter media that came in your filter kit with some of the small porous rocks on your first filter cleaning. You will know its time to clean the filter when the water flow from your waterfall is no longer strong. You should use the new small rocks in place of the cloth filter because it will provide longer filter operations and less cleanings intervals (about once a month), it also makes a good breeding ground for bacteria to grow on and can be rinsed and reused without further expense to you.

Oh! and make sure you thoroughly rinse these small rocks in a bucket until the cloudy water turns clear.

Well know that you know all the costly items you will need to build this pound there is just one thing left you will need to find, but don't worry this is a low cost item which you should be able to find for free,.. the Sunday paper.

"Why do I need the Sunday paper to build this pond?" you ask.

Well lets get started. You will need the Sunday paper because out of all the news papers around it has largest quantity of paper in it. It will also be used to form a liner with a clean workable surface to lay the cement for your pond.

Getting started:
1. Dig a hole 5' long by 4 ' wide by 2 ' deep or larger if you prefer. It is very important to slope the inner walls of your pond to help keep the cement in place when applying it.This hole can be made in any shape you like, but try to keep the edges level. If your ground has a slope you may need to build up one end of the pond's hole with dirt. This can be facilitated with a 4"level and a couple of 2x4 wood studs.

2. Lay about 2'' of small rocks on the ground and pack it down tight. Strike it with brick or a wide heavy object to do this.

3. Lay the news paper in sheets of three all along he sides and top of the hole forming a skirt that's 1 foot wide around the perimeter. This will later be used for laying your pavers. Make sure you have covered any exposed dirt.

4. Spray a fine mist of water to dampen the papers and hold them in place.

5. Next, Mix your bags of cement one at a time in a wheel barrel or a large plastic container with a shovel or 1/2''drill and mixer. The fiber reinforced surface cement is a premix and only requires the addition of water. Add the required amount of water as described by the manufacturer on the bag, little by little, until your powdered cement is fully saturated but only to the point where it no longer clumps with pockets of powdered cement. It should flow freely from the wheel barrel like lava from a volcano. Caution: too wet or to dry will cause it to crack.
Follow the instructions on the package.

6. Wheel the wheel barrel close to the pond and ensure the newspapers are still damp.
Then scooping up the cement mixture with your hands and starting from the bottom edges of the pond strategically place it along the sides of the wall until you reach the top,using surgical gloves if you wish, and hand pack it to a thickness of 2". Only a thin 1'' layer is required along the top skirt. When applying the cement on the sides it will tend to slide down along the walls, this is where the sloped walls come in handy and keep the cement from just falling to the ground. your bottom corners may come out thicker than 2'' because of this but that's o.k. it adds strength. If you wish..a framed wall can be built to support the cement, but this will just add time and money.

7. When the sides are complete exit the pond carefully and finish forming the skirt.

8. Place your paver bricks all along the perimeter how ever you find appealing. A rough lay out on the ground after the hole is dug will make this step very easy and you will know exactly how many pavers you will need for your specific shape. let pavers set in the cement and give them 24 hours to cure.

9. After 24 hrs check pavers with hand pressure make shure they have started to cure. They should be able to support your standing weight without shifting or cracking.

10. Place a 2x4 across the pond from your end to the other.Place some cement over the gravel on the bottom of the pond and using the 2x4 as a support for your arm & chest spread the cement in an oval pattern. The 2x4 will aid in avoiding any hand pressure along the side walls of the pond. Doing so my crack the already dried but not fully cured cement.

11. When your pond is complete let fully cure for at least 5 days. Protect from rain and debree with a cover. lite morning due or mist will help to strengthen the cement. when fully cured, if you wish you may paint the interior black so that forming algae do not create an image of a dirty pond. You may also paint the bricks a different color. Of course use a water resistant paint or stain such as the ones used by pools. Hook up all pond equipment as I suggested above or IAW manufacturer's instructions.

12. After all cement and paints have fully cured add water with the appropriate amount of prime chlorine remover.

13. Let water aerate and condition for about 5 days and if you wish add plants and lilies to help produce oxygen for your fish.

14. Finally after the 5 days of water conditioning buy and add reasonably priced fish. Breeder gold fish make an excellent pond starting fish because they are inexpensive at about 12 fish for a dollar and they will help begin the eco cycle needed before more expensive fish are introduced.

15. Periodically check your pond's water condition with a pond test kit which may run you anywhere between $10. to $25. dollars depending on size. These kits are needed to check ammonia, pH, nitrates and salt levels. But don't worry a fresh water pond does not require daily monitoring and once established can go for a long time without checking.