Your TPMS monitor suddenly lights up with a warning. Is your tire losing air or has it inflated too much? Understanding the difference between high and low pressure alerts helps you respond correctly and avoid tire damage.

What Is the Difference Between High Pressure and Low Pressure Alerts?

Tire pressure monitoring systems track the air pressure in each tire constantly. When pressure moves outside safe limits, the system alerts you. But not all pressure problems are the same.

What is considered normal pressure would depend on your vehicle and load. Truck tires might need 100 PSI while a small loader runs at 65 PSI. Your tire manufacturer provides recommended pressure for different conditions.

GUTA TPMS lets you set your starting pressure as the baseline. The system then watches for changes from this number. You can adjust minimum and maximum thresholds based on how much variation you want to allow before getting an alert. But what are low pressure and high pressure alerts?

What Is a Low Pressure Alert?

Low pressure alerts tell you a tire has lost air and dropped below your minimum safe threshold. This is the most common type of pressure alert.

When a tire's pressure falls below the minimum level you set, the system triggers a low pressure alert. The alert stays active until you fix the problem and pressure returns to the normal range. 

What Causes Low Tire Pressure?

Punctures are the obvious cause. A nail, screw, or sharp rock pierces the tire and air escapes. Sometimes the leak is fast, other times it's slow and takes hours to notice.

Temperature changes also affect pressure. Cold weather makes air contract, dropping pressure by 1-2 PSI for every 10-degree temperature drop. 

Valve problems cause slow leaks too. Damaged valve cores or worn seals let air escape gradually. Even properly inflated tires lose about 1 PSI per month naturally through the rubber. Neglected tires eventually trigger low pressure alerts.

Why Low Pressure Is Dangerous

Under-inflated tires flex more as they roll. This extra flexing creates heat through friction. The more the tire flexes, the hotter it gets. Eventually the heat damages the internal structure and causes tire failure.

Tire life drops dramatically with low pressure. The edges of the tread wear faster than the center, forcing earlier replacement. You also get poor handling because the tire doesn't maintain its proper shape. Stopping distances increase and cornering becomes less stable.

The worst risk is tire separation or blowout. As the tire runs hot from excessive flexing, the rubber and internal layers can separate. When this happens at speed, the results are often catastrophic.

What Is a High Pressure Alert?

High pressure alerts warn you that a tire has too much air. While less common than low pressure alerts, they signal equally serious problems. When pressure rises above your maximum threshold, the TPMS triggers a high pressure alert. 

GUTA systems show this the same way as low pressure alerts but indicate the pressure is too high rather than too low.

You can customize the upper limit for each vehicle. Heavy equipment carrying maximum loads might set higher thresholds than the same vehicle running empty. The system alerts you when actual pressure exceeds whatever maximum you set.

What Causes High Tire Pressure?

Heat is the main cause of high pressure. As tires roll, friction generates heat. Heavy loads and high speeds create more friction and more heat. Hot air expands, increasing pressure inside the tire.

A tire might start the day at 100 PSI and climb to 115 PSI after hours of highway driving or heavy work. This is normal to a point, which is why you set maximum thresholds slightly above your starting pressure.

Over-inflation during service causes high pressure too. Sometimes, you may inflate a tire without checking carefully or while using a faulty gauge. The tire becomes overinflated. As it heats up during use, pressure climbs even higher.

Temperature increases throughout the day also affect pressure. A tire inflated to correct pressure at 40°F in the morning will gain pressure as ambient temperature reaches 80°F later in the day.

Why High Pressure Is Dangerous

Over-inflated tires have a smaller contact patch with the ground. Less rubber touching the road means less traction. This affects braking, acceleration, and turning ability. On wet or loose surfaces, the traction loss becomes especially noticeable.

High pressure also increases blowout risk. The tire is stretched tighter, leaving less tolerance for impacts or heat. When an over-inflated tire hits a pothole or debris, it may likely burst rather than absorb the impact.

How to Respond to Low Pressure Alerts

When you get a low pressure alert, your response depends on how much pressure you've lost and how quickly.

Immediate Actions to Take

Check the monitor to see which tire triggered the alert. Note the current pressure and compare it to your baseline. A drop of 5 PSI is less urgent than a drop of 20 PSI.

If pressure is critically low or dropping fast, reduce speed and pull over safely as soon as possible. Fast air loss means you could have a serious puncture or valve failure. Continuing to drive risks tire damage or failure.

For moderate pressure loss, visually inspect the tire at your next stop. Look for nails, cuts, or obvious damage. Check if the tire appears deflated compared to others.

Short-Term Solutions

If you find the cause and it's minor, adding air gets you back to safe pressure. GUTA systems with flow-through sensors (GT80 and some GT20 models) make this easy. Attach your air hose directly without removing the sensor.

For slow leaks that you can't fix immediately, add air and monitor closely. The TPMS will alert you again when pressure drops, so you know it's time to add more air or get repairs.

Tire sealants work as temporary fixes for small punctures. They plug the hole from inside and let you continue operating until proper repairs can be made.

Long-Term Fixes

Find and repair the leak properly. This might mean patching a puncture, replacing a damaged valve, or fixing a rim leak. Don't ignore recurring low pressure alerts. Constantly adding air without fixing the cause wastes time and risks tire failure. Replace tires that have internal damage or severe wear. 

How to Respond to High Pressure Alerts

High pressure alerts need different responses than low pressure ones. The goal is to reduce pressure or reduce the heat causing it.

Immediate Actions to Take

Identify which tire is over-inflated using your GUTA monitor. Check if the temperature is also high for that tire. High temperature plus high pressure often means the tire is working hard and generating heat.

If pressure is critically high, pull over safely. Continuing to drive with severely over-inflated tires risks blowouts, especially on rough roads or at high speeds.

Look for signs of overheating like unusual tire bulging or smoke. These indicate serious problems that need immediate attention.

Short-Term Solutions

Release some air carefully using a tire pressure gauge. Let out small amounts and recheck until pressure reaches your target. Don't release too much or you'll create a low pressure problem instead.

If heat is causing the pressure to increase, let tires cool before adjusting. Park in shade if possible. Pressure will drop as temperature drops. Wait 30 minutes and recheck before releasing air.

Consider reducing your load or speed if conditions allow. Less weight and lower speeds mean less heat generation and lower pressure.

Long-Term Fixes

Review your baseline inflation levels. If you consistently get high pressure alerts during normal operation, your starting pressure might be too high. Lower it slightly and see if alerts decrease.

Check load distribution. Overloaded individual tires heat up more than properly loaded ones. Redistribute weight or reduce total load if possible.

Investigate mechanical issues that cause extra heat. Dragging brakes, bad wheel bearings, or misalignment all generate excess heat that shows up as high tire pressure.

Summary

High pressure and low pressure alerts serve the same ultimate purpose: keeping your tires safe and your operation running. They detect different problems, require different responses, and signal different dangers, but both protect you from costly tire failures.

Understanding the difference helps you respond correctly when alerts trigger. Low pressure means add air and find leaks. High pressure means releasing air or reducing heat. Both mean paying attention before small problems become big ones.

GUTA TPMS provides both alert types with clear displays, customizable thresholds, and reliable monitoring across all your equipment. Visit gutatpms.com to find the right system for your fleet and start protecting your tires today.