CONSUMERS : Tire Device Helps Avoid Accidents
Tirechecks, valve caps that can tell whether car tires are properly inflated, can save drivers money, wear on their tires, and quite possibly, their lives.
According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration statistics, low tire pressure is responsible for nearly 260,000 accidents annually nationwide, causing 28,000 injuries and 720 deaths. A recent report by the agency also estimates that low-pressure warning devices could save 40 million tires, “saving the consumer over $1,500,000,000 annually just in tire wear.”
The valve caps, which fit all normal tire valve stems on cars, vans, motorcycles, pickup trucks and some RVs, are easy to install and work automatically on any tire that uses 20 to 42 pounds of air pressure. They fit imported and domestic models.
To use, first make sure your tires are inflated to the proper pressure. Then screw on the Tirecheck valve caps. A color indicator in the top of the valve cap will show bright green. When the tire has lost pressure, an orange indicator will pop up. After you fill the tire, you can reinstall the Tirecheck, making sure that the seal ring is in place before screwing the cap back on.
Made in the United States, Tirechecks ($9.95, plus $3 shipping and handling for a set of four) can be purchased from M & E Enterprises, P.O. Box 37, Pleasantville, N.Y. 10570; phone (914) 769-1395.
For Little Wounds, Words of Healing
Johnson & Johnson, those folks in New Brunswick, N.J., who have been making Band-Aids since 1920, have come up with a new twist in bandages--multicolored ones that glow in the dark and have “kidspeak” words such as Dude , Tubular , Awesome and Yo on them.
Johnson & Johnson representatives say they surveyed youngsters in the 6-11 age category to determine 10 of the most popular words they use, but ones that are “most foreign to parents.”
To achieve the best glow, the new Band-Aids must be exposed to sunlight or other bright light for several minutes, company representatives say.
The glowing Band-Aids (suggested retail, $2.49 for 30 of the 3/4-inch wide, 3-inch long bandages) are available nationwide in drugstores and supermarkets. Among their outlets in Southern California are Clark Drug Warehouse, Hughes and Ralphs markets in Los Angeles, Drug Emporium in Redondo Beach and Anaheim, Sav-On and Thrifty Drug in Anaheim, Kmart in Ontario.
