most toyota dealers use hunter roadforce balancing machines and hunter alignment machines.

when ever you let a "discount" store service anything that requires removing a tire, it's a good idea to check your lug nut torque with your own torque wrench once you get home. most of them are clueless and will use an impact air gun to overtighten. i've even had one idiot cross thread the lug nuts and then torque 'em down. had to do a lug bolt replacement by the side of the road on that deal and could hardly get the nut off it was messed up so bad.

try to find a good shop you can trust with good equipment they know how to use and develop a relationship with them. it's worth it.

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how does one check if the balancing is off?

 

poor tire balance is usually felt as a vibration at highway speeds not related to braking.

in addition to being out of balance (thowing off a weight, poor initial balance to begin with, etc.) you could also have an out of spec tire (internal belt problem, manufactured to poor tolerences, flat spotted from sitting, etc.)

the main advantage of having your tires road force balanced is they will apply force to the tire with a roller as it is turning on the balancing machine. this will identify the low and high spot of the tire within thousandths of an inch. the tire can then be turned on the rim to match the low spot on the tire with any high spots on the rim providing a much rounder final assembly. they will then apply weights on the inside and outside of the rim to provide a precisely balanced wheel.

there really isn't any way to definitively diagnose out of balance symptoms from the others listed above without taking it to a shop. if you have the symptoms, i would find a shop with a good hunter road force machine (make sure they have the correct hub adaptor for your rims) and pay them for a balance. it costs a little more than walmart or other discount tire shops, but is definitely worth it imo.

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Only go to a place with the Hunter RoadForce balancer