RE: Can not get tank full because of foam
I never knew that filling up could be a problem. When I fill up, I lock the handle on the fastest setting and when it clicks off, I can see fuel about 4 inches down the neck of the filler pipe. It's kind of a dish-water green but not too much foam.
My computer says my tank is at 100% every time I fill-up.
If my tank didn't fill up due to foaming, I would just let it go. I'm not about to stand there and fill the tank a drop at a time!
MM.
RE: mercerator
Ranger, the Macerator system is a grinder attached to a 4 inch connector hose that you connect to the black/grey tank outlet. The sewer hose exiting the macerator is about 1.5 inches in diameter and is very easy to handle. Our coach has both the Macerator and the regular 'slinky' capability. If I am using the 'back-flush' system, I'll use the slinky as I like the 'woosh' of the water coming out of the black tank.
The macerator comes in handy, especially, if the sewer connection is far away.
MM.
RE: Going "camping" - pull a TOAD or rent a car locally?
TDInewguy, I see that you are getting lots of answers here. We tow a 2007 Honda CR-V.... perfect little vehicle to tow all wheels down. Ours is an AWD and connects easily. There is a little up front cost in getting it ready but it's well worth it.
We'll drive the CR-V around town when at home as it has 19,000 miles of driving and another 19,000 miles of towing! (38,000 total). Perfect car as it gets great gas mileage, seats 5 comfortably and is easy to park! The CR-V weighs about 3,400 lbs and you don't even know it's back there when towing.
When we were renting motorhomes (2004, 2005 and 2006) we didn't have a car to tow so we rented at destination locations. Sometimes, it was hard getting a car (Sedona, AZ, and in Guernville, CA.) Guernville didn't have ANY rentals at all and Sedona only rented used vehicles. The new car companies (Enterprise) in Sedona were closed on the weekends!!(?????)
We always bring the CR-V no matter what! It's always there if we need it and if not, it's connected and waiting for the next location!
MM.
RE: Spare tire
Hmmmm, all of this 'tire talk' makes me think about replacing my front tires with new ones and keeping the old ones as spares (unmounted of course). At 20,000 miles, I have not had a flat. I check the air pressure before every trip and adjust as needed. The tread on all 8 look excellent!
MM.
RE: Help Us to Understand
We have only boondocked once in the 19 months (20,000 miles) that we have had our rig and it was at the Harris Ranch near Coalinga, CA., off the I-5. They have a wonderful steak-house that I highly recommend! I have also stayed in their hotel/motel when traveling in the area by car. You will always see 6-10 rigs parked there at night.
Normally, we drive just during the day and stop by 6 PM or earlier if it's during the winter months (before dark). So, we have no reason to stop at a Flying J or Walmart. I would certainly stop if I needed the rest and it doesn't bother me one ioda if someone else boondocks at a Walmart, etc.
I like resting in the evening and I can't recline my chair if the slides are in!
MM.
RE: Absorbed Glass Matt Batteries
I went to them on my coach. They seem to work well. Wet cells don't seem to work well on an all electric coach. Changed out my boat batteries too.
Hello Lug Nut, I'm not sure what you mean about "wet cells don't work well on all electric coaches" My coach is all electric and I have the type of batteries that need to be checked once a month. Occasionally, I add a little of distilled water to the 8 house batteries. The 2 engine batteries are closed.
These batteries seem to work well but I would consider changing them out to a more maintenance free battery when the time comes.
MM.
RE: Has anyone regretted going bigger?
Tom, I live in California part time and have never had a problem with driving our 42' unit with toad. Even when we go through the check stations, it's never an issue, they just ask about fruits/vegetables, etc.
Our coach is tagged in Tennessee so maybe that's the difference but my friends who have larger coaches in California have never mentioned additional requirements for a California driver's licence.
Our next coach will be a 45 ft. when the time comes.
MM.
RE: RV or Not RV - That is the question
TMBLSN, we don't have animals ourselves, but you would be surprised what people will do/spend on their pets. They are treated better than some children (and should be in some cases!).:p
MM.
RE: How long to keep one
Our motor home is 12 years old with low milage, runs like a top and it in like new condition. We have had it for 5 years now but have the itch for something bigger. Athough every time we are in we ask each other why? It serves our needs at this time. There are a few things that would be really nice such as a slide since we travel with 3 dogs but still we get along ok. So how long have most of you kept your rig?
We had out first coach about 14 months. 28 footer..was fine for the 2 of us...and then took a vacation and took my mom along!!! ( no room)
Bought the second..and other Southwind..33 footer this time. Took numerous vacations..with and without Mom along until we blew the POS tranny in 1999 and was stuck for a week and total outlay was $5200 ( room; rental car..tranny...etc) Bought present coach in 2001.
Our prediciment is this. Our 36 footer..single living room slide model fits us ALMOST perfectly...but as usual doesnt have some of the "goodies" that a new coach would have ( goodies..not foo-foo junk now)..and a 40 footer; dual slide ( 1 living room..1 bedroom slide) with something like an ISL 400 ( Jake brake) and NO TAG AXLE would be 99% perfect! BUT..
Everyone wants so sell me a 4 slide model ( dont want dual living room slides even for free!)...loaded down with utterly useless Foo-Foo and even with a single bedroom slide they shove a tag axle under them ( either that or it has NO "CCC" basically AT ALL)
I WONT buy a coach of lesser "quality of construction"...not about to pay the idiotic prices "they" want for a top of the line quality built coach..so we are "stuck" living in a coach that will most probably last us as long as we live..:B
Sully,
I don't understand your reluctance to get 4 slides. Sure, 2 slides would work great but 4 would be even roomier!!
I'm having a cocktail party in our coach next week. There will be six people and that will be plenty of room since we have four slides. The two slides in the living area expand that space so much as I couldn't imagine having just one slide if I could have two (living area).
I'll turn the two captain chairs around, I have two recliners and the sofa will sit 3 (at least) if needed. The two dinette chairs can also be used for seating. If we had only one slide in the living area, it would be tight with a group this large, especially, walking back and forth to the kitchen making/refreshing drinks, etc.
My plan was to keep this coach for 5 yrs then re-evaluate the need. Maybe move up to a custom coach like a Newell or Marathon. I didn't want my first coach to be a 7 figure coach just in case I didn't like the lifestyle. So far, I can't think of traveling any other way!!
MM.
RE: Border Difficulties
Mr. Mark:
Did you have all the wine receipts? How did they determine the $182 duty?
I did not have the receipts for the wine and I don't know how they came up with the figure. I just wanted to get out of there and didn't question the tax.
So, basically, you can't bring much into Canada (wine/liquor/etc.).
MM.
RE: Border Difficulties
...The border agent asked the typical questions and then asked us how much alcohol we had. Honestly, I didn't know and told her that I was not exactly sure. So, we were asked to pull up so that they could check the coach. I did not know that there was a limit that you could bring in. Now you do. The coach had been packed 2 months previous to this trip so it was hard to remember how many bottles of wine, etc., that were brought.Geeze, how much did you load? Did you drink any on the way?...I ended up having more wine than I realized and had to pay a tax of $182. (the wine cost a lot more than that)!...That's a lot of wine, huh?MM.
Now you know your limits. :B
Traxtermax, to answer your questions..... yes, it was about 12-14 bottles of wine and YES, we drank it on the way (while parked in the evening in the campground of course!). We have had this collection of wine for about 2 years from our travels to Napa Valley, CA. I thought it would be nice take a nice selection for our trip. Our trip was for 30 days covering 3,600 miles of which we were in Canada only 8 days of the 30.
Remember, I packed the coach about 2 months prior to this trip. We drove from California to our home in Tennessee, it sat there for a month then off to Canada. That's why I didn't know exactly how many bottles that we brought along. Also, I didn't know that they were going to ask.
Now that I look back, it wasn't a big deal at all. It would have been awful if they would have confiscated the wine as several were about $150 a bottle (some less but the average was probably about $75-$80).
They didn't even look in the freezer at the Vodka and I told them about it too!
I still have several bottles left and it will eventually be used up!:p
MM.
Edit.. oops, left a word out, my brain moves faster than my hands! LOL!
RE: Border Difficulties
I have posted this before...., Back in July, we entered Canada through Minnesota and was stopped as normal. The border agent asked the typical questions and then asked us how much alcohol we had. Honestly, I didn't know and told her that I was not exactly sure.
So, we were asked to pull up so that they could check the coach. I did not know that there was a limit that you could bring in. The coach had been packed 2 months previous to this trip so it was hard to remember how many bottles of wine, etc., that were brought.
After we pulled in, we went to the office and the agent asked again how much alcohol. I again said that I was not sure so she said "guess"... I guessed but found out later that I guessed wrong (guessed less than we had). She told me that we are now flagged in the computer. Kinda seemed like she was setting me up for that. But, I should have known how much we had per the 'Candian Entry' rules.
Two agents looked inside the coach opening all cabinets, closets, etc. I ended up having more wine than I realized and had to pay a tax of $182. (the wine cost a lot more than that)! The agent told us that they could have confiscated the overage but didn't, they just made us pay the tax.
Coming back into the U.S. through Michigan was a breeze.
In the future, I will make note of the alcohol that we are carrying. Also, I think they just wanted to see the coach as they didn't even look 'seriously' into the bay compartments... just glanced.
Canada is a beautiful country and we had a wonderful time. The Canadians were very friendly!
MM.
RE: welding on RV
While traveling through Michigan this summer, I noticed that the metal piece that surrounds the exhaust pipe was loose. It was being held by just one weld. So, before I lost this chrome piece, I stopped by a shop to have it welded back on.
The welder asked me to disconnect the batteries, so I used the two battery cut-off switches. Then, I went inside the coach and flipped all of the breakers.
I know 'zero' about welding. I didn't unplug the Allison (didn't know there was a plug, etc.).
The welder welded the chrome cover with two additional welds for a total of three. It came from the factory with just two welds.
MM.
RE: AquaHot owners
4-furz... When I had my Aqua-Hot service done back in April, my friends also had theirs done as were at the Outdoor Resorts in Las Vegas. They use their A/H religiously, we don't. The service guy said that their burner was much cleaner than ours.
We have the two stage electric heat and I use that quite often. I think I might switch to the A/H if it will make it 'cleaner' and more efficient.
MM.
RE: AquaHot owners
Question....... How often should we change the filters/nozzles and anti-freeze on the Aqua-Hot?
I had my Aqua-Hot unit serviced at the one year mark which was April 2008. The service guy changed the filter and mentioned that he cleaned the burner. Didn't mention the nozzle.
Thanks,
MM
RE: Question about directv in our rv
We have Direct TV in the motorhome. I upgraded from the basic package to the '150' channel package which was much better. I think I'm at about $50 a month as I don't have DTV at home, just the regular cable company.
I really don't see the point of DTV as we get excellent reception from the roof-top antenna most of the time or we use the campground cable connection. If we can't get TV or cable, it's a DVD night! So, I'm not sure how much longer we'll keep the DTV. If we get another RV, I would NOT order the King-Dome.
MM.
RE: Newbie: Tire Air Pressure Question/Compressor Question
I, too, bought the Porter Cable 150 lb pancake compressor. I keep it in the storage bay area and it works perfect to inflate my Michelins to 120 psi.
My coach says to put 120 in the 2 front tires and 100 in the 6 rear tires.
MM.
RE: How Much Should Routine Service Cost?
I just had my Cummins 425 hp engine serviced at Colton Truck Terminal in Colton, CA. They charge about $220 for a Oil/Filter/Lube (which includes fuel filters). I thought that was reasonable. My final bill was $550 as I had them do other things. (I'm trying to remember the exact charges as I don't have the bill in front of me).
I also purchased a set of fuel filters and a serpentine belt to keep on board just in case I need it (that was part of the final bill).
I feel these guys are honest and thorough. Personally, I would never attempt to do the service myself as I don't have the tools or the ability or place to do it. That's what service centers are for!!!:p
MM.
RE: broke down 08
clnhse, are you double checking the fuel pumps to make sure that you are getting ULSD? I've been to a few fuel stations and the only ULSD was at the first two pumps out of 14 or so. You have to really watch for that.
Sorry to hear about the expense, but that's not really that bad when you consider the whole picture. I know you said you have a plugged filter but did they give you and indication on how it happened? Maybe the wrong fuel?
MM.
RE: broke down 08
When you unit does a regeneration does the check engine light and alarm come on with the regen light????
Clnhse, .... no, mind does not do that.
Here is what my manual says:
"The exhaust system is equipped with a DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter) to lower particulate emissions. The DPF traps particulate matter. Naturally occurring exhaust heat oxidizes built up particulate and regernerates the filter. This is called passive regeneration. If passive regeneration is not sufficient, an active regeneration cycle will automatically initiate at speeds of greater than 20 mph. Both passive and active regenerations cycles initiate automatically.
During an active regeneration cycle, diesel fuel is introduced into the exhaust system upstream of the DPF. The fuel will ignite and super-heat the DPF to oxidize particulate matter. The HEST (High Exhaust System Temperature) dash light will illuminate when the exhaust temperatures reach 1450 degrees, indicating that an active regeneration is underway and the exhaust system temperatures are elevated above normal levels.
These temperature levels may occur for up to 40 minutes. The HEST light will remain on until the exhaust temperature cools to 650 degrees, which may not be until the engine is turned off and the exhaust system cools before restarting. The HEST light does not indicate a fault as long as there are no other active warning lights."
That's what my manual says and I'm sticking to it!! :R
