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Date Posted |
Forum
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RE: Batt verses block insulation
Foam has a higher R value for the same thickness but it's not a huge difference.
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jdiffend
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06/17/13 08:36pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: dish install on fiberglass roof
The fiberglass should attached to wood just like side walls but thicker. There really shouldn't be an issue.
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jdiffend
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11/04/12 07:55pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: RV Skirting
http://rvskirting.com/index.htm
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jdiffend
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10/27/12 10:20am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: One feature on our Montana that is top notch.
I have an electric fireplace in my Daydreamer and I love it, but the temp control isn't any better than a $20 ceramic cube heater. It's also wired with most of the outlets on the same side of the trailer and the ceiling fan so I can't always use it without tripping a breaker. It does not keep up at freezing temps on my RV but I don't have a skirt on the RV, I have single pane windows, and I have some air leaks to fix yet.
I still use the fireplace for really cold nights and for the look but the wiring issue is inexcusable. I plan to have the fireplace put on it's own breaker at some point if at all possible.
I ended up buying a $50 tower electric ceramic heater with oscillator, electronic thermostat, and a remote for regular heating. I have it hooked to an outlet with a separate breaker. I think it was well worth the difference in price over the cube heater. It safely sits on the floor so it heats the coldest air in the RV, and the oscillator circulates the air so there are fewer cold spots. The electronic temp control is a huge improvement over the cube heater I have though some of them offer an electronic thermostat as well.
FWIW, I'm not a fan of the infrared heaters. I inherited one from my parents and IMHO they are too large, too expensive, and really don't offer any more heat than something cheaper. The price of repair parts is also ridiculous for most brands. I can replace a dead heater like mine cheaper than repair an infrared model.
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jdiffend
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10/15/12 04:54pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: air compressor
I carry a Craftsman 2 gal in my basement. Thought of mounting it but dismissed that idea in favor of portability. My hose reaches the tires without removing the compressor.
X2
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jdiffend
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10/13/12 09:53pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Big electric problem
BTW, my outlets are wired in series on each side. Find the first outlet that works on the same side and check the wires on the back of the outlet.
My kitchen outlet, washer/dryer, and entertainment slide (possibly my bedroom outlet) are daisy chained and I'm looking at having the W/D, and fireplace in the entertainment slide placed on their own circuits so they aren't on the inverter output.
It's a crappy design.
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jdiffend
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10/04/12 09:48pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Big electric problem
Check to see if those items are all grouped on the same side of the main breaker.
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jdiffend
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10/04/12 09:41pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Big electric problem
This sounds slightly familiar.
2005 Daydreamer, something caused a GFCI to trip and fried every surge suppressor I had. One surge suppressor melted down and almost started a fire.
Total damage so far:
3 surge suppressors (which were replaced with an external whole RV unit)
2 converter chargers (at over $200 a pop... why there were two I don't know)
1 microwave (I'm going to try to fix it... at least $50, probably $200+)
1 air filter.
And possibly the 2nd AC. (I'm going to have it looked at before using it)
Once I unplugged all the surge suppressors, un-tripped the GFCI outlets, and disconnected the converter chargers everything (AC) seemed to start working.
I'm still ordering odds and ends to do all the rewiring so I can switch to an inverter charger.
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jdiffend
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10/04/12 09:38pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: New Camper has Arrived - Cedar Creek 38FL
But the old one is so much better looking, why would you get rid of it?
:D
Congrats on the new 5er, it looks awesome!
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jdiffend
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09/30/12 09:17pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Dually or not
People seem to see what they want to.
The dually had little to do with it. The pickup is heavy and the trailer twisted loose from the hitch. It was dragging the pickup from the safety chain which is bumper height and not high enough to tip the pickup.
Well I am here to tell you different from personal experience!
I had the trailer I was towing with a single rear wheel pu start swaying and nothing I did helped, it finally came around me flipped over and flipped the truck over also. I ended back up on the tires pointing towards the traffic that was behind me. Truck was seperated from the trailer.
I know a dually would not have had the same outcome. I did tow the same trailer with a dually after that for years without ay problems.
On my F-350, the difference between SRW and DRW is supposedly 15.6" (95.5" - 79.9") including fenders. Only 1/2 of that is per side so you only add 7.8" (rough guess) per side to counter the force that would turn the truck over. With the height of my truck/hitch, (off the top of my head) that's probably less than 4 degrees difference between the angle to the outside edge of the tires on the two vehicles. That's a pretty small % difference required to flip the DRW over the SRW.
Sway is a different matter since your wheels stay on the ground. You have twice the surface area in contact with the ground with a DRW than with an SRW. But if you are experiencing sway your load is distributed wrong or winds are too high. Either way you probably shouldn't be on the road.
In your situation, did the swaying start right before the accident or did you encounter some well before the accident?
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jdiffend
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09/24/12 02:20pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Dually or not
WTH is veebee's with his pictures of his 5er's laying on the side of I80 in Wyoming from a big gust of wind? Torn the jaws right out but it didn't put his dually on its side :H
So the hitch failed and somehow that would be different with an SRW pickup?
You are assuming the dually saved the pickup from going over. If you look up the difference in width you'll find they don't have that much added leverage which is what would keep you from going over.
A shorter height pickup would gain more leverage than a taller one.
I think the real key to flipping ANY truck is speed. You have to have enough momentum to flip the truck when the wheels/tires hit an immovable object.
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jdiffend
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09/22/12 11:04pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Dually or not
Here's your dually performance vs. wind...
Dually vs. Wind
What I saw with this video was a very fortunate rv hauler. If he had not had the dually with its stability a SRW TV would have been on its roof.
Thank goodness he had the dually so he was not injured.
He was foolish to be pulling a TT bumper pull with cross wind that strong regardless of TV.
The person taking the video sounded like he was expecting it to go over and with a TT that long with a strong crosswind it was bound to go over
People seem to see what they want to.
The dually had little to do with it. The pickup is heavy and the trailer twisted loose from the hitch. It was dragging the pickup from the safety chain which is bumper height and not high enough to tip the pickup.
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jdiffend
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09/22/12 10:32pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Dually or not
If a gust of wind hits your RV from the side a dually might feel more planted, but if its a huge gust of wind that 5er is going over and a dually won't save it. I live near I-80 in Western NE and I see RVs smeared all over the side of the road several times a year. I don't care what you use to tow it, if the wind is bad, stay off the road.
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jdiffend
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09/21/12 06:11am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Dually or not
I originally wanted a dually but decided against it when I realized I wouldn't fit through a lot of drive throughs (food, ATMs, etc...).
I haven't regretted it a bit.
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jdiffend
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09/20/12 10:20am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Cold weather use-> heated pads vs forced air for tanks
I have a Cedar Creek but I haven't gone through a winter yet so I can't really say how effective the tank heaters are yet.
I can tell you my CC passes the vent to the bedroom through a separate compartment with the plumbing to keep that from freezing as well.
I've seen some 5ers that have the storage set up as one large compartment. It's great for storage but by using separate compartments I think the CC has a smaller area to heat to keep the pipes from freezing.
I have no idea how the Arctic Fox is set up.
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jdiffend
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09/18/12 11:07am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Converter getting hot
BTW, I suggest carrying a decent battery charger with you no matter what kind of converter/inverter charger you have.
You can use it to maintain your batteries if the built in charger dies.
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jdiffend
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09/18/12 10:45am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Converter getting hot
I'm not a fan of Parallax.
I had two Parallax inverter chargers in my 5er, a 555 and a 7455; both died. (I think the dealer sold the 7455 to the previous owners as an inverter... which it's not) With two converters there certainly shouldn't have been much of a load on either.
I think Zantrex or Progressive Dynamics are both good choices for replacements. FWIW, Best Converter was recommended to me as well but didn't have the lowest prices.
In the end, I purchased a Magnum Energy 2800 watt true sine wave inverter charger as a replacement. Due to the price tag I don't see it as an option for everyone, but the Magnum Energy modified sine wave 1000 watt inverter charger starts at $725 + shipping from www.cleanenergybrands.com. That's competitive with a new converter charger plus an inverter. My inverter charger was a lot more expensive but I wanted to add a larger true sine wave inverter.
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jdiffend
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09/17/12 04:08pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: black bugs inside, very small
If they appear to be a tiny black beetle, they probably came in with some food with grain as an ingredient.
Vacuum often and seal all potential food sources in airtight plastic containers.
That includes things like flour, cake mixes, corn meal, rice, beans, etc...
How do you avoid getting more of these critters?
If you place those type of items in an airtight bag and freeze them for 3-4 days, you will kill any eggs or larva in them. The airtight bag is to keep the contents from absorbing moisture and you should keep items sealed in the bag after you take them out of the freezer until they are completely up to room temp so condensation doesn't ruin your food.
There is also a small beetle that lives on mold or mildew you would find in your window sills from condensation so I'd clean those areas as well.
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jdiffend
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09/01/12 04:41am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: 5th wheel Converter/Charger is fried, looking for options
I ended up ordering from www.wholesalesolar.com. They were competitively priced, gave me a free controller, and free shipping on the inverter/charger which weighs around 50 or 60 lbs.
I also bought the battery monitor and auto generator start modules.
Now I need to decide what solar controller to get.
The cost adds up in a hurry on this stuff.
Not looking forward to this much rewiring.
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jdiffend
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08/24/12 05:50pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: 5th wheel Converter/Charger is fried, looking for options
I haven't ordered parts yet because I've been working out exactly what I need including the solar upgrade I'm planning.
If I'm going with a Magnum 2800 Charger/Inverter, I really don't need the 555 anymore do I? The 12V is strait from the battery connection anyway. Or do I at least need some sort of voltage regulator to keep from passing too high of a voltage on when the batteries are charging?
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jdiffend
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08/24/12 02:42am |
Tech Issues
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