We just bought a new Fleetwood Williamsburg PUP and I am trying get it outfitted for our first trip two weekends from now. We have done a ton of camping over the years using a Skamper 8' PUP that we are replacing, but it didn't have near the features that the Williamsburg does. The Skamper basically provided comfortable beds and an air
conditioner (necessary for Texas summers!). I have a couple questions and would appreciate anyone's input.
First, I need to get a battery. My dealer told me that I should get a deep cycle marine battery. I have been to Camping World and Walmart to see what they offer, but, does anyone have recommendations on particular brands or models with regards to price, weight, reliability, etc., as well as recommendations on where to pick them up.
Second, through the end of this month I have the opportunity to purchase an extended warranty (72 months) for about $650.00, which covers just about everything except wear and tear items like the electric brakes. Looking at the price of some of the items (furnace, AC, cassette toilet, refer, waterpump, etc.) in the camper makes me wonder if maybe it might be a good idea to opt for the warranty. So, my question is how long do these items tend to last with normal wear and tear assuming they are taken care of? Will it be well beyond the 6 years of the warranty?
I purchased dual 6v batteries from Costco over the winter and finally installed them last week. They cost $72 each at the time. I picked up a dual battery box, made a new rear bracket out of some angle iron, installed a battery disconnect switch and the system works great!
I like knowing I'll have enough juice to last a few days boondocking if needed.
Brian
* This post was
edited 04/17/08 05:15pm by hawk_fan *
'08 Fleetwood Niagara
'07 Chevy Silverado 2500HD CC
Mine's approaching 5 years old. I wish I had a warranty. I have at least $1k worth of work that would be nice to have. I have done probably twice that much myself. I baby my pup, but things happen. I believe the next one I buy will be new.
Outstanding work: Vinyl Window replacement, DC light replacement, Fridge not quite cold enough on Gas, Water heater (person before me cut the electric for some reason, gas works though), Brackets on top of door pulled out, and a couple of dings to the body that occured before me.
If you will use it often, say 10 trips or so a year, it would probably be worth it. Search the Forum, Fleetwood issues apear quite often.
Walmart has the best battery deal in town for modest capacity. Their Group 27 size is about $60, is a TRUE deep cycle and has respectable numbers. With miserly use of just lights, water pump and nighttime furnace on the battery, we get easily three, sometimes 4 nights of use from ours. Wally's has the battery boxes cheap too. Be glad your dealer didn't include it. He would have charged a LOT more and probably given you a crummy G24 marine battery.
If you plan to run anything off an inverter, just one battery won't last very long at all, go twin 6 volt golf cart batteries instead.
Offline
