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RE: What happened to all the rallies?
Dale, thanks for the info on possible rallies or get together. I did get a message from the Jolly Good Sams in Dallas that the National Good Sams are gone and few regional ones are left. Some are still functioning, just under the Good Sam banner. I guess COVID was a rally killer.
Now I have to deal with another killer. Dementia. My other half is dealing with it. I had hoped getting back into RVing would give him some good times but now that is not working as well as I hoped. I will have to see how much I will be able to hold everything together by myself. I am older, but not down yet. Lol
Really sorry you're dealing with these problems. Dementia is a real thrill killer. I hate being out here on my own, but I hate sitting at home worse. So on I go.
Take care and good luck.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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06/05/23 05:54pm |
Rallies, Shows and Gatherings
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RE: Is replacing the furnace worth it?
You might try Northwest RV Supply in Eugene, Oregon. I don't know if he has furnaces, but he has motors, parts, galore.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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06/03/23 04:34am |
Tech Issues
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RE: A very old stray {The Old Fella Story}
What a sweetie, Burch. Glad you made it home safely and had a great trip. I just arrived in Charlottesville, VA, to visit with my daughter and family. I'm here for 6 nights, then to northern Indiana to get the refrigerator swapped out for one that works. I'm doing okay using it as an icebox, but will be glad to have a fridge again. Everything else is working well.
Also, my BIL is in the hospital. I don't think he's going to make it. He's in kidney failure and they are doing dialysis today. Depending on what they learn from the biopsy he can elect to continue dialysis or hospice. He has so many problems, starting with only being a half person. Nothing from the hips down. All his drinking and smoking led to a AAA which ruptured and by the time the ER doctors realized what had happened it was too late to take him to a larger hospital with a heart center. So they clamped off the arteries to his legs and fixed the aneurysm, but he lost his legs. That was only the start of all his myriad of problems, but he has lived 20 years since then. Knowing him, he will want them to pull out all the stops to keep him going. He has two wonderful daughters with families (my sister died at age 30) in spite of his lack of parenthood. . . longer story there. I will go for the girls.
My daughter's MIL is coming today and we are taking the kids to dinner for our grandson's birthday. Then she is staying with me in the motorhome. It will be crowded, but it will be fun. She stayed with me at this camp when Terry died, but I had the 40' Phaeton then!
This Coach House motorhome draws a lot of attention. People are very curious about it. Don't see many of them. But in the KOA right now there are a bunch of B's and B+'s. We kind of have a little camaraderie going.
LOL
Dale
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Scottiemom
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06/01/23 05:56am |
RV Pet Stop
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RE: Dead Refrigerator
The refer and MH is only 2 years old, seems strange to me. When you say the refer is dead do you mean not lighting on propane and not working on electric? Maybe the techs did all this already, but I would hook the electric element directly to 120v and see if it cools. If so, you refer is still good and your board or the circuitry to the board is bad. Is your board a potted board, (electrical components incase in plastic) or a open board where you can see all the components soldered to the main board? If the latter I would call a company called Parts for Tech, they service and rebuild boards. They have helped me several times with boards that have gone bad and were obsolete. My MH is 27 years old and when the board went on my steps, repairs shops wanted $1200 to replace the whole step unit because Kwikee no longer sold just the board. They told me over the phone what to check for and I replaced a burnt-out resister for $3 with their help and all was good again. Most shops and RV techs are in the business of just replacing bad control boards not repairing them.
Thanks, Gjac, for your response. The mobile RV guy did all kinds of testing on it and determined the circuit board was bad. It was totally dead, wouldn't work on electric, 12V or gas. Just no power out of it at all, even though the plug was live. This particular refrigerator was new when the coach was manufactured in 2021, but the series is several years old. I forget when Dometic quit selling them. My DH and I RV'd for over 40 years and fulltimed for 15, so we are very acquainted with the trials and tribulations of Norcolds and Dometics. The one I have has lots of reviews, mostly terrible. So I am looking for a different model that has a better reputation. My DH passed away almost 3 years ago and I know nothing about this stuff, but the mobile guy I called was very nice and very well recommended by more than one person.
I am on my way now and next week I will see Vernon in Shipshewana and hopefully they can help me out.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/29/23 04:06pm |
General RVing Issues
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RE: What happened to all the rallies?
FMCA is still around and having rallies. They have two (I think) national rallies every year. Hundreds of chapters you can join and they all have rallies and/or get togethers. Escapees RV Club is also still active with national rallies every year and regional and special interest clubs with activities.
If you are old as dirt as I am you surely remember NCHA, National Campers and Hikers Association. They put on the biggest ever rallies, one with over 7,000 attendees at Camp Attebury in Indiana. It is still around, a shadow of its former self and now called Family Campers and RVers.
Since my DH died, I still want to camp. I now live in Florida so I searched for something with chapters here. I found RVing women, which is for all women regardless of race, ethnicity, etc. I have camped with them and they are a lot of fun for such a diverse group. I like having campouts in my new state, because I don't know it very well and the campouts are always in different areas of the state every month.
So let your fingers do the walking and look up some of these. You might find something that will work for you.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/26/23 04:57am |
Rallies, Shows and Gatherings
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RE: Norcold Refrigerator will not run on 120-volt power.
I had that happen. The outlet the fridge plugged into in the back was one of those old ones that the parts were pressed into. Over the years, everything loosened up and it wasn't making constant contact. A friend of mine, an electrical engineer put a new outlet in it and it's been running every since.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/26/23 04:44am |
Tech Issues
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RE: A very old stray {The Old Fella Story}
Awwww. Sweet. Have a safe trip home. I am leaving for the summer today. Going to my son's in Melbourne for the weekend.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/26/23 04:41am |
RV Pet Stop
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RE: A very old stray {The Old Fella Story}
Dale, so sorry you are having to deal with refrigerator problems.
We went to the Beau Rivage yesterday for a few hours. I was sitting at the bar playing video poker and then realized you could select different slot games on the machine. I selected a game called "Stinking Rich" and got a bonus. Ended up winning $700! That should pay for our meals and fuel for the rest of the trip. I am sure we will end up back at the casino today but I think I will stay off the machines while I am ahead!
Good job, Burch! Congratulations!
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/22/23 04:27pm |
RV Pet Stop
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RE: Dead Refrigerator
Their are two refrigerators that fit in the same space. I checked with Dometic when I called them to see if those were still manufactured and parts available.
Dale
I would see if you can find an almost new one that will fit. if not a direct fit, then one with slight modifications of the cabinet. then you know you have one that will be supported for a while. my RM2510 still has most parts available for it and it is 30ish years old.
I don't want any mods done. . .In fact, I don't think any can be done to make the opening larger. It's in a B+, CoachHouse, and every inch of space is in use. So the two that are direct fits are what I am looking for. Both are still manufactured. One is Dometic, one is Norcold. BTW I just sold my 2004 B+ which had an 18-year old Dometic in it that had always worked perfectly. LOL The Amish deal with scratch and dent, overruns, excess inventory, take outs, etc. They last put in a new 4-door Norcold in our Phaeton 3 years ago. They normally give a 3 year warranty on their installs. And if they know you're coming, you are in/out in a few hours.
Dale
by mods I meant if you find one that is an inch shorter or narrower, you can just do a filler strip to make it look right. but if those two are current and exact fits your golden
Thanks, Stircrazy. I wouldn't mind filling in a bit, but I don't want to do any cutting. The Dometic one is a direct replacement, or so they say and Vernon told me the Norcold slides right into the same space. Hoping I get lucky with one or the other.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/21/23 07:34pm |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Dead Refrigerator
Their are two refrigerators that fit in the same space. I checked with Dometic when I called them to see if those were still manufactured and parts available.
Dale
I would see if you can find an almost new one that will fit. if not a direct fit, then one with slight modifications of the cabinet. then you know you have one that will be supported for a while. my RM2510 still has most parts available for it and it is 30ish years old.
I don't want any mods done. . .In fact, I don't think any can be done to make the opening larger. It's in a B+, CoachHouse, and every inch of space is in use. So the two that are direct fits are what I am looking for. Both are still manufactured. One is Dometic, one is Norcold. BTW I just sold my 2004 B+ which had an 18-year old Dometic in it that had always worked perfectly. LOL The Amish deal with scratch and dent, overruns, excess inventory, take outs, etc. They last put in a new 4-door Norcold in our Phaeton 3 years ago. They normally give a 3 year warranty on their installs. And if they know you're coming, you are in/out in a few hours.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/21/23 10:34am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: A very old stray {The Old Fella Story}
We made it to Biloxi, Mississippi. It was right at 600 miles from my driveway to the resort. We will be here until Friday morning and then start making our way back. ZuZu did great traveling. This is her first long trip. However, she doesn't want to do her business. She only likes doing her business in her own back yard. I walk her all over the place and she just won't go. I put down a pee pad in the motorhome and she will go on it. I am hoping I can break her of that habit during the long trip. The other two dogs (Monty and Pinto) know the drill and are great travelers.
I guess we will venture to the casinos today. The wife likes to gamble and she has a bunch of $$$ on her casino players card so we will be able to eat a nice dinner for free sometime this week. They have a really nice Italian restaurant at the Beau Rivage that she want to dine at. Hopefully she won't blow too much monty today since we will be here 5 more days!
Burch
ZuZu will come around eventually. They all have such quirky personalities.
I will be leaving Friday, but going to Melbourne to my son's. Leaving there on Monday and will drive to Virginia to daughter's family, then on to northern Indiana where I hope to get a new refrigerator to replace my 1 1/2 year old one in my new coach. It has quit working. . . no power to it. No circuit boards available, even called dinosaur. . .nothing. Dometic quit making this entire line of refrigerators due to problems. Lucky me. Since I'm the second owner, no warranty.
So I am using it as an icebox until I get to Shipshewana. The Amish tell me they have a board for it and if that doesn't work they have the Norcold one that slides exactly into the same opening. The Amish there have saved the day for us many times. They are great. And if you buy from them they normally warranty it for 3 years.
Wish me luck. Oh, and good luck wishes to your wife, Burch, as she plays the slots. . . or whatever she plays.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/21/23 10:13am |
RV Pet Stop
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RE: Dead Refrigerator
At what point do you give up and buy a replacement? I have had similar issues with my appliances at home. Once an appliance stops working the cost of repairs, the nuisance of doing without and the wait times are often just not worth it. At a minimum a simple appliance repair means a $150 initial visit, parts perhaps only another $100 and then the cost of a second visit and the actual repair, another $200. So a 5-10 year old washing machine, dryer, dishwasher or refrigerator can easily cost $450 to repair. Getting the repair completed can easily take several weeks.
Very true. I likely have no choice, since the unit is no longer built. Even if I could find one like it, I've been reading a lot and it has a terrible track record. It's been discontinued and Dometic says parts are not available.. . at least not easily. Dino does not make a replacement board.
So I have a ways to go with it.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/20/23 06:27am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Dead Refrigerator
I'm thinking I may just wait till I get to Elkhart and check the surplus places, although there are fewer ones than in years past. I feel like my chances of finding something there might be better. I'm also going to check with the Amish at National Refrigeration who used to do all our repair on our Norcold and replaced the last one.
Dale
Why not call the surplus places now to see if they have your part. If they don't, you can move to Plan B now instead of later.
RV Surplus
I know where all the surplus places are since those were haunts my DH loved. Goshen is my hometown. Yesterday I called the Amish in Shipshewana.. . they said they have the boards, plus they knew exactly the fridge I have and they have the Norcold that fits perfectly in the opening. If they sell and install your unit, I know they used to warranty it for 3 years.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/20/23 06:23am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Dead Refrigerator
No matter what you decide on be sure you can get replacement parts. I had to replace my Norcold and did so with a Dometic 12V unit. The fridge works, but it does not respond for temperature adjustments the way I feel it should. I found out to get a replacement thermostat it would take 6 months. No parts, not good. The temps in the fridge are keeping it cold on max. setting, but if I slightly change it then the temps are too warm. Be cautious. It is a shame that manufactures want to sell you a product, but don't want to back it up with parts in the event things go wrong.
Their are two refrigerators that fit in the same space. I checked with Dometic when I called them to see if those were still manufactured and parts available.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/20/23 06:19am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Dead Refrigerator
Do you have room for a dorm-sized refrigerator? If so, maybe that's a short-term solution. Not sure if the draw would be a problem-someone else can probably answer that.
The last time we had our 4-door Norcold go dead (we had nursed it for years), we left Florida with ice in the fridge and a few things we needed to keep with us in there. We eventually made it to Shipshewana where Glenn swapped us out a new 4-door Norcold. Swapping out ice every other day was a pain, but it worked, so that's what I'll do.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/20/23 06:16am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Dead Refrigerator
You might try calling Dino but those boards are fairly standard. I'm surprised you can't find one .
Alternative is a new fridge.. But again you might have size issues.
They have an all electric models now day that only need around 30-50 watts running.. that's about the same as a dual lamp fixture with 1131 bulbs instead of modern LEDs.
I did call Dino yesterday. They have none that will work. I also called Dometic. They have nothing and if they did find something, it will be overseas as that's where they are made. So the $1500 and 6 weeks she said was the norm. She gave me two national parts houses to call. Neither one answered their phones. Couldn't even leave a message. But again, if they had one, it will arrive here too late to be of any value right now.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/20/23 06:13am |
General RVing Issues
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Dead Refrigerator
So in December I bought a "new to me" 2021 Coach House motorhome. Last week while prepping for a summer long trip coming up, I opened the refrigerator and it was dead. I checked all the fuses and breakers. Check behind the fridge outside to see if there was a visible problem. I called CH, which is 90 miles from me and their one tech said it was likely the fuse in the back that was inaccessible for me, but they could get it. The circuit board is in a sealed "power brick," so I drove the coach down there Sunday night and Monday morning they looked at it. They worked for 3 hours, but they aren't a Dometic service center so since there was no fuse on the back, there wasn't much they could do and suggested I find a Dometic service center.
I found a mobile RV repair business (former Prevost tech and highly recommended) and he did indeed track the problem to the circuit box. Power going in, none coming out. So he removed the power brick and is looking for a replacement.
He called last night. No replacements to be found. . . well, one in Poland and one in Nova Scotia, $1500, 6 weeks shipping time. The fridge is discontinued (I checked this myself and it's true). He wants to come out and measure to find a model that will fit into the spot.
Dometic lists a replacement, an RMD 10.5 XT or a Norcold N4150. Both fit the opening, which, being a B+, there isn't much wiggle room. My nonworking model is a Dometic RMD8555.
I spent last evening researching, trying to find a dinosaur board, etc. no luck. I plan on calling Dometic today and seeing what recommendation, if any, they have.
I plan to leave the 26th, but will be going to Melbourne, FL, first (90 miles away to visit son), then Virginia to visit daughter. Then I'm headed to northern Indiana. Will there about June 8, but calendar is clear after that.
I'm thinking I may just wait till I get to Elkhart and check the surplus places, although there are fewer ones than in years past. I feel like my chances of finding something there might be better. I'm also going to check with the Amish at National Refrigeration who used to do all our repair on our Norcold and replaced the last one.
In the meantime, I would use the fridge as an icebox. . . been there done that. No stranger to it. Inconvenient, yes, but do-able.
Any suggestions or avenues I may have overlooked? In reading through all the forums, I find this fridge has had major problems, which is no doubt why Dometic discontinued it and all the models associated with it.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/19/23 05:15am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: A very old stray {The Old Fella Story}
I am leaving a week from Friday. . . first to Melbourne to see my son, then points north. Went to Nokomis Sunday for a Monday appointment. Fridge quit working. It's two years old. They couldn't do it and suggested I get a certified service center to look at it. The only reason I went down there to them, several hours south is one guy said he knew what the problem was and could fix it. Grrrr.
So there's that. I've got names of a couple mobile guys. Otherwise I will be making that trip without a refrigerator.
Enjoy your summer travels, Burch.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/16/23 05:53am |
RV Pet Stop
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RE: A very old stray {The Old Fella Story}
My neighbors just got back from Margaritaville at Auburndale, which is just 7 miles away. They said it was super nice, new and expensive. But they went with family and had a great weekend and it didn't cost much in fuel to get there.LOL
Dale
I wanted to try Margaritaville as it's only a little over an hour from me. I picked the cheapest lot from their website for a Friday and Saturday in August (their cheapest rates). The cost was going to be $399.60 for two nights! No way I pay that. I just booked Canopy Oaks for 4 nights during Thanksgiving (holiday rates) and it was cheaper than Margaritaville for two summer nights. I talked to someone at the dog park about Margaritaville and they said it was very nice but there was no grass. Said there was astrotuff everywhere instead of grass so your doggies have no grass to do their business on. As picky as my dogs are, that would be a challenge.
Burch
Yeah, when my neighbors went to Margaritaville, it was over $300 for 2 nights. They had a family weekend there. Said there was a lot of stuff to do and everything was paved, etc. They had fun, but I didn't think it was a place I would go just to chill for a few days.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/10/23 06:26am |
RV Pet Stop
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RE: A very old stray {The Old Fella Story}
Well, making an unscheduled trip down to Coach House Sunday night for service Monday. My refrigerator in my 2021 is DEAD. Yep. The beer was warm. Yuck. I've been puttering around out there getting things ready to go and check the fridge at least once a week. We had a power blip last Sunday and that may have been the culprit, but I have a surge protector. It was a very small blip. . . took out my GFCI in the house and one clock and that was it. I checked that in the moho along with the fuse, which I pulled and reset and the refrigerator breaker. Even shut off everything, pulled the plug, waited a few minutes, turned back on. No joy. I called it in and they told me there is another fuse on the back of the fridge that I wouldn't be able to get to. Hmmmmm. What good is that? I took the cover off and don't really see a fuse of any kind, but do see what looks like fuse block. Believe, they are gonna show it to me so I will know next time.
So the dog and I are going on a road trip. It's 90 miles down there, but I normally choose not to go on I-4 to I-75. I may do that on the way down since it will be Sunday, but coming home I normally come up 17.
It's definitely not getting any power cause there are no lights at all on the panel. Can't turn it on, etc., no code flashes, etc.
Wish me luck. I hope it's that fuse, but it is under warranty, so we'll see.
Dale
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Scottiemom
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05/09/23 06:03am |
RV Pet Stop
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