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31

General Discussion / Re: Front Door Strut

« on: June 08, 2022, 08:50:13 am »

If you go to the link KEB supplied and look at the second down little click description picture in upper left hand corner, it will tell you which product you need for applications.

32

General Discussion / Re: Mice

« on: June 03, 2022, 10:08:01 pm »

We just live in harmony with critters. Our just shy of an acre place is heavily wooded with a small drainage creek at the very back.  We have 14 different varieties of native trees in the back, some over sixty feet tall which is unusual for our area.   Squirrels abound, lizards, a few snakes, turtles, possums and a family of fox come by to visit occasionally.   Last winter a racoon had a great den under part of a deck.  We don't bother them and the only thing we normally trap is a skunk every few years.   A couple of cats come to visit at night and take care of some field mice, I assume.   I squirrel proofed our soffit vents years ago and they don't bother us.  We just enjoy their antics.    We figure they were all here before we were.   

Areas around us have become densely developed and have driven out and destroyed habitat for a lot of critters.  No longer do we see deer, bobcats or coyotes around our place. 

Since the PC is stored in a clear area a few miles from our home, we are OK on that using our Tomcat blocks or pellets if needed. 

33

General Discussion / Re: Mice

« on: June 01, 2022, 05:30:05 pm »

Ron is right, Tomcat does have a "shelf life".   I change mine out about every two or three months. 

Another problem with squirrels, rats, mice and chipmunks is they are curious critters and love to eat wiring.  We often boondock for a week or so at a time and use our toad to get around.  Chipmunks in particular seem to have a love affair with our Cherokee. 

I carry a nice assortment of rubber snakes that are very realistic in appearance.   I put a few of them under the PC and the Jeep when parked out in the boonies.  I have seen chipmunks and ground squirrels run under  and come running out so I assume in some cases they may help a bit, but I can't be sure.   

Also, when camped out in cool weather they love the warmth remaining in a motor so I make sure to fire up the PC and Jeep at least a couple of times a day to run out any brave miscreants.  I don't know if it has helped or not but it is a cheap preventative.   

 

34

General Discussion / Re: Mice

« on: June 01, 2022, 09:26:56 am »

We are fortunate to have an enclosed storage space a couple of miles from our home.   Mice have never been a problem but I am sure a few of them make it into the place.  Since nothing larger than a rodent could ever get into the space, I always keep a cube of Tomcat near each of the wheels.   A few years ago, I noticed one of the blocks had a few small indentions on it so I know a mouse had been at work.  No more mouse.  Farmers use this stuff a lot.
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/tomcat-mouse-killer-refillable-station-16-x-1-ozblocks?cm_vc=-10005

35

General Discussion / Re: Foggy backup camera

« on: May 24, 2022, 04:25:50 pm »

On your trip where you noticed the foggy camera display, were you in rain, fog, high humidity quite a bit?   Maybe a little moisture seeped into the camera? 

I have never experienced the condition you are having but if I did, I would let that camera take a good baking on a bright, hot dry day or two or three and see if it cleared up.   If it did, I would tighten every screw on the camera and I might even be tempted to clean it good with Isopropyl alcohol and put a thin coating of a clear, high quality silicon around every joint, nook and cranny.  Especially where the cable intrudes into the camera.   

Just some thoughts of a simple solution that costs nothing to try.   Others on this forum probably have better ideas and may have experienced the same problem.

Paul

36

General Discussion / Re: Water Pump

« on: May 19, 2022, 12:40:51 pm »

Yep, mine failed in a national forest campground in the mountains of Northern New Mexico about four years ago.  I was incredibly lucky that a small auto parts store in a small village several miles down the road carried a few rv parts.   They had one, dusty pump on the bottom shelf that probably had been there for years.   I bought it and installed it and saved our trip and saved driving a long way to a larger town.   I kept the old pump and rebuilt it when I got home and carry it for a spare.  I had to do a bigger modification to fix it than I could do out in the middle of no where.    The pump I bought was slightly lower in gpm discharge than the old one but not enough to noticeably change it out by buying a larger pump. 


Paul

37

General Discussion / Re: A saga and some plumbing questions

« on: May 13, 2022, 09:11:59 pm »

Following up on Calcruisers point, when we bought our PC from its original owner (only kept it for eleven months), I discovered the black and gray dump valve switches were mislabeled.   So, Gray was really Black and Black was really Gray.   

Paul

38

General Discussion / Re: Dewinterizing

« on: April 03, 2022, 04:35:05 pm »

Ron, I had a problem with the mounting of the macerator pump.   It was supported on the exterior side with a large U clamp in a manner that caused undue pressure on the bayonet fitting on the input side.  Vibration from normal driving and mileage caused a leak at that point.

I altered the U clamp so the alignment was proper and as opposed to replacing the fittings, I simply used Dycor to seal the leak after cleaning the area thoroughly before applying.   That was about 20,000 miles ago and it hasn't leaked since.   Now, that's a low tech lazy solution to a simple problem that should never have occurred and would not have happened if the clamp had been placed correctly during construction.   It didn't take but less than a quarter of an inch out of alignment to cause the problem. 

I have had those outside showers on several rigs over the years and my record is perfect:  I have never used one and only acknowledge its presence when winterizing and dewinterizing.

Steve, your ladder and one foot on the hood says a lot about your balance and the faith you have in your wife holding the ladder!   

39

General Discussion / Dewinterizing

« on: April 03, 2022, 10:40:18 am »

I de-winterized our 2013 PC 2350 yesterday.  It has been in enclosed storage since late November.   It is always such a geat feeling to get ready for spring, flush your lines and tanks, sanitize and get ready to go!   It is also a great feeling when nothing leaks, proving you didn't miss anything when you put it to bed last November!

Although many (or perhaps most) on this forum would disagree, I love the older technology of my rig.   It was built back when the old crew was running the show and in eight years of ownership I have had no problems except little things like the cabinet latches, replacing the entry door latch and lock, etc.   I have been major problem free all this time and continue to appreciate the quality and design of the coach.   It is really nice to own something and be happy with the ownership.   

Paul

40

General Discussion / Re: Dead house batteries

« on: March 18, 2022, 12:21:05 pm »

Ron wrote:

 I suppose if I were disconnecting frequently during trips like you, I'd consider one again.  If that knob was a handle instead, it would offer more leverage to tighten-down better.....less likely to come loose.

I poorly worded my post's last line.   To clarify, I never disconnect our batteries when on a trip.   I was referring to the "off months" when the RV is in storage......like now.    I am happy to report that in using this type of disconnect for over 25 years I have never had one come loose.   I just tighten it up by hand really firmly.   Others may well have had dissimilar experiences with this type of switch.   

41

General Discussion / Fuel Prices

« on: March 11, 2022, 12:36:23 pm »

Looking at the current situation, little can be said for gasoline and diesel prices being any lower over the next several months. 

Do you think prices will cause RVers to stay closer to home and make shorter trips this summer?   Since most Class Cs get only 9-11 mpg, the current prices can be a real ouch for a fill up.  OR, conversely, do you think folks will just say to heck with it and we are going to go where we want to go.   Diesels do not escape this cost a whole lot, if any, from the prices I see around where I live.   

Just curious on folk's thoughts.   It might not have an impact or it might make campgrounds a little less crowded.   

Paul

42

General Discussion / Re: Dead house batteries

« on: March 09, 2022, 12:25:35 pm »

I seem to get about five years from deep cycle batteries I buy at Sams Club.   I check my fluid levels monthly, winter and summer, whether in storage or during the travel season.  I also use one of these simple little cut off switches and I have used this same model on the last three or four rvs I owned and never had a problem with them. 

We often boondock for a couple of weeks at a time in the summer and with my solar (two hundred watts on the roof and one hundred portable) I can keep the batteries well charged and maintained. 

https://www.walmart.com/ip/LotFancy-Side-Post-Car-Battery-Disconnect-Switch-for-Car-Auto/385343216

Disconnect switch, watching the voltage levels and keeping the fluid level where it should be serves me well.   I am sure that AGM batteries would be a bit better, but I am long in the tooth and cheap 

Paul

43

General Discussion / Re: Newbie here- best option for rear view when driving

« on: March 07, 2022, 07:26:05 pm »

You can adjust your camera for the angle it views.  I adjusted our camera to see further behind me because, like you, I wanted to know what was back there.  Finally, I replaced the Sony that came in our rig with a wireless unit from Amazon that has a great range of depth and absolute clarity.   I mounted the monitor in the same place as the old camera was located.   

44

General Discussion / Re: Newbie here- best option for rear view when driving

« on: March 07, 2022, 03:01:35 pm »

BERNNIENJ, basic question:  does your PC not have a back up camera?   

45

General Discussion / Re: Gone again

« on: February 15, 2022, 07:53:50 pm »

I have a friend that his catalytic converter stolen from his Class C while it was stored in his back yard.   He bought a couple of detectors similar to this:

https://www.amazon.com/Motion-Sensor-Decibels-Warning-Security/dp/B07NYXPL4P/ref=sr_1_5?crid=7ELWN22B2G6T&keywords=sensor+alarm+outdoor&qid=1644972245&sprefix=sensor+alarm%2Caps%2C101&sr=8-5

He positioned them in such a manner that the sensors pointed under the unit but they were also sensitive enough to set off when the rig was approached.   I think his have a remote control to activate and deactivate them.    He says they work great and hopefully may save him some misery in the future.    Of course small animals would also set the things off but in the right location that might be good.   I am thinking about skunks, racoons and squirrels that can do a lot of damage.