rrlowther
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Posts posted by rrlowther
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We have a 2000 Safari Zanzibar. Exact same problem. We also have the water control panel as mentioned above. Double checked all the valves and they were all open fully. We checked the aerators and still continued to have the problem. I did however just learn that if connected to city water we don't have to turn on the water pump so thanks for that information.
Essentially, we spent nearly $600.00 in "diagnostics", don't you just love that? We ended up replacing the fixtures in the sink in the bathroom and the shower. Now we have pressure in all fixtures. Not sure that will solve your issue, but it did ours.
Hope this helps.
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I had a similar problem and ended up replacing one of the A/C's because we couldn't run both on the generator while going down the road. Come to find out, the generator couldn't handle the load for both A/C's.
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I know this is an old topic but we just installed a Girard(sp), propane, tankless water heater. It's on demand, which means it conserves propane. We did have a little problem with the Electronic Overheat Control. But since that's been replaced we've had no problems. We can shower for an hour! If we have water we have hot water. The cost was about $600.00 for the unit and $150.00 for labor. The unit slide right into the space vacated by our 10Gal W H. It was money really well spent.
Tip. if you have a washer/dryer, run the hot water in the sink closest to the unit before starting it. They way your sure to get hot water into the washer.
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I know this is going to sound simplistic. But have you checked all the ducts to make sure they are open? Don't laugh cause it happened to me.
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It sounds like your motor is shorting out. But Brett would probably be able to solve your issue. Be sure to post your coach make, model information.
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We finally found the chassis fuses. They are located on the wall of the battery compartment. The 12V fuses for the coach are in the bedroom in the overhead cabinets...
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Actually 7.75 MPG with a 40' DP in the mountains, towing a heavy toad isn't bad. And, does that count the diesel to run the generator?
But to improve MPG: slow down-- perhaps 200 RPM over peak torque in 6th gear (so 1640 RPM or so). Drive in economy mode. Climb at around 2000 RPM-- higher uses a lot more fuel.
And, indeed there are a lot of Safari owners who have had to open the rear of their coach to gain adequate air flow. Be sure to keep the front of the CAC clean-- that helps with MPG and HP (lowers intake air temperature) and keeps better air flow to the radiator for less overheating.
Brett
Okay what is a CAC? And where is it located? Thanks for the information.
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rrlowther,
Welcome to the FMCA Forum.
Can't give advice on your specific question, as the only two posts by the person mentioning PDI were on this topic, with the last post on 2/5/11. May or may not be a valid company. His post that date was the only info that has been posted.
I am, however, very familiar with the Caterpillar 3126/C7 and it's care and feeding.
What year is yours and how many miles on it? That will give you a place to start when looking at what maintenance should be done (or may already have been done).
Brett
Forgive me Brett, I just saw your response. We have a 2000 Safari Zanzibar, 40; 300 CAT B series engine. We had a lot of trouble with over heating. First a mis-diagnosed ECM replacement $2,200.00. The the thermostats and a new radiator. Ended up being the doors causing the over heating problem. We cut the louvers out of the doors and installing wire mesh. We have taken one trip so far to Santa Fe from Denver and back. It was 99 degrees out and we had one check engine light about 30 miles outside of Santa Fe.
With the new radiator we had CAT coolant put in it as the repairs were made at a CA authorized repair center. I put in to bottles of Purple Ice Coolant additive and that seemed to help on the trip back.
Right now with towing our Jeep Grand Cherokee dingy we are getting 7.75 mpg. It currently has 39K miles on it. Any thoughts on how we might improve that? Thanks
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How do you get the unit to unlock though? We have a splendid unit too but it doesn't unlock until both the wash and dry cycles complete.
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Talk to your Lowes or Home Depot, they can special order the different sizes. You can also go to the Container Store. They have just about any and every storage solution you can think of. If they don't have it displayed ask one of the clerks they are awesome about helping customers find the right solutions.
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There is an even easier way. There is a battery filler that has tubes to every cell. I just insert the tube in the distilled water jug and squeeze the bulb. Each cell has its own check valve and flow stops when full.
It was a chore to install but since the battery slide on my coach is almost impossible to operate by myself, it has been worth every penny. Once a month it takes me about one minute to fill all 24 cells.
Is there any possible way you could post photos of your solution? I'm a newbie, and still trying to figure everything out. Your solutions sounds perfect!
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We live in Denver, and have cold weather camped several times. Our first trip of the year is in the 2nd week of March, and temps have been around 20 degrees or lower. I usually turn the furnace on and leave cabinets open near sinks and so far have never had any problems. A couple of times the water pump froze, but did not crack, so I now leave the light on in that compartment.
I plan on taking the coach skiing this winter, which will have much colder temps, in which case I will probably drain the water and use bottled water for the toilet and hand washing.
Hey there Chris, small world, we live in Denver too. I'm in the process of having heat tape and heater packs installed in the basement of our coach and the water station. We already have ducted heat in the basement but I just want to be extra careful. We are also having the water lines for the refrigerator and the water heater insulated along with heat tape. I just ordered a plug in heated water hose for supply.
I did learn today though, that rather then just leave the black and grey water tanks open, we will keep them closed and empty them once a day or so. The tanks are supposed to be heated (I'll be darn of I can see anything under there looks like heaters though), but they are located in the middle of the chaise between the basement and the floor of the coach. So I think with the heat packs they'll be fine. I'm also going to put RV anti-freeze in both tanks before each use. Then we're installing foam insulation on each of the bay doors for the basement. Hopefully, this will keep us nice and toasty without having to worry too much.
Thanks for your post.
R
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Thank you Tom.
We went to a show yesterday here in Denver. We spoke with one of the sales people we met when we were looking. Unfortunately, they didn't have anything in their inventory that worked for us. Essential their service manager told us we should be okay. I want to insulate the basement doors and try to tighten them up a bit and we're going to install a couple of heat packs at the water station and under the tanks. I'm going to install heat tape on the water lines for the refrigerator and ice maker as well as the water supply hose that connects to shore water.
They also suggested that we have a "T" connection installed on the propane tank so that we can rent a larger tank when parked for those three weeks. We're also going to purchase a couple of electric space heaters to use inside the coach and do some additional weatherization around the door and vents.
Any thoughts on where and what type of material I could use to install on the bay doors to assist with heat retention?
Thank you for your response! It was really helpful.
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Good Morning,
My Partner and I bought a 2000 Safari Zanzibar for use in our national consulting business. We are required by our contracts to be onsite for the last three weeks of our projects. Since we work year around we have realized that it's a very real possibility that we will have use our coach during colder months in northern states.
We have put a lot of money into our coach with various upgrades and equipment we need for the coach to act as our mobile office.
So here's the question. Typically, RV's are winterized for colder months and stored. We will need to use the coach during such times and we are wondering what is the best solution to accomplish this. We've looked at the Aqua Hot system but it seems very expensive.
We are attending a huge "sale" this weekend and are considering trading our coach, that we bough in April of 2011 in on something better suited. Are there options out there for our needs utilizing our existing coach or would that be cost prohibitive?
Looking forward to your thoughts and suggestions.
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What ever you do READ everything on the warranty. We purchased a Star Interstate Warranty on our 2000 Safari Zanzibar. We've had a number of repairs, most of which were denied by the warranty company. We were not given the whole policy when we bought it. We signed the "contract" and then received the rest of the policy later (which we had to request 4 different times).
Good Sam has high marks for their warranty but it is pretty expensive. But then again, we've had over $12K in repairs of which Star only covered about $4K.
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Unlimited 4G - sure would like to have that. We've only been in one good 4G area since we got our 4G mobile hotspot from Verizon. It worked Great!! but, we zoomed thru our 5Gig allotment in record number of days. We even paid $80/mo for the 10Gig plan and went thru that too. See our article: 3G vs 4G: the Tortoise and the Hare
As for the Cradlepoint - we have that too. It's a great device, but it needs a a USB or Ethernet connection. We have switched to the WiFi Ranger as our router because it can accept Wi-Fi as it's Internet source - see more discussion here: Discuss the WiFi Ranger.
You should check out their website http://www.cradlepoint.com/ The router we bought has a USB port built in, and we just plugged our USB 3-g/4-g card directly into it. Configuration was pretty simply and I rarely say this but their support was pretty good too.
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Greetings,
I have not had the distinction of calling myself a geek for many years now. I did, however, spend 13 years with a little company called MCI/WorldCom as a Director of Network Solutions for the Global Product Assurance Group. So I know a little bit more than most about Internet connectivity and global networking.
We bought our Safari Zanzibar 40-foot diesel pusher for business. As such, reliable, affordable Internet access when on the road is essential to our business.
We installed a Cradlepoint wireless router in our coach and plugged in a USB 3-g / 4-g card into it.
We enabled WEP and set up the network to allow our laptops and wireless printer access. When in a 4-g service area we are even able to stream movies via Netflix to our wireless DVD player. On a recent trip to Santa Fe, NM, a storm moved in complete with pea size hail. Although our satellite lost it's signal, we were able to pile in the bus and watch a movie while it passed.
4-G isn't as widely available but it is expanding. The 3-G network, however is pretty much available most everywhere. We're even able to connect while driving down the road. The 3-G service allows us to check and send emails, update our website and communicate with our clients, friends and families.
When in a 4-G network area we are able to achieve 6 to 12MPS.
The service is $50 per month from Sprint. We are limited to 5 Gig on the 3-G network however, there is not data limit on the 4-G network.
We installed the router in one of the overhead cabinets in the front of the coach and even take our wireless Trig hard drive for our back ground data back ups.
I've read your posts and just thought that this might be information that could help your readers. The Cradlepoint router runs about $100.00 (online). But can also get them at Best Buy or any other major electronics store. If they don't have it, they can most likely order it for you. Sprint offers the dual band 4-g and 3-G USB card for free with a two year contract.
Hope this helps.
Robert
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I'm going to share this story with everyone in hopes that perhaps it might save someone else the extremely expensive repairs we endured.
We purchased a 2000 Safari Zanzibar Diesel Pusher in April of 2011. It proceeded to spend the major of the time since in the shop for a number of repairs.
We were finally ready to take our first trip in our coach. From Denver to Phoenix for my little brothers wedding.
We left on a Monday morning and broke down about 30 miles from home. Check engine light came on, engine derated. We pulled over and started looking for the problem. I noted that I was loosing oil out of the bottom of the oil pan. This issue was supposed to be corrected (I have the receipt saying it was) by Windish RV.
We drove back to the shop we had it in originally and ended up spending $1,200.00 for a new oil pan. Our Star RV warranty would not cover the repair.
Tuesday afternoon we pulled out again and this time we made it all the way to Monument Colorado. Where, the check engine light came on again, the engine derated. We pulled over, fired up the internet and proceeded to call 32 different diesel repair shops before we found one that would wait for us to get there. (It was 5PM).
We got to Allens Auto and Diesel Repair in Colorado Springs. They hooked up the computer and tinkered with the engine for about 3 hours. They weren't able to diagnose the issue. So we spent our very first night in our coach parked behind a diesel repair shop. At the end of the run way for the air base. Let's just say it wasn't a peaceful nights sleep.
The next day Allen's Auto and Diesel Repair proceeded to continue their diagnostics. They stated that the auto tensioner was bad and the serpantene belt needed to be replaced. Then they determined that the Electronic Control Module was bad. The part cost was $1,800.00. Star RV denied the coverage. I got on the phone and raised a stink and finally got them to agree that the ECM was indeed covered. We took the dingy and drove 40 miles to Pueblo and got the new ECM, had it programmed and returned to Colorado Springs. They installed the ECM and called everything good. Total for repairs: $2,800.00. Star RV Warranty paid $1,900.00 we paid the balance.
We got back on the road at 6PM on Wednesday. You guessed it, at 7PM the check engine light came on and the engine derated. Allan's Auto and Diesel repair did not answer their emergency number that we were given "just in case".
We limped to a KOA site in South Pueblo and set up for the night. Thursday morning we called Wagoner CAT repair center. They said they would work us through. We drove back from Pueblo South and on the way... You guessed it again! The check engine light came on, the engine derated and we literally limped into the Wagoner repair facility.
They did their own diagnostics and determine it had to be the thermostats. They offered to work us in and have us back on the road by 4PM Thursday. The wedding was at 6:30 Friday afternoon.....
The thermostats were replaced. The engine coolant replaced. We took it for a test drive just to be sure. And it overheated again.
We were told that the only other issue could be the radiator. They had checked the water pump. They had installed probes and confirmed coolant flow, coolant pressure etc.
We abandoned our coach and drove the dingy through the night to make the wedding on Friday afternoon. We made the wedding and returned on the following Wednesday to "Pick up our coach". Only to find that Star RV Warranty had once again denied coverage for the repair. We authorized the repairs and returned to Denver in the dingy.
We went to pick up the coach yesterday (Tuesday)...We arrived just before the mechanic returned with the coach after his test drive. We drove right past us and straight back to the garage area. Clearly, this was not going to be good news.
The mechanic was scratching his head and was visibly upset. With a new set of thermostats, confirmation of pressure and water flow and a new radiator, the coach was still overheating, the engine still derating.....
While studying the issue, I put the coach into high idle. I went to the back of the coach, and started feeling for air flow out of the back of the engine compartment. It was pretty minimal.... I opened the louvered doors and was overwhelmed with hot air....
I instructed the mechanic to remove the lourver doors that covered the back of the engine compartment. Then we went for a drive. The engine did get up to 220 degrees on inclines. But quickly recovered and dropped back down to 186 to 199...
I instructed them to remove the doors and the lower louver on the bumper. We then drove the coach 200 miles from Pueblo back to our home in Denver without issue.
After $5,500.00 in repairs, (None of which were apparently needed), we figured out that the louver doors on the back the coach along with the louver cover over the radiator was preventing any air from escaping the engine compartment. The design of the doors was forcing the hot air right back into the engine compartment and preventing the engine from being able to take in fresh air to push over the radiator.
This story has been extremely frustrating but I wanted to share it in case someone else is having a similar issue.
I am having the grill and doors modified this morning to allow for proper air flow. It may not be as pretty or finished as it looks with the doors as they are now. However, it will be nice to be able to take our coach on a trip this weekend to Santa Fe...
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Here are a couple of pages from my manual. It's a Holiday Rambler so it may not be of any help (other than it's also in the Monaco family) but I thought I'd let you have them. My main compartment is the one below the drivers window, farthest one forward on the left side. Send me an email if the pictures are too grainy as I had to shrink them to get them on this reply.
Here is my email address: mikev@me.com
Mike,
Thanks for the information. Unfortunately, they didn't help. I did determine that the hazard lights share the same fuse as the horn. The hazard lights are working. So I'm working under the assumption that the horn has power. I'm now attempting to locate the horn itself. Let's just say that's not proving to be any easier then locating the chassis fuse panel! LOL
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UPDATE! I have been pouring through the my manuals and although the manual says the 12V panel is located on the drivers side shift console, I am still unable to find it. However, I did find the Breaker Boar list that shows the circut number, amps and function. Turns out the Horn shares a 20 AMP Fuse with the emergency flashers.
I tried the flashers and they are working. So I would assume that the horn has power as well. However, when I activate the air horn I get nothing....
Any thoughts on what the issue might be? Where the devil the air horn is even located? Thanks for the great feedback everyone!
Know that it's greatly appreciated!
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Safari owned Beaver in 2000. Also in 1998. I have a 98 Beaver, so things are likely similar. My 12 VDC panel is adjacent to the 120 VAC panel behind the outboard port side cabinet door above the bed. You need to unscrew the cover to see it.
Good luck finding the prize.
There is a 12v panel next to the breaker panel in the back over the bed. But the fuses in that panel are for interior lights, furnace ignition and the like. : (
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Now before I share my issue, please know that myself and three technicians spent nearly an hour looking for the 12V fuse panel for the chassis, running lights, turn signals etc.
We have a 2000 Safari Zanzibar on a Magnum chassis. We took our coach in for repairs. Part of the scope of work was to install an M&G supplemental braking system. After having been told repeatedly that the coach had air brakes we learned that the coach in fact has an air brake for parking only and air shocks.
So we have to purchase and install and add-on device that works through the hydraulic brakes. We finally picked up the coach after a month in the shop and took it home. As per usual someone in a very small car pulled out in front of us without much notice. So I did what anyone would do and hit the horn a couple of time. Thing is nothing happened. I do know we have an air horn.
I turned around and went right back to the shop. They explained it was probably a fuse. So we started looking for the fuse panel. We found the 12V panel for the coach lighting, furnace ignition etc. But we were completely unable to find the 12V panel for the coach.
We went through all of the manuals but did not find anything on the location of the panel. We are taking our very first trip in the coach on Monday from Denver to Phoenix. I have done about 100 searches on the net and haven't found anything of use.
Does ANYONE have any idea where the fuse panel might be located?
Signed Clueless and Confused!
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We just purchased a 2000 Safari Zanzibar 40' diesel pusher about two months ago. It's been in the shop ever since. Issues with the slide, rear a/c, and so on.
There are several warranty companies. We have Star Interstate 3 years 36K miles. Although we are having a little difficulty getting the company to these issues covered, we're told it will be covered.
Total cost of repairs $7,800.00 our deductible is $200.00. So it's definitely worth it!
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Thanks for the reply. Both units run properly. Each will go on and cool with two fan speeds available.
They just won't run at the same time on the gen.
Rear will not run on the generator at all.
Ours back a/c worked. It would run, but the heatpump was drawing way more power then it needed. But it sounds like you are on the right trail with check power in and out.
What To Expect OnThe Road?
in All About You
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Boy, can I relate your post. First, my Partner and I are relatively new to RVing. We actually purchased our coach to use as a mobile office for a our consulting firm. We work with Doctors, Dentists and Veterinarians all over the country. But to be sure our coach was working and to experience what it's like to be in one for a few days at a time (we will be in the coach for 4 to 5 weeks at a time), we have taken it on three trips.
Now, to be sure, I'm not a shy person. Nor do I "hide" as it were. We've stayed in three different parks, met several people from my home state of Texas, and others from all over the country.
In case it hasn't hit you yet, I'm gay and my Partner is not just my business partner but my life partner. I will admit I was very nervous about going to RV parks and trying to enjoy ourselves without people "looking down on us."
To say I was pleasantly surprised would be an understatement. People were friendly and welcoming. When they found out about our world-famous martinis, we suddenly found 4 to 6 couples hanging out at our coach while my poor Partner nearly lost his arms from shaking the martinis for the company we had ....
So to your beautiful wife and you as well, I sincerely doubt you'll have any issues. The biggest challenge is how to ask your company politely to leave so you can go to bed!!!