thrushl

It really does depend what time of year you are going. Dec/Jan of course is a busy time... New Year's WOW - most are already sold out.

Bill: I try to live right and always do the right thing, but I sure have one heck of a bill to pay now, for sure. Thanks again for all your help and kind words...

Hi Bill et. al. Thanks to all of you, I think I have joy tonight and am on my way to correcting my situation. Here is what we think we know: I purchased a SK-SWM3 from Amazon three months ago and had it shipped overnight to the local installer. Got the receipt and everything. The local guy, nice but not the sharpest knife in the drawer installed the antenna (without me ever seeing it) and everything worked so he was happy. Not knowing any better, I could watch TV, I was happy. Three months pass and the controller doesn’t talk to the antenna anymore. Thanks to Bill, I was able to do some troubleshooting to determine that it wasn’t simple. I lost my climbing campsite buddy so I was a little stuck. Wheelchairs and canes do not go well on RV roofs I’m told. I saw a regular DIRECTV man driving by and flagged him down, told him my woes, and put my best sad face on while asking for help. God was with me. He saw my disabled vet license plate, screamed Semper Fi and took off for the roof of the RV. After he got done cursing and mumbling, he informed me that: I had a SK-3005 NOT a SWM3 He wanted to know what FOOL destroyed such a wonderful antenna with their !@&^#$@$! He called the man who installed my antenna, explained what he thought of his work as only a Marine can do, and then started getting to the truth. The installer had never seen a SWM3 before He did not read the instructions He threw away all the other parts in the box because my old ones worked. I called Amazon and started talking to them. Clearly 90 days is outside their 30 return window. Part way through the conversation my DIRECTV man took my phone and in a very direct but professional way explained to the Amazon rep what she would do… Amazon gave me an on the spot refund for the original antenna even before I return the old one. Amazon is shipping a NEW SWM3 Priority First Overnight with a promise I will have it by 10am in the morning. They applied the refund to the new antenna so I had none of my money moving and they did not change me for shipping. My DIRECTV man, John will be here at 10am to install my antenna properly as he put it….and then put the old one in the box and ship it back to Amazon for me. I was in tears that this man would show an interest in an old dog and his problems…. I tried to pay him for his efforts tonight and he almost slapped me for insulting him. He said that if he doesn’t take care of me that a thousand Devil Dogs would haunt him forever. I did find out that he is a company man and not a contractor so I can’t call and put in a good word for him without taking the risk of getting him in trouble. I will have to let God take care of John! God bless John, and the United States Marines…

Thanks Bill. I will see what I can talk him into tomorrow. Yes, the message remains the same. Thanks again for both your assistance and advice. Most Respectfully; Leo

Well, it's offical - I was HAD!!! No green sticker. three coax and one connection capped. I'm a 100% disabled vet and can't do the roof, so I asked another younger RV'er in the park here who was glad to help me. While up there he unplugged, checked for clean, clean, and rconnected. Still no joy... I repeated the first procedure you gave me and still no joy. Are we at the point of paying another $1,600 and trying ANOTHER install? God, I don't have the money for that, but the TV, computer, and Ham radio is about all I have these days.... other than the wife and cats...

Well, no joy Bill. I took my time and tried these steps several ways. With delay, without delay, etc. Is it posible they just put the new turrent and reflector on with the old LNB? The control box in the coach has certainly not changed as it is still veloco'ed to the little rack I made to hold it to get air around it 360 degress and the dust had not been touched. :-) Your response makes me more confidant I got screwed. The whole idea of buying the complete antenna was to go to the new technology and get the warrenty. Old parts equals no warrenty and a big wast of 600+ dollars over the cost of just a new turret. All that said, it will cost me a LOT more than $1,600 to drive a DP back accross the coutry to fight with them.

OK, I was on the road and my Traveler 3005 died. Winegard said "new turent" but recommended I just put in a SWM to get the warranty, etc. So, I ordered one from Amazon (locals did not have either onhand), had it the next day and the local RV shop installed it. I had TV again. Here is what I bought: Winegard SK-SWM3 TRAV'LER Gray DIRECTV SWM Slimline Antenna Brand Winegard Item Weight75.4 pounds Product Dimensions46 x 27 x 13.8 inches Item model numberSK-SWM3 Manufacturer Part NumberSK-SWM3 Well, I had direct TV. BUT the antenna control box in the coach and the cable is the same as before. Doesn't a NEW antenna system for 1,600 dollars come with that? If not, where/how do I buy one if I need one? Second, my Direct TV boxes do not see it as a SWM. I'm starting to think I got ripped off here. Finally, today when I try to raise the antenna it says that the control box in the coach can't find an antenna. Is there a fuse or something? Everything worked great when I stowed it and the coach has not moved. What do you think I should do? I hate to go all the way back to CA to ***** at them to fix it because I am in Virgina now, but... Thank you SO much in advance for your advice. Most Respectfully; Leo

Ummmm, sounds like a plan. When would you like to do mine? For a fee of course.... :-)

I have both types and I don't see there is a difference OTHER THAN the one rated for RV has been tested to function trough the rough travel of a RV. At least that is what I have been told.

We JUST got one of the Luxury 8 inch mattress from Mattress Insider. They are PROMPT to reply to emails, we got our mattress delivered in less than two weeks. WE LOVE IT. Threw the sleep number out and never looked back. With the CURRENT sales, I can't understand why everyone doesn't have one. BTW, the cool-max doesn't get HOT like I hear other complain about. http://www.mattressinsider.com/rv-mattress.html

Looks like an "F" or "C" issue.

Welcome to the group. Glad you got it figured out. Actually, the copper didn't look all green like a dirty battery terminal. It was just dull. Yes on the relay and lights. I got some DC4 from the hanger and put it on the exposed connections at the main points. I'm not sure why I didn't think of that before. We use it all the time on the airplane for the same thing. You can get if off amazon if you want some. Not to bad a price. Cheers

That's a great suggestion as the 3/0 jumpers may just be to large and stiff. THANKS

Thanks Brett. Decision made: 4/0 on longer run 3/0 on everything else.

Thanks Brett. I knew this was your lane. I need both intra-battery cables and cables to the inverter. The inverter uses posts so test fitting will not work. My fuzzy math says total MAX MAX MAX AMPS worse case is 290. The longest cable run is approx 10ft with slack and routing. I tried to use one of those tables you referenced and if I can read, it says 2/0. With those numbers, does 2/0 sound about right?

Alright friends, dumb question that all ya smart types know off the top of your head. Ok, I need to replace the battery cables on my house batteries. Why? The ends are falling off and they look "cheap." I don't like ugly cables.... I have 16 220AH 6V AGMs wired in series/parallel. They are in two eight battery banks feeding two Xantex SW3012 inverters in a stacked configurations. Please, don't ask why... (Hint...DW like POWER) Normally, this should be easy, EXCEPT Monaco failed to use battery cable that was labeled. They probably save money by buying it without the proper markings.... :-) OK, this is big stuff but how big I don't know. I'm guessing 2/0 or 3/0 SGT. Am I close? As you know, some of these are real short cables so I can't go lo large or I will never be able to bind them enough to install them. Thanks in advance for the wisdom.....

I used 3M double sided tape years ago and my plate is still there through all the truck washes and weather.

Well Tireman9, I got to agree with you on that point. In my case, I have the TPMS monitor on the crossfire. It only uses one sensor for both tires per side. I set the alert on the TPMS very tight so I should be able to catch a slow leak as you rightfully highlight. I'm thinking that this approach will give me the best of both capabilities. You think I am missing something?

Brilliant!!! Now THAT is a great suggestion. I have used DC 4 on the airplane, BUT never thought of using on those connections. I'm going to the hanger tomorrow and will bring some back. Bravo and THANKs..... Leo

Hello dear friends. This is something I learned this week that many of you probably already know. However, on the chance that it helps one person, here it is ... Like most diesel pushers, I have a high-amperage DC panel in the rear of the coach and a DC fuse box in the front. There are FOUR heavy-gauge wires that supply the DC Fuse box from the DC in the rear. During troubleshooting to see why I had no DC power to two on the fuse panels in the front DC Fuse box, I found that TWO of the feeds from the rear came from the coach batteries/electrical system and the other TWO feeds come from the high -amperage distribution of the HOUSE DC power system. Surprise, Surprise, Surprise. That is NOT what the wiring diagram for my 2005 Holiday Rambler Navigator shows. Go figure. They built it different than the diagram? Clearly these power cables were installed when the coach was built. I called Monaco and was going through what I found. They had the same wiring schematics I had, but stated that they were not surprised about the difference. Ummmmmm??? The PROBLEM causing the loss of DC Power to many things including the coach door locks, turn signals, leveling system, etc. was two corroded cable connectors in the rear panel. I DON'T have any idea how they got corroded, after all I have never cleaned them over the past 12 years .. A little wire brush action and electrical cleaner, and I had power again. So the moral of the story: my coach is NOT wired like the wiring diagram says, and connectors need to be clean (at least once every 12 years or less ). With best wishes for all, Leo

Rich. Hello good Sir. It is so great to know that we can sleep while the smartest of us are thinking. What would all you SMART guys do with all your time if we don't find things for you to think about??? "Big Smile" I have LEDs and no issues. The OP needs to make sure they have the right type of LEDs. Some don't take well to any power fluctuation such as when the residential compressor kicks in. I do have the awning thing happening, BUT and I say BUT ( :--) it only happens when my house batteries are low. In that case, they will occasionally open part way and then close on their own after a short period. I tool me awhile to track down that it ONLY happens when I have LOW battery voltage. In my case, under 11.5, which of course I try to avoid. However, ......... Oops happen eh? I only jumped in the find out how to find a ground loop if that is the issue. The simple fix for me is to make sure the house batteries are properly charged and the genny "auto start" is turned on. With the greatest respect; Leo

Andy: THANK YOU so much for this information and the point of contact. I found your post when doing Google searches to find a new manifold for my coach, I must have an old one too as I can't find mine listed either. That said, your post have now made my day and I have the exact person to call to solve my problem. Thanks Leo

OK friends. I have this very issue and have looking for it over a year. How do I chase this down?

No, I just gave up on it as it seems everyone just uses the roof acs. With a 45ft MH I figured it wasn't worth the trouble or cost to chase down.