wolfe10

Roger, That one will work just fine-- a little large in terms of storage space it will take, but will certainly do the job.

I think Rich is talking about a very different pressure system found on some old coaches where they used an air compressor to pressurize the potable water system. With your water pump- based system there are two things you can do-- with different results: Add an accumulator with bladder. Set PSI at 2 PSI less than cut-in pressure for the pump. For many, that means setting it at 23 PSI with city water off, pump off and pressure bled off by opening a faucet. This will do little to change the noise level, but help a lot in smoothing out water pressure at the faucets. The accumulator is generally plumbed into the system with a "T" after the outlet of the pump. To quiet the pump, one needs to have the pump attached to the plumbing with a length of flexible hose, NOT hard pipe. This is both on the inlet and outlet. If plumbed with rigid pipe, the pump noise is transmitted through the pipes. This can normally be done for around $10 worth of hose, clamp and barb fittings. In fact some pump manufacturers suggest this flexible hose installation in their installation instructions. As an alternative, sometimes using foam rubber around the hard lines will help absorb some of the vibration-- it will not be as successful as isolating the pump with flexible hose, however.

And, on down grades, use the transmission (down shift) to control speed. Use brake pedal ONLY to slow down enough to allow shifting to a lower gear. Correct speed on a descent is that speed/gear that holds your speed in EQUILIBRIUM-- you are neither speeding up nor slowing down. physics dictates your equilibrium speed is faster than a loaded 18 wheeler, slower than an empty one.

coijack4646, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. #1 killer of HEUI pumps is low fuel pressure. This occurred most frequently on those chassis with a single fuel filter (2 micron element) which restricted fuel flow a LOT quicker than the two filter systems with a 10 or 30 micron element followed by a 2 micron element. An air leak on the suction side of the lift pump will have the same effect with lower PSI to the HEUI pump. But, three failures is really difficult to understand. Be sure they check fuel pressure from the lift pump -- heck even a pinched fuel hose could create a hard time for the pump.

There is an easy diagnostic for a bad fuel line. Buy 5' of fuel line and feed the generator from a gas can. If that known good supply makes it run and it will not run from the main tank (with proper fuel level in the main tank) replace the line. There are also clear plastic fuel filters that you can temporarily put in-line at the generator. If bubbles are present, replace the line. And, yes in most cases, the gas tank will need to be lowered from the chassis to access the top to replace the fuel line. But, do the diagnostics first to verify that this is the problem. Certainly worth a couple of feet of fuel line!

By law, the GVWR plaque will have that information.

If you mean do you have to be an FMCA member to get the FMCA fleet pricing-- YES. But, even if there were no other benefits (and there are quite a lot) your savings will still be substantial.

Most have reported significant savings. But the prices for the more popular tires are on-line. Compare them yourself. The price includes tire and FET. It does not include local tax, mounting and balancing. If the old tires are not worn or badly cracked, some dealers will offer trade in allowances on them. http://www.fmca.com/join-family-motor-coach-association/member-benefits/fmca-connections/3455 In the middle of the page is a click to see prices.

I just use a round punch of the correct diameter to barely fit into the hose. Any round solid piece of metal works well. I don't like to pinch off lines, particularly older lines-- too easy to crack them.

I agree with Ray. Nothing wrong with with hydraulic over hydraulic 4 wheel disk brakes. Like any other brake system, they are not maintenance free. With the hydraulic over hydraulic, brake fluid should be changed every couple of years (just like on any hydraulic system with DOT III brake fluid) and the caliper slides cleaned and greased with caliper slide grease every couple of years. BTW, we have had both air and hydraulic brakes and either one works very well.

Frank, Are you asking about the potable water tank drain, gray or black?

Winn sold a rather complex primary filter "system" that was prone to leaking from the O rings around a clear plastic housing. Parker Racor has a replacement/suppression that does away with this one.

If you are talking about the GVWR plaque that gives GVWR, GAWR, wheel and tire size and tire pressure at GAWR's, it is normally in the area of the driver's seat. Often on the wall.

Jim, If there is a leak on the suction side (fuel tank to primary filter to lift pump) it will not clear itself. Said another way, it will continue to suck air.

Frank, You will want one of the newer "smart chargers"-- that have three stages: bulk, absorption and float.

Be careful. Roger (Tireman) just got back from a run at Nurburing-- and rumor has it that it was NOT in an RV.

Rich, I don't know if lift pump pressure is recorded/saved or not. A call to the Caterpillar RV Hotline could get an answer-- call with your engine serial number: 877 777-3126. Two main causes of low pump pressure-- clogged primary fuel filter and a leak anywhere between tank and lift pump. Since this is on the suction side of the system, it will leak air IN, not fuel out. Had one parked across from us last month that would not even start. Air leak in the primary fuel filter. Amazing, but diesels will not run when only air is injected. Guess they have a taste for diesel. I would be surprised that a clogged filter would give no symptoms before those experienced by the OP-- generally it starts with a loss of power at WOT (Wide Open Throttle) since this is when maximum fuel flow is needed. But, filters are inexpensive and certainly worth looking at.

Indeed, intermittent problems are hard to diagnose. But, with any electronic engine, good 12 VDC is critical. A loose or corroded connection at batteries, a loose or corroded connection at the engine ground (just below the computer on the right side of your engine) would be where you should start. Have you gone by a Caterpillar dealer to see if they can retrieve codes?

Thanks for the update and posting of part numbers. Will certainly help others. Can you tell why the mount failed?

"That could mean that the start up load of both is too much for the breaker, or as pointed out above the voltage may be too low to handle the load." Not sure I understand. The furnace fan (actually whole furnace) operates on 12 VDC. The heat pump on 120 VAC. The furnace should only very indirectly affect 120 VAC appliances/breakers (just the small additional load of the charger to replenish the battery).

Check with Monaco-- they bought Safari and still have records of parts for your Safari: Monaco Oregon Service Center. ORservice@monacorv.com. 91320 Coburg Industrial Way. Coburg, OR 97408. 877-466-6226

Towing (actually the weight of the toad) has little affect on MPG on flat ground where aerodynamic drag accounts for the majority of the HP demand. However, weight (of coach and toad) becomes quite important on grades. So, if you live in FL, the affect on MPG will be quite different than if you live in CO.

What size and how many batteries make up your house battery bank (in amp-hrs best)? Basically want to see how many amp-hrs "disappeared" in those couple of minutes. 13.2 shows a totally charged battery bank (actually 12.7 is a fully charged 12 volt battery-- anything over about 12.7 is just surface charge). 12.2 VDC is a 50% discharged battery bank. Guess my point is if you have 200 amp hrs of house battery bank and within a few minutes 100 amp-hrs went somewhere, that is a HUGE amount. As an example, a 1500 watt microwave would need to run for over 40 minutes on the battery (with inverter) to use that much power. Something is wrong here-- that is why I mentioned fully charging and then load testing the batteries.

Roy, Generally most economic speed is just after shifting into 6th gear with transmission in economy mode. On most coaches that translates to 58-62 MPH. The exception is some coaches that are geared for speed where they don't shift into 6th gear until going "higher than any reasonable economic speed".

Frank, A drop in the house battery bank voltage from 13.3 to 12.1 in just a couple of minutes indicates either a MASSIVE draw or much more likely one or more bad batteries. So, I would start by fully charging them and have them load tested. A bad battery can give all kinds of weird symptoms.