wolfe10

Yes, Here is one source for P chassis front springs that do not need supplemental air bags-- speced for narrow weight ranges depending on your actual front axle weight: http://www.henderson...suspension.html

Excellent advice. Just turning off the shore power or coach 120 VAC main breaker will not protect your coach from a lightening strike that comes in on the shore power grid. Lightening can travel on the neutral or ground wire as well as the hot wire/wires. Chances of a direct hit are EXTREMELY low. Chances of a lightening strike near enough to be picked up by shore power wiring is LOT higher. Brett

Clay, Indeed there is a lot of confusion about auxiliary brakes on a diesel. Jacobs corporations and many others (like PacBrake) make exhaust brakes. Many corporations also make Engine Compression Brakes. Just as Xerox is often used to mean "copy", Jacobs is often used to mean Engine Compression Brake, since they are a major manufacturer of them and have been for many decades. I have never seen a bleeder brake on an RV -- would be interested in a reference to an RV with this new-type of brake. Says it requires a VGT or exhaust brake in addition to the bleeder brake for "maximum performance".

Pure physics/chemistry says that PSI change with temperature is exactly the same for Nitrogen and DRY, repeat DRY air. Both follow the ideal gas law: PV=nRT. Now, air from one of those coin op pumps is a very different matter- most have no air dryer and as you would expect, water and water vapor are NOT gases and will change PSI quite a lot with temperature change compared with Nitrogen or dry air. Brett

Welcome to the FMCA Forum. Look right here in "Buying a Motorhome". Lots of discussions about extended service policies and "warranties". After reviewing them, please feel free to post any question you have.

The effect of removing the rear mud flap is very highly dependent on the sq ft of rear grill area. Some coach makers left very little grill area in the back of the coach to "improve looks". So this is not a universal solution. Example: our coach has a side radiator and the rear grill is 5' by 3'. PLENTY of area for the hot air to escape.

FYI. ALL diesel engines prior to 1/1/07 had "slobber tubes"/crankcase breather tubes. So all brands need their breather tubes extended to behind the fan shroud (intake) for the cooling package. Said another way, this affected Cats, Cummins, MB, DD, etc. And overfilling any of their crankcases resulted in the access being "puked" out the breather! So, if you have oil coming out (any engine) first "suspect" is that someone overfilled the crankcase.

Ron, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. You have asked two different questions. 1. Can an external charger be used to charge two 12 VDC batteries wired in parallel at the same time? YES. Connect to one battery's positive and other battery's negative (best). But it will still work if you connect both positive and negative to just one battery. Obivously, if these are 6 VDC batteries wired in series, you would need to put the positive lead on the positive terminal going to house positive and the negative on the other battery's negative (the one that goes to house ground). 2. Will this charge the chassis battery? CAN'T ANSWER THAT ONE. There are a lot of different ways that two battery banks can be wired-- yes some will charge the chassis battery (i.e. Xantrex Echo charger). With a voltmeter you can tell very quickly if charging the house bank also charges the chassis battery bank.

Many have to use boards to bridge dips to access their storage area. Might that work for you?

With a side radiator, first question is how is the fan speed controlled. Most have a low/high fan speed controller. If it is stuck on low, engine temperature WILL continue to rise. With a side radiator or a rear radiator with fan clutch, there should be a range of temperature that you see: Lower one is that dictated by the thermostat. From thermostat setting (say, 195 degrees F) to where the fan cuts to high SHOULD be 4-5 degrees. If the fan cuts on too soon you just pay HP and MPG to run it. I have nothing against a water mist system IF you use distilled water so you don't get mineral deposits built up on the cooling system which would further reduce air flow through the cooling package. And, when you say you cleaned the radiator, be sure you clean BOTH the CAC and the radiator. The CAC is the first thing in the air flow and therefore collects most of the debris in a sandwiched cooling system. Brett

Sorry, that is something to discuss with a Ford dealer-- I have no first hand info on the 2012 Focus. Again, if they suggest pulling only ONE fuse, that is what I would do, OR as I posted above, run a charge line from coach OR use an insert into the fuse slot of the fuse to be pulled and run that through a switch that you can turn off.

I took the liberty of of forwarding this thread to PressurePro. Here is the e-mailed I got back: Here's a quick explanation about our seals. If there's anything else you have questions on or would like assistance in explaining just let us know. PressurePro seals are designed to hold up to multiple installations over many years. The seals are made out of NBR, the same material used for most o-rings. As with any rubber seal, some care must be taken to ensure seal integrity. Think about changing your oil, if you screw on the oil filter too tight, you can damage the seal and leak! The same applies for PressurePro Sensor seals. Since valve stems can become rough and worn after many years of use, you don't want to over-tighten and cut into the rubber seal. In the off chance that you do experience a leak, PressurePro seals are very easy to replace. If you aren't comfortable with installing the seals yourself, you can always send your Sensors back in to have the seals replaced and the Sensors tested. PressurePro remains the leaders in TPMS and continues to be 110% committed to not only providing the best, American Made, product available, but also in backing those systems up with the market’s best customer service. PressurePro replacement seals are available in packs of 10 for $5, including shipping and handling. PressurePro recommends the use of a 3/16" hex driver for seal insertion. If needed, a hex driver and 10 seals is $12 + s&h. If you have this size hex driver, just make sure that it fits inside of the sensor without scraping the threads. Our drivers have been machined to make sure of a proper fit. Installation is very simple. You place the seal on the top of the hex driver, with the dimpled side down. Slightly wet the edges of the seal, to aid insertion. Then press the Sensor over the hex driver so that the seal is pushed into the brass. Avoid over-pressing, as the seal may not seat correctly. Always perform a bubble test around sensors after installation. If you prefer, PressurePro will replace seals in our office. Seals are covered under the one year warranty, otherwise there is a $1 charge per sensor. This covers the new seal, leak testing and a quick test of the sensor itself, including signal strength.

Welcome to the FMCA Forum. Yes, you can use either 12 VDC deep cycle batteries or pairs of 6 VDC deep cycle batteries. Number/amp-hr capacity is really dependent on whether you dry camp and/or want to be able to use an inverter. If no dry camping and no desire to use the inverter, you can reduce the capacity of your battery bank-- either a pair of 6 VDC in series or a single 12 VDC battery. You will find that two golf cart batteries wired in series are the least expensive way to get quality deep cycle batteries (as compared with finding true deep cycle 12 VDC batteries). And if no/very little dry camping and no significant inverter use, a single pair will provide you with around 220 amp-hrs @ 12 VDC-- a low but acceptable number. You will need to weigh your use of the electrical system with budget/battery choices. Brett

Caterpillar has a number of Natural Gas-powered engines from 95 HP to 8,180 HP: http://catoilandgas.cat.com/industries/gas-compression-power

Andy, While raising engine RPM when under load WILL lower engine operating temperature, I hate to see you burn extra diesel (which this WILL DO) to baby the cooling system. Yes, if very high ambient temperatures and long grades, this may be needed, but I would suggest that it is a "report card" that tells you to "tune up" your cooling system. One of the criteria for determining if a tune up is needed is: "Did the coach run at cooler temperatures under the same conditions earlier in its life?" As discussed, the "tune up" includes: Cleaning front of CAC and also the radiator. Insuring that coolant is at proper level, still in good shape (use three way test strips that test for SCA, freeze point and pH). Insure that the water pump belt is in good condition and properly tensioned (it is NOT on an automatic tensioner). Verify that thermostat(s) are not over 3 years (per Caterpillar recommendation). BTW, Caterpillar calls thermostats "regulators". Brett

Give Blue Ox a call. They can tell you if the 2007 and 2012 brackets are the same (unlikely since the part numbers are different). http://www.blueox.com/bx-r-baseplates.aspx Also, don't know where you are located, but this on Blue Ox's website: *** Blue Ox is offering a free baseplate installation to the first customer willing to bring their 2011 Honda CRV to our factory for the installation. Contact Mandy Johnson for further details. *** Brett

Pain In The "anatomical feature-- not in front"

Chuck, I do not know the answer to your question either, BUT, I would not chance continually cutting off power to the computer that controls the engine. Better to install a disconnect in that fuse that should be pulled. Not difficult to wire. Then you just turn off that one circuit. Brett

banknmak, Here is one-- there are others. Most of the Home Depots, Lowes, etc have them: http://www.oatey.com/apps/catalog/instance_assets/assets/OAT_AAV_SVA_link3.pdf

No "have too's " here, but what most of us do is leave the water pump ON and turn on the water heater 10 minutes before we want water. For the water heater, that means first one up in the morning turns it on. Turn it off after dishes are done. Turn it on when starting dinner prep and off when you go to bed. No gain in running it 24/7.

Agreed, no problem. I plug in my Pressure Pro to check pressures in the morning before we leave and before the sun or other factors influence tire pressure. On the road, Dianne occasionally scrolls through the tire pressures. But I would not want my alarm set too fine-- a cold morning could have a lot of them going off. Ran into that a couple of mornings in the desert SW this winter. 30 degrees at 7am, alarm going off on a tire or two. 60 degrees by the time we left, tire pressure back where it should be.

Welcome to the FMCA Forum. As you already posted, the first "suspect" with a rear radiator diesel is a plugged CAC/radiator. Note: CAC= Charge Air Cooler= After-cooler= Inter-cooler-- all names for the same piece of equipment that takes hot intake air from the turbo and cools it down on its way to the engine. Since it is FRONT of the radiator, that is where the vast majority of the dirt will accumulate. Access the top of the engine/fan shroud area from the bedroom or closet. With a strong flashlight, look inside the fan shroud/between fan blades. It WILL be clean-- the fan blades sling the dirt to the perimeter. Verify that the perimeter is as clean as the center. Pay particular attention to the lower quadrant where dirt and debris first accumulate. Insufficent air flow through the CAC and radiator WILL cause overheating. Also, with your 3126, it wouldn't hurt to reach under and check water belt tension-- it is NOT tensioned by an automatic belt tensioner. Let us know what you find. Brett

Actually, it is a little more complex than that. When we bought our coach, for exactly the same price, we could have purchased a new high-end gas coach, entry level diesel or used high-end diesel. We chose a used high end diesel. We have put 135,000+ miles on it-- virtually trouble-free. No right or wrong answers here-- decide what best fits YOUR needs.

Fuse at the coach battery positive TO 8 gauge wire from coach chassis or house battery (the one closer to the back of the coach and/or easier to access) to the large IN lug/terminal of a relay near the back of the coach. Wire from any "ignition hot" source to relay signal terminal (very low amp draw, so any source acceptable). 8 gauge wire from large OUT lug/terminal of relay to gang plug at back of coach. The cable from coach to toad will need an additional wire to carry that charge wire. And 8 gauge wire from front of toad to fuse at toad battery. Sounds more difficult than it is. Cost of parts excluding wire which depends on length of wire run is around $25-- more if the coach to toad cable does not have an extra unused wire.

desertdeals69 That may depend on the brand and style. I agree, the Zip Dee's are bomb-proof-- 168,000 miles in all wind conditions with no issues. Brett