wolfe10

As Dennis said, there is no "this is how they are all wired" answer. But, with 5 minutes and a digital voltmeter you will know whether both your battery banks are charged from shore power. With the coach plugged in, check voltage at coach batteries. Then check at the chassis batteries. If the same and over 13.2 VDC, both are being charged. If the chassis battery is more than a few tenths of a volt lower than the house battery, the chassis battery is not being charged. Check with Winnebago to determine how they wired your coach (call them with your VIN). Brett

Gary, In addition to hitch capacity, if your coach has a frame extension (main frame rails to not come all the way to the back of the coach), you will need to verify with your coach maker the weight capacity of the hitch. And on any coach, remember that even a thousand pounds 10 or so feet behind the rear axle puts well more than that amount of weight on the rear axle and removes quite a bit from the front axle. Verify that you have that much reserve capacity on the rear axle and that removing weight from the front axle will not adversely affect handling. In most cases, unless this is a DP with tag axle, your effective capacity is very limited. Brett

Most of these are just a Caterpillar filter base bolted to the engine and easily relocatable. I know the Caterpillar secondary fuel filter on our coach was located to a compartment just behind the right rear wheel when the coach was built. I have seen the same on some of the Safari products. With the Caterpillar manual primer pump (which will either be on your secondary fuel filter base or have a block-off plate to allow the easy installation of one-- highly recommended) elevation is not really an issue. I have seen some relocations of this filter on Freightliner chassis to the area next to the primary fuel filter in the back. There is quite a bit of information on your fuel system on the Cat RV Club Technical Website: http://www.catrvclub.org/forum/index.php Don't know that you can directly access this without signing in (free) or not, but here is the fuel section: http://www.catrvclub.org/forum/index.php/board,5.0.html Brett

Any oil filter wrench sized for the diameter of the fuel filter will work. Be aware that you can relocate that filter (secondary fuel filter) to anywhere you like it. Many chassis makers put it in an easy to access bay so you don't have to stand on your head to change it. All it takes is to replace the fuel lines with ones long enough to reach your new location. BTW, joining the Cat RV Club (an FMCA Chapter), with dues of $15/year gets you (along with other benefits) a 10% discount on Caterpillar parts for your RV at Caterpillar dealers: http://www.catrvclub.org/ Brett

Dennis, No question, disconnecting the chassis batteries is the "least good" solution, that is why I mentioned it only if you don't have an alternate way to keep the chassis battery up. But disconnecting is better than allowing to the chassis batteries to toally discharge-- that will kill them in a hurry. Brett

Dennis, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. 2.5 amps is a high draw-- I would pull fuses one at a time until you isolate that draw to determine what it is. That is 60 amp-hrs per day and will take any size battery bank down fairly quickly. But, all modern coaches DO have some draw on the chassis battery. Best solution is to charge the chassis battery. Some are wired from the factory to do this from shore power. Others need a separate charger or relay to charge the chassis battery from whatever device is charging the house bank. So, in storage, either 120 VAC or solar. If neither, you should consider a battery disconnect for the chassis battery, as even at "normal" draw for the engine computer, transmission computer, etc, the battery can be discharged. Brett

Yup, Tim (TLazaroe) is the owner of RV.Cams, so you are talking with the right guy.

Herman, Wait a minute-- isn't that getting a little personal?! OK, seriously, no, definitely NOT on our coach. We have an air dryer and I keep it serviced. This was on a Beaver Monterey that came from the factory with NO AIR DRYER. Just a note that said "Drain tanks daily". I met the owner in an RV park in central Mexico where we were staying-- he was having all kinds of air suspension issues. Opened the drain on his wet tank and shot a stream of rusty water all the way into the next campsite. And, it just kept coming .....and coming..... and coming.

Tim, Thanks very much for posting on this one. Bobby, Tim is owner of http://www.rvcams.com/Default.htm and one of the most knowledgable in the country on troubleshooting RV cameras and monitors. He also happens to be in your back yard (Baton Rouge).

Chuck, You are correct. IF the air system has an anti-coumpounding valve there would be no damage. But, with the wide range of chassis over the years, it might be wise to verify, not assume. Heck, I have worked on coaches with air suspension and air brakes that had no dryer. Draining the wet tank produced several GALLONS of rusty water. Brett

Go to a tire dealer or front end shop that works with OTR trucks/motorhomes. Look for unusual tire wear-- roate tires to the rear and bring best side's rear tires forward if unusual wear (but tires still servicable). Have him jack up the front end and: Check tires for run-out. Even a well balanced egg-shaped tire will...... well, it will roll like an egg. If more than .035", fix it-- rotate tire on wheel, wheel on hub or have tire trued. If need be, swap better tires from the rear to the front. Then have the front tires balanced ON THE COACH. You want all the rotating mass in balance, not just the tire and wheel. If that 100 pound brake drum or disk is out even a few ounces, it needs to be accounted for. If you tell us where you are, perhaps someone can recommend a particular shop.

Interesting. I have virtually the same furnace (Atwood 8535 IV DCLP) which I installed in 2007 and have not experience any issue with it. My suggestion is to contact Atwood directly if you have any further issues or just want to confirm that the cause of your issue has been properly addressed. http://www.atwoodmobile.com/

Welcome to the FMCA Forum. Sounds like you have done the correct diagnostics, starting with a confirmation that the engine is running at the correct temperature. Are any other gauges reading "non-normal"? If so, check the power supply to the gauges. Troubleshooting this is really a question for the Monaco techs, as they speced and installed the instruments. It is unlikely that you have multiple bad sending units, so the gauge or voltage to the gauge are the likely suspects.

Sorry, what make and model furnace. And, have you contacted the furnace manufacturer? Brett

Bill, Wow, it is great to see that some manufacturers do monitor the Forum and are here to help with technical advice. As I mentioned, my installation did not require extensions, so I have no first hand experience with them. But, I just got a message from PressurePro: You might mention to Bill-O (as I just read his posts) that if he is looking for reliable extensions, we always suggest Haltec brand. You can find them all over, Myers tire is a large supplier for them. If questions arise from dealers, you can even call Haltec direct and they will be able to lead you to the correct product. They are all American Made, just like PressurePro, hand check every piece for quality, and are very informed on our systems as we work closely with them.

Bill, The senders fit on my original all metal valve stems-- no extensions (Alcoa aluminum wheels). At .6 oz per sender, I don't anticipate a problem. Yes, the longer the extension, more "pieces" to it, and certainly rubber stems, as well as the heavier the sender, the more problems I would anticipate. Also, I may be over-finicky, but I affixed wheel weights opposite the stems/senders (tape on for aluminum coach wheels and regular weights for the car) for the coach front wheels and all 4 car wheels so wheel balance would not be affected. Brett

Pat, Filon has a VERY thin layer of gel coat compared with regular fiberglass layups. That is why you can see the random strands of glass in the surface. And, yes it can easily be destroyed by someone not familiar with Filon. I don't think re-gelcoating is practical. Painting would be the only practical option if this is important to you.

http://www.fmcmagazine.com/advertising/117 OR Classifieds Contact For information about classified advertising, contact Bridget Lynn, classifieds coordinator, (800) 543-3622, (800) 543-4717 Fax, e-mail magazineclassifieds@fmca.com

Neal, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. The FMCA Magazine does have a section in Classified: "Lots for Sale or Rent". There are 4+ pages of line ads in the January 2012 magazine.

Lowell, There are several names for SCA. Another is DCA. Your Cummins book's cooling section should have a discussion on it. There are basically two very different coolants that are approved for HD diesel engines: 1. And most common from the factory is "Low silicate coolant for diesel with added SCA". SCA is used up protecting the cylinder liners and must be replenished. Normal change interval is 3 years. 2. The new-generation OAT-based coolants-- both Caterpillar and Cummins/Fleetguard have them. No SCA to test or add. 6 year life in an RV with other maintenance (at least on Caterpillar ELC), and I suspect on Fleetguard as well as we don't drive enough miles (300,000 in 3 years) to require the single "booster" required on OTR Trucks. First step is to VERIFY that coolant you have in there. Mixing coolant #1 with coolant #2 is not a good idea. If #1, then you will need test strips. If 3+ years on #1 (time starts when chassis is built) you should change it. Below is a link to Wix website for a box of 12 individually packaged 3-packs of test strips. I would NOT suggest buying a whole box as they do expire (have exporation date on them), Do NOT use past exporation date or results are not reliable. Any place that works on HD diesels will have the test strips, and any parts house catering to the HD diesel trade should have them. Be sure to check date on the strips when you purchase them. They are an easy "dip in coolant, wait a few seconds and compare colors". Very similar to pool chemical testing. http://www.wixfilter....asp?Part=24105

Clarence, Nothing complex about installing/programming the PressurePro. Two people makes it easier. Dianne sat in the driver's seat and pushed the buttons on the monitor to bring up the next wheel position to be programmed and I installed the senders-- merely screwed them on as if they were large valve stem caps. I have not installed the cross fire system, but it does not appear from their literature that installation is complicated either. But, yes, Strouhl down on 288 is also where I get my Michelin tires. They do a lot of motorhome tires. Brett

What make and model?

Pat, Is the side of your coach filon, gel coated fiberglass or painted? Is there any difference in the areas affected vs areas that still shine-- is there a sharp line separating the two areas that look different, or is it just some general area on the upper sides? Both sides?

Yup, Boyle penned that in 1662-- we still follow the same laws of physics. WAIT. I have heard it said that the laws of physics don't apply to rich people. Hopefully someone rich enough to know will post.

The thumper will never give you accurate PSI readings. But it is an excellent device for quickly telling of a tire is significantly low on pressure. Your hand and/or IR gun will give the same information. A tire run substantially under inflated WILL be running HOT.