wolfe10

Gary, My first call would be to Monaco for their assistance in troubleshooting this. They designed, built it, and have the wiring diagrams, etc. Brett

Gary, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. The generator slide was designed and installed by your coach builder, so we would need more information in order to be address how your particular coach's generator locking mechanism works. Does yours have a positive lock for the generator slide? If so, does the locking mechanism work easily and does it engage when you close it? Or is it hydraulic ..... or electric? Brett

Don, I hope (the correct verb-- and not a very good one when you are dealing with physics) you are right about the new shocks being able to stand up to being the axle stop. No matter how stiff the dampening in a shock, it will not stop you from reaching the axle stop on extension-- if it were stiff enough to do that, it would give you an extremely uncomfortable ride. And if the shock happens to be strong enough to act as an axle stop without pulling apart, it will put a severe load on the shock mounts which then become the "weak link". Bottom line-- I would look at having a standard axle strap installed to control overextension. Brett

IF you are safe working with 120 VAC electricity, determine "how far" the 120 VAC gets from the generator: Check where generator output is wired to house wiring (usually wire nuts). Check at generator IN side of ATS. Let us know that you find. And it is always a good idea in cases like this to turn OFF and then back ON the two on-generator breakers. Brett

To tell the power TO the inverter is off: At night, when the solar panels are not charging the batteries, turn on a bunch of 12 VDC load-- lights, furnace, etc. Monitor battery voltage. Turn off the "suspected" power TO the inverter. When you find the right one, the inverter/charger will cease to charge the batteries, so voltage will start dropping. Should drop within 15 minutes or so from 13.2+ to around 12.7 and then drop very slowly from there as the surface charge is used up. Brett

Berine, Wonder if those are the breakers FROM (out of) the inverter. Generally, the larger 120 VAC breaker box contains the breaker TO the inverter, with the smaller box being dedicated only to those circuits powered BY the inverter. But, understand, even the old Xantrex installation manuals show nine acceptable ways to wire the 120 VAC side of the inverter. There is no "this is the correct way" to wire one. You may need to look in your coach owners manual or perhaps call Monaco to ask them about the breaker(s) which go TO the inverter. Brett

Some fluorescent light manufacturers such as Thinlite do offer a "Radio Frequency Suppressant inverter to reduce, and in some cases, completely eliminate interference produced by the ballast. " http://www.solarseller.com/thinlite_ballas...ressed_ballasts Brett

Ray, If you have any concern and want to verify exactly how it is installed, have you looked at the installation manual for your microwave-- it may even be on-line? If it is not clear from that, call the microwave manufacturer tech line. Better than bending something or getting it half out and finding that you can't get it the rest of the way. Brett

Bernie, OBJECTIVE: To allow your solar panel to supply battery recharging and allow the inverter to supply those circuits it "feeds" (powered by the solar panels supplying the battery bank) while still leaving all other 120 VAC circuits alive and working from shore power. ACTION: Turn off ONLY the breaker in the main 120 VAC breaker box THAT POWERS THE INVERTER/CHARGER. This assumes you have an inverter/charger unit). On a cloudy day or at night if the battery voltage drops below 50% (12.2 VDC) turn the inverter/charger breaker back on. Brett

Welcome to the FMCA Forum. Start by clicking on the "Search" box at the top of this page. Just type in: insurance. It will pull up several threads on motorhome insurance as well as some dealing with extended service contracts. Let us know if you have specific questions. Brett Wolfe

Another option is to install an electric booster pump to force more engine hot coolant to the dash heater. Here is one I found using Google: http://www.daviescraig.com.au/Electric_Wat...ps-content.aspx Their smallest pump even lists as one of its uses: "Heater Booster Pump – The EBP® increases heater performance during normal vehicle operation............" Brett

Paul, The valves are in different locations: If you have a motor-aid water heater, the valve to shut off hot engine coolant flow to it which forces more hot engine coolant to the dash heater would likely be near the water heater. The water valve you control from the dash HVAC control should be in the front of the coach, near the heater core. This is usually on the passengers side and can generally be seen by accessing through the "nose". I have also seen a few older coaches with a valve in the heater line back near the engine. Its purpose would be to shut off water flow to dash heater (and motor-aid water heater if equipped) in case of a leak in that circuit. Brett

Bob, Give Xantrex a call on Monday. Sounds like you can well-describe the symptoms-- they should have a solution. Brett

Lex, Do you have a motor-aid water heater (engine coolant warms your hot water)? If so, they are normally "T"'ed off the line to the dash heater. Many coaches with motor-aid water heaters (including ours) have a valve in the line to the water heater than can be shut off to force more engine-temperature water to the dash heater. And part of "checking it out" would be to remove the hose from the water control valve (front of coach) and verify that the heater temperature control fully opens the valve when set to HOT. Brett

Bob, Let me understand: Only one (of the 2) circuits "fed by" the inverter is tripping out-- right? The other hot lead from the inverter doesn't exhibit this problem? And this occurs only while on shore power or only when dry camping or both? And the breaker you are resetting is the 120 VAC breaker in the main breaker panel that supplies (i.e. "in side") of the inverter? BTW, Xantrex Technical Line: (800) 446-6180 or 408 987-6030. Brett

Ernie, When you use a hose to test it, start at the bottom and SLOWLY work your way up. That makes it easier to isolate the true source. Said another way, even if the water appears on the floor below a window, start at the bottom of the window and work your way to the top of the window. Then move up to a mirror, windshield, clearance light etc. You would be surprised how many leaks enter up high and only APPEAR to be coming from a lower source. The water travels down the inside of the wall. Brett

Jon, et al; The problem is that Freightliner made both single and two fuel filter chassis. Determining which he has is important. And sure, once we know what set up he has, there is no problem coming up with the correct procedure. But, unless one is stuck on the side of the road, I am very hesitant to guess or recommend guessing by others. Both part numbers and procedures vary according to number of filters and whether there is/is not a manual primer pump. Brett

Jon, Absolutely correct -- theoretically. BUT, tracing fuel lines in the bundles of hoses and wires in most RV chassis today, particularly if you don't have a strong technical background can be both frustrating and there is a reasonable chance that you will miss one. Brett

Go to the FMCA Towing Guide: http://www.fmca.com/motorhome/towing/204-towing-index Click on 2009. Per the guide, your Saturn is towable 4 wheels down/ 65 mph max/no limit on miles. You will need to verify that your coach can tow the 3,700 pounds (the hitch rating is often NOT the controlling component). You will also want a supplemental brake. There is lots of information on supplemental brakes in the Towing Section (where you posted this question). Brett

Jim, I responded to your PM. It is critical that you KNOW whether you have a one or two filter system. If one filter, the filter element HAS to be 2 micron. If you fit the 10 or 30 micron element which is the proper element for a two filter system, you would allow "rocks" to pass through the filter and get to the injectors. If you have a two filter system and fit the 2 micron element as a primary, it would clog quickly and the 2 micron secondary filter would catch nothing. And how you prime the system is very different depending on whether you have a manual primer pump or not. As I told you in reply to your PM, if it is important that you change the filter(s) this weekend (before you can contact Freightliner) let me know and I can talk you through it. Brett

Jim, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. Your chassis maker, not Caterpillar makes the decision on what fuel filtration to fit. Caterpillar only provides the filtration specs (2 micron for your engine). Call your chassis maker with your VIN and ask them. Here are the choices in order from best to worse: Best: Primary fuel filter/water separator with clear bowl (so you can see contaminants without having to open the drain with 10 or 30 micron filter element, AND a Caterpillar secondary fuel filter (2 micron) WITH manual primer pump. Next best: Same, but no clear bowl (now you have to open the drain to check for contaminants). Next best: Same, but no manual primer pump (no easy way to prime the fuel system). Worst: Single fuel filter/water separator with 2 micron filter element and no primer pump. AFTER you find out what you have, I can walk you through the change process (I present the Caterpillar Maintenance Seminars at the FMCA Conventions and am moderator of the Cat RV Club (an FMCA Chapter) Technical Website: http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/CATRVClub/ Brett

Paul, It should work fine as long as the alternator is large enough (expressed in amps) to handle normal functions (engine, dash HVAC fan, lights, etc) as well as the load of the refrigerator. And there is no fine line that says the battery bank has to be XX% charged before using the alternator to complete the recharging. But, clearly, not frequently overheating the alternator by asking to provide max amps much of its life will materially extend its life. Brett

Paul, Let's start dissecting some of these issues, as they will be applicable to many considering changing from absorption to residential refrigeration. Battery bank size and type: This largely depends on how long you want to be able to run without shore power or generator on (i.e. run the refrigerator off the battery bank through an inverter). In the equation, remember that for long battery life you do not want to discharge below 50% AND that while dry camping it is not "cost efficient" in terms of generator run time to get the batteries to full charge. For most, 440 amp hrs is a bare minimum, with more being desirable, particularly if you want to be able to run overnight without recharging. Yes, AGM's offer advantages over wet cell batteries. One of the more important is that their low internal resistance means they can be charged at a much higher rate (amps) for reduced generator run time. Other advantages including no maintenance and no out-gassing except under extreme overcharging. That does not mean I would recommend automatically replacing a perfectly good wet cell bank of adequate size in good condition. Not sure there is a compelling reason for dedicated vs larger "whole house" inverter and battery bank. I would go with a pure-sine inverter/charger for both better quality of power (vs modified sine wave) and quality 3-4 stage charger. A larger "whole house" inverter/high amp charger often offers faster battery recharging (higher amp charger built in), so I would look at that closely unless you have reason to go with a dedicated separate battery bank for the refrigerator. And since it is better in terms of battery life to have a larger battery bank that you discharge less deeply (vs smaller dedicated bank that is more deeply discharged to provide the same number of amp-hrs of power to the inverter and refrigerator), I would lean toward running the larger inverter/refrigerator from a larger single battery bank. Charging issues while traveling really boil down to what size alternator you have (expressed in amps) and whether you are expecting the alternator to recharge discharged batteries or just maintain them (i.e. start with them mostly recharged). Remember, most alternators, particularly in rear engine applications do not have very good cooling. And the more amps you ask from them the hotter they run. So it is not a good idea to count on the engine driven alternator to both charge a discharged large battery bank and maintain sufficient amps to run the residential refrigerator while driving. As a side note for those who DO push their alternators hard, it is a good idea to do a preventive overhaul on the alternator (bearings and brushes) at around 1500 engine hours/80,000 miles. Lots cheaper and more convenient than waiting for the alternator to seize up. Brett Wolfe

You are on the right track. Continue to use tape (even the blue easy to remove tape) to mask off possible entry locations. And, if you have access to shore water (hose) start low and SLOWLY work up until you see water intrusion. That way you are more likely to locate the source of the water leak. The actual point of entry can sometimes be a LONG way from where you see it coming out. Brett

Jim, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. I assume these are the two you are considering-- that may help others to comment: http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/...onditioner/6848 http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/...-softener/34619 Brett