wolfe10

Jeff, Yes, welcome to the FMCA Forum. Several choices, depending on how/where/how long you store your coach: If you have shore power, just leave it plugged in-- with the inverter/charger properly programmed. Even a 15 amp house-type outlet is adequate for this. If no shore power and stored outdoors, consider a solar panel and controller. The other option as mentioned is to turn off as much as you can. The "salesman switch" usually near the door turns off SOME 12 VDC loads. Many times it does not turn them all off. Things like propane detector, refrigerator PC board, etc may not be wired through it. Probably a good idea if you will be keeping the coach stored for more than a short time to use an AMMETER to check draw with the salesman switch off, to verify that you do not have a significant draw. Lastly, wet cell batteries do "self discharge"-- so, even if fully disconnected/no load, they will discharge. This is where the "how long" question comes in.

Conservative answer is that a pure sine wave inverter will either be the same or BETTER than the MSW for running a refrigerator. Some do run successfully on MSW, but that may limit you on your choice of residential refrigerators. Check with the refrigerator manufacturer before ASSUMING. Not sure I would mention either way that it is for an RV, but there are a number of homes "off the grid" that use inverters to power household appliances. As far as rewiring, the only reason for doing anything other than a direct sway: If the new inverter is a higher amp model, requiring larger gauge wire and/or the remote panel and perhaps wiring from inverter to panel re different. I would favor one good quality PSW inverter to too. And the size a 1500/2000 watt inverter will generally have a built in ATS so it automatically switches over to an external power source from either shore power or generator.

All 4 switches are used to turn on/off a RELAY that then powers the pump. You need to find the relay and check for power in/power out.

Bill, As you know, there are a number of factors that go into tire life-- sure, UV exposure is one. So is correct PSI, correct alignment, tire balance, etc. And absolutely, if you park your coach for months at a time with tires uncovered, you WILL shorten their "safe to use" life. Exactly how much-- my ouija board isn't that good. And, driving allows the emollients that protect the tire from UV light to migrate to the surface. So, the more frequently you drive, the less of an issue UV light poses. In some CG's where we have good shade, I would not even consider pulling out tire covers. Same if the site is oriented such that one side doesn't receive direct sun exposure.

jenmacias2015, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. Please tell us what chassis you have. If you have hydraulic brakes (gas chassis and a very few DP's) with the engine off and brake pedal pushed, the electric/emergency boost pump comes on. Absolutely normal. You need to trace down where Power Gear gets its "parking brake is engaged" signal. Do you have schematics for your coach?

Correct. It is NOT a high failure rate item. And, since you have propane "back up" it is not something that will leave you in a bind.

No reason to replace tires every 3-4 years unless they are very badly cared for (run at low PSI, exposed to sunlight all the time, etc). With proper care, double that life expectancy but with professional inspections beginning at 5 years (this advice from Michelin). Most of the systems are the same as you diesel truck plus 5th wheel. Yes, larger and sometimes more complex, but I will start a list of differences-- others can add to it: Air system, including air pump, dryer, air suspension and air brakes. Aquahot if so equipped. The good news is that most of the chassis and driveline components share their origin with OTR trucks, so designed for a million miles with proper "care and feeding".

ISPJS, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. How did you fare in Irma? We have a number of friends in FL. A lot less damage to their particular areas than anticipated.

Bill, I suspect you HAVE identified the thrust of this thread: identifying those roads that do not have toll booths than transiting can come back to really bite your pocket book and in many cases you have no idea of for how much.

Guys, Let's try to keep this thread on track. Thanks. Yes, using a GPS to search for alternate routes is a useful feature. Moderator

Yes on the Caterpillar 3126, the water pump is on a separate V belt (crank, idler, water pump).

That suggests an inverter issue, as the refrigerator PC board and heating element "don't know the difference" between shore power and inverter. Check to see what other "normally powered by inverter" appliance and circuits are not powered. Check breakers in any sub-panel powered by the inverter. Check the (normally) two breakers on the inverter itself. Lastly, some RV manufacturers a have two outlets behind the refrigerator. Only one may be inverter-powered.

Jimmy, Let's go through this: Was the refrigerator cooling system worked on, or the engine? Does the refrigerator work on propane? If so, you know it is getting 12 VAC to the PC board. Do other appliances (commonly microwave) have power from the inverter. Does the refrigerator work on 120 VAC shore power/generator? That would suggest that the refrigerator PC board and heating element are good.

Be sure to check your vibration dampener (on the crankshaft, inboard of the pulley). If it is OK, shimming out the pulleys from the vibration dampener should be pretty easy.

bbrigham, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. By far the biggest issue is to determine that it has had the proper "care and feeding" over the last 16 years. If you are not very familiar with both chassis and RV house systems, I strongly suggest you hire someone to do a mechanical inspection for you. Pay particular attention to the roof seams, signs of water leaks, age of tires, etc. All stuff anyone familiar with that vintage/brand would be familiar with.

Two different sources: NADA-- this is base retail with 330 HP engine: http://www.nadaguides.com/RVs/2002/Alpine-Coach/M-40FD-330hp/3001099/Values Search for those for sale right now-- be aware that these will be ASKING prices, and may not reflect real sales prices.

Jim S, Since you already have axle weights, you would need to check with any of the public scales to see if they are set up to allow side/individual wheel position weighing. Most are not, as the area around most scales is graded away from them and weighing on a slant is not really that accurate. DO contact the DPS and let us know if they will allow you to show up for individual wheel position weighing. Suspect that would be very doable-- probably happy that someone really cares enough about safety to ask for their help.

Yup, you are just fine.

edmck, That is a riddle with no repeatable answer. If the rear is enough higher that you need to raise the front until weight is off the suspension, YOU ARE LEVEL. If the rear is not enough higher that you need to raise the front until weight is off the suspension, YOU ARE LEVEL.

Thought it would be worthwhile to get the facts on this, so I e-mailed Chris Smith. This has nothing to do with "allowing towables" issue. Here is the answer: Yes, there is a towable here. He is a member. As you know, there are no national officers parked here currently. He owned a motorhome when he joined, sold it, and purchased a fifth wheel. He is an associate member!

Jim, Being in Texas (like we are), check with your local DPS office and talk with their truck enforcement guy. They use the same individual wheel position scales as RVSEF, Escapees, etc. You should be able to arrange to meet them at their HQ at beginning or end of shift to do the individual wheel weighing.

rknight, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. Unless wires from main 120 VAC breaker box are the limiting factor (unlikely) you should be fine. On high it will only draw approximately 1 amp more @120 VAC than the old one (8 vs 7).

Yup, Cat or Cummins, that is how they work. The tension is pre-determined by the spring. As long as you get the detent/dowel in the hole, tension is automatically set. Yes, they come with the detent in different positions/springs with different tensions.

Certainly if you have a single ride height valve for the tag axle, I would assume that would be a reasonable first cut at it. Yes, some floorplans such as galley slides where the weight of the slide, appliances, cabinets, pantry and cookware are on one side "offset" by a Eurolounger on the other side, one can exceed the 45/55 rule. In most cases, you can look at weight of heavy components and make a rough guess in terms of left/right distribution. The exception is on the axle with two ride height valves. If mis-adjusted, they can transfer a LOT of weight side to side. That is why checking ride height at least once a year is a good idea. Last point-- with a tag, on many chassis, it is possible to balance weight on each axle by adjusting weight on the tag. Ideal is to have the same PERCENT of each axle's GAWR on each axle.

Jim, Just do a search for "truck scales" and your location. Getting axle weights is easy-- lots of truck stops have them. Getting individual wheel weights (more accurate, as few motorhomes have perfect left/right weight distribution) is more difficult to find. With axle only weights assume 45/55 weight distribution and use the 55% side to go to your tire manufacturer's inflation table to determine the minimum PSI for all tires on that axle.