richard5933

Still no official word from anyone regarding what this means to FMCA? Has there been any communication to members on this yet?

How hot is "awful hot"? If we're talking about normal tire heating from going down the road, don't worry about it. The sun will also make the tire feel very warm, so if it's sunny you can reach around and check the inner side of the tire just to make sure. But, if we're talking about too warm to keep your hand on the tire, better start looking for problems beyond the tires. A dragging brake or a failing/dry hub bearing can cause excessive heat. Either of these can be dangerous and lead to a blowout and/or a fire. I'm not saying you have either of these problems, but on a 1999 coach they are both possible and worth checking for. If the hubs are oil filled, check to make sure that there is oil in them according to the manual. Brake drag is harder to check for, and a good time to check this is when you are having the brakes inspected/adjusted. (Air or hydraulic, period inspection is a good idea including checking to make sure auto-adjusters are doing their job.) A great tool for any coach is an infrared thermometer 'gun' for checking the temps of the hubs/wheels. Here's the one I use, but there are many others out there: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MYUVR4R/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 This is usually done after being driven for some time so that you're checking a fully-warmed hub. The actual temp is not as important as checking to see if you have one which is substantially different than the others, possibly indicating a problem. Don't rely on a stem-mounted TPMS sensor to check the temp of the hubs, as they are too far away.

How fast is pretty fast?

Covers are always a debatable topic...I'll leave that alone. Our coach is stored outside. We have a few fresh air inlets for the HVAC system which are in protected areas and left open. We leave the MaxxAir vent on auto - it comes on in the afternoons when temps warm up. The coach is plugged in with the battery charger on float. That's all we do to keep things from becoming too humid and it seems to provide enough air flow.

When you charge the battery, what is the final charge voltage? How long do you hold it at that level before disconnecting the charger? Is this a new(ish) battery or one that's been in use for a number of seasons? Have you checked the water level in the battery? If you disconnect the battery from everything, will it still lose voltage after sitting for a few hours? The fridge will still use some 12v power, even when on propane. The 12v is what runs the controls on it. Sorry for so many questions, but this information will really help narrow down the problem.

Agree here as well. Drop the pressure to about 100 and then take it to get weighed. If you can't find a place to weigh each corner separately, most truck stops will have a CAT Scale where you can get the weight per axle for $11-$12. If you are unsure how to get weighed when you get to the truck stop, go to the trucker's fuel desk and ask - they will walk you through it. You don't need to buy fuel to weigh - it's a separate transaction. Helps to do a Google Maps satellite view of the truck stop before you get there so you are familiar with where things are, where you need to pull in, etc. Especially if you will need to park momentarily while you go to the fuel desk, you don't want to end up facing the wrong way or getting stuck nose-in somewhere that it's difficult to get back out. If you are still confused after getting the coach weighed, report your weights here and someone will help you do the math.

Welcome to the FMCA forum. Could you provide a bit more information? Which batteries - house or chassis? While driving or while plugged in? How/when are you checking them? What kind of RV are we talking about (make/model/year)? Give us a bit more about what we're dealing with and I'm sure that you'll get lots of suggestions. Right now the question is way to broad to even begin to offer any advice.

Where are you getting the number 120 psi as the proper pressure? If it's from the sidewall of the tire, then it is the max cold pressure, not the recommended pressure for your coach. Let us know where you got that number and we can go from there.

Until the vehicle is weighed, the tire placard is a good starting pressure. On the same page you linked to, in the right-hand column, is a button to download the load & inflation table. That table spells out the specific pressure to be used according to weight. Every quality tire manufacturer publishes load & inflation tables.

They used a tire gauge daily. Not sure where you are getting the information about Goodyear's recommendation. If a coach is intended to ride at 80psi and you put 120psi in the tires the coach is going to ride like it's on rails. Putting the proper air pressure in the tires will certainly improve the ride if they are overinflated by 50%.

Welcome to the FMCA Forum! Glad to have you join us. When you say: ...are you talking about what's on the sidewall of the tires as the 'max cold inflation' for the tires? If so, then that would be the amount of air necessary to carry the max load the tire is rated for, not necessarily the pressure that should be in your tires. The best way to determine the proper tire pressure is by knowing your coach's actual weight (by axle) as you typically roll down the road, and then using the manufacturer's load & inflation charts to select the correct pressure. If you post the brand & model tires you got someone will surely help you find the load & inflation chart.

Need more information... Are they getting the memberships for free with their rigs? Is the manufacturer paying? Or, is FMCA giving free trial memberships? How does this work? With the financial crunch in FMCA right now I'm afraid this is the first thing that came to mind. Great to have an extra avenue for new members, for sure, so I hope that this turns into something which can create more long-term members. It's nice to see something like this is in the works, and hopefully it will in the end benefit everyone involved.

The datasheet indicates that the batteries can be charged from -4F to 119F. Apparently they can be discharged at temps up to 140F. When I read your post though, my question immediately was why cross the Mohave Desert in summer? Isn't that typically done at other times of the year?

Coach had 315s when we got it, but the steers rubbed on hard turns, plus we have 8-1/4" rims. Proper size for us is 12R22.5 and not the wider 315.

Carrying a spare is all about what type of risk taker you are, as there are risks involved regardless of which side you take in this argument. We carry a spare, and fortunately we also have a designated compartment behind the bumper for it. Why do we carry a spare, especially since I have on intention of even attempting to change it on my own? Simple - we carry a spare because we have a tire size getting somewhat difficult to find (12R22.5) and I don't want to sit for a few days while one is found, which will be the case if we have a flat in the hinterland or on a holiday weekend. Getting someone to come help change the tire is likely going to be easy. Finding the correct tire may not be. If you have a common size tire, and if you generally travel in places where tire dealers are going to be nearby with a stock on hand of what you will need, then it might be okay to travel without a spare. However, if you have an uncommon size or tire type it might be better to be prepared.

Couple of thoughts... Rooftop solar is handy, in that it's always there ready to go. But, it requires you to park in the sun for it to work. Hard to keep the bus cool if you're in the sun without running the a/c, and if you are able to run the a/c usually that means you're plugged in or on generator. In that case, you don't need solar. Rooftop solar is handy during cooler times of year where a/c is not as necessary, but then the sun is lower in the sky and not as effective. We decided to start our solar with ground-deployed units. We have three Zamp 180-watt folding units and can charge at 30-40 amps easily. We set up the three folding units to run in series instead of parallel, which give higher voltage and lower amperage. This allowed us to run a 50-foot cable to connect them to the coach, and having such a long cable means the coach can stay in the shade while the panels are out in the sun. Having ground-deployed solar has proven to be a blessing up here in Wisconsin where the sun is at a lower angle in the off season and where it makes a really wide swing in summer. We can angle the portable units to capture as much of the sun as possible, and in the summer will try to rotate them through the day to capture sun from dawn to dusk. Hard to do this with rooftop solar where the panels are generally speaking flat on the roof. Our charge controller is capable of running much more voltage and amperage than we currently have available. Eventually we hope to add a few panels to the roof. While we've found the ground-deployed panels great if we're going to be somewhere for a few days or more, they tend to be annoying to set up for just a day or two. With a few roof top panels we'll be able to charge the batteries on shorter stays easily, and even while parked in a lot out seeing the sights. Make sure that whatever you get for your charge controller gives you room to grow. It's easy to run out of capacity if you only get one big enough for the first few panels. Much easier and less expensive to just get the larger unit to start with.

Placement is as important as anything else. We've got one next to the front door so it's easy to grab by someone either in the front seats or as they enter the coach. Another extinguisher is in the very rear of the coach in the bedroom in case there is something making exit difficult or in case we're in the bedroom when something in the kitchen catches fire. Two more are located outside - one is on the driver's side in the electrical bay, a likely place where it will be needed. The other is on the curb side in the bay immediately forward of the engine compartment. I was going to put it in the engine compartment, but if that's where the problem is I thought perhaps I might not be able to get to it. I also have lettering on the outside of the bays housing the extinguishers which reads "Fire Extinguisher Inside" so that they can be found by anyone. Those bays are kept unlocked whenever we're on the road so that they are easily accessible. Another thing we did was to mark the bay where our propane tanks are located with a small black diamond which reads "LPG" so that first responders will know where our tanks are and not waste time looking.

Really - enough with the conspiracy theories & cries of fake news. The posting is public on the CHP - Susanville page. Take it up with them if you think it's fake. There is no point in us hashing this out here.

Not sure why people are so intent on showing how we're not seeing what we're seeing... Look under the rear of the coach body - you'll see a number of faint markingts on the ground which are parallel to the broader white marking. It is clearing something that scraped the ground and created a line. Since the body was traveling in a straight line it shouldn't be an issue that the scraping on the pavement is straight as well. The nose of the coach has white bumper. The bumper would have stuck out proud from the body a tad, so it makes sense that it bore the brunt of the weight. Also, note that the white line in question ends directly under the coach. I'd guess that the very end of it is directly under the front bumper. This is not a matter of 'fake news', it is just that we cannot see the entire situation from the few photos that we're privy to.

?? I didn't mention anything about FB or joining any other group. Just for more information to help track down the wipers.

Can you post a few more photos? Hard to see much from that close, so maybe a foot back or so and include a side view. Also, how long is the wiper? I've found that nearly every wiper you could need is out there, and it's rare that you have to change out the arm to get new wipers. A little more information and someone will have the part number for you, I'm confident.

Welcome to the FMCA Forum! My first thought is the pressure switch as well, but I'm a bit confused by the symptoms. If you let it hum for a bit after the water tap is shut off, how long does it run? If only for a few minutes more, then it's just building pressure to the pre-set limit. If, however, it just keeps running and running and doesn't ever stop, then what happens the next time you turn on the tap? Does the water shoot out and appear to be under much more than usual pressure? If the pump did truly keep pumping I'd think that the pressure would rise above what's normally seen in the system and would be noticeable.

It's important to consider not only the amp output of the solar charge controller, but the voltage it can handle as well. Our solar panels are wired in a combination parallel/series. Putting them in series increases the voltage and reduces the required cable size for connecting the solar bank to the charge controller. We chose our solar charge controller so that it could handle the anticipated voltage after we add a few more panels. Always good to consider future expansion.

Interior or exterior? What are you attempting to mount?

First thought would be a leak. Sometimes difficult to see, so you'll have to get in all the nooks and crannies to inspect while it's running. Might require cover panels to be removed to find it.