richard5933

And don't just do a visual inspection of the ground straps/cables - give them a good tug to make sure that the inner conductor is still intact and not rotted out. There might be multiple ground straps/cables: between the battery bank and the chassis, between the engine and the chassis, and sometime between the transmission and chassis.

Glad it worked out well. Sounds like that break for a beer was all that you needed to get things back on track.

I got nearly my entire punch list completed and we had a successful one-night shakedown cruise this weekend. Went to a nearby resort area and stayed the night at the Walmart. Ran all systems except a/c (still need heat here at night). Owning an older conversion like ours always involves maintenance and systems checks, so we start each season with one of these shakedown overnights. Found one fuel fitting dripping on the generator - probably wasn't tightened properly after recent fuel pump repair. Got it snugged up it seems ok. and Otherwise the mechanicals are doing ok. Now I have two major annoyances to work out, both involving moisture being where it shouldn't. First is water leaking into one of my luggage bays - apparently the water is entering above somewhere and dripping from the bay ceiling. I found water working its way down the outside wall of the bathroom cabinet directly above the bay. At first I thought it was the plumbing, but the moisture in that wall is 6+ inches above any plumbing, leading me to think it's a roof leak (or window leak) working its way down the outer wall of the bus. There are at least 3 roof openings (vents, etc) above that area, so it's logical. I guess I'll be making friends with my caulking gun the next sunny day we have. The second leak is a very slow drip (2-3 drops/day) coming from the discharge port on my black tank. My black tank is an older polyethylene tank with screwed-on bronze flange fittings. There is only a thin rubber gasket sealing the flange to the tank. Last year I had to reseal the same type fitting on the fresh water tank. I used a slightly softer gasket and a thin coat of silicone sealant to help ensure contact. A year later that one is still holding tight. No money in the budget to replace the tanks right now, so onward with the repair. Biggest annoyance will be getting to the area and pulling the flange fitting from the black tank. The screws are somewhat blocked by the valve body. Pulling the tank is possible if I can't do this with the tank in situ, but that would be a royal PITA. It's been leaking for a while I guess, since someone smeared the area with sealant at some time in the past. You can see the four screws on the flange in the photo - all are accessible but I suspect I'll need some knuckle bandages by the time I'm done. I'm not panicked over it, but I don't like the idea of the black tank dripping into the bay, so it's on the list for this week. At least they're both only major in annoyance, not in actual problem level. Oh - the joy of an older rig! (BTW, for those that remember the other thread, the secondary black-tank valve I added is doing its job beautifully. It's the white valve in the photo.)

Hydraulic jacks are generally not accepted as a safety backup. Also important to remember is that you have to know where on the chassis to support the coach if you are going to place jack stands. You are not trying to support the axles or any part of the suspension - you are trying to support the coach chassis and body. There are specific points rated to support the chassis. Put the jack stands in other places and they might just punch holes in the floor of the coach as it drops down. Best bet is to call the chassis/coach support phone number and get specifics on where it's recommended that your specific layout be supported while you are underneath.

Do you have good handrails on both sides of the steps? That would be my first thought. Of course, teaching the dogs to jump up on their own would probably help too. Maybe getting them a lightweight step would allow them to be on their own, leaving you free to use the handrails.

The give-a-way for me was the faint text going across the top of the grill - too much text for a Dodge and it looked somewhat like an old Chevy pickup grill. The hub caps were confusing though, since they resemble the old Dodge delta pattern logo. That GMC motor home your customer had was (and still is) a rig with a cult-like following. Pretty ground-breaking technology for a motor home when it was released, with front-wheel drive, no rear axle, and air-bag suspension.

Chevrolet Sportscoach?

The website for the fans is horrible now on the Dometic site compared to when it was independent. Not surprising they couldn't be any help. Didn't you get a remote for each of the fans?

Sounds like it's getting to the point where you have to weigh the cost of having the board tested against the cost of just replacing it and hoping that fixes it. Of course, first you'd want to run through all the other troubleshooting steps like RayIN mentioned about making sure all connections are clean and tight.

For us the 315s work well, except for the extra width which creates a rub point on full turns. That's the main reason we're going back to 12R22.5 as soon as the bank account allows.

The modern 'equivalent' would be 315/80R22.5 tires. They are about the same outside diameter, but they are a touch wider. Some use a 295/R2.5 as a replacement - all depends on the specs of each tire. The 12R22.5 is still in use, although it's not that common anymore. It is one of those tire sizes where carrying a spare (even if unmounted) would be an advantage if you travel in out-of-the-way places were a replacement tire might be hard to find.

I love that front privacy curtain. Homemade?

Yeah - that was my thought, that the new water heater would require a new switch setup. Glad you found what you need. Post a few photos when you have a minute so that others doing the same upgrade will know what to expect.

Welcome to the forum Ron. Are you wiring this to same remote switch as you had on the old water heater or a new one that came with the new water heater?

Please let us know how you like those tires - they are on top of my list for when I replace my tires later this year.

You can rate a topic (see top of thread) but I don't think you can 'like' a comment.

If the tank monitors use sensors inside the tank, the first step would be to confirm that they are clean. Fresh water sensors could have lots of mineral buildup if hard water was used in the tank, and the gray/black tank sensors would have the usual buildup of crud.

Interesting concept. I've read about some owners doing the same thing by incorporating a large battery bank/inverter into their generator system. I imagine that this allows for the use of a smaller generator than would be required if running just on generator, as the inverter can help fill the short-term heavier loads imposed by things like starting a/c units, etc. All that's really required to set this up is a control system that automatically can shift the source to meet the load. Nice that they've incorporated it all into one package. Have you seen this installed and in use yet?

Gorgeous woodwork inside that coach. But, you've got a ways to go to consider that an 'oldie' - compared to mine it's barely broken in. Welcome and happy trails!

If it is the board, isn't there a company making an 'improved' version of the control board for these older fridges?

Maybe using something like this? https://marine.steelerubber.com/drip-rail-70-3851-360 It's white and would possibly blend in with the roof.

I just looked up the Arizona vehicle registration site - it looks like instead of paying the sales tax you get to pay a vehicle tax every year as part of the fee to register your vehicle. Different than how we do it here, where we pay sales tax at time of purchase and only pay a small registration fee every year for our tags. Every state does it differently, but in the end they all get their money.

Don't they collect the tax when you go to register the used vehicle at the DMV? That's why when I've bought vehicles from out of state I don't register it there, just get a temporary tag for the trip home. When I bought my current coach it was in NJ. I had the seller overnight the title to me, and I was able to register it in Wisconsin before leaving home. They calculated tax based on the sales price (one-time tax). I flew to NJ with the plates for the coach and never even had to talk to the NJ DMV.

Just be careful that whatever you do is done in a way that when it fails, and it will eventually, it doesn't take the a/c units with it or allow the condensate to back up inside the coach. This will depend on your particular remedy, but I'm thinking that there should be some way for a failed condensate pump to overflow in a safe way before it backs up into the a/c unit or into the coach.

You should have only had to pay tax in one of the two states. If you paid tax in the state where you bought the rig and then immediately took it to another state to register it (that had a higher tax), you should have only had to pay any difference in the tax. I have bought many cars from another state, and I specifically told the dealer that I was going to register it in another state. They didn't charge me sales tax. Unless Arizona does things differently, if you were not going to register that coach in Arizona you shouldn't have had to pay taxes there. All you needed was temporary tags to get you home. If you never registered the coach in Arizona you should definitely contact them to find out if you can file for a refund of the taxes that probably shouldn't have been collected there. Regarding the $120... My point was that even though my annual registration is only $120, I certainly pay in other ways. In 2019 Wisconsin was ranked at 16th highest tax burden (9.15% overall) and Colorado was ranked at 34th highest tax burden (8.15%). https://wallethub.com/edu/states-with-highest-lowest-tax-burden/20494/ You may have paid more for your registration, but your overall state tax burden is still considerably lower than mine. If you only look at one piece of the equation it's easy for things to look really wrong.