richard5933

Macon Battery 478-781-7880 https://maconbattery.com Looks like they are near Perry. Never dealt with them directly, but they are listed as a dealer for a at least a few different battery lines such as Trojan. I've had better luck with battery dealers as opposed to RV repair places. They often have more knowledge and more selection. Also likely to have fresher stock.

Coach, car, boat, plane, or whatever you're buying. The point still stands. Take your time deciding what to buy - do your research and ask lots of questions. Don't be afraid of wasting a salesperson's time - that's what they're there for. If there's an RV show around, go and talk to other RV owners at the show and learn what you can. Other owners of the make/model you're interested in will give you lots of information the salespeople won't or can't give you. But, when/if you find the coach you like, if the price is right, and if it checks out with the mechanic, then that's the time to buy. I almost lost out on our current coach taking too long to decide. I'm not trying to push anyone to buy anything, it's just that I've seen more than a few threads like this where a potential buyer found what they liked and then hemmed and hawed too long and someone else ended up driving 'their' new coach away. Good luck and welcome!

In my experience, the best time to buy a vehicle is when you find the vehicle you want/like at a good price.

Yup - our filters also need to be filled before installing. No electric pump or manual primer on our rig. Instead of carrying a can of diesel, which some do, I carry a simple rubber bulb fuel siphon that is diesel rated. If there is need to change fuel filters on the road, I'll siphon some fuel from the tank into a small bucket to use for pre-filling. Everyone with a diesel engine should familiarize themselves with the process of changing a fuel filter, including how to pre-fill or prime the system. It's hard to predict when & where filters will clog and cause a problem. Preventative maintenance is very helpful, but it only takes a small amount of contaminated fuel to really cause a filter problem, and it seems that the filters choose the worst possible place and time to clog up. Great reminder for everyone with a diesel.

Is this thread about gasoline cans or propane bottles?

390 Ah @ 6v We've got four, wired in series/parallel, which gives a total of 780 Ah @ 12v.

Eight batteries doesn't mean much without knowing the capacity of the batteries. We've got only four 6-volt batteries, but it gives us 780 Ah @ 12v since they are Trojan L16 batteries. With a 2000-watt inverter I can run up to about 1800 watts of continuous load safely. Figuring a 50% max draw down, that means I can run at 1800 watts for about 2-1/2 hours. Doesn't really matter was that 1800 watts is, as long as the total never exceeds 1800 watts. Here's a website where one can input the load being placed in the inverter in ac and calculate the load being drawn from the battery bank. https://www.batterystuff.com/kb/tools/ac-to-dc-amperage-conversion-run-through-an-inverter.html If I input the data from above for running a residential fridge of 1.7 amps @ 120vac, that equals about 18.77 amps dc. I assume that the fridge will cycle on only about 1/2 of the time once it gets cold. That gives me the following calculations: 780 Ah/2 = 390 Ah of usable capacity. Divide 390 Ah by 18.77 amps and then x2 since the fridge is only running about 1/2 the time = about 41.5 hours of run time if the only thing running was the residential fridge. Of course, there are other things being run off the battery like the fans, lights, water pump, etc., so the actual time between running the generator would be less. Solar would of course make it longer. For comparison, our 12v fridge only draws 5 amps. If we only run our fridge the run time would be 156 hours using the same calculations. Of course we have other loads so we can't go this long on battery alone, but since we also have solar, the time can be extended even longer between generator use and/or plugging in. If it's possible to either run the generator or plug in every day or so, then a residential fridge would be able to run on most decent sized battery banks, but you've got to do the math using your own numbers to see how long you can run. I'm not trying to push anyone to choose one type of fridge over another. Makes no difference to me. I'm just trying to help by showing how we did the calculations to determine what we needed when I set up our battery banks and installed appliances.

Remember though, the information that's listed on the fridge will be for the 120v operation. That information has to be converted to the actual draw on the house batteries. It takes about 10 amps @ 12vdc to produce 1 amp @ 120vac using the typical inverter. That means that the load on the house batteries is actually 17 amps, not 1.7 and this is all in addition to whatever loss is involved plus the current draw for the inverter just to keep it running. Your Samsung sounds like it draws 39 amps from your batteries at startup and 17 amps after, which would run a typical factory-installed battery bank down pretty quickly. Contrast with a 12vdc compressor fridge which will draw only about 5-7amps @ 12vdc to operate. Both options are doable, but it's important to keep the higher current needs of the residential in mind when sizing battery banks. With our 12v compressor fridge we can go 4-5 days dry camping with no solar operating and without running the generator. Maybe 2-3 if the furnace is running. You learn to carefully manage battery use when you want to dry camp in silence (no generator).

I know that residential refrigerators are becoming more and more common, but if dry camping is what you're after you might consider a 12v compressor fridge. They are typically smaller than a residential unit, but they can run longer using the available battery storage. Our is about the size of many RV fridges, but they do come larger. The downside is the cost, which is typically much higher than a low-end residential. Another option is for you to add capacity to your house battery bank so that you can run the inverter longer without having to run the generator. Or, you can add solar to keep charging the batteries while you're dry camping.

That works, but I'm curious if you've even had to back out of a road? This would be more of a concern for me on secondary roads, especially since around here they seem prone to post the height & weight warning after the last turnoff to avoid the restriction.

I don't want to get the thread off topic, but now that you've brought it up here's a quote from the New York State Police website (the incident above happened in NY): The maximum allowable height is 13 feet 6 inches. The maximum allowable width is: On any highway, 96 inches (8 feet) including load. On any qualifying or access highway, 102 inches (8 feet) including load. And one from the Federal Highway Administration: There is no Federal vehicle height requirement for CMVs. Thus, States may set their own height restrictions. Most height limits range from 13 feet, 6 inches (4.11 meters) to 14 feet (4.27 meters), with exceptions granted for lower clearance on particular roads. -------------------------------------------------- The Newmar King Aire is 13'-4" according to their website. As I said, that's pretty close to the limit in lots of the US, and not at all different from the bus involved in the collision. According to the data I've found online from the various states that regulate vehicles, most eastern states have a maximum vehicle height of 13'-6". Most western states are set at 14', although a few of those require permit for anything over 13'-6". Not at all sure where you're getting the commercial coach height of 14'-6" from, as it would seem to violate regulations in most states without having a permit. The double deck buses seen on the roads in the US, such as those used by Go Transit and others come in models which are only 13'-6" in height. Unless one is planning to drive only in the Western US, then assuming a safe clearance of anything over 13'-6" is unwise. And 13'-6" applies only to the Interstate system, as all bets are off on secondary roads. All that said, I'm not sure why it was necessary to get into the minutiae of all this. My first post on the thread was merely trying to point out the importance of having the correct and current information regarding clearance height along your route. That point still stands, since the bridge in the incident I linked to was much lower than 13'-6", and had the driver been given the proper information the accident would never have occurred.

Great example of due diligence. Love it!

Generally speaking, probably correct. Unless you're following one about to hit a bridge. (Just here in SE Wisconsin, I've seen way too many semi trucks hitting overpasses. Usually on secondary roads, but also on ramps and approach roads.)

Comparing vehicles was not my point. But, let's compare... That bus was a pretty typical charter bus - legal on the roads, so it's no taller than any motor home can be (13ft 6in). I've seen many new RVs at the FMCA rally this summer that came **** near the legal limit, and certainly there are many Class A rigs on the road just as tall and just as long as that bus. The problem in this case was that the road the bus was traveling on has many bridges which have low clearance, some lower than 8 feet. Had the driver known this, and had he been using an appropriate GPS unit, the accident probably wouldn't have happened. My point was simply that 'winging it' is not good enough when driving a large and heavy vehicle. Whoever put that automobile GPS in the charter bus thought the driver could 'wing it' with that and get by. People nearly got killed. It was by the grace of God that they didn't. My point was that we all have an obligation to have information which is as current and correct as is possible. If someone feels better able to do so with a current trucker's atlas, so be it. If someone has a GPS unit which shows the relevant information which is correct and current, and they are able to use it to safely navigate the roads, then go with that. Winging it? Not for me.

Winging it is an option, but not an option I'd take by choice. Here's one result of someone using the wrong type of GPS while driving a bus: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2018/04/09/overpass-scrapes-roof-off-bus-students-injured/498114002/ Your buddy has been fortunate and blessed. Not everyone has such good luck. Maps and atlas can be good, but they don't update often enough for me. I have them in the coach for backup and to double check when needed. We rely on the Garmin RV GPS for most routing. When we have to do it manually we use other resources, including doing a dry run on Google Maps or Google Earth. Most important is to pay attention to signs and markings, no matter if using a GPS, trucker atlas, or any other type of reference. A good co-pilot is invaluable as well. We try and keep two sets of eyes awake and on the road as much as possible. Unless you can find a reliable app on your phones that incorporate height & weight limitations in real time, I'd strongly suggest you get something like a trucker or RV GPS unit. They are not that expensive and come with lifetime map updates. Some even include lifetime traffic alerts. I've been on Interstates that suddenly had a detour to the frontage road or a smaller road. Once you're off the main Interstate, it becomes really important to be able to confirm upcoming height & weight restrictions quickly. My one routing screw-up involved a too-steep road. After backing down about a mile of narrow road, I'm extra careful when planning routes now. I was lucky that it only involved stalling out, not something worse.

http://www.truckrouter.com/

In my experience they come in multiple colors. I've never noticed a difference. I carry a handful of spares, as well as the tool to change them.

Welcome from SE Wisconsin! Glad to have you join the fun. Nice looking coach!

There was an accident in SE Wisconsin in 1994 which killed five of a family's children when their van hit some metal road debris. Ever since then, I've noticed debris as I pass it on the road. Once I had cell phone I have it a habit now to call 911 to report road debris if it's possible to hopefully avoid another tragedy. You were lucky that the only damage was to your rear flap. It really emphasizes how important it is to do a full walk-around inspection at every stop.

In the very first post it when the original problem was mentioned, it was noted that there was no power to the fridge. Is the fridge on this coach being powered by the inverter? If so, and if the inverter was turned on while the battery dropped from 14v+ down to 12.25v, that would be the answer.

With these voltage readings it's pretty clear that you are charging the batteries while plugged into shore power. That's why your voltage goes up when plugged in. The problem is that after only 30 minutes your voltage is down to 12.24 volts, which is quite low for only 30 minutes. There are only two possible reasons that your batteries will drop down to 12.24 after such a short period of time. Either there is something drawing power from the batteries or the batteries are not taking a charge. If there is something drawing down your batteries, you've got to start searching to see what it is. Somewhere in your coach you have something using battery power, and until you find it this and fix it this will keep happening. If you have absolutely nothing drawing current from your batteries, then the only other problem is the batteries themselves. A sure-fire way to determine which of these is the problem would be to let the charger run at 14.38v (or whatever it's charging at) for a full day. Then disconnect the GROUND wire(s) from your batteries. Take pictures first so you can put them back the same way. Measure the voltage about an hour after disconnecting the ground cable. Measure it again a day later. It should be nearly the same. If the ground cable is disconnected and there is no voltage drop, then the problem is something drawing from the batteries when they are connected. If the voltage drops even with the ground cable disconnected, then the problem is the batteries themselves.

I've got two Garmin units - one is an older nuvi 3590 LMT in the car and the other is the RV 760 LMT. The 760 is the one I'm talking about, and it's not a hybrid. Don't even know what a hybrid GPS unit is. They both have the same traffic receiver and both handle traffic the same way. The traffic re-routing feature can be easily turned on/off, and it's really great if you are getting near a city which you are unfamiliar with as it will take you around the traffic areas so you don't inadvertently end up being stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic or get stuck on a route which is closed for construction. Traffic and road construction are not features of the regular maps - they are features of the traffic receiver. Both of my Garmins are LMT units. I believe that it's possible to buy a stripped-down version without the traffic features, and if you're not using the power cord with the traffic receiver you also won't have traffic routing. The name of the unit, RV 760 LMT says it all ... The LM is for lifetime maps, and the T is for traffic. Don't know what settings you and your user friends have, but mine does have settings where a user can elect to have the Garmin route around traffic. That's the whole purpose of the traffic receiver which is built into the power cord. The traffic receiver is the black rectangular part about 6" from the small end of the cord. If you do have the LMT version of the Garmin and don't have the traffic routing options, then perhaps it's time to run an update? I update both of my units at least every couple of months to get the latest maps and software updates. Garmin has software called Garmin Express which you use on a PC to update the units.

Not really. The way to get the discount at Flying J/Pilot was mentioned long ago...get a Good Sam membership or a corporate account.

I joined FMCA to be part of the community that is FMCA. I joined Good Sam, Passport America, and one other that I can't remember right now to get discounts.

Contact the state insurance commission and see what rights you have. They vary from state to state. As the injured party I would think that they have to talk to you. I'd also contact an attorney. One well written letter to both the shop and the insurance company might get things moving.