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Date Posted |
Forum
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RE: Weak headlights
Definitely get the HIDs. Go to The Retrofit Source and see if anything fits your headlight type. I made a set of HIDs for my 2002 Grand Prix that were 10000% better than stock. Just make sure they are aimed properly....
https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/y134/Burbman/high_beams_1998_2018_thought_this_belonged_here_39307865_(2).jpg width=640
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BurbMan
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10/22/20 07:36am |
Class A Motorhomes
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RE: Travel Trailer Rubber Roof Repair Options. Help needed ASAP
Roof Armor will be $4K+, they do a nice job but if you look at the steps it's very labor intensive. You can get Heng's Roof Coating and roll it on for $50/gal, but that's just another layer of EDPM...usually the rubber membrane itself is not what's leaking unless it has had puncture damage from a tree limb, etc. Usually the leaks are at seal points like vents, TV antenna, etc. You're not seeing drips inside because the water is being absorbed by the flakeboard roof sheathing and insulation. When it gets saturated, it will drip down a wall and start to rot the floor.
I think the plan you have now is best to get you through the winter, and is what I was going to suggest. You really have to play detective, find out what's leaking, where the water is coming in and how extensive the damage is before you formulate a plan to fix it. Usually you only see about 10% of the damage, so figure that soft spot where there's nothing behind the rubber roof is about 1/10 of what needs to be fixed.
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BurbMan
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10/22/20 06:27am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Brake shoe size 2007 Cedar Creek Silverback
Crawl under the rig and there should be a sticker on the axle tube that identifies the mfr, model #, load rating etc. of the axle. Use that to look up brake info on etrailer. Most trailers, unless really large or small, have 12x2 brakes.
I did brakes on my Terry in 2017 and got 4 self-adjusting brake assemblies, new drums, bearing and seals for $400 with free shipping. Speaking of which, be aure to get self adjusting!
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BurbMan
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10/21/20 01:52pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Buying from a private party
Nada is a good resource, but demand is thru the roof due to COVID. Dealer inventory is at an all time low and the factories can't keep up with demand. The flip side is that you can ask a premium price for your RV too, so it's all relative.
RV Trader website is a good resource, you can look up the make/model B that you are looking at locally and see what other similar ones are selling for around the US.
You should also run your class A thru NADA as well and get an idea of what they say it's worth, then look up your model on RV Trader and see what they are selling for. That should give you some idea if the seller's "asking premium" is reasonable in this market.
Never hurts to go look at it, if you like it, offer what you think it's worth. There are a lot of variables like low mileage, stored indoors, new tires, transferrable warranty, luxury upgrades, etc., that may justify the asking price.
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BurbMan
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10/21/20 10:12am |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
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RE: Rotted plywood ceiling, can it be replaced and reglued
The rubber is typically not glued down to the roof. Watch some YouTube videos on how trailers are made. They roll out the rubber on the plywood, and it's secured at the edges by the trim and also where the a/c, hatches and vents come thru. You should be able to re-use that rubber with no issues. If it's torn, use some EternaBond tape to seal the tears. I just completed a rebuild of a water-damaged truck camper (see link in my signature) and used EternaBond to seal all of the corner seams to prevent any future leaks. In my case, the roof was fine, but every window was leaking.
Most trailers are framed with 1x and 2x material with 1/4" ply on the exterior walls, 1/8" ply on the inside, and 3/8" (or optional upgraded 1/2") plywood on the roof. If you have basic skills they are easy to repair, the biggest challenges are the time it takes and having a dry place to work. I rigged up a 30x40 tarp over the camper with a rope system to keep it off the roof so I could work under it. The winds beat the **** out of the tarp, so I wound up with a 20x30 tarp on top of that one as a rain fly, and it help us nicely, even in tropical storm Isaias. The tarp was up a total of 4 months and kept everything dry while the camper walls were open.
I would also check the floors for soft spots, water that comes in up top usually finds its way into the floor framing at some point.
You say "converting it into a full time home"...if the trailer is already located where it will stay you may want to consider a metal lean to roof like this one from the get go instead of temporary tarps.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/71/8a/e9/718ae94c76ead7b7eb83d3c35005ee89.jpg width=640
If you mean full-timing in the trailer while you travel around, then you need to pay attention to weight of materials used and good strength so it withstands bumps and flexing going down the road. I used a LOT of PL Max construction adhesive on mine.
Post pics if you can, like GDE I've done this 3x now and have a ton of resources in my files.
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BurbMan
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10/21/20 09:53am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Help figuring out DOT tire code
No, they don't. The other side of the tire has the same DOT code but no stamp.
Interesting, these tires were made in the 3rd week of Sept, our trailer was built in Oct that year, and we took delivery right after Thanksgiving.
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BurbMan
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10/21/20 06:28am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: How to winterize batteries on the TT?
Just leave the TT plugged in and the batteries connected so they get a trickle charge over the winter from the converter.
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BurbMan
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10/21/20 06:19am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Stripping down a rotten camper
Swimmer, you're not clear on what the end game is here. If you are only trying to save the frame to make a car trailer out of it, then @bobsyouruncle has the best idea. Leave the junk at the dump and bring home the part you're working on.
IF you want to surgically disassemble the trailer and save the salvageable components you will need to build a shelter to keep it dry in the process.
This is what I built to keep the camper dry ofr the 4 months it took to rebuild it. Before you laugh at the design, it survived Isaias....
https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/y134/Burbman/Lance%20811/.highres/20200503_112542_zpsgoqo3itp.jpg width=640
https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/y134/Burbman/Lance%20811/.highres/20200506_191246_zpsny4iwo0a.jpg width=640
https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/y134/Burbman/Lance%20811/.highres/20200503_211443_zpsrqdke738.jpg width=640
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BurbMan
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10/20/20 06:43pm |
Do It Yourself Modifications and Upgrades (DIY)
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RE: Accident with tow vehicle right before big camping trip?
Dave, good info on insurance and thanks for posting that. BUT...it's less about what your insurance policy will cover based on assignment of fault and more about what rental companies will rent you a vehicle that you can tow with.
Just because the ins co gives you the $$$ to rent a tow vehicle doesn't mean the rental company has to allow you to tow with it.
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BurbMan
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10/20/20 05:46pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: bigfoot leveling info straight from the top
Ah OK, I was confused by your signature, says you have a 5er and a TC. I missed the Leprechaun reference at the end. Makes more sense now talking about a C.:)
Doug is right, damage to the piston from overextension is nothing like what it would be with the C rolling off the jack because the back wheels were in the air.
The correct way to level in that situation would be to drive the rear wheels up on boards or Lynx Levelers to get close to level, then use the hydraulics to fine tune. You probably don't want to unload the suspension more than halfway to be sure you have adequate weight and rolling resistance on the tires. That probably makes the effective range on the Bigfoots about 2" +/-. Surprised they told you differently at the factory.
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BurbMan
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10/20/20 10:47am |
Tech Issues
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RE: Atwood Furnace - no air thru ducts
I was thinking there might be a damper or something inside the unit that would enable you to set how much air goes thru the ducts vs the main grille. I wonder if a piece of sheet metal blocking a portion of the main grille would serve that function and force more air thru the ducts? Or would the unit just overheat and shut down....
The t-stat is on the wall directly across from the unit, so when it comes on it quickly heats up the immediate area and shuts off. After a few minutes of natural convection with the hot air going up into the cabover area and the cold air flowing down, the heater lights again. So the result is a lot of short cycling. It got down to about 39* up in the PA mountains last weekend and it seemed like the furnace was only off for 2-3 mins before it would start up again.
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BurbMan
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10/20/20 09:04am |
Tech Issues
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Atwood Furnace - no air thru ducts
I have an older Atwood furnace in my 2002 Lance 811 truck camper. Looks like this:
https://cdn10.bigcommerce.com/s-qmswsikue/products/627/images/2347/Atwood_Everest_Star_Furnace_36542__12388.1461684939.1280.1280.jpg?c=2 width=440
It works great and boy does it put out the heat from the main grill like you see in the picture.
The issue is there are also 4 connected ducts: one for the holding tanks, one in the bathroom, one in the bedroom, and one by the floor under the sink. Very little if any air comes out of these ducts. The ductwork appears to be connected and not crushed or obstructed, so I don't see any obvious reason why there is no airflow.
Anybody familiar with this model that can give me some pointers on where to look?
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BurbMan
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10/20/20 08:29am |
Tech Issues
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RE: bigfoot leveling info straight from the top
So you have these installed on your 5er? If you're bringing the back up in a steep driveway does that mean you pulled in? Or does the driveway slope toward the garage and you're backed in?
Glad you like the levelers but not making much sense of your post
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BurbMan
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10/20/20 08:16am |
Tech Issues
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RE: Help figuring out DOT tire code
Looks like this, and as was noted, will only be on one side of the tire. My luck, it's always on the inside...
This tire was made in the 38th week of 2007.
https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/y134/Burbman/2002%20Sunnybrook%203310/DOT.jpg width=640
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BurbMan
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10/20/20 07:21am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Are other drivers killing your RV experience?
I live on LI, NY so to go anywhere you have to deal with it. Once I'm done with the Long Island and Cross Bronx Expressways everything else is a piece of cake.
Haha Amen!
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BurbMan
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10/19/20 03:25pm |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Considering building camper from scratch...
Yup, the luann was only the substrate for the filon. Laminating the filon back on was not that hard and makes for a nice finished look, or you can do aluminum. There are a bunch of surplus/salvage places around the RV manufacturing hubs in IN and OR, you can find a lot of what you need for cheap. That's what we did...
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BurbMan
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10/19/20 10:58am |
Truck Campers
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Rebuilt Lance 811: Maiden Voyage
Took off this weekend on the first trip in the camper, about 600 miles all in:
https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/y134/Burbman/First_trip.JPG width=640
First stop Fri nite was Gifford Pinchot State Park. Very nice park. Got a site with no hookups. Temps dropped down to the 40* range overnight and furnace ran quite a bit. Good to know that I can get a full night of heavy furnace use from my single battery.
Also watched a movie on Netflix connecting the Roku to the Verizon JetPack, worked flawlessly! Everything ran on 12v, no inverter needed.
Did not put the jacks down and DW didn't like the way the camper moved when you walk around in it.
While we were nice and toasty under the covers, it felt like you were sleeping with your head in the refrigerator...stopped at a Wal*Mart on Saturday and picked up a "body pillow" which is basically a 56" long pillow. Fit perfectly between the front of the mattress and the front wall and was just what we needed for insulation.
Spent Saturday in Gettysburg. They now have an app you can download ($10) that narrates a self-directed driving tour. Was well worth the money and guided you around the battlefield with 16 designated stops as points of interest. Had no issues maneuvering around with the camper, and it was nice stopping halfway to make a sandwich!
Sat nite we stopped at Deer Run Camping Resort so we'd have water and electric. I disconnected the tie downs and put the jacks down to level the camper. I only raised the camper enough to level it, and didn't fully unloaded the suspension of the truck, so the camper was being supported both by the truck and the jacks and felt really solid.
I was concerned about the oversize tires on the truck (325/65 on stock 18x8 factory rims), but aired the rears to 80 and fronts to 60 and it ran really nice. Very stable in the wind, very little side-to-side rocking, even over uneven roads and pulling off of the pavement in a few spots. I don't see any immediate need for suspension mods. I was going to lose the leveling kit and go to smaller tires at some point, but am re-thinking that and may stay with what I've got for the next set too.
Had no issues running at 70 on the interstates (once the traffic broke up LOL).
To do list:
1. Need to install shelves about each bedroom side window for extra storage.
2. Need a better voltage gauge to keep an eye on 12v system and easily reference the state of charge based on voltage.
3. Need a 120v voltage gauge or something. Used to be able confirm that shore power was on if the clock was lit on the microwave, but we took the microwave out....
4. Need limo tint on the windows...DW took down all the blinds.
5. Need to replace the vintage Atwood furnace thermostat with something digital to reduce the short-cycling.
The HappiJac spring-loaded tie-downs say to compress the spring 1/4" on the fronts and 1/8" on the rears. I had them dialed in prefectly. then when I reistalled them after leveling the camper Sat nite, the rears were loose, i.e. no tension on them. I readjusted.
Got home Sun night and the rears were loose again. Wondering how long the break-in phase will last and at what point do they stop needing adjustment?
Overall great trip and really enjoyed the camper!!
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BurbMan
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10/19/20 10:47am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Considering building camper from scratch...
Urbex, totally do-able! Check the link in my sig to the Lance renovation we just finished. About 4 months of evenings and weekends. Major water damage, but we got the camper for free.. I think $5k is a reasonable budget, we spent a little less than that on the refurb. The money isn't so much in the construction as it is in the appliances and furnishings.
What amazed me in this process is the weight/strength of the construction. Only 1/4" luann on the outside, 1/8" luann on the inside and 1x2 framing, but glue it all together with construction adhesive and it's strong!!
It's nice to have a blank sheet of paper to customize it for the way you want to camp.
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BurbMan
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10/19/20 10:18am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Do propane fire pits put out any heat?
YES they put out a fair amount of heat. Here is a clicky to the link that richclover provided, we have the same firebowl.
The lava rocks do retain heat and it's easy to make s'mores and toast hot dogs. The fire is hot enough to enjoy in all but the coldest conditions.
A wood fire will put out more heat but ONLY after it's been burning several hours and has established several inches of ember bed.
Comparing to a wood fire is like comparing a gas grill to charcoal. For most of us the convenience tips the scales, but there will always be purists that won't cook over anything but charcoal.
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BurbMan
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10/19/20 09:13am |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Front hitch
No welding needed, I just installed a Curt front hitch on my truck and it bolted right in, no drilling, no welding. Needed to trim the plastic air dam a little.
Here's the eTrailer link to the hitch that fits your truck.
Two issues with having it up too high are visibility and airflow. If you plan to carry bikes, they will seriously block your vision if they are up too high. In my case, I am using my front hitch for a cooler rack, and a 100-qt cooler will block airflow to the radiator if up too high.
Also beware of bolt-on receivers that mount where your tow hooks are, you don't want to lose use of those when you have a 4x4.
The etrailer link above also has tons of pics of what it looks like installed.
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BurbMan
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10/19/20 09:05am |
Tow Vehicles
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