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Date Posted |
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RE: Water pressure regulator
I use a "fixed pressure" regulator. With my first pressure regulator, I had low pressure in the RV (shower, sink, etc). So I bought another "fixed pressure" regulator and now things are great.
So there are two explanations for this:
1. First regulator was bad
2. First regulator was the 40 pound kind and the second was the 60 pound kind.
In any case the second regulator solved the problem.
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alsimon96
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03/09/10 06:29pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Electric / Propane
We are currently at an RV Park in Texas for three months. When you are in camp that long you have time on your hands. So every morning I check the Electric Meter reading and record it in a spread sheet.
At this campground they charge $0.17 per KW and I pay $20 for a 30 lb tank of propane.
When the refrigerator is on electric, it consistently adds 5 KW ($0.85) each day. That will be over $25 per month (more than the cost of a tank of propane).
So my decision is to use propane for refrigerator, hot water, and furnace. I can't say for sure but it sure looks to me that propane is cheaper.
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alsimon96
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03/01/10 06:52pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Hot Water Heater Problem
I recently had some problems with my Atwood Water Heater. In the process of fixing the problem, I discovered the following:
1. If you turn on gas only, it will attempt to light 3 times and if it does not stay lit on the third try, the warning light will come on.
2. If you have gas and electric on and the gas fails to light, the warning light will not come on. So if you are trying to use gas, don't turn electric on because you will never get the warning light.
3. If it fails to stay lit after three tries, don't give up. Turn the gas off and back on. It will then try three more times. It takes a while for the propane to make it through the pipes to the heater. I have sometimes had to repeat the process four times before it would stay lit.
Good Luck.
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alsimon96
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01/30/10 12:30pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Atwood Water Heater Control Panel
After making the post on 1/17/10, the problem came back. I talked with customer service at Atwood (they were very helpful and patient even though my unit was long out of warranty). They were not surprised with the conditions that I was reporting.
Here is apparently what was happening - the water was getting TOO HOT creating a cutoff condition. This meant that the warning light came on with either electric or gas.
Customer service said it could be either the thermostat or the control module. Price for thermostat (less than $15), price for control module (over $125).
So I went ahead and changed the thermostat and everything has been working fine for a full week.
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alsimon96
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01/28/10 10:10am |
Tech Issues
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RE: Atwood Water Heater Control Panel
My hot water heater has started working normal (as described in the posts above).
I don't know why it was acting so goofy. I am reasonably sure it was not operator error. I am fairly savvy on stuff like this. And it has been working properly for several years. And all the switches, modes, indicators, etc. that were described above worked as advertised.
Then all of a sudden last night, the indicator light would come on for either switch. Also, the gas would not light. When I went to bed, I turned the gas switch to OFF and the electric switch to ON. The indicator light was also on. This morning we had hot water. So that means the electric heater was working even though the light was on.
The only possible explanation is we had very heavy rains for several days. Perhaps high humidity had something to do with it. I opened the water heater panel (on the outside) but everything looked just fine.
Anyhow, thanks for your suggestions. For sure it gave me the confidence that I more or less knew what I thought I knew.
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alsimon96
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01/17/10 12:30am |
Tech Issues
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RE: Atwood Water Heater Control Panel
Well the problem with my water heater may be worse than I thought in my first post.
Now, when I put the electric on or when I put the LP on, the red light comes on immediately. I hope my description is clear.
When I throw the electric switch, the red light comes on immediately. It goes off when I turn the electric off.
Also, when I throw the LP switch, the light comes on immediately. It goes off when I turn the LP off.
At this point, I'm not sure if it is heating the water. I will know tomorrow morning. Can anyone help me?
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alsimon96
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01/16/10 12:24am |
Tech Issues
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Atwood Water Heater Control Panel
I have an Atwood Water Heater with both LP and Electric heating. I have the standard control panel with two switches and a red light between the switches. Until a few days ago, the red light worked normally. In other words, if I tried to use LP and the heater failed to light after three tries, then the red light would come on.
Now the red light is coming on for a different situation and I don't understand why. I am operating with electric only. As far as we know, the water is being heated properly. At least we have not noticed lack of hot water.
In any case, several times the light has come on while heating only with electric. If I turn the electric off and then back on, the light goes out.
Can anybody explain why the light would be coming on when only using electric heat? What does it mean?
Thanks for your help.
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alsimon96
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01/15/10 11:45pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Deluxe Tire Chock Warning
The landing gear will keep the trailer from moving but you put significant stress on the landing gear when you back into the pin. I always have my roto-chocks solidly in place before hitching up. No way am I taking a chance of bending the landing gear.
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alsimon96
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08/28/09 07:30am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Load Lifters?
The easiest solution is Timbrens. Takes about 20 minutes to install. No maintenance. Nothing to air-up. They work just like overload springs.
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alsimon96
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07/08/09 07:41am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Local dealer will not do waranty work on RV he did not sell
It's amazing how many opinions there are and most (if not all) are from people who are not running a business. Here are some points I would make:
1. If the dealer is already busy with warranty work for his customers, why not take care of his customers first.
2. Many of you say that you would not buy from this dealer because he refused to do work for you. But you didn't buy from him the first time and even if he did the work for you, you probably would not buy from him the next time around. You would shop around just like you did the first time.
It's obvious that few of you have run businesses. The dealer is free to serve who he wants to. And if I was a customer of his, I would want him to take care of me.
The dealer is going to do what he thinks is best for his business. In this case, he is taking care of his customers. If you were a customer of his, wouldn't you want him to take care of you.
Too many of you people making comments are totally illogical!
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alsimon96
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06/03/09 08:04am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Local dealer will not do waranty work on RV he did not sell
I'll put my two cents into this discussion. If I were the dealer and I had more than enough maintenance/warranty work, I would do the work for my customers first. When I had free time, I would do work on units that were not purchased from me.
For everyone who disagrees with this opinion, I ask what you would do if it was your business and you had to decide on doing work for your customers or for someone who purchased elsewhere.
I find it hard to believe that you would tell your customer he had to wait because you were doing work for a non-customer.
Seems like a no-brainer to me.
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alsimon96
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06/01/09 08:49pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Local dealer will not do waranty work on RV he did not sell
Am I to understand that you drove 400 miles to save $500? And in the process got yourself into this service/warranty situation.
If the service department is as busy as he claims, then I don't blame him for wanting to service his customers (the people who actually bought from him).
What would you do if you were the dealer?
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alsimon96
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06/01/09 11:25am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Wheel Chocks
I've seen a number of these homemade "rotochocks" but using a ratchet strap is the slickest one of the bunch. I'm guessing this one should work good. I have rotochocks and love them.
In my opinion, stevesmith81 doesn't understand the engineering aspects of this concept. This type of chock locks the wheels better than anything else.
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alsimon96
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05/10/09 07:32pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Sprayed Bed Liner Changing Color
Marvmarcy: Do you know if the Dupont urethane comes in spray cans?
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alsimon96
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04/29/09 03:13pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Sprayed Bed Liner Changing Color
I have to agree with "turninghawk". If I had it to do over again, I would repaint the bed when necessary. Unfortunately I can't turn back the clock.
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alsimon96
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04/29/09 03:10pm |
Tech Issues
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Sprayed Bed Liner Changing Color
I have a grey Permatech bedliner in my truck. Seemed like a neat idea at the time. However, now it is getting darker and looking ugly. In hind-site, I would have done it in black or charcoal. Then I wouldn't have this problem.
The change in color is not due to truck useage. I scrub the bed each time I wash the truck. It is apparently due to the sun. You would think it would get lighter due to fading but it is actually getting darker.
Does anyone know of some kind of spray paint that I can use on the bedliner. I'm looking for something reasonably tough.
I understand that paint might wear off but I am prepared to touch up on a regular basis. I just want to get rid of the ugly color I now have.
Thanks for any help.
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alsimon96
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04/29/09 11:05am |
Tech Issues
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RE: Need advice on a Open Road
We have a 2005 Open Road 357. Ours has performed very well and we have no regrets buying it.
The only problems you are likely to have with a 5th wheel relate to the appliances. There are only a few manufacturers of appliances and they are still in business. So you shouldn't have any problem getting replacement parts for the items that might fail.
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alsimon96
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04/13/09 06:08pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: I Lost an entire Wheel Assembly
Some addition information:
I had all four wheels checked last year at Lone Star RV in Houston. At that time the brake linings were found to be in pretty bad shape and were replaced.
The current repair work is being done by Funtime RV in Cleburne, TX (Southwest of Dallas). I have asked them to check the bearings on the remaining axle for any problems. As long as the entire frame is off the ground, it is pretty easy to check the other axle.
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alsimon96
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04/07/09 04:50pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: I Lost an entire Wheel Assembly
Thanks, Thanks, Thanks. This forum is more than fantastic.
I called Dexter and they were extremely cooperative. They will take care of everything including new wheel, tire, and labor. They will deal directly with the RV Dealer supplying him with new axle and paying him directly for the labor.
So I have to thank Dexter for stepping up to the plate and I have to thank you guys for the amazing information.
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alsimon96
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04/07/09 04:43pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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I Lost an entire Wheel Assembly
We had a bad experience on the way from South Texas to Missouri. South of Dallas the right front wheel on our Open Road 357 left the trailer. We did not know that it happened and we estimate that we drove another 20 miles with only one wheel on the right side. We discovered the missing wheel when we stopped to eat. Apparently the bearing gave way and allowed the entire assembly to depart. The nut that holds the bearing in place was still there. There was no other damage to the trailer. Lucky for us, I was not driving fast and I had Michelin XPS Ribs on all four wheels. The remaining wheel on the right side held up or we would have had a real mess.
We have a 2005 Open Road 357. We got it in August 2004 so it is 4 1/2 years old. My friends tell me this should never happen. Insurance will cover all but $1000 deductible. The suspension system is the Dexter Torflex with the Never-Lube hubs. My question to all of you is this: Do you think Dexter would have any obligation to cover some or all of my deductible? I have to assume everything is out of warranty at this time but since my friends feel that something like this should never happen, is it possible that they would feel some sort of obligation?
The RV Dealer is going to replace the entire axle. They don't want to take a chance on the spindle because it could have been damaged by the bearing.
Thanks for any comments.
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alsimon96
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04/03/09 04:34am |
Fifth-Wheels
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