| |
Subject |
Author |
Date Posted |
Forum
|
 |
RE: Have you replaced your shower door?
Our shower door is also sticky. It helps to lift it up as we open it.
I just removed it last week. Some of the screws were not easy to get to. It looked like they assembled it and then built the motorhome around it. I eventually managed to loosen things enough that I could reach all the screws and get everything apart. Some of the screws were Phillips head and some needed a square drive, and there seemed to be no particular reason for the choices. The real question is whether I can get everything back together again.
I removed mine to fix a leak which seems to have been there since it was new. The caulking was not done properly.
|
mavapa
|
03/18/10 08:46pm |
General RVing Issues
|
|
RE: Opinions Please on 1st big Family Trip
My suggestion is to make your plans so that you can easily change them. It's a long way between the things you are planning to see, a lot further than you might imagine. Five weeks is a good, long time, but you should plan to cut off segments if the trip becomes more about driving and less about having fun.
|
mavapa
|
03/18/10 04:08pm |
General RVing Issues
|
|
RE: New and need towing advice
Among other things, you need to make sure you can tow your Volvo with all four wheels on the ground without damaging something. You also need to look into a braking system for it. You should check out the dingy towing forum.
|
mavapa
|
03/17/10 06:50pm |
Class C Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Which would be easier to drive?
We had a 38-foot Class A and now a 25-foot C on a Ford E-450 chassis. To me the C is absolutely easier to drive in most circumstances. However, the ride for the driver and passenger is not as comfortable. The A is typically quieter, especially if it's a diesel pusher, and the ride is often better, again, especially for a DP that has air suspension. Our C rides much more like a truck than the A did.
|
mavapa
|
03/17/10 10:40am |
Class C Motorhomes
|
|
RE: How many miles per gallon do you get with Ford V 10
We have a 24-foot C without the overhead bunk (more streamlined), and I just filled up this morning. It averaged right at 9 mpg. That's with fairly conservative driving, seldom exceeding 65 mph.
|
mavapa
|
03/09/10 12:02pm |
Class C Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Class C 29 Foot RV on a Ford E450 Chassis
There may be ways to change the ride, but they can run into thousands of dollars. It's possible to change the rear suspension to an air suspension. Do a Google search on something like "ford truck air suspension ride improvement". It's out there, but it won't be cheap.
|
mavapa
|
03/04/10 06:33am |
Class C Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Speedometer or GPS
Regarding the Sprinter speedometer reading low - it's my understanding that German cars are required to have speedometers that do not read lower than your actual speed. Thus the manufacturers calibrate speedometers so that they typically read higher than your actual speed to give themselves some margin. That's been true of all the German cars I have owned. It also seems to be common practice with American automakers, although my '01 Ford pickup reads very close or slightly higher than the true speed, based on one of the roadside radar units. On the other hand, the German odometers typically are very accurate.
|
mavapa
|
03/03/10 02:14pm |
Technology Corner
|
|
RE: New Gas Rant
RV fuel economy is an insignificant part of the transportation fuel use in the US. Fuel use could probably be cut 14% in the US if people would stop commuting to work alone in pickup trucks. I drive a VW diesel, and if you average all the miles I drive it plus all the miles we drove our 9-mpg Class A and all the fuel we used for both, I still got better average fuel milage than most people get driving only their typical car. In Europe, the average fuel milage is about 40 mpg. That's way better than we get in the US, but my overall fuel mileage is better than that. So, it wouldn't take $7/gallon gasoline, all it would take is more fuel efficient cars.
|
mavapa
|
03/03/10 06:20am |
General RVing Issues
|
|
RE: Listening to IPod through vehicle's radio signal
It's possible to get an adapter for many vehicle radios that plays through an input on the back of the unit. They work 100 times better than a radio adapter. If your radio can be ordered with a CD changer you almost certainly can do it. Check with a local stereo outfit, or look online. Crutchfield is one of many online stereo dealers that could help.
|
mavapa
|
03/02/10 06:51pm |
Technology Corner
|
|
RE: class c vs class a for weight and fuel cost
Get inside some and see how you like it. Then drive some and see how you like that. We had a 37-foot Damon Class A with a Caterpillar diesel, and now have a 24-foot C with a Ford V10 and no permanent bed. The fuel milage is almost exactly the same for the two. I think A's tend to have better insulation because they are often expected to be used more and in more kinds of weather. They will almost always be (or seem to be) bigger on the inside that a Class C. I think a Class A will almost always be more expensive to service, especially if you have a large one with truck-sized tires. Check out the prices of tires for a Ford E350 or E450 van, and then check the price of tires for a big motorhome. Routine service, like oil changes, will also be higher if you get a diesel pusher. I really liked the Class A, and under other circumstances would have liked to keep it. However, for us, a smaller MH was probably a better idea.
|
mavapa
|
03/02/10 06:47pm |
Beginning RVing
|
|
RE: VW Bus
I think it would be pretty cool. And, despite how underpowered they are, they are extremely practical. I camped in one one a couple of cross-country trips and I still kind of miss it. Except in cold weather.
|
mavapa
|
02/25/10 09:07pm |
Class C Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Not so great in the cold
Good link, Rolling Condo.
|
mavapa
|
02/18/10 09:47pm |
Class C Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Michelin air pressure??
Most tire manufacturers have a table of pressure vs weight. If you can weigh each wheel position independently, both loaded and unloaded, you can get the tire manufacturer's recommended pressure for that wheel position.
|
mavapa
|
02/18/10 04:40pm |
Tech Issues
|
|
RE: Not so great in the cold
RVSKIER, I could have run the furnace but I would also have had to run the generator a lot to keep the battery charged. I decided that in my particular circumstances it would be better not to, for a number of reasons. Fortunately (at least in terms of comfort) I spent most of my time, from early morning and into the evening, sitting at a desk indoors.
|
mavapa
|
02/18/10 02:46pm |
Class C Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Not so great in the cold
I kept a roof vent open when I ran the catalytic heater. I was a little worried about letting it run at night. I would prefer not to, but with the cold, wind and air leaks, I would have flattened my battery in one night running only the furnace. Or I would have been frozen the next morning.
Foam for the roof vents is definitely on the list. Based on some work I did in the over-cab area (no bed, just a TV), I think the builders had a cavalier attitude towards insulation installation.
|
mavapa
|
02/18/10 01:16pm |
Class C Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Class C or Truck Camper??
The biggest constraint with a truck camper is the ability of the truck to carry a decent-sized camper and stay within the manufacturer's weight limits. Lots of people exceed the limits and many of them say everything is just fine that way. (You pay your money and take your chances.) It's probably possible to get better fuel economy with a truck camper with the right setup, but I think money might be the big constraint there.
I think you need to define (for us or for yourself if you haven't done it yet) exactly what your goal is. Do you want a comfortable place to cook, lounge and read or watch TV, or do you want a bare-bones accommodation that just gets you out of the weather? If it's the latter, you might consider a class B, or even just a plain, old van that you could set up for camping. One nice thing about a van is that you can use it for stealth camping, pulling into in a parking lot and not looking like you're actually spending the night. I think you could find a pretty decent class B or van within your budget.
|
mavapa
|
02/18/10 11:09am |
Beginning RVing
|
|
Not so great in the cold
I stayed in our new (to us) '04 Coachmen last week with daytime temperatures just above freezing and nighttime temps in the mid-20s, with lots of wind. I was boondocking, and I wanted to conserve propane and battery juice, so I used a portable catalytic heater in addition to occasional furnace and generator runs. I was pretty cold. There was a refreshing zephyr coming from under the sofa with the slide retracted. It turned out the seal around the slide was not doing its job. Now I'm in the process of weatherstripping it and trying to think of some other ways to keep it a little warmer. I might glue some pieces of foamboard insulation on the exterior walls in cabinets and other hidden places. I guess this one is just not made for winter camping. I'm surprised at the cold-weather difference between this C and the older A we just sold. It was not bad at all, and it was not really a top-of-the-line model.
|
mavapa
|
02/18/10 11:01am |
Class C Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Why class B?
The latest Motorhome magazine mentions a smaller (28-foot?) diesel pusher (I believe) that's being introduced.
|
mavapa
|
02/05/10 06:35am |
Beginning RVing
|
|
RE: Short Length C Class?
Look at what's available near you at an online RV sales site like RVT.com. You can set your search requirements and the distance you want to travel. Check out the photos and arrange to see some in person. Sit in one for a while and think about how it would be to spend time in it. I think you need to get a good idea of what you will really be satisfied with.
|
mavapa
|
02/04/10 03:34pm |
Class C Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Is it dificult to replace the comode?
Removing the commode is not usually hard. I have done it on a couple of RVs. If I were doing it, I would get a porcelain replacement. I like the solid feel compared to the plastic.
|
mavapa
|
02/04/10 03:27pm |
Tech Issues
|
