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RE: Hard wired Surge protector location?
Mike,
I've installed a couple and I have put them behind the circuit breaker panel. You don't have to splice -- just take the incoming wires loose from the main inside the panel. Route those wires to the input side of the surge protector. Then, cut a short piece of new wire to run from the output of the protector to the main in the breaker box. This way, you can easily put things back to original condition if you sell your trailer and want to keep the surge protector. It takes some patience to install this way, because the large-guage wires (for 50-amp systems) are difficult to work with in the tight space behind the panel.
In your Cedar Creek, your converter is probably mounted in the basement, behind a wall, under the stairs. You could easily mount the surge protector there and use the existing holes to fish the new wires to the breaker box.
By-the-way, I highly recommend the Progressive Industries EMS-HW50C protector, with remote displays. I have two displays - one inside near the kitchen and one outside in the service center so I can read the display as I connect to campground power.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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04/15/12 06:33pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: 265 vs 285 truck tire 5th specific question
I've had the Nitto Crosstek 275-18's on my truck (3640 lbs. per tire) for over a year and have been very happy with them. They are very quiet, smooth riding and handle well when towing. Excellent traction in snow or mud. An excellent tow truck tire, as far as I'm concerned (and reasonably priced as well).
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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03/13/12 11:34am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Slide Out Toppers
edatlanta -- I have two of the Airwedges and have used them for 3 years, without problems. You wouldn't want to use them for short trips, because you have to get on a ladder and have some help to install them, especially if you have a long slide. I have a seasonal site, so my slides are out the whole season. The Airwedge is necessary to keep water from pooling and permanently stretching the toppers. They work perfectly for that. I believe they would also help prevent flapping in windy situations.
It's fairly easy to install the one for my dining/sofa slide, since it is very deep. My other long slide is a kitchen/entertainment slide, which is much shallower. The Airwedge is wider than the slide is deep, so it is much more difficult to slide it under. I have to partially deflate it and really work hard to install it (this is OK, since I only have to do it once per season). The optional lanyard kit is pretty useless for the shallow slides, since the adhesive lets go if you pull too hard on it. I'm going to try re-glueing it with vinyl cement for this year.
For the weekend camper, I don't think you need to put anything under the toppers. If some water pools up there, it will run off when you retract the slides.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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03/11/12 11:46am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: NEW 5er : What do we need to ask on our walk through
Have them show you how to manually raise the landing gear in case of failure. Also, how to manually close the slides if they fail. Make sure you have the necessary tools to do this (if they are provided).
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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03/10/12 04:28am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Engine Hoist to remove hitch
garysol -- My garage is finished inside also, but you can still use a winch to get the hitch out. Here's how (sorry, no pics):
With the garage door open, stand in the opening and look up. There should be a gap between the lower edge of the door and the header that goes across the top of the door opening. I mounted a heavy duty "J-hook" inside, midway on that header. I can reach my hand up in the gap and attach a heavy-duty chain to that hook. The chain hangs down about a foot through the gap so that I can attach an electric winch (from Harbor Freight) to it. I back my truck into the opening and attach the hitch to the winch cable with heavy rope. Push a button and lift it up. Pull the truck out and wheel a mover's dolly under the winch and lower the hitch. Remove the winch and chain and you can now use the garage door normally.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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03/04/12 05:46pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Fordman and your Landmark Grand Canyon
That Knoxville dealer doesn't know squat. Every new Cedar Creek I've been in in the last 6 months had the dual-ducted cold air return system in it. The A/C unit is on the roof and does not protrude down into the ceiling. It's quiet because there's a ceiling full of insulation between you and the source of the noise.
If you see one on the lot without this feature, it's probably an early 2012 that has been sitting there a long time.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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02/28/12 11:07am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Cedar Creek 36ckts
On my 2011 Cedar Creek 36CKTS, the optional 1-year of additional warranty (for a total of two years) was $250. The price varies, depending on which Forest River product you have. The additional warranty comes from FR -- the dealer will give you a request form at settlement to send to FR. I have heard that some dealers will include it in the deal, but I had to handle it myself, since the money goes directly to FR.
I've been very happy with my CC.
Ken
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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02/26/12 11:01am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Lippert 6 point leveling system
The Lippert "Level Up" 6-jack system is a hydraulic system, so the aftermarket cost depends on what kind of landing gear you have. If you have hydraulic landing gear, then that will be the lowest cost to add the other 4 hydraulic jacks. If you have electric landing gear, then that will have to be changed out to hydraulic, along with adding the other 4 jacks. Unfortunately, I don't have any pricing info. My system came factory-installed by Cedar Creek. I think I paid less than $2000 for the factory option.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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01/29/12 05:50pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Fifth wheel leveling systems
Well, I don't do it that often -- probably no one does. Those piston rods are exposed to the elements and get dirty from rain splash if they aren't under a slide. When the piston is retracted, the seal wipes of the junk, hopefully. If they get really dirty, you risk compromising the seal or maybe rod corrosion. It seems like prudent preventive maintenance to keep the rods as clean and lubricated as you can. So, depending on how long you've been parked, has it rained (dirt splashed up on rod), is it dusty and the location of the rod (the ones under the slides stay pretty clean) -- these all determine how much attention that rod gets.
Keep in mind, these hydraulic cylinders are part of all construction equipment, which usually operate in very dirty environments. They seem to function OK.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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01/23/12 11:59am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: new mountaineer front livingroom,anyone see it
Here's why you lose basement storage (the basement, of course, is underneath the front bedroom or front LR):
In front bedroom units, the bed slide mechanism is on top of the floor, underneath the bed. This is possible, since most of the bed is still in the room when the slide is out and there is not much weight on the slide when out. Also, the slide out doesn't have to be too tall.
In front LR models, you have have tall, opposing slides that carry substantial weight and the slide rails/mechanisms have to be under the floor. Since the basement is underneath, you will lose some of that space to the mechanisms.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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01/18/12 11:06am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Crossroads posted pics of new 5ers on their facebook page
Those aren't windows on the slide -- they are the inlet and exhaust vents for the fridge. There is an external cargo door behind the kitchen slide as well as a inside door to that area. Either a bunkhose or motorcycle compartment back there.
Also seems like the kitchen slide will interfere with the awning when opened.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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12/15/11 10:04am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Fifth wheel leveling systems
The Level Up system was a factory option on my Forest River Cedar Creek. I think it is now also available on the Cardinal. It's much cheaper this way -- about half the cost of a after-purchase retrofit.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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12/06/11 04:57pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: OK Another Fifth Wheel Question
You might want to check out the new Cedar Creek 38FL. It has a recliner in the front living room (in addition to the sofas) and a enclosed bathroom you don't have to walk through to get to the rear bedroom.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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11/16/11 11:23am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Automatic Levelers
I can only address the Lippert Level Up system, which I have factory installed on my Cedar Creek. In a year and a half, I've had no problems.
Level Up consists of 6 hydraulic jacks -- a pair immediately behind the wheels, a pair immediately in front of the wheels and the front hydraulic landing gear. This distributes the load on the frame. Also, there is a 2-inch cross member spanning between the jack pairs behind and in front of the wheels for additional stiffening.
The landing gear can work independently to hitch and unhitch. Once the other leveling jacks are down, all 6 jacks are coordinated together so you cannot twist the frame, side to side or front to back. A very elegant system.
My system came factory installed, so, obviously Forest River believes my frame is robust enough for the leveling system. Lippert will also retrofit the system to other trailers. I assume they won't install it on a frame not up to the task.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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10/27/11 01:19pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: DVD Player
Charlie D.--
You need to buy a Home Theatre System. You can find good ones for a little over $300 that include an FM/AM receiver, blu-ray DVD player and speakers, including a decent subwoofer. They have built-in amplifiers and usually have the speaker wire termination clips you want. Panasonic, Samsung, LG and others make such systems.
I bought an Insignia system from Best Buy on sale and wired it to my existing front, center and rear speakers that are in the ceiling. I threw out the cheap subwoofer that came in the trailer and substituted the much better Insignia one. The system sounds awesome in the small confines of the trailer (it might not sound so great in a large living room at home). Shop around and find one on sale.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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10/26/11 09:12pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Water saving shower head
ACE hardware has a chrome in-line cutoff valve that is WAY cheaper than those above. It allows some water dribbble when shut off, so the water temp doesn't go cold on you. I don't mind that it doesn't match color, since it's cheap and works the way you want it to.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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10/01/11 12:04pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Open Range 5th wheel Roamer
Here's one way to do it --
Use the "winterize" method to suck water out of your fresh water bucket. As Vulcaneer stated, this will simply fill your piping system with water, but it can't get into the fresh water tank. NOW, run a short hose from the outside shower contol manifold to the fresh water tank inlet fitting (or, in the case of my Cedar Creek, to the city/fresh water inlet and then flip the selector lever to Gravity Fill). With most outside showers, you simply unscrew the spray head from the end of the hose and screw the hose on the appropriate water inlet connector, as above. Then, open the shower cold water valve to fill the fresh water tank. Kinda complicated, but it works.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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09/21/11 08:18pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Bal Chocks
I have Dexter EZ-Flex suspension and my Bal wheel chocks seem to work as well as on my previous trailer with standard suspension. They can't substitute for real wheel chocks, but they sure help stabilize the front to rear motion of the trailer.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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09/06/11 06:44am |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: No Fuss Flush system - problem
Funpro-
It is normal for a fair amount of water to run out of the backflush connection when you unkhook it. That's the vacuum breaker in the line doing its job.
If you are observing the amount of water running out of the black tank as the flusher is running (tank valve open), you won't see much more than a strong trickle. The flusher is spraying through several tiny holes - high pressure, but not a lot of volume. If you close the tank valve and let the flusher run for 3 or 4 minutes, you should have a strong flow when you open the valve. If you don't, the flusher is partially clogged, you have a venting problem or the tank valve is not fully opening.
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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08/31/11 05:25pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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RE: Water Heater Electric Element Switch
Look in your circuit breaker panel. The HWH electric element is usually on a separate breaker. Just flip the electric element switch on the outside of the HWH (it usually has a little wire clip on it) and turn the electric element on and off from the inside using the circuit breaker. This is all independent of the gas operation - you can use both at the same time (turning off the breaker will still allow the HWH to work on gas).
Ken
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red_neck_camper
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08/22/11 05:36pm |
Fifth-Wheels
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