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Upper level travel trailers I'm forgetting??
I'm shopping for a travel trailer for our family of 5 and a dog. Right now I'm really liking the Winnebago Voyage 3033BH for it huge gray tank capacity, big 4 door refrigerator, and lots of storage. Other brands I think are in this category are Jayco Eagle, Keystone Courgar, Grand Design Reflection, and Forest River Heritage Glenn.
Are there some others I should be looking at?
I intend to take multi-week trips of several thousand miles so I need something that will hold up well. We often end up camping with no hook-ups, thus the need for larger tanks.
I know Airstream are supposed to be good but I just can't see spending that much. I'll probably only have it for about 5 to 7 years and then our kids will be gone and the wife and I will get something smaller.
I know Lance and Arctic Fox are supposed to be good but they are just too small.
I can't do a fifth wheel so I don't need any suggestions on that.
Thanks for your help.
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KD4UPL
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11/15/23 07:53pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Fuel Economy
I highly doubt you will see that kind of improvement. My '05 Duramax 5 speed got about 12.5 my 2022 Duramax 10 speed gets about 14.5.
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KD4UPL
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11/13/23 06:25pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: batteries in the winter
Turn off your battety disconnect and just leave the batteries in the MH. No nred for a charger as there is no discharge. If they won't hold a charge all winter disconnected they need replacing.
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KD4UPL
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11/03/23 08:14am |
Class A Motorhomes
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RE: F-250 vs F-350
If your mainly concerned with the ride quality a GM truck will probabky ride the best. There IFS handles and rides very well. I recently had a Ford owner in my GMC dually. He said "I wish my truck rode this smooth."
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KD4UPL
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09/27/23 04:52pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: DEF fluid
It's cheaper to buy it from a pump at a fuel facility. I get mine from the pump at Quarles for around $4 something a gallon.
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KD4UPL
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09/16/23 06:03pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Hard sided campers under 1500lbs with 6' int ht spreadsheet.
There is no 90% rule.
Dry weight likely won't include a battery or propane. Many vehicles post the tow rating assuming an empty vehicle. When you start loading people and gear it reduces the tow rating. Check tbe fine print in your manual.
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KD4UPL
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09/09/23 06:42am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Interlock kit
Breaker panels have two buss bars. They aren't connected. The are normally for L1 and L2 used with a 240v/120v 50 amp service. You seem to have 2 120 volt inputs: shore and inverter. You need a transfer switch.
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KD4UPL
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08/24/23 06:40pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: add another MPPT
Magnum also makes a 100 amp controller, the PT-100. They will communicate when used in multipole. Usually just adding multiple controllers will work but they work better if networked.
As for getting 200 amps into a battery, it needs to be capable of accepting that much current. As it charges it will take less and less charge.
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KD4UPL
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08/24/23 06:35pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Onan Generator
I always used a 1,500 watt heater on my 2.5 kW Onan. If you have a 4.5 kW a single electric heater is probably fine. If you have a 5.5 kW or larger I'd use 2 electric heaters.
You really should have an electric heater anyway. They're only about $25 and can save a lot of propane if you camp much in cold weather. I always run the electric heater on the camp grounds power that I'm paying for anyway instead of using up my propane.
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KD4UPL
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07/15/23 06:51pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Solar panel
Okay, a 2.5' square panel can do some actual good. The little 12" square ones and smaller are basically worthless. Yours is good enough to keep a small change on a a small system but don't expect it to run large items.
You should have a charge controller somewhere, hopefully with a display. If there is no charge controller then it's possible the panel isn't even hooked up. If it is hooked up with no controller it could potentially overcharge your battery.
If there's no display on a controller to show watts, amps, or volts then you need a way to read battery voltage. A portable volt meter will work or you can buy a panel mount voltmeter and install it. If you have greater than about 12.7 volts your are charging the battery. A good charge would be up above 14 volts.
However, voltage is a poor way to tell what is happening. It's possible for a load to be using more power than the solar panel is producing. You could easily have low and dropping battery voltage even thought the panel is producing really well. Getting a good battery gauge with a shunt will show you amps in and out of the battery but again, a load could make it show negative even though the panel is contributing.
This is why a controller, showing actual watts or amps produced is so valuable. If your controller doesn't have a display you may be able to purchase an optional display for it.
Post back if you can find the controller and what model it is.
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KD4UPL
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07/15/23 06:14pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Going longer
Longer trailers generally tow better and are easier to back-up. The added length means its harder to get one jack-knifed and they are easier to see in the mirrors.
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KD4UPL
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07/15/23 03:44pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Solar panel
Going to need a lot more information than that. What's it's job?
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KD4UPL
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07/15/23 03:42pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Is this normal?
All I ever hear are horror stories about any of these so called roadside assistance plans. I've never had one, never will. I would rather call a local tow company or repair service myself if I ever needed one. That eliminates all the problems with going thru multiple people and agencies.
I would guess that these big companies like AAA have contracts with tow operators for set amounts, thus not a very high profit potential for the tow company. The tow company probably give them rather low priority. I'd rather explain my situation to the tow company directly, then we can together decide on a cost vs. importance scale for my situation.
As for changing a tire, what you need is a cordless impact wrench. I carry a Milwaukee M18 1/2" drive wrench that will bust loose any lug nuts. I change my own tires. The last time I had to I think it took all of about 20 minutes and I was on my way again. There's no way I'd sit around with my family on the side of the road waiting on some company I'd never heard of to maybe show up.
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KD4UPL
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07/15/23 03:20pm |
Good Sam Roadside Assistance
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RE: Victron MPPT 150/100 output current
It can not limit input voltage, that's established by the panels, the sun, and the temperature. If you have you're strings configured for too high a voltage you will damage the controller.
None of that matters to yohr breaker problem. I'd guess either a bad breaker or a high current spike so quick it's not being measured.
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KD4UPL
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07/11/23 07:55pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Did California change its towing laws?
It's illegal in VA too but I still see it sometimes.
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KD4UPL
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06/28/23 12:19pm |
Towing
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RE: Duh! Only in Canada, eh.
So what's the problem? An empty 53' is about 10,000 pounds, maybe 12,000 with his adapter rig. He had brakes. There's very little tongue weight so not overloading the truck. I don't think the hitch is illegal, lots of farm and construction things use that. Was he just overlength? I don't know Canadian laws.
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KD4UPL
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06/28/23 05:26am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Generator won't start camper air conditioner
Your generator is likeky rated at sea level. Higher elevation reduces power output.
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KD4UPL
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06/26/23 10:24am |
Tech Issues
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RE: Truck camper and towing
That's weird, my 48" super truss is good for 6,000 pounds without WDH. I'll sell it.
WDH and surge grakes do not work well together. How does an 9' camper hang over 4'? Is this a truck with a 5' bed?
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KD4UPL
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06/25/23 03:12pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Truck camper and towing
Torque lift super truss is the best there is, probably overkill fir such a short overhang. I used one that was 48"with my 11' truck camper. Before that I used a Reese 48" extension. It worked fine but had much more plan than the tork lift set uo.
A boat won't have 10 - 15% tongue weight. 5 - 8 will be more realistic. You will likely be over GVWR but as long as you don't exceed axle or tire weights you'll be fine.
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KD4UPL
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06/24/23 06:15pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Solar panel and battery noise
Flooded batteries will bubble when being charged. A little bubbling is fine. Too much may indicate they are being over charged.
There us no reason to turn off loads while charging. You need to make sure your charge controller's settings are cirrect for your batteries. If you only ever charged them with a sub-standard converter that sat at 13.X volts then they never really got fully charged and wouldn't have bubbled. I suspect all is pribably fine. Just keep an eye in water levels. Refill with distilled water only.
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KD4UPL
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06/24/23 06:09pm |
Travel Trailers
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