quasimatter
East Bay, SF, CA
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Joined: 11/14/2020
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SJ-Chris wrote:
I used to be a little intimidated with the thought of adding solar. I wasn't sure about putting holes in my roof. I also wasn't sure about how to run the wiring. I asked my RV mechanic once how he would do it and he said they usually route the wires down through the refrigerator exhaust vent. Recently I did a refrigerator repair (replaced the cooling unit) and when I had the refrigerator out I saw how easy it would be to route the wires.
Solar will be a project very soon. I already purchased a 200w WindyNation system. I've got 200AH bank and an Aili monitor which has proven to be a great monitor so far.
-Chris
Solar was relatively easy for me - though instead of hard-wired version, I went with quick connect/disconnect foldable panels. I store my RV under cover so panels need to be outside. I think it is better setup that way - I put them up when/where needed and then fold them up and put them in the back storage.
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quasimatter
East Bay, SF, CA
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SJ-Chris wrote: But when I need batteries from time to time, I have been buying from Walmart. You can get what appear to be pretty good 29Ds for less than $100 each which seems like a good value.
-Chris
Quick question - If I want to add a second battery - do I need to replace them both (i.e., get matching ones?) (Current one is 100AH and seems OK - the Walmart one is 85AH - is it OK to connect two different capacity batteries in parallel?).
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SJ-Chris
San Jose, Ca
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Joined: 09/24/2017
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quasimatter wrote:SJ-Chris wrote:
Hope that's helpful to someone. I enjoy helping others, so if you have any questions feel free to PM me or post them here.
-Chris
Thanks Chris - It DEFINITELY did help. I have put all items on my list on Amazon and will tackle them one by one (though I already did the USB, TV and RearCamera (wired one)). I will certainly install Aili and additional battery as per your instructions. Just trying to decide to stick with AGM or jump to Lithium.
Everyone is going to have their own personal opinion about Lead Acid/AGM vs Lithium. If you are like me, I tend to add WAAAAY more stuff to the RV then is actually warranted vs the times I actually go out in the RV....LOL. I guess it's just kinda fun to tinker around. Regarding batteries, my opinion has been that cheap lead acid batteries from Walmart seem to last for a reasonable amount of time and when they go bad it costs me less than $200 to buy two brand new ones. AND, once I add solar I expect that the batteries will last even longer because they will have a much lower chance of ever getting below 50% SOC and even if they do they will get charged back up the very next day.
I would personally never spend $800-$1000 per Lithium battery. To me, the value does not seem to be there.
-Chris
San Jose, CA
Own two 2015 Thor Majestic 28a Class C RVs
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SJ-Chris
San Jose, Ca
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quasimatter wrote:SJ-Chris wrote: But when I need batteries from time to time, I have been buying from Walmart. You can get what appear to be pretty good 29Ds for less than $100 each which seems like a good value.
-Chris
Quick question - If I want to add a second battery - do I need to replace them both (i.e., get matching ones?) (Current one is 100AH and seems OK - the Walmart one is 85AH - is it OK to connect two different capacity batteries in parallel?).
If you are adding a 2nd battery, most people will tell you that you should make sure both batteries are identical in terms of size, AH, and purchase date. Basically, you should buy 2 identical batteries at the same time.
I would imagine if they were of different sizes/capacity/AH it would present an issue. It could be that two different batteries will likely have two different charging requirements and since there is only one charger charging BOTH at the same time it becomes problematic. Could this be the biggest reason for them to be identical? Quite possibly.
There could be another issue if you are using batteries of different ages. Eventually, the older one will likely die. When it does, since it is connected in parallel with your "good" battery, there is a good chance that it will damage/kill the good battery. For example, lets say that eventually your bad battery stops holding a charge. Well, that is going to drain your good battery since they are connected and soon your Good battery will no longer be good.
So.....If you are adding a 2nd battery I would replace both with new ones at the same time. I suppose if your existing battery is only a year old and you could buy another identical one right now, you'd probably be (mostly) okay.
Note: Walmart has different sized deep cycle RV/Marine batteries. The larger ones are 29D sized and I believe have 100-110AH of capacity. I've seen these recently for $89 each.
Good luck!
Chris
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quasimatter
East Bay, SF, CA
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Thanks Chris for the above answers - Makes sense - I will plan on getting 2 identical batteries.
Another quick question for Majestic 28A owners, What is the compartment in front of Master Bed - It is solid metal box with metal cover screwed on with special pin-in Hex screws. I opened it up and voila - there is nothing in there. Was it supposed to house something? Attaching a picture.
![[image]](https://i.postimg.cc/xX4q5x4b/20201210-144657.jpg)
As you can see - there is another metal box inside with sides open (nothing inside that either). Maybe it used to house something which was removed (or an option that was not installed)? It looks a bit odd being right at the foot of the bed and also just being big metal plate which does not match other flooring.
PS: Is there a forum anywhere that is specific to Majestic (or even 28A)?
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MtnBikeMarty
phoenix, az
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quasimatter wrote:Thanks Chris for the above answers - Makes sense - I will plan on getting 2 identical batteries.
Another quick question for Majestic 28A owners, What is the compartment in front of Master Bed - It is solid metal box with metal cover screwed on with special pin-in Hex screws. I opened it up and voila - there is nothing in there. Was it supposed to house something? Attaching a picture.
As you can see - there is another metal box inside with sides open (nothing inside that either). Maybe it used to house something which was removed (or an option that was not installed)? It looks a bit odd being right at the foot of the bed and also just being big metal plate which does not match other flooring.
PS: Is there a forum anywhere that is specific to Majestic (or even 28A)?
I remember asking my CA salesman, and he said something about it was an access panel to the transmission, maybe the differential. I just took it at that and never opened it up. Maybe someone else has better information. MtnBikeMarty
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Booner
Boonville, MO
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MtnBikeMarty wrote:quasimatter wrote:Thanks Chris for the above answers - Makes sense - I will plan on getting 2 identical batteries.
Another quick question for Majestic 28A owners, What is the compartment in front of Master Bed - It is solid metal box with metal cover screwed on with special pin-in Hex screws. I opened it up and voila - there is nothing in there. Was it supposed to house something? Attaching a picture.
As you can see - there is another metal box inside with sides open (nothing inside that either). Maybe it used to house something which was removed (or an option that was not installed)? It looks a bit odd being right at the foot of the bed and also just being big metal plate which does not match other flooring.
PS: Is there a forum anywhere that is specific to Majestic (or even 28A)?
I remember asking my CA salesman, and he said something about it was an access panel to the transmission, maybe the differential. I just took it at that and never opened it up. Maybe someone else has better information. MtnBikeMarty
I don't know if that access hatch is the same in my unit (23A) as your larger unit, but I was told it was an access panel for the fuel pump.
Enjoy your new toy!
Booner
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IAMICHABOD
Sunny So Cal
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Joined: 12/12/2011
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Looking at the picture there seems to be screws in the lower plate,maybe unscrew them and look under it.Inquiring minds want to know...![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/biggrin.gif "biggrin")
2006 TIOGA 26Q CHEVY 6.0 WORKHORSE VORTEC
Former El Monte RV Rental
Retired Teamster Local 692
Buying A Rental Class C
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Booner
Boonville, MO
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Got Dust?
I picked up my 23A at the end of September and have put around 4,000 miles since I purchased it.
New heavy duty Bilstein shocks all around with a Bilstein steering stabilizer stopped the little "wandering" problem I had. Experimenting with tire air pressure helped the ride comfort lever too. Keeping as much weight forward as possible also helps. The gas tank, gray and black tanks are all behind the rear axel and that takes weight off of the front end and promotes the wandering. There's no reason to haul around the contents of the gray and black tank so I empty them as often as I can.
My biggest problem is collecting dust in the house section from driving on gravel roads. I'm not talking about a little dust. I talking about "OMG, doesn't this guy every clean the dust out of his motor home?" kind of dust with one drive down a gravel road.
CA and Thor did a good job of sealing the outside of the unit. I've looked the whole unit over and have only had to add a small amount of sealant on the roof and tail light area. Where someone dropped the ball was sealing the underside of the unit. If dust is coming in, then I'm loosing my A/C and heated air through these holes too. So I've spent a lot of time under my unit sealing things up with expanding foam. The area on the inside of the rear wheel wells had a very large gap between the floor and side walls on both sides. To do the job right, I should have removed the rear tires and then crawled into the wheel wells to do my sealing. Instead of that, I used a small piece of wood paneling as a paddle to hold some expanding foam on and then reached in from the outside and spread/pushed the foam into the gaps. It's not a pretty job, but only I and my tire shop will know about it. Also there are holes in the bottom of the unit were gas and electric lines run through and these areas needed some additional foam to seal the holes. The area around the steps was not sealed, and calking was used to seal that area. I'm working on the shower now. I don't want to take the shower apart to seal things correctly, and I'm sure there is no insulation under the shower pan considering how cold the shower floor is, but a lot of dust comes in between the fiberglass sides and the floor pan. I think I will apply some caulk where the fiberglass side panels meet the floor pan and use some short shank screws to tighten the side walls to the floor pan. To do all of this, I need to take the stool out of the bathroom. I'm really looking forward to that! One can only wonder what I'll find there. I also want to put a raised floor in front of the toilet as it sits pretty high.
I'll admit I'm rather anal about this, and I'm not some kind of clean freak either. I'd like to think I'm more interested in fixing something that should have been done at the factory, and when/if I ever sell this thing, the new buyer will get a better unit. Since I purchased my former rental, I spend a lot of time on this and other forums trying to learn from others; what problems they have and how they fixed them. I've come to the conclusion that I did the right thing in buying my first RV from CA. Reading the problems buyers have had with their "factory new" motorhomes, people who've spent 3 times what I spent and still have major issues with their new motorhome, only confirms that my decision was the right one.
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TwistedGray
Monterey Bay, CA
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Joined: 11/16/2020
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Okay, so I was really excited until I popped the screws off to only find this. I was hoping to get lucky like some of you and find power access so that I can put in a few outlets and run them off the aux battery while in motion. I'm not sure I can do that without running wires directly off the aux battery, unless I'm missing something in this otherwise empty space?
...and yes, I cleaned that dust up really well, and I routed the wiring a bit better than how they had it just laying about.
Edited to add: This is a Majestic 19G, left seat as related to the dinette seating. The right seating area housing the water tank, pump, and wiring, and that has very limited space to do just about anything functional. Maybe you can put a throw blanket down there, but that's about it.
![[image]](https://i.imgur.com/Lw6wEG0.jpg)
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