| |
Subject |
Author |
Date Posted |
Forum
|
 |
RE: How low do you go?
I guess I should clarify my question here. Assuming I have the 100% correct height of my unit - how close to the posted height would you go?
If the clearance is +6 inches, I don't bat an eye, I just barrel on through. If the clearance is +3 inches I slow down as I go under (and I wince, but I don't think that part actually helps.)
But there was one situation where on a twisty back road, I turned a blind corner in a ravine-like cut, and there, with no prior warning, was a railroad bridge marked at -2 inches. I wasn't going that fast, and I jammed on the brakes, but before I could stop I was already halfway under it. Having not heard anything crunch so far, and with a line of annoyed traffic behind me, I crept along with no issues (other than needing to iron out the pucker mark in the driver's seat!) I still don't know how I made it under that one. And of course, the GPS had absolutely no concept of the low clearance.
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/27/08 08:25pm |
Fifth-Wheels
|
|
RE: How low do you go?
Well there is another reason to get a GPS navigator .
Go ahead and insert as many brand names as you want in that sentance, I don't know of any GPS units that take low clearnaces (or weight restrictions) into account. And that includes the high end Garmin units with a "Truck" routing setting. The only solution I know of that does this is a special truckers version of the CoPilot software that runs on a laptop and requires an external GPS unit. This has been discussed a lot.
(And yes, I really do mean a truck routing setting, not the display mode on some lower end units that just changes the vehicle symbol. And I know you can download low clearance points of interest into many units, but that won't stop the unit from routing you through them. If you're lucky, it will just give you warning that it's coming up, but you will have to take the initiative for evasive action. If you're not lucky, it'll just show it on the screen, and you have to keep an eye out to make sure you're not approaching one. None of these options are particularly helpful in my mind.)
That being said, don't even think of trying to take away my GPS: you can have my GPS when you pry it out of my cold dead fingers! :B I love my GPS, I just realize its restrictions and I don't expect it to do more than it was designed to do.
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/27/08 08:12pm |
Fifth-Wheels
|
|
RE: RV "Progression"
Actually, my first rig Is the one I'm driving now, as shown below. I got it last spring.
But in my DW's "previous life" she's made the progression from a TC pulling a horse trailer, to a gooseneck horse trailer with living quarters, to various trailers, and then a series of increasing size MH's ending with a DP she had to leave back in CA when she moved back East.
Then I met her, we got married, and we continued the progression where she left off. :B
I don't see us going much farther in the progression (no money for a Prevost!) but I wouldn't be surprised to have a rig with a tag axle in the distant future to get some more CCC.
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/27/08 07:22am |
General RVing Issues
|
|
RE: Winterizing by suction, OK?
You'd also need to open the toilet valve to the first stop for a while, while the vac was running.
You know, this comment got me thinking... Sucking water back into the piping system from potentially dirty spigots might not be a good thing, especially from the toilet which is a potential prolific bacterial breeding ground. There are a whole class of vacuum breakers and backflow devices to prevent just this sort of thing from happening, and they are likely not installed on most rigs (other than at the city water inlet or tank flusher inlet.)
Maybe the risks are low, but the consequences could be high. Do you feel lucky?
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/26/08 07:11pm |
Class B - Camping Van Conversions
|
|
RE: The S Word
I hope everyone around here winterized???
Nope, not winterized yet. The season's not over, I still have two more trips planned!
I went out today and bought some pink stuff, but I'm not going to use it for another three weeks. When I get back from the 4 nights of dry camping at the Syracuse dog show, then I will winterize. Until then, I did make one concession and I blew the water out of the lines and solenoid valves behind the fridge, the ones feeding the ice maker and water disenser. I didn't do that last year, hoping that the warmth from the fridge would keep them safe. It didn't, and they froze. But fortunately there was no damage other than to a fitting for the disposable water filter.
I have an electric heater built into my basement wet bay that keeps the three tanks and pump from freezing. Inside, I have the furnaces set for 40 degrees with the cabinet doors open so nothing freezes in there. That's just going to have to do for the next few weeks.
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/26/08 05:50pm |
General RVing Issues
|
|
RE: How many have pre trip jitters?
We don't have a motorhome but I'm always itchy to get going. Never nervous. Most of the time when we're traveling, I'm starting to plan the next trip while still on the present one.
My feelings exactly! (Except that I do have a class A.)
We're on the road almost every weekend during the spring/summer/fall, and I always look forward to hitting the road. In fact, on the occasion when we have an off week and are staying home for a weekend, I start to get jittery and cranky.
We've been home for 12 days now, after a wonderful and unusually long 2100 mile 11 day extended trip. We don't leave on our next trip for another four days. I'm getting a bad case of cabin fever and can't wait to climb behind the wheel again! It's the only cure.
No jitters at all. Just anticipation and excitement! :B
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/26/08 02:39pm |
Class A Motorhomes
|
|
RE: No Picture with Cable
But being a very cautious, careful handyman, I'm positive I didn't cross the cables????
Of course you didn't cross the cables! A mischeivious cable-crossing gnome must've snuck into your rig one night while you weren't looking! :W
Thanks for the update, so many times we never get to learn what was the problem, or the final fix.
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/26/08 10:32am |
Technology Corner
|
|
RE: Macerator bypass?
I'd like to buy a macerator but I need to know if I can bypass it for the grey tank to drain. My washing machine requires the grey to be open or it will overflow into the house. Ed
You want the twist-on or box mount versions of the RV Sani-Con. The Tank Buddy version in the portable case looks like it does not have the grey water bypass. the other two versions do.
http://www.thetford.com/HOME/PRODUCTS/SaniConSystem/tabid/545/Default.aspx
I have the box mount version. While the bypass is slow, it has no trouble keeping up with my splendide S2000.
There are a few other brands out there, but I'm not really familiar with them. The other brands might have a bypass, but it is aparently patended by the Sani-Con folks, so maybe they don't? Either way, the first two version of the Sani-Con brand does have the bypass, and it does work.
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/26/08 06:52am |
General RVing Issues
|
|
RE: HDTV DISH
The OP does not subscribe to HD. has hooked his receiver up to a neighbors dish that sez HD on it, and he can't receive HD?
Where did he say he was trying to receive HD? I don't see it. Come on guys, rather than jump all over him for things he didn't say, and implying that he's an idiot, why not try to be constructive?
So, he didn't include every single detail. There's a lot of posts on here that don't. If he had included every excrutiating detail, you'd probably complain that his post was too long and rambling. There's no pleasing some people.
To the OP (if you're still here and haven't been run off): I'm assuming you're trying to get your subscribed SD channels that you can get from your regular dish, and that you're setup normally works properly with your regular dish. There are indeed different types of dishes, and an HD dish can "see" more satellites than an SD dish. But I think it should still see the same satellites that the SD dish can see.
I don't have DirecTV, I have Dish, but the technologies are similar (although there are some differences in the details.) Since the dish can "see" multiple satellites, there needs to be a way for the receiver to tell the dish which satellite it wants to see at the moment. The way the receiver tells the dish to do this can vary with different dishes. That might be the issue here: your receiver is sending commands to the dish as if it were your regular dish, but the HD dish is interpreting them differently and selecting a different satellite. That could explain why you are getting a strong signal, but if it's the wrong satellite you won't get the channels you want.
On Dish receivers, there is a "check switch" function you can run that runs a series of tests to figure out what kind of dish you're plugged into, and what satellites it can see. Whenever changing from one type of dish to another, you must run a "check switch" to get things to work properly. Your DirecTV receiver probably has a similar function to tell it what kind of dish you're using, or for it to figure it out for itself. It's probably on one of the setup or installation menus.
That's my advice: make sure the receiver knows what kind of dish you're plugged into, it might be as simple as that. If that's the case, be sure to "undo" the setting when you switch back to your regular dish.
Good luck, and don't let a few smart aleks get to you.
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/26/08 06:48am |
Technology Corner
|
|
RE: Black tank dumping incident
Just never wear your good shoes when dumping.
-Tom
Now there just has to be a good story behind that comment. Come on, let's here it!:B
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/25/08 07:32pm |
Class A Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Satellite TV--Dish vs. Direct
Also anyone with the Dish 500 system with the EchoStar 3000 Legacy receiver, you will be in the same situation as regular tv folks in February. This receiver is analog only. I contacted Dish and they are sending me free of charge a 301 receiver to replace the 3000. The 301 is a Digital Receiver.
I think there is some misunderstanding here. The broadcast TV switchover to all digitial, turning off the analog, has absolutely no impact on satellite TV. Direct broadcast satellite TV, like Dish Newtork and DirecTV, has always been digitial. While the 301 is indeed a digitial receiver, so is your old 3000 receiver.
That being said, there are different types of digital encoding schemes, and different compression levels. Dish Network is in the process of upgrading their infrastructure to use MPEG-4 digital compression, which allows more bandwidth over the older compression schemes like MPEG-2. This additional bandwidth allows them to carry more channels, and/or more high definition content. They are also switching over to new encryption schemes in an effort to limit piracy.
The older legacy receivers, while they are digitial, are not capable of decoding the newest digital compression schemes, like MPEG-4, or the newest encryption schemes. Before Dish can switch everything over to the new format, they need to replace the older legacy equipment that can't receive the new formats. That is the likely reason for your upgrade.
So, while your warning about old legacy equipment is valid, and it is similar to the broadcast transition, that broadcast transition is not the reason behind your upgrade. It is simply a coincidence.
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/24/08 12:13pm |
Technology Corner
|
|
RE: Satellite TV--Dish vs. Direct
Lots of talk about skew. It's such a simple adjustment that I personally don't see that as being the deciding factor. And it's only an issue if you have basic standard definition for DirecTV. If you go for HD or a more advanced programming package on DirecTV, you'll likely have to deal with skew anyway.
Choosing between the two is a judgement call.
The programming is pretty much the same on the two, so that is rarely a deciding factor. although there are some minor differences. Unless you're a sports nut, then DirecTV seems to have more sports.
There is lots of talk about HD now, and who has the most HD channels. The number of channels really doesn't matter, what really matters is how which HD channels are interesting to you. You have to make that decision.
Everybody complains about poor customer service, but the Dish customers seem to complain a little more than the DirecTV customers.
Costs are close enough that it's rarely a deciding factor. But Dish seems to nickle and dime you more than DirecTV.
When I was investigating, all of the above was pretty much a wash for me, and it really didn't make much difference to me.
In my mind, the biggest difference is in the equipment. I went with Dish simply for two reasons: one being that they have a dual tuner DVR receiver that can independently drive two TVs -- the front one in HD, and the rear TV in SD. They can watch different channels, or play back different recordings, yet there is still only a single cable coming in from the dish. This was perfect for me. To do that on DirecTV I believe you need two receivers, and two cables from the dish. It even comes with two different remotes, one to drive the front TV, and one to drive the rear which used RF instead of infrared so you don't need a clear line of site to the receiver.
But the biggest reason I went with Dish is because you can use an external USB hard drive to move recorded shows around between DVRs. I have a Dish DVR in the living room which records series shows that both DW and I like to watch. It also records shows she likes to watch. In the bedroom we have another DVR where I record the shows I like to watch. The morning before hitting the road for a long weekend, I plug the USB hard drive into the bedroom DVR and copy off the shows I want to watch on the weekend, the plug it into the living room and copy off the shows she wants to see. I can then plug it into the MH DVR and watch them during the weekend, in HD. I could just take one of the DVRs with us, but this way the main DVRs stay at home recording more shows while we're away -- we don't have to worry about missing a recording while we are driving or while we are parked under too many trees to get a signal.
As for a learning curve, I can't speak for DirecTV, but I did have a bit of a learning curve getting Dish up and running in the MH. But I think most of that was battling with a roof top dome that proved to be unsuitable for my purposes. Now that I have things figured out and working with my portable dish, it only take me a couple minutes to be up and running when I setup camp. Maybe the learning curve is easier with DirecTV, I don't know. But it's really a non-issue once you have it figured out. I wouldn't let the learning curve be the deciding factor, you'll get over that.
It really comes down to looking at what programming you want, and what level of equipment you want, and then looking at which provider will give you want you want. Everyone's needs are different, and based on what is important to them they may chose one system or another. With my requirement list, there was only once choice, but it's unlikely that others will have exactly the same requirements as I did. There is no single solution that is best for everybody.
Good luck with your choice, may you have many pleasent hours of watching your satellite TV once you have it up up and running!
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/24/08 11:18am |
Technology Corner
|
|
RE: Has your ABS ever actuated? What is it like?
My gas W22 is hydraulic and I would hazard a guess that all gas rigs are hydraulic.
If I'm wrong someone will jump in and and tell me so, I'm sure.
Like I said -- you can make some good guesses as to what system a rig has. Still, I'll bet there are exceptions out there! (And sometimes it's hard to tell if someone's rig is gas or diesel.)
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/22/08 02:13pm |
Class A Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Murrphys Law of RVing
When the gas tank is full, gas stations on every corner. When gas tank is 1/4 full, not a one to be found.
And the lower the fuel gauge goes, the higher the prices are on the few stations that you do find!
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/22/08 02:09pm |
Snowbirds
|
|
RE: Has your ABS ever actuated? What is it like?
I'm curious... there have been a variety of replies so far. It would be interesting to know who has air brakes, who has hydraulic, and who has something different (like air over hydraulic)? I can take a look at the rig descriptions and make guesses over who has what type of brakes, but they would be just that -- guesses.
For example, some say the pedal pulses, other say it doesn't. I'm guessing hydraulic systems pulse the pedal, while air doesn't?
Of course, I'm most interested in the responses by those with air brakes, since that's what I have... but all of the responses and experiences are interesting.
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/21/08 02:57pm |
Class A Motorhomes
|
|
RE: Tolls and Toll Roads will increase
I cannot understand why someone will cheerfully lay out three hundred thousand for an RV, then complain about paying another ten bucks to maintain the road they are driving on!
As I have said before, the taxes and fees that we pay are only a small portion of the cost of the roads, bridges etc that we could never afford for ourselves.
How many can afford to build their own interstate or bridge across the river?
To be able to jump into the vehicle of your choice and drive unimpeded, safely and quickly, to the furthest corners of N America, is to me worth far more than the small percentage of such a trip that is spent on road taxes and tolls!
I think its because in most cases maybe 5% of the tolls actually go towards the roads/bridges and the rest goes towards pork projects that have nothing to do with the roads.
Exactly. If it were actually going to maintenance, I would have no problem with it. I would gladly hand over my toll money to the New York State Thruway Authority to travel on a smooth, well maintained road. Sadly, that isn't the case. How come, you can travel down the free portion of I-90 through Pennsylvania, and as soon as you cross into New York, you pay a toll and the quality of the road takes a nose dive? It's the same on other portions of the Thruway -- the surrounding (free) Interstates are often in better shape than the toll sections -- those same sections that we are supposedly paying extra to maintain! Where is all that toll money going?
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/21/08 02:52pm |
General RVing Issues
|
|
RE: Murrphys Law of RVing
"If it can go wrong....it will!" That one covers just about everything.
And if it can't go wrong, it will anyways. That covers everything else. :R
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/21/08 09:24am |
Snowbirds
|
|
RE: No Picture with Cable
On my rig, the cable input didn't work at first. After a bit of trouble shooting, I found it was miswired: the cable and satellite input ports were swapped. Opened the junction box, swapped the wires at the input plate, and cable worked.
Getting the satellite working was harder. Finally found an F connector where one whisker of a braid wire was shorting to the center pin. The fix there was a lot easier than finding the problem.
Maybe you've got something similar going on?
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/21/08 05:50am |
Technology Corner
|
|
Who makes a quality LCD monitor?
The backup camera monitor that is built into my MH dashboard is in a poor location, being blocked by the spoke of my steering wheel. To look at the monitor, I have to lean forward and to the side to peek around the steering wheel. Fortunately, the monitor has a video out that is after the camera selection and split screen processing, to that I can run a remote monitor and still have the three camera split screen as the normal view, and it auto switches to the rear or side cameras according to gear selection or turn signal operation.
So, that's what I did. I got a cheap 7" wide screen LCD monitor, and using a RAM Mount, I hung it from the bottom of the front TV cabinet. It's the perfect location, as it's right where you would normally look for a rear view mirror, so it's easy to see at a glance, yet it's out of the way and not obstructing any forward vision.
That worked great for almost a year and a half. Then the monitor died. So I got another one, and mounted it in the same place. That one lasted a few weeks before it died. They are both made by Pyle Audio, the first one is a PLVS7HM, and the second is a PLHR79. (The first one is no longer available, so I got something similar.)
They were cheap monitors, but you get what you pay for. I'm done being cheap. Who makes a good quality monitor that is going to last?
My requirements are:7 inch wide screen color LCDNTSC Composite video inputBlack frameCompact size (no large frame extensions for speakers, etc.)Automatically powers up when 12V applied (don't want to push a power button every time I start the engine.)Works with a B size RAM Mount ball/socket style mount. (I have a "universal" screw mount flange style adapter now, but will get a different one if needed.)I don't care about other features -- I have no need for speakers, IR headphone transmitters, multiple video inputs, etc. I don't care if those features are included, as long as they don't jack up the price, or make for a large ugly frame around the display.
I will follow up on getting the latest monitor fixed/replaced under warranty, and will use it for something else, but I'm not putting it back in the MH just to have it fail again. I want to get something that will just plain work and not need to be replaced again.
Got any suggestions on a good brand or model?
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/20/08 04:10pm |
Technology Corner
|
|
RE: Satellite Question
Since you have Dish Network, you can do it with one cable from the dish, if you have a Dish Pro Plus LNB on your dish (look for a prominent "DPP" logo on it) and a dual tuner receiver capable of driving two TVs. Any other combination of equipment, and you'll need to run two cables. I do it with a DPP Dish 500 dish, and a ViP722 receiver, independently driving two TVs with one cable from the dish.
If you can tell me exactly which dish you have (as well as the logo on the LNB) and which model receiver, I can look up what it will take. If you don't know the dish model, clear pictures of the front and back of the LNB (the part on the arm in front) may help.
|
ShapeShifter
|
10/20/08 05:42am |
Technology Corner
|
|
