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spinolio · 11-06-2002, 12:17 PM

More Questions,

Thinking about installing a solar system, visited RV Solar Electric, Found lote of interesting info, but none specific to Airstream MH's. Found a post (quoted below with corrected URLs) that mentioned Uni-solar's flexible panels. It seems those would best suited to the AS's sleek lines - less wind resistance, etc. Does anyone have any experience with these or any other solar installs on an AS MH?

found in thread:
http://www.airforums.com/forum...s=&threadid=64

Quote:

Originally posted by Organic Hosting
I do a lot of research on renewable resources. One magazine I really like is Home Power. They have a section called "Guerrilla Solar" where they showcase various setups including taking a small wind turbine with you!

I also have a Bambi and have been looking into solar.

Uni-Solar has a flexible panel that might work nice on the curved roof area.

My biggest concern is finding the most non-evasive way to mount them. What do you think?

davidz71 · 11-06-2002, 12:29 PM

I discovered the rvsolarelectric site about a year and half ago so I asked for their pamphlet. It has some good material in it and if you don't have it yet, ask them. I like the idea of panels that can be tilted to take advantage of the sun when it is low on the horizon and for cleaning and waxing the top of the trailer underneath. Others think that panels mounted at angles on the trailer will take care of capturing the sunlight whichever side the sun is on. I have not ordered a system yet and will wait until I buy a shorter Airstream. I will probably go with a 120 watt single panel or two 75 watt panels. I believe there are several forum members with panels on their MH now. I've used a 5 watt Solargizer panel to keep the batteries topped off.

spinolio · 11-13-2002, 11:48 AM

Well, I'm back to looking for a Motorhome. I flew in to Nashville Saturday, then drove down to Alabama on Sunday to inspect my new MH. Since it's now re-listed on ebay, you can all guess I was dissapointed. It had more body damage than I was made aware of. The clear coat is peeling, The interior is going to need new upholstery and carpet. The engine had a few suspicious noises and both valve covers are leaking. I wasn't expecting a pristine coach for 10 grand, but this was too much of a project for a first timer like myself. It still might be an OK deal for someone with more experience and money. I can't be too hard on the seller since he refunded 90% of my deposit. Perhaps he'll learn from the experience and disclose everything he knows about the rig before someone else flies 1500 miles for it. Here's the listing for any more adventurous restorers. (he's reduced the starting bid) 310 MH

As it turns out it was a blessing in disguise. On the way back we ran into some pretty severe weather. My Father-in-law's car was totalled by 3 inch hail in middle Tenessee, I'm sure the motor home would have been also. We found out later that tornadoes had been reported within miles of where we were hit and had done severe damage in the same county we were in. I'm very glad I wasn't driving the MH through that weather, the hail was accompanied by strong winds and zero visibility at times. I'm a good driver, drove 40 foot school buses for a couple of years, but I'm not confident I could have avoided being blown into a ditch or worse.

As I said, I'm still looking, so if anyone sees anything out there, give me a shout

uwe · 11-13-2002, 12:13 PM

Spinolio,

I see Airstream and Argosy MH's in the recycler all the time. You might take a look at www.recycler.com and browse through the motor vehicle section, all you need to do is enter "Airstream" in the search window, and sometimes there are 4 at a time in there. right now there is an Argosy Motorhome for sale, but i don't know if that's what you're looking for. I am sorry you wasted all this money and time to find one out of state.
Good luck to you, and remember that everything happens for a reason, so your patience and wise decisions will likely pay off in the long run.

wb13798 · 11-13-2002, 03:44 PM

For Sale: Excella Motorhome 28ft. 1981
Motorhome has 48,000 mile, two rooftop air conditioners, rearbath, onan generator 454 gas engine with new carb and fuel pump.Good orignal condition inside and out just needs TLC. All paperwork since new, including owners and shop manuels. The coach runs great and has just completed a 5000 mile trip! I have taken an overseas job during the summers, and will not be able to use it for several years and I don't want it to sit! Asking $15,000
Advertised by: Gregg Kincaid [ ggerg52@earthlink.net ]
Telephone: 310 727-9545
Location: L.A. California

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

here is a ad i came across in your area.

spinolio · 11-13-2002, 05:47 PM

Thanks for the tips!

I spoke to Greg Kincaid a couple of weeks ago, nice guy, and his MH sounds like a nice one, unfortunately for us it has side twins. We'll be newlyweds when we start full-timing next year and, well . . .

Recycler is a great source, I even paid 14 bucks for early access in case something great comes up in it. I usually search for "Airstream", "Argosy", "Air Stream" and "Air-Stream". I even found one once listed as "airsteam". Since most of their ads are taken over the phone, you never know how it's going to get entered.

Being that a rear full or queen is a pre-req, I think that limits us to a 345 or 310, doesn't it?. . . Fred??

PeterH-350LE · 11-13-2002, 07:31 PM

Spinolio,
A wise move to turn the 310 down.
I am curious to know which panels need replacing.
I had a brief email exchange with the seller, in
which he stated that 3 additional panels besides the upper left rear needed replacing. Beyond that, I have not been able to get further information from him, even though he told me that he would send me pictures.
Unfortunately, if someone is knowingly not disclosing the real damage, one can expect any other information (mileage, tires, generator, motor) to be questionable, to say the least.
It probably would take 12 to 15K to bring this 310 back around. From an insurance point of view, its a total loss and would maybe fetch 2500 on the auction block.
Good luck on your hunt!

ViewRVs · 11-14-2002, 05:29 AM

The 325's and 345's have either a rear corner full (84,85) or an east west full/queen (87+).

SOME 310's have a rear dinette that converts to a king sized sleeping area. I don't have any photos of that arrangement and would love to have some if someone could send me some.

Most of these units were bought by retirees that wanted Ricky and Lucy beds! Later generations all prefer to sleep Brady style!

LKappenman · 11-14-2002, 10:08 PM

Our 310 had the couch/table in the rear we opened them up and put a 4 inch foam over the them and made a bigger than king bed. perfect we use the tee-shirt sheets and it is sooooo confortable.

Dbraw · 11-15-2002, 08:13 AM

Spinolio,
Glad you missed the storms here in Tennessee. We were afraid the hail would come our way and do bad things to our Safari, but luckily we weren't hit. Come back again, we only have Tornados in the Fall and Spring and sometimes other times of the year.
Dan in Tennessee

spinolio · 11-15-2002, 10:58 AM

Dan, the in-laws are in Hendersonville, so I'll be back

Another Question, has anyone converted the sleeping quarters on a 310, 325, or 345 from Lucy and Ricky to Brady Style? Anyone have any idea how difficult it would be without making a mess out of it?

Curt

ALANSD · 11-15-2002, 11:36 AM

CHECK THE POST by Lkappenman above in this thread.....
Also there have been other mentions of this type conversion. On a rear bedroom model it shouldn't be too hard to redo.
Some have even done a temp conversion on the side twin models wher they have a foldout deal that makes the twins into one large bed. The only hassle is the rear bath access.

There is a 280 with low miles listed in RVTRADERONLINE.COM
as of yesterday.

Dbraw · 11-15-2002, 02:26 PM

Spinolio,
You'll like Hendersonville as a place to visit or even live. Our daughter lives there, out by the lake. So do a lot of stars.
Good luck on your quest for a MH.
Dan

spinolio · 01-08-2003, 04:19 PM

I found an '83 310 MH in great shape in Huntington Beach, CA., didn't even have to go out of state. It needs minor upholstery and a few other odds and ends but other than that it's ready to roll. I've got it parked in my Mom's back yard in San Diego until July when we leave to full-time for a year.

Thanks again for all the tips, I'm sure I'll have more questions as I get into fixing the small things.

Curt

P.S. I'll post photos as soon as I get them from the lab.

ViewRVs · 01-08-2003, 04:37 PM

So did you get the rear sleeping arrangements that you wanted?

That's quite a story! It sounds like your unit is in good hands! Enjoy!

spinolio · 01-08-2003, 05:05 PM

No Fred, I didn't. It's rear twins, actually I think it was originally the rear dinette that converted to a larger-than-king. I think I will attempt to convert it back to that, or to a permanent larger-than-king sleeping area. Would attempt to convert to a permanent queen, but I'd have to relocate the fresh water tank to do that, a bit daunting, to say the least.