New Owner Questions

[Bigskyrider8]

Thanks in advance to all the postings and great advice.

I purchased a 2014 23' Flying Cloud one month ago and love it.
I've found the owners manual to be seriously lacking in detail, so here are my questions.........

1. I see the converter isn't really made to charge the batteries properly.
Rather than risk ruining two good batteries on board I've decided to
use my
Stanley trickle charger ($38) that has a float charge and connect
directly to the batteries.......does this make sense? I'm thinking about
buying an upgraded converter......your thoughts?

2. I've crawled under the coach and found seams where the metal over
laps or meets. This shows a gap of 1/4 inch in places, great way for
bugs, mice etc. to enter. Should I "seal" these seams with a poly type
sealant or not be concerned?

3. Is it ok to extend my electrical land line with a 30 amp electric cord or
would their be to much of a power loss that would effect performance?

Thanks for your help!

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by Bigskyrider8

I've found the owners manual to be seriously lacking in detail, so here are my questions.........

3. Is it ok to extend my electrical land line with a 30 amp electric cord or
would their be to much of a power loss that would effect performance?

I carry a 30amp RV extension cord the same gauge as the basic cord, and the same length. So if need be I can double my length, but I wouldn't go past double the length without worrying about line losses. And since the joint between cords isn't under a protective cover like at a service pedestal, I would make sure the joining between the two cords is protected from weather and condensation so water can't get in; tightly wrapping the joint in Saran Wrap has worked for me in the past.

I would not plug my 30amp cord into a 20amp cord through an adapter to extend it. In my mind, any adapter from 20amp to 30amp needs to be between the service pedestal and the extension cord, not between two cords.

But that's just the way I do it; I'm not electrician enough to know if there's a rational basis for doing it that way.

[Ahab]

1) Are you sure? I thought the recent coaches come with a 3 stage converter.

2) Good idea.

[Bigventure]

You can let the converter charge the batteries.

What you can't do is store the trailer pluged in for 3 months. Or you will cook the batteries given time.

I use a 110 volt extention cord with a 110/30 amp adapter on the end. I can't run the AC, but it gives me lights and tops off the battery in the drive.

I also have a 30 amp extention cord for at the campgrounds, when my cord won't reach the post.

Do NOT plug into a welder or range plug in a garage. Its 220 volt.

[PharmGeek]

my 2014 does not I believe have a 3 stage converter...I have been told that if I keep a check on water level I should be fine....I also read that while the 3 stage will have less tendency to have problems with the batteries, it still can so checking water level is still important.

I have resigned myself to this course until perhaps later I would need to replace batteries and consider more expensive battery replacements.

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by PharmGeek

I have resigned myself to this course until perhaps later I would need to replace batteries and consider more expensive battery replacements.

If you change from wet-cell to AGM, you'll also have to change your three-stage charger settings.

[Bigskyrider8]

Thanks for all the great advice.
The converter is only a single stage on my 2014, since it will be under warranty for some time I'll keep this for two years before upgrading. I really don't trust a charging process that has no "float" phase, batteries are too expensive.

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by Bigskyrider8

Thanks in advance to all the postings and great advice.

I purchased a 2014 23' Flying Cloud one month ago and love it.
I've found the owners manual to be seriously lacking in detail, so here are my questions.........

2. I've crawled under the coach and found seams where the metal over
laps or meets. This shows a gap of 1/4 inch in places, great way for
bugs, mice etc. to enter. Should I "seal" these seams with a poly type
sealant or not be concerned?

Thanks for your help!

DO NOT seal those seems.

The underbelly MUST be able to breathe.

If not, then trapped moisture will cause some problems you don't need.

Andy

[Bigskyrider8]

I did crawl under the entire length and applied some T-9 to the rivets as a preventative measure.
I think I've ordered something like six cans of a variety of expensive anti-corrosion spray.....T-9, Corrosion X etc.
I'm not a big fan of all the stickers on the A/S so I removed them with a blow dryer, no residue left behind.....very easy including the "Thor" sticker.

I did purchase aluminum pop rivets and a pop gun in order to replace a wayward rivet on the banana wrap, haven't used one of those since seventh grade sheet metal class.....

[PharmGeek]

20 bucks says you forget the "green" sticker just next to bottom corner of entrance near steps....that one for me would not simply come off...I still need to apply goo gone or something to get it off.

[m.hony]

Geek,
Goo Gone will do it for the "green" sticker, but don't make the mistake I made. I used a pot scrubber sponge and scratched my clear coat.
Use a microfiber towel.
After that I just decided to leave the rest of the stickers.
The Thor sticker did come off easily without a trace, but I am afraid the others might be like the "green" sticker.

[PharmGeek]

Nah - others came off just as easy - although mine were newer ....

[rodsterinfl]

Progressive Dynamics makes an upgrade kit for the Parallax converter/chargers if that is what you have.
4600 Series Upgrade or Replacement Power Converters from Progressive Dynamics

[Bigskyrider8]

"Jackson Center" this is Flying Cloud 007..do you read me.......
Mission Completed.

I'm amazed at the variety and number of stickers on my new Airstream.
I drafted my wife to help me and in total we removed 15 stickers.

1. Dealer sticker ad.

2. 1 "Thor" sticker ad.

3. 2 "If you don't tighten your lug nuts"....yikes! your wheels will fly off.

4. 5 "When opening this window, it may stick!"

5. 1 "Go Green" very sticky sticker.

6. 5 stickers indoors, I can't remember what they said.

This is how we did it, apply blow dryer for 30 - 45 seconds high heat setting. Peel off sticker, any residual gummy glue apply "goo gone" and wait for five minutes, wipe clean. Apply Spray way glass cleaner to buff clean. On Aluminum we finished it off with a microfiber towel and Meguires quick spray polish.

I'm sure all of these stickers send a critical message but.........we did leave a couple that contain our Vin # just in case some State Trooper is concerned about us knowing what the proper air pressure is etc.

P.S. we did leave the "exit" sticker over the bedroom window, just felt like the right thing to do

[rodsterinfl]

You better watch out takin all those stickers off. One day if you sell that trailer someone will throw a wheel and blame you saying they did not know they had to keep them on tight!

I took my stove warning sticker off recently and thought about a scorched bald-headed person with no eyelashes that might come my way!

[Luigi123]

Speaking of batteries and converters, where is a good solar straining point --say 100watts on up?

[rodsterinfl]

solar straining point

What do you mean by strain?