[eric strt6]

My 9 year old fantastic fan was starting to die so I ordered a new one. The inside cowling in the Lance was a hair different so I had to dremel the inside panel of the new fan by notching the corners . No biggie. Start to finish the swap took two hours. New fan is Dicored [Self leveling lap sealant inder and around the roof flange to make a waterproof seal} and screwed into place and is purring away. The fan is pre wired. all you need is a + and - set of wires to hook it to. The fan is the same size a a standard camper roof vent so swapped to one of these is fairly straight forward. Another nice feature is that you can set the temperature that you want the fan to come on at. I also have a vent cover that lets me leave it open while driving and in rain or snow

 

[Toshi]

I see you'll have to avoid backing up at speed in a gale, though.

 

[TreeSaw]

My 9 year old fantastic fan was starting to die so I ordered a new one. The inside cowling in the Lance was a hair different so I had to dremel the inside panel of the new fan by notching the corners . No biggie. Start to finish the swap took two hours. New fan is Dicored [Self leveling lap sealant inder and around the roof flange to make a waterproof seal} and screwed into place and is purring away. The fan is pre wired. all you need is a + and - set of wires to hook it to. The fan is the same size a a standard camper roof vent so swapped to one of these is fairly straight forward. Another nice feature is that you can set the temperature that you want the fan to come on at. I also have a vent cover that lets me leave it open while driving and in rain or snow

Excellent! We love our roof vent covers too! Nothing like being able to allow for fresh air in the rain (campers can and do get stuffy).

 

[boogenman]

My floor is squishy by my dinette and couch, not sure what to do. It is a nice vinyl "wood floor" that I am sure I can not find if I did a patch job. I am thinking about sending it to Amish country for the winter and have them replace to entire floor. Thoughts?

 

[eric strt6]

My floor is squishy by my dinette and couch, not sure what to do. It is a nice vinyl "wood floor" that I am sure I can not find if I did a patch job. I am thinking about sending it to Amish country for the winter and have them replace to entire floor. Thoughts?

check for water leaking in from the window seal and causing rot in the dinette wall and floor

 

[johnbryanpeters]

My floor is squishy by my dinette and couch, not sure what to do. It is a nice vinyl "wood floor" that I am sure I can not find if I did a patch job. I am thinking about sending it to Amish country for the winter and have them replace to entire floor. Thoughts?

If you know a competent shop, send it!

 

[Toshi]

No peace out post from @Adventurous here detailing the ditching of the camper?

 

[Adventurous]

No peace out post from @Adventurous here detailing the ditching of the camper?

Dropping it off on Wednesday night with the new owner. It'll see a proper farewell then.

 

[Adventurous]

Be still my heart.

https://denver.craigslist.org/cto/d/legendary-mercedes-unimog/6303011838.html

 

[Toshi]

All that shit hanging below the rear axle makes me dubious that it's still on portals...

 

[boostindoubles]

The ARE shell makes a great camper. I don't even have to take off the front wheels.

 

[jdcamb]

So do I have to get a special inverter to plug into the house power to charge my Batteries?

 

[skibunny24]

 

[eric strt6]

So do I have to get a special inverter to plug into the house power to charge my Batteries?

if your camper came with a battery compartment and a shore power plug or cord you should be good to go as you most likely have an installed OEM 120VAC to 12V DC converter

 

[jdcamb]

if your camper came with a battery compartment and a shore power plug or cord you should be good to go as you most likely have an installed OEM 120VAC to 12V DC converter

We got it all worked out.

 

[Toshi]

Is that jacked up with the suspension at full droop, or is that just how high it sits?

 

[Toshi]

Winnebago factory product based off of the Sprinter 4x4. Looks perfect, from the perspective of someone who lusts after but doesn't actually use such vehicles.

 

[junkyard]

Winnebago factory product based off of the Sprinter 4x4. Looks perfect, from the perspective of someone who lusts after but doesn't actually use such vehicles.

How can you use it if you dont have it?

 

[6thElement]

Winnebago factory product based off of the Sprinter 4x4. Looks perfect, from the perspective of someone who lusts after but doesn't actually use such vehicles.

Looks great, but starting at $135k is a little too rich for us.

 

[eric strt6]

Looks great, but starting at $135k is a little too rich for us.

seriously

I had to stretch to put my rig together buying used. total was $58k, 38K for the truck and $20k for the camper. but we had to do it that way so that we could tow the horse trailer to shows and stay at the show grounds when needed and have a camper by itself for road trips. I hate towing so a slide in camper for the truck bed works really well for us.

 

[Toshi]

Looks great, but starting at $135k is a little too rich for us.

Just put off purchasing the 911 for a year...

 

[johnbryanpeters]

I have yet to see a camper van with sufficient space to be anything like comfortable. I'm better off in a cot in my cargo van.

 

[skibunny24]

I have yet to see a camper van with sufficient space to be anything like comfortable. I'm better off in a cot in my cargo van.

Not enough room, you say?

 

[Adventurous]

Not enough room, you say?

Moar interior pics! I need inspiration/ideas for when we finish out our cargo trailer.

 

[skibunny24]

Moar interior pics! I need inspiration/ideas for when we finish out our cargo trailer.

I'll see what I can find--or take some pics when the van returns this evening! When we got it, it had metal shelving on both sides in the back, a single bed on one side, and a kitchen on the other that didn't quite work, with an oven but no fridge. Buffalo ripped it all out and what we have now is all plywood and craigslisted together. It is super functional and easy for us to tweak as we figure out what we really need in there, Buffalo did a great job! Though I know he would rather have the fancy stuff. Some day! Anyhoo, I'll get some pics and show ya today or tomorrow!

 

[johnbryanpeters]

Last year I had the flush system atmospheric vacuum breaker/check valve blow water between the bedroom and bathroom walls when trying to flush the black water tank.

The proximal cause seems to have been a stink bug that managed to crawl into the vacuum breaker, preventing it from closing off properly when pressurized.

I vacuumed the water off the floor, cut a hole in the bedroom wall to access the valve (!), cleaned it out and tested it, then put everything back together.

The particular flushing system I have is a B&B Molders Flusher 2. I found the installation documentation online and read it carefully. I noted a few things:

• "Vac/Check should be located a minimum of 6" above flood rim of highest fixture connected to waste holding tank." Note: In my trailer, installation is only 4" above toilet rim.
• "Minimum water pressure of 40 psi must be used."
• "Make sure faucet is open completely during entire tank flush cycle. Vac/Check is designed to work at water pressure range of 8–125 psi." Note that this implies that one shouldn't ease the water on, but turn it on rapidly.
• "Water leakage from Vac/Check is likely when water pressure in supply line is under 8 psi."
• "It is normal for a small amount of water to escape Vac/Check as plumbing line for tank flush pressurizes." So mounting the valve in an inaccessible place inside a wall is not an example of competent trailer design.

With this as a starting point, I'm planning to relocate the vac/check valve from its position in the wall to under the valance of the bathroom sink so if/when it leaks the water can go down the shower drain rather than onto the floor. I have done a bunch of inspection and measurement, and it ought to be a simple and manageable modification. Based on floor layouts, it looks as though this would work in all R-Pod models except perhaps the RP-182.

 

[StiHacka]

Last year I had the flush system atmospheric vacuum breaker/check valve blow water between the bedroom and bathroom walls when trying to flush the black water tank.

The proximal cause seems to have been a stink bug that managed to crawl into the vacuum breaker, preventing it from closing off properly when pressurized.

I vacuumed the water off the floor, cut a hole in the bedroom wall to access the valve (!), cleaned it out and tested it, then put everything back together.

The particular flushing system I have is a B&B Molders Flusher 2. I found the installation documentation online and read it carefully. I noted a few things:

• "Vac/Check should be located a minimum of 6" above flood rim of highest fixture connected to waste holding tank." Note: In my trailer, installation is only 4" above toilet rim.
• "Minimum water pressure of 40 psi must be used."
• "Make sure faucet is open completely during entire tank flush cycle. Vac/Check is designed to work at water pressure range of 8–125 psi." Note that this implies that one shouldn't ease the water on, but turn it on rapidly.
• "Water leakage from Vac/Check is likely when water pressure in supply line is under 8 psi."
• "It is normal for a small amount of water to escape Vac/Check as plumbing line for tank flush pressurizes." So mounting the valve in an inaccessible place inside a wall is not an example of competent trailer design.

With this as a starting point, I'm planning to relocate the vac/check valve from its position in the wall to under the valance of the bathroom sink so if/when it leaks the water can go down the shower drain rather than onto the floor. I have done a bunch of inspection and measurement, and it ought to be a simple and manageable modification. Based on floor layouts, it looks as though this would work in all R-Pod models except perhaps the RP-182.

Flush it now?

 

[johnbryanpeters]

Successfully finished the vac/check relocation five days ago.

Today I removed half of one of the wall panels outside the bathroom, dressed wiring and plumbing, and cleaned out all the debris that Forest River left behind when they built the trailer. I have been wanting to do this for a while - the wall section bulged out at the bottom where they had happily stapled the panel on top of some of the speaker wire.

The vac/check job would have been a hell of a lot easier had I addressed this first...

 

[stevew]

All that shit hanging below the rear axle makes me dubious that it's still on portals...

i did not get a chance to read the listing but that looked like a standard old mercedes commercial truck and not a unimog....

 

[Adventurous]

Our trailer has been ready for 2 or so weeks now, too bad my truck is still in the shop. Then the build out shall begin!

Gonna order up a Lock n’ Roll hitch in the meantime. That should fair much better than a standard ball coupler or a pintle hitch might.

 

[johnbryanpeters]

I'm planning to remove the refrigerator - it's supposed to have seals to prevent combustion gases in cabin, but various visual inspection reveals that factory fucked up the installation, and the seals are not intact.

 

[6thElement]

Our trailer has been ready for 2 or so weeks now, too bad my truck is still in the shop. Then the build out shall begin!

Gonna order up a Lock n’ Roll hitch in the meantime. That should fair much better than a standard ball coupler or a pintle hitch might.

Whatcha getting?

 

[Adventurous]

Whatcha getting?

Got one of these in a 6x12. Insulated walls, ceiling, and floor, RV door with screen at the back, and a few other goodies. Comes as a blank slate, but that'll be a good and a bad thing I suppose.

Intent is to outfit it with a bed, cassette toilet, sink with 5 gal jugs, propane hookup and dual batteries. Should be rudimentary but nice.

 

[jimmydean]

Thats slick! Like rebuilding a trailer without the rust and dry rot. The wife and I go back and forth between something we live "out of" or one we "live in". Anything bigger than a 17' requires me getting a diesel to pull it. But something we could pull with the CRV would be a bonus. Her hair dresser still might sell us his R-pod and that would pretty much settle it (and would be a smoking deal).

 

[Adventurous]

Thats slick! Like rebuilding a trailer without the rust and dry rot. The wife and I go back and forth between something we live "out of" or one we "live in". Anything bigger than a 17' requires me getting a diesel to pull it. But something we could pull with the CRV would be a bonus. Her hair dresser still might sell us his R-pod and that would pretty much settle it (and would be a smoking deal).

After seeing how poorly our last one was constructed, the all aluminum structure of the cargo trailer was huge selling point. We opted for an aluminum skinned interior so doing any work behind the walls or ceiling is as easy as undoing some screws instead of having to tear off the vinyl veneered plywood off. RVs are constructed from the outside in so there was no simple way to do any sort of work without destroying things to a degree. Additionally, this one clocks in at 1,300 lbs empty, I'm figuring I can get away with building out the entire trailer for less than 2K lbs whereas a comparable RV from the factory is in the neighborhood of 3K lbs dry.

I'm paying a premium going this route but hoping it works out in the long haul durability and longevity wise.

 

[BadDNA]

Thats slick! Like rebuilding a trailer without the rust and dry rot. The wife and I go back and forth between something we live "out of" or one we "live in". Anything bigger than a 17' requires me getting a diesel to pull it. But something we could pull with the CRV would be a bonus. Her hair dresser still might sell us his R-pod and that would pretty much settle it (and would be a smoking deal).

I pull a 20' with a Tacoma. Look at the weight before you decide you can't tow something.

 

[eric strt6]

I just drained the water system. We are going up camping in the Sierras this weekend and the temps are forecast to be in the low teens to single digits. We will carry water in jugs inside the camper for drinking and flushing. Black and grey water tanks will have a gallon of RV Antifeeze in each and we will head out with 3 full propane tanks and 5 gallons of gas for the generator although the Solar panels should keep the batteries charged up for the most part. I have reflectix covering the camper door and skylights and windows (velcro attachments) Fiberglass batts are behind all outside compartment doors. We have been comfortable down to 0* in this configuration before

 

[jimmydean]

I pull a 20' with a Tacoma. Look at the weight before you decide you can't tow something. View attachment 127358

While my Silverado is a 3/4 ton, it is also a '92 sitting on 199,988 miles of all original equipment. While it "could" town just about anything, it would be slow and likely get 6mpg doing so. The wife wants to do gorge (Hood River) or Longbeach, WA trips in it, so it is 2 hours each way by car, looking like nearly 3 hours by truck with tow, less than ideal. I know the R-Pod would be no issue for Amber, but she has had a good life and I would rather retire her than drive her into the ground overworking her.

 

[johnbryanpeters]

Thats slick! Like rebuilding a trailer without the rust and dry rot. The wife and I go back and forth between something we live "out of" or one we "live in". Anything bigger than a 17' requires me getting a diesel to pull it. But something we could pull with the CRV would be a bonus. Her hair dresser still might sell us his R-pod and that would pretty much settle it (and would be a smoking deal).

What year and what model R-Pod?

 

[jimmydean]

What year and what model R-Pod?

I am not sure exactly. I think it is a '15 or so and the smaller version I think, like a 17'. I know it hasn't seen a whole lot of use (something like 5 times in 2 years), her hair dresser and his partner are not the outdoors type and I think it was an impulse buy after they bough an SUV.

<edit> They were pulling it with a Mazda CX5 or 9, so it was considered towable (sort of) with the CRV and would be easy for Amber.