How many of us are there? Owners of Dodge based RV's?

[whiteknight001]

I'm new here, and curious.

How many of us in Class C own Dodge B300 incomplete
cab/chassis based RV's? I know two others- Steve aka
Ripsaw, with a 1977 Brougham, and Leroy aka 1978_Dodge
_Delta who owns a 440V8 powered sharp looking 1978
Delta RV. I would like to ask, and offer, help, idea
swapping and comparing notes on our particular RV's
which are based on the Dodge B300 van chassis.

Yeah, I know. These are low tech, podgy old RV's that
would be considered "entry level" for folks like me,
but I have a deep and abiding respect for the quality
of these old "monsters of the open road". And anyone
wanting to pick brains, joke about, share notes or just
brag about our old A- Dodge-io's are certainly welcome
to PM or email me. Between all of us we can form a real
good support group, and help each other with problems
we know we'll encounter with an older vehicle.

Sure. I'd love a new RV. But I'd rather have an older
one already paid for, and a lotta great memories. Call
me frugal, an old hippie, or whatever you will. I'm proud
of my old land yacht.

Mopar Madness Manifest in the flesh,

Mark aka White Knight

P.S. Mine's a '72. Is there an older one out there someone's
motorvating in? Maybe even a Travco? W/K

[toedtoes]

I use pool chlorine granules for disinfecting the water tank. So much easier as you don't have to flush as much afterwards - a little bit left won't hurt you. Just a teaspoon or two does the job.

[Griff_in_Fairba]

As long as we're on the subject of water ...

Every year to two years, disinfect your freshwater tank with a bleach solution of one to two tablespoons regular bleach per gallon of water, filling the tank at least 3/4 full and drive around for 15 minutes or so, turning frequently with lots of stop and go to get the bleach solution sloshing all around inside the tank.

Then, run the the bleach solution through all your plumbing lines (galley sink, bathroom sink, shower, and head) for two minutes per line.

If you have a separate gray water tank, fill it at least 3/4 full of the bleach solution (it will be partially full due to flushing the plumbing lines) and drain the rest of the bleach into black water tank through the head. Drive around again as before to get bleach solution splashing around inside the gray/black water tanks.

Drain the bleach solution into an RV dump site and refill the freshwater tank with known-safe potable water and repeat the whole process to flush out the bleach, including completely draining the whole system again.

Finally, refill your fresh water tank again with known-safe potable water. At this point, your fresh water tank and plumbing should be mostly germ-free and the water safe to drink.

(Previously in this thread was a discussion on cleaning your black water tank versus just partially disinfecting as described here.)

Add 1-2 teaspoons of baking soda per gallon of water when refilling your fresh water tank to keep the water from going stale and tasting "off." The baking soda won't harm you (and will actually act as an antacid) but may affect some recipes that rely on acids such as vinegar or fruit juice.

Note: You must use regular chlorine bleach ... non-chlorine bleach will not work for disinfecting. The ingredient to look for on the label is sodium hypochlorite. Because you'll be flushing the system completely, it doesn't matter if the bleach contains added soaps, perfumes, and dyes.

Also, this bleach solution is much, much stronger than that used to disinfect drinking water ... well above EPA maximum safe levels for drinking water so be sure to flush your plumbing system completely.

Finally, be sure to use fresh bleach. Chlorine bleach had a finite shelf life, losing 20 to 50 percent of it's effectiveness in a year.

[Leeann]

Most 6 gal water heaters in '70s RVs are Atwood. They're pretty good, actually. We don't have a full shower in our 20'; just an attachment to the sink's faucet with a hand-held shower head. Easier for us to sit on the toilet and hose off than stand up - it's a bit tight in there - but that also makes us conserve water. Get wet, turn off water. Lather up, hose off, done.

RV showers in older rigs weren't really meant to take house showers. They're more meant for water restriction/drought showers.


I thought I had posted about this, but it seems I forgot. I fell down a set of concrete steps and landed, elbow first, on a concrete pad last Saturday. Transected the humurus (broke the upper arm bone in two) about mid-shaft. Plus, unfortunately, fractured the lower piece from the break down into my elbow. Now I get to have surgery to make me even more non-TSA friendly than before.

Thanks for all the good thoughts, guys. I appreciate it.

[Maya_215]

Please there is no discouragement here and yes we do a lot of tent camping so we are accustomed to the shower access but it would be nice to be able to wash up after a good atv ride as we plan to take this riding with us as well as traveling ohh let me correct my mistake the one is a 100psi and the other is a 45psi sorry about that

[Griff_in_Fairba]

Oh, I do know someone who does use his 'onboard' shower while camping in remote places. But, he re-plumbed his water system to draw water from nearby lakes and river in order to use his shower a lot. (Last I heard, he was thinking of going to a tankless water heater, in addition to the fresh water heater, for showering.

According to him, he'd need a trailer with a 250 to as much as 1,000 gallon tank to keep up with his showering for more than a day or, at most, two.

[Griff_in_Fairba]

To the best of my knowledge, there are no 12VDC water heaters. There is not enough electricity in anything less than a humongous battery bank to heat water.

As far as I know, all RV water heaters are propane, diesel, and/or 120VAC. Any 12VDC connection is either for pumps or igniters (versus pilot lights or piezoelectric igniters).

I have heard of some tanked heaters that use a heat exchanger to help keep the water in the tank hot when the engine is running.

I have an outside shower unit that I'll be installing on MLP, but it will be mostly for rinsing off. Inside "facilities" will be limited to a head and a sink for washing up.

The 1972 M375 motorhome that was given to me has a (very small) tub in it. By my calculations, it'd take half the fresh water tank to put just a few inches in the tub. So, it'd only really be usable at campsites with full hook-ups. More than likely, the price of a full hook-up campsite would be more than using the showers at the campground. (At campgrounds we've visited, access to the shower facilities was include in the price of all campsite, including the 'primitive' sites.)

I'm not trying to discourage you but don't be surprised if you're less than satisfied with 'onboard' showering.

Be careful with those water pumps. The 100psi pump could very well overwhelm your motorhome's plumbing and the 60psi might do likewise. It's worth noting that most RV supply stores sell pressure limiters for use when a RV is connected to a tap. (Most well pumps run at 30 or 60 psi.)

[Maya_215]

I also forgot to mention I had changed out the original water pump and I had found a guy on Craig's list that had two almost brand new seaflo water pumps one is a 60psi and the other is 100psi I got them both for 40 bucks so I figured why the heck not

[Maya_215]

Ok thanks great info, my plan was to take it to a person that would know more about the water heater and boiler so I can make sure I was doing things proper for the first time as it is older then me lol I do have a well understanding of water heaters, I'm a GNC by day and a heat treated at night so I am very knowledgeable on gasses but not to much on these rvs lol but I'm learning, to my understanding they have low pressure heaters that are operated by two D.C. Battery's so no electric hook up is needed just the gas line witch I thought was a plus beside how small and thin it was and of course what caught my eye was the price really cheap I do understand the limit of water there is in the actual tank but me and my family do a lot of atv/utving and it would be nice to clean up after a good ride and I know the wife will really appreciate that I even was thinking of the outside shower so we could spray off before we even stepped into the rv lol those are later plans if this will actually work

[Griff_in_Fairba]

Maya.215 wrote:
My prayers go out to Leeann hope all goes well in surgery. So I have been thinking this whole week about these tankless hot water heaters, I haven't tried to start the one I have in my rv yet it looks pretty corroded and rusty in there ?? And I noticed it only has a 6gallon tank to it. I have three kids and one likes to take long hot showers besides I like mines as well and them 6gallons are going to go quick. So I was thinking About the tankless ones if any one has used one of these before? How hot do they actually get? And any opinions on a brand or the heaters themselves thanks

First, before trying the water heater in your motorhome, have it checked out by a competent propane technician. (The same goes for your furnace, propane regulator(s), and piping.)

Tankless water heaters are definitely worth considering. Unlike the water heater in your motorhome, as well as in most people's homes, tankless water heaters don't waste a lot of propane (or electricity ... or fuel oil, etc.) keeping the water hot even when you're not using it. (Some motorhome owners keep the propane turned off until they want hot water ... and have to plan ahead to allow it to bring the water up to temperature.)

We've never used the water heater in any of our recreational vehicles. Instead, we just heat water on the stove to do dishes, wash up, etc.

My main concern is the amount of available water and the water pressure. Unless you're hooked to a tap, you could quickly empty your fresh water tank. Likewise, the water pump may not have enough flow or pressure to make a tankless heater work properly.

Note: Many truck stops, campgrounds, some laundormats, etc. have showers available. You might find it better to use these rather than trying to shower in your motorhome.

[Maya_215]

My prayers go out to Leeann hope all goes well in surgery. So I have been thinking this whole week about these tankless hot water heaters, I haven't tried to start the one I have in my rv yet it looks pretty corroded and rusty in there ?? And I noticed it only has a 6gallon tank to it. I have three kids and one likes to take long hot showers besides I like mines as well and them 6gallons are going to go quick. So I was thinking About the tankless ones if any one has used one of these before? How hot do they actually get? And any opinions on a brand or the heaters themselves thanks

[Griff_in_Fairba]

And, to continue more ...

In direct current (DC) circuits, the electricity travels in one direction only, from the source through the connections and load and back to the source. In alternating current (AC) circuits, electricity flows in one direction and then quickly reverses to the opposite direction.

Most people understand that electricity is the manifestation of electron movement. It's easy to imagine electrons traveling all the way around the circuit in direct current. However, this visualization tends to fall apart when people consider alternating current. Even at the speed of light, it's difficult to imagine electrons flowing all the way around a circuit and then back again in the opposite direction.

In fact, electrons don't really move much at all. What actually happens is atoms bump into each other and their electrons transfer energy to the electrons on other atoms. This transfer of energy, from electron to electron and atom to atom, is what electricity really is. (Yes, this is a crude description but suitable for our discussion.)

[Griff_in_Fairba]

Leeann wrote:
That's seriously awesome news!

My surgery is Sat at 7:30 eastern. Doc said 4-5 hrs, so fun. If I recover well, I'll go home. Otherwise, they'll keep me for observation.

I PM'ed Leeann to ask, "What surgery?" I'll leave the details to Leeann ... but everyone might want to send her husband a few rolls of bubble wrap ...

To continue ...

Before diving into the Coach Electrical System, let's examine some basic electricity concepts as they apply to our discussion, starting with electrical circuits.

(Yes, we're going to shift temporarily to a bottom-up perspective to lay some groundwork before going back to our top-down examination.)

In its most basic form, an electrical circuit consists of a source, connections, and a load. The words circle and circuit are related, with both sharing common origins. So, one way of thinking about an electrical circuit is to consider the electricity following a (vaguely) circular path from the source, through the connections and the load, and back to the source.



All electrical circuits boil down to this basic diagram. That's it, nice and simple, just like sex.

Note: We're talking about electrical, not electronic circuits. Electrical circuits are relatively simple and straight forward, while electronic circuits can be incredibly complex, with lots of strange, counterintuitive rules and behavior. (That's why I quit studying electronics and focused on digital circuits.)

[Wolf_n_Kat]

Leeann wrote:
That's seriously awesome news!

My surgery is Sat at 7:30 eastern. Doc said 4-5 hrs, so fun. If I recover well, I'll go home. Otherwise, they'll keep me for observation.

We, of course, will be praying that all goes well (and more quickly than the estimated time!), and you get to go home right away!

Just remember to take it easy afterwards, no need for playing Superwoman (besides, Supergirl might be embarrassed!! 😉 )

[Leeann]

That's seriously awesome news!

My surgery is Sat at 7:30 eastern. Doc said 4-5 hrs, so fun. If I recover well, I'll go home. Otherwise, they'll keep me for observation.

[Wolf_n_Kat]

Griff in Fairbanks wrote:
I postponed continuing my current discussion because I was concerned it might obscure Wolf_n_Kat's post, as well as Leeann's response. I felt it was important to make sure this thread's community had a good opportunity to read and respond to those posts.

And I really appreciate that, Griff.

Update: Kat had her lobotomy... I mean, lobectomy! I'm glad the Dr. could keep those straight, I'd probably be facing a malpractice suit... Anyway, we got that over and done with - oh, and about the Explorer. A '92 Ford Explorer (not an Explorer RV, that'd be too expensive for daily trips!) with over a quarter of a million miles under her wheels. Did great, up until the day I shredded the serpentine belt. After walking to an auto store to pick up a new belt and some radiator fluid, and with a little help from a roadside-assist guy, I was back on the road.

Anyway, Mama's doing pretty good, considering she just had the upper lobe of her left lung removed. Came home Friday, and Sunday we went into the ER because she coughed and was suddenly 'leaking' from where the chest tube was. Not blood, not 'puss-ie looking', a clear fluid. Better to be safe than sorry, so I slapped a bandage (an industrial-sized abdominal bandage) over the leak and off we went. Nothing to worry about, she had just popped a stitch that wasn't particularly well-done, a couple of staples and she was good to go.

Had her post-op meeting with the surgeon yesterday, and he liked what he saw. Pulled all the staples from the thoracotemy and chest tube, 'taped her up' (Steri-Strips), and he wants to see her again in a couple of weeks. We've been having a field day cleaning tape residue off her skin (I'm thinking the hospital must have been having a sale on tape, they used so much of it!), and aside from a few twinges and a restless night last night, Kat is back at work editing the latest issue of the magazine, and has actually managed to get caught up!

We appreciate everybody's thoughts and prayers - 'community' is right! You guys ROCK!