Removing the old TV (With photos) Tropical by National RV

[msmith1199]

Okay, some of you guys lied to me! I'm going on about 2 hours now and still don't have this TV out! But I do have a new found respect for National RV. I was always worried about this giant TV over my head and every time I hit a big bump I was worried it was going to come crashing down on my head. Now that I see what's holding it up there, there is no way a bump was going to bring it down. I had read the other stories about removing the frame and straps holding the TV down. Not on mine. This thing is bolted into a complete steel box. And I mean solid steel on both sides and the bottom. I haven't seen the top completely yet, but it looks like it's lag bolted at the top into the steel frame of the motorhome.

I'll post some photos when I get done with this but I'm having a heck of a time getting it out. The steel box the TV is in looks like it was designed around this TV. It fits snuggly in the box and then there was a piece of angled steel across the bottom that held the TV into the box. I figured once I removed that the TV would slide out. Well once that piece was moved I can tell the TV is loose in there, but it won't slide out because the TV extends up into the ceiling. The bottom of the steel box is held on with six bolts. I'm trying to get those out now without having to disassemble the entire front section. So I can just barely get back in there to reach the bolts and turn them a little at a time. I'm down to one bolt left in the far back and needed a break. I have screw drivers stuck in four of the other holes because once I remove this last bolt I think the TV will be free to drop straight down. Hopefully the screw drivers will hold it until my helper gets home from shopping and between the two of us I can hold it while she takes out the screw drivers, and we lower it to the floor.

[msmith1199]

So I wanted to run HDMI cable from the sat box to both TV's, but how to get it all the way to the back was the problem. Turns out, thanks to some advice I got on here, that was the simplest part of the project. I have ducted AC and somebody on here said they ran the cable through their ducts. So I took all the vents off, got a coat hanger, and fed a 40' HDMI cable all the way from the front to the back inside the AC duct.







The AC duct actually continues beyond the last vent in the back and over the TV compartment and it continues in the front into the TV compartment where it was blocked by a trim piece. All I had to do was drill a hole in the ceiling into the vent inside the rear TV compartment and drill through the trim piece in the front, and pull the cable through the holes and it now runs from the front all the way to the back without being seen at all.

[msmith1199]

So I started this project a year ago last month and guess what? I set it aside and never went back to it! I guess I'm a procrastinator huh? I've been camping for the last year with a big hole in the front of the motorhome, but I did buy the TV for it and we just sit it on the counter. But for the last few days I've got back to work on this. I'll post some new photos next.

[cliffer]

Thanks for your input. Planning to replace my big tv in my 2004 National Tropical soon. Very Helpfull

[msmith1199]

1fastdad wrote:

msmith1199 wrote:

msmith1199 wrote:
Found this coil of wires behind the TV. There are two coax cables then some other cable with a large multi-pen connector on it. It had a piece of masking tape on it and written on the masking tape was "Do not use, inoperable." I'm not exactly sure what it would have been for. Maybe for the backup camera? But if so, where is the cable that works for the backup camera and how did they put in new cable without removing this cable? I'll have to figure this one out later. Anybody got any ideas what it is?

No guesses on what these cables may be for?

These are the cables coming from the box in the middle of the from part of your roof. this is a set up for a sat. dish. My 05 dolphin has this.

I just saw your reply here. The problem is I have a Sat dish and it's not using this bundle of cables. And the end connector on that one cable is like nothing I've ever seen on a satellite receiver before. I haven't had time to get back to work on this project so I still want to see if I can figure out where the other end of these cables lead to.

[1fastdad]

msmith1199 wrote:

msmith1199 wrote:
Found this coil of wires behind the TV. There are two coax cables then some other cable with a large multi-pen connector on it. It had a piece of masking tape on it and written on the masking tape was "Do not use, inoperable." I'm not exactly sure what it would have been for. Maybe for the backup camera? But if so, where is the cable that works for the backup camera and how did they put in new cable without removing this cable? I'll have to figure this one out later. Anybody got any ideas what it is?

No guesses on what these cables may be for?

These are the cables coming from the box in the middle of the from part of your roof. this is a set up for a sat. dish. My 05 dolphin has this.

[ClassAGeek]

msmith1199 wrote:
I looked around at the TV connections and I could not find a single HDMI cable being used in any of them. I couldn't even find one using the five cable system (3 for video, 2 for audio).

Fascinating. HDMI switches to route multiple sources to multiple TV are inexpensive and commonplace. So are the HDMI cables. Geeks use monoprice.com pretty much all the time.

No excuse really.

[msmith1199]

I'm doing more research on exactly what components I want to put back in the motorhome and I went over to a dealer that had Monaco and a couple of other brands of motorhomes. I looked around at the TV connections and I could not find a single HDMI cable being used in any of them. I couldn't even find one using the five cable system (3 for video, 2 for audio). All of the units just had coax coming from the antenna and then the yellow, red, white, rca cables coming from the DVD players. So even though they had some really nice HD LED TV's, none of them are getting an HD signal from their DVD player. I also didn't see any RV's that had satellite installed. Back when I bought mine satellite was standard equipment on most of them. Looks like they are leaving it off to allow the customer to decide.

[msmith1199]

So I'm wondering if I should keep track of the money I'm spending or not? May be easier just to not keep track. But the good news is I don't have to buy a new TV for the front of the Motorhome. The one I just bought for my bedroom in the house will work. But if I take the one out of the bedroom I have to move the one from the livingroom into the bedroom and then get me a new 60" TV for the livingroom!

So trying to figure out all this wiring is semi complicated. Right now I have one of those switch boxes that has a number of coax inputs and then it has outputs for the front TV, the back TV, and the outside TV. I forget how many buttons are on the thing, but it's going to go. It will be replaced with a power HDMI amp that I just ordered that has two HDMI inputs and four HDMI outputs. I'll input the new Blue Ray player into one and the satellite box into the other. This has a switch on the front to select between the two inputs. From the place I ordered the switch I ordered two 40' HDMI cables. One I'll run to the back TV, and the other I'll use to somehow run it for outside use to the projector or an outside TV. And then I'll have a short HDMI cable to run to the front TV and have one extra HDMI output.

Next problem is the antenna and outside cable inputs. I almost never use outside cable, but there have been a couple of times when the satellite dish has been blocked by trees and the RV park had cable, so I'll try and keep it hooked up. I think I'll just get an A/B switch so I can switch between cable or antenna and then for the output from the A/B switch I'll use a splitter and send one coax to the front TV and use the existing coax to the back TV.

After quite a bit of research on TV mounts, I found that they do make some mounts that are specifically designed for RV's. They are a little bit heavier and they have spring loaded locks for them. I ordered a big one for the front TV with an articulating arm and lock, and a smaller one for the back TV also with an articulating arm but no lock. The reason for no lock for the back is because I'm going to get a TV that is bigger than the opening and the hook the articulating arm to the side of the cabinet. The void behind the TV in this cabinet is huge, so I'll be able to use the TV as a cabinet door and use all the area behind it for storage.

And that's where I got this weekend. Ordered a bunch of parts and did a bunch of research, but not much real work. Now it's 49ers football time.

Oh I forgot to mention, I went down to a local RV dealer to look for ideas on how to hook the TV's up. He only sells trailers and 5th wheels so I went into some of his more expensive 5th wheels to look. I didn't find a single TV using HDMI cables at all. They had coax from the Antenna, which will give an HD signal off the air, but they all had the RCA cables running from the DVD's and entertainment centers to the TV's. Even when the DVD player was right next to the TV. Probably just doing that to save a few bucks because the HDMI cables are more expensive.

[3sacrwd]

Jim, that is a nice, clean job. The TV looks like it was built in at the factory. Very smooth.

[JimMartin]

I removed my 19" tub TV, rebuilt the upper cabinet doors, TV box, and made a new frame to go around the TV. Installed a 32" HDTV, two extra TV speakers, and a small subwoofer.

Before:

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After:

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[msmith1199]

WadenCeeJay wrote:
Man, you have conduit running from the front to the back? What I would give for that...

Well I hope that's what it is. The photos are where I left off and I don't think I'll be getting back to it this weekend. Hopefully next week I'll have some time to get back on there and do some work on it. There is only one piece of coax running through that conduit but I know I have a TV in the back as well as a backup camera. I'm wonder why they wouldn't run both through there? I still have figured out what the coil of cable is for that has the do not use label on it. I need to take apart more of the overhead cabinet so I can see how they have everything hooked up. I am impressed with how secure National RV made everything, but they left zero room to get to anything without a complete dismantle of the cabinets.

[msmith1199]

I'd like to see those photos. Please send them. We do carry a projector but set it up outside and show movies on the side of my BIL's trailer when he goes with us and brings the kids. We don't have kids so I don't use it when kids aren't along on the trip.

[subtroll]

Removed our CRT TV in our 2004 Tropical a couple of years ago and replaced it with a 32' flat screen.

I removed the two side metal panels, sawed them in half and reinstalled them with a 3/4" plywood vertical panel at the back and a plywood shelf at the bottom. Mounted the new TV with a hinged articulated mount attached to the back vertical plywood panel. Trimmed out the front with small walnut trim strips at the top, bottom and sides.

For larger viewing we use a Sharp projector mounted in the overhead and a 60" pull down screen above the dashboard.

I can send photos by PM.

[WadenCeeJay]

Man, you have conduit running from the front to the back? What I would give for that...

[C350amg]

I had one of those big tv's in mine but instead of being on the ceiling it was in the middle of the dash.

I removed everything and built a custom dash board with speakers, an electrical outlet, an inverter behind and a big amplifier for my 8 speakers sound system.

The only thing left is to but the door over box (it's built I just need to find time to put it on)

Here is the image of the new dash:



Here is the new location of the flat screen TV on a retractable arm (the sound of the tv is also routed to the sound system of the RV)