Rv noob here! Hi everyone!

[4theriders]

So, I've never owned an rv before...and a week ago, I bought an 08 thor four winds siesta 29bg. To live in. 🙂

Bought it in Texas and am currently driving it back to the west coast where I'll be spending most of my time.

Talk about diving in head first, right? I'm 36, I'm a motorsport photographer for a living, so I'm on the road all the time anyways. A recent breakup with the longtime girlfriend... She kept the house, I bought a house...with wheels. 😄 this is something I've been wanting to do for years anyways!

I'm here now looking for any advice, must haves, don't-dos, etc.

This week has been awesome So far! I've learned quite a bit already, but I imagine there's a million years of knowledge on this forum! 😄

Thanks everyone! Happy travels!

[4theriders]

Bishop...Haha! I like your style! I definitely think about a lot of the things you mentioned! Thanks for the detailed post! about a hour after purchasing the coach, driving down the freeway, I suddenly realized "oh ****! I don't know how tall it is!" So I looked it up really quick. 10'7. I'm going with 11' to be safe. Haha.

I did buy a new set of tools, exactly as you said. Screw driver with 43 thousands bits, etc. I even calculated out the weight with liquids (water, fuel, oil, propane) and without so I can time when/where I need to be lighter or where I can be heavier while traveling. I'm kinda OCD. Haha.

Matt, fortunately, the previous owner DID save manuals as such! That's how I've been learning about the stuff in here. Plus tons of Google.

I'm a motorcyclist (high performance, race track kinda stuff) so I ABSOLUTELY take tires pretty seriously. In fact, before making the decision to buy this coach, one of the questions I'd asked was for the date code of the tires. 50th week of 2016. 🙂

Regarding solid state media; the more you use it, the longer it will last you. Letting them sit with no writes is what kills sd/cf. I've got 10 year old cards that still work. No joke.

Thanks everyone, for the fantastic advice and support so far! You guys are awesome! 🙂

[maddog348]

as campercajun says x 2

[DrewE]

Matt_Colie wrote:

If you didn't know it, SD chips seem to have an limited number of clear and re-writes and I don't know what it is.....

Typically they're rated for somewhere on the order of 100,000 write cycles. Most of the controller chips on SD cards (at least any better than the very bottom of the barrel ones) will attempt to even out the write cycles to gain the maximum life, so you should be able to fill it halfway and erase and re-write at least a couple hundred thousand times.

Realistically, it's hard for most people to come close to wearing out flash memory with typical usage; losing the card or having it physically broken or become outdated enough to be not worth using is much more common. Something like a DVR that's constantly overwriting data multiple times a day might be an exception.

[Matt_Colie]

Joe,

Important point: If you come here looking for help, please provide as much specific information as you can collect before you even get to the keyboard. You are having heater trouble, and you did have a manufacturer and model, that is good. Collect all the data you can about everything onboard. If you don't have doc for something, that is what websearches are for.

As another that used a MH as a business conveyance, let me start by saying that this can work. One thing to be sure to do is to keep records and receipts for everything. The coach is your place of business and as such all directly related expenses should be deductible. Only line 7 needs to be positive for the business to be legitimate. Line 31 is where you can make the most of it, but do make friends with a bloodthirty tax accountant when you find one. Learn to make Schedule C work for you.

You new coach is actually 8 years old. We are finding that this is about the life of RV tires. Even if the tread looks good, they may be a problem real soon. This is a result of the new materials used to combat HC pollution. It is possible that any other rubber might be an issue. this means fuel, coolant and brake lines. Just keep a close eye on things.

If no one has told you, never leave the dump valves open. You will get to read a lot more about this as time goes by.

If you didn't know it, SD chips seem to have an limited number of clear and re-writes and I don't know what it is.....

I have always carried an inkjet printer/copier/scanner, but you may want better if you are selling prints. This could be a problem because my good printer in the home office is picky about line condition such that I would not even bother trying to run it from the coach generator. I don't have a suggestion for how to deal with that.

I think that I my whole list for the moment.

Matt

[Bordercollie]

The 12 volt electrical system powers the electronic controls of your appliances, fresh water pump, TV, alarms and interior lighting.
Learn to troubleshoot and maintain your 12 volt DC electrical system including the house/auxiliary battery(s), converter charger, 12 volt system switches, fuses and wire/terminal connections. Get a cheap multi-meter an follow the directions.

RV tires go bad sitting parked, have them inspected for sidewall cracks that lead to tire failure underway. Have brakes inspected and serviced to prevent calipers from sticking, and brake fade. Have brake fluid and front brake flex lines replaced.

Have engine cooling system including water pump, clutch fan, and belts and hoses checked and serviced as needed. Practice using your mirrors changing lanes and getting to off ramps safely be aware of blind spots. Use a GPS to help plan for merges and off ramps. Be aware of RV weight and stopping distance. Have emergency road service and have a comprehensive set of tools. Park/camp where you will be safe!! There's a lot more to know but these are the basics. Lots of good "how-to" videos on You Tube.

[D_E_Bishop]

Well Joe, congratulations on your new rig, secondly boy are you in for a shock. The leisure life of RVing isn't always leisurely, sometimes is a PITA, that said most of us really love the life style and just can't seem to give it up. You will find that the various search engines are your best friends and that the men and women on this Forum and the ones you'll meet as you travel are open, friendly and helpful, so welcome to our world and the Forum.

Now, to answer your questions in part, among the things you'll need on the road, two items you'll hear about often are the DMM or digital multi meter. Not to be rude but the DMMs that HFT(Harbor Freight Tools) sells are throwaway meters. That doesn't mean they are not usable, just not ruggedized. I have several and try to buy something from HFT every time they send me a sale notice and are giving one away with any purpose.

For me at least. because I usually have no one to help me, I like having both audio and visual aides in the form of a little piezo speaker with a set of test leads attached and a automotive test light. As you will soon learn, many things in an RV are hidden away under the bottom of a cabinet or behind a false wall and holding a set of test leads and looking at the test points makes it hard to look at the meter face. If you just need to know if 12VDC power is available, either the piezo or the test light will work.

Neither of these are worth anything if you have no idea where to look so first read "The 12 volt side of life. Just google it. Second write down the manufacturer's name of every appliance in you rig and get the manuals hopefully including the trouble shooting guide, once again Google or go to the Mfg's website. As part of that list, write down the year and model of the appliance, you'll need that to get specific answers from the members here.

Our and the industry's jargon you'll pick up from reading posts, it's pretty simple.

Something to think about is that you are now in your new home and quite possibly you will be traveling some undesirable roads in your new home and as such it will be experiencing the equivalent of a 3.5 to 8.0 earthquake as you are driving. Things will brake and things will come loose. You'll discover how to keep things where you want them and to go around your rig and check everything once in awhile.

Hopefully you have picked an RV that will suit you, no matter how much you learn to love or hate it, don't fall to the urge to buy something bigger and better for at least a year of living with what you have. These things are a big investment and changing willy nilly is expensive and often something you'll question later.

A hint that I gave my grandkids, when you buy something to carry with you in your car, try to buy something with at least two uses. An example is a screw driver and a nut driver. There are dozens of manufacturers of six in one screwdrivers. Instead of four screwdrivers and two nut drivers, you can have one tool that is really 6 tools. Weight and space are things to conserve in a RV.

There are forty six thousand, nine hundred, seventy nine things you end up learning and which you will need to know, shore power cord sizes, 120VAC service sizes, how long a stinky slinky do you need, which water pressure regulator should you buy, how does that battery disconnect work and what does it sound like when it's working properly, what is that whirring noise, where is that whirring noise source, where do I buy one of these or one of those, and the 46 thousand plus things we as RV owners know.

One important, no, very important thing you need to know NOW, how tall is your rig. Either write it down on a sticky note or label and put it where you can refer to it.

So I think that I have given you too much info at one time and you need to get on with finding out what is wrong with that furnace and fix it. The rest will come in dribs and drabs and suddenly you'll be imparting info to newbys. Have fun and read all the other posts a couple of times each so you imprint that info in your mind.

[kerrlakeRoo]

Since your going from total newbie to full timer in a flash, I suggest you research some of the areas where you will be working most frequently. If there are parks in those areas which accept Passports or another club membership for discounts you may find it beneficial for places to stay with hookups between rallies or events. Casino's may be another option for you, many have inexpensive RV lots available.
Since you travel frequently/constantly you will also want to look into some Apps for locating services.
RVParky, Allstays and others are android apps to help find campsites.
Good luck, and happy motorin

[newman_fulltime]

if the heater has the door access on the outside open it theres a on off switch in it turn the heater on then the thermastat will operate it

[ksg5000]

Welcome to the forum. You will often find that any question you have may have been asked/answered several times by others - using the forum search feature located above/left will usually provide answers to most of your questions.

Concerning your furnace. Make sure your thermostat is set to the proper position (heat on) and that your propane tank has gas and is turned on (tank has valve). Some rigs have propane alarms that have to be turned on in order for gas to flow.

As others have stated -check your furnace fuse and lighting the stove top burners will purge the system of air. Low coach battery will also prevent a furnace from operating - any tire/auto house will load test your batteries for free - something you should do anyway since your rig is used and having good batteries is a big deal especially in winter.

Good luck

[ronfisherman]

Welcome to RV.Net.
If you have not already done it. Read over the Forum Help and Support section of the forum. Good info on how to post pictures and other info.

[campercajun]

4theriders, welcome to the world of RVing. We've been RVing since 1976. I think you will like it, as we do. Have you checked the 12v fuses in your converter panel? In your '08 Thor Four Winds MH (motorhome), you probably have a WFCO (brand name) converter. The panel under the lid should have an LED lit if one of the fuses is blown, and the fuse positions should be labeled as to what circuit each one energizes, but I've had a fuse blow in a WFCO converter before and the LED did NOT come on, so it wouldn't hurt to pull the furnace fuse and check it manually, either visually or with a volt/ohmmeter. I suppose the seller informed you that the LP gas must be turned on in order for the furnace to heat. If not, the fan may come on when the thermostat calls for heat, and you may hear the electronic ignitor trying to light the burner, but the burner will not light, and the fan will time out after a few minutes and shut down. Even if the gas is on, if the LP system hasn't been used in a while, or a tank has been disconnected to be filled lately, the system may have air in it and the furnace may not light. Try lighting the stove burners and letting them burn for a minute or 2 to help purge air out of the lines, and try the furnace again. Hope this helps you.

[mat60]

4theriders wrote:
TT? travel trailer?

...Yes

[4theriders]

TT? travel trailer?

[mat60]

I have worked on allot of things in my life but now since I have a new TT with everything that should work I feel like I no next to nothing.