True or False?

[Jackalope]

After many years of looking at RV's and wanting one, I've finally retired and we're looking for a rig. But I'm having problems and maybe you veterans can help.

I've always bought used cars and I've always gone by the rule, the year doesn't matter...look at the miles. For the most part, that works fine for cars...but for RV's?

Recently, I found what appeared to be a very nice 2005 Damon Challenger with only 19,000 miles on it. It appeared to be clean and well taken care of. Unfortunately, it's at a used car/used RV dealership. They don't have the facilities to hook up shore power or sewage lines so there really isn't any way to check those things out.

I wanted to take the unit to the closest Damon dealer to be checked out. They say they can't do that, but that I can use a mobile repair service to conduct the inspection, and I do know that there are a number of businesses that'll do that.

But in the meantime, I had to make a quick trip to Florida and went by to look at a few campgrounds near my son's home. One of them had a very nice, and it appeared to me, very knowledgable owner. He said that at the 10 year mark, almost all RV's started having major problems. Replacement of appliances, replacement of the roof, replacement of tires (because of age). And he also stated that there was no way in the world he'd buy an RV without being able to fully hook it up to see all systems function.

The last part makes a lot of sense. But what do you think about this "ten year curse"? Is that true? Do most need all those replacements at that point? If I buy this Damon, am I probably looking at spending thousands in a very short time?

[kiwi_os]

In a 93 Safarai - original fridge, ACs, stove, genset, water pump, water heater, engine, gearbox, awning. Everything works as it should.

[Bumpyroad]

bsinmich wrote:
The drawing on the right is what you are doing if you have a 50 amp coach plugged into a 30 amp outlet with an adapter. You get 30 amps total on both legs.

that is of course true. it is also true that 99.97% of all 30/50 amp RV installations are of the left and center drawing. no need to clutter the diagram but that's JMHO. out of curiosity, is the right example even within all electrical codes?
bumpy

[bsinmich]

The drawing on the right is what you are doing if you have a 50 amp coach plugged into a 30 amp outlet with an adapter. You get 30 amps total on both legs.

[Bumpyroad]

Koop wrote:

Bumpyroad wrote:

Daveinet wrote:
This should help:

it is confusing and not really applicable to RV 50 amp service.
bumpy

I don't know what you find confusing here. The diagram clearly illustrates 30 amp service with one hot leg (L1) and 50 amp service with two hot legs (L1 and L2). This is exactly how the service post at RV hook-ups are wired and how the power is transferred to the coach. Thanks for posting the diagram Dave.

I think that outlet on the right is totally unnecessary. diagram should show wiring a 50 amp outlet and a 30 amp outlet, but that's JMHO.
bumpy

[Koop]

Bumpyroad wrote:

Daveinet wrote:
This should help:

it is confusing and not really applicable to RV 50 amp service.
bumpy

I don't know what you find confusing here. The diagram clearly illustrates 30 amp service with one hot leg (L1) and 50 amp service with two hot legs (L1 and L2). This is exactly how the service post at RV hook-ups are wired and how the power is transferred to the coach. Thanks for posting the diagram Dave.

[Jackalope]

AprilWhine wrote:
In a way, your "ignore the year, look at the mileage" is backwards for diesel RVs. Diesel engines do not wear the same as gas ones. I have a Detroit 60 with ~230,000 miles and it purrs. And mileage indicates it didn't just sit, that someone used it and probably repaired house items as they developed problems. I've had the bus in my sig since 2010, we've replaced the tires, batteries and two water pumps. Side note, the water pumps didn't die, we killed them. 😉

Thank you April, but diesels aren't at our price point. We're looking at gassers.

[AprilWhine]

In a way, your "ignore the year, look at the mileage" is backwards for diesel RVs. Diesel engines do not wear the same as gas ones. I have a Detroit 60 with ~230,000 miles and it purrs. And mileage indicates it didn't just sit, that someone used it and probably repaired house items as they developed problems. I've had the bus in my sig since 2010, we've replaced the tires, batteries and two water pumps. Side note, the water pumps didn't die, we killed them. 😉

[Jackalope]

Daveinet wrote:
Diagram is drawn from the outlet side, not the RV side. So its telling you how to supply power to the coach.

Okay. Thanks Dave. I'm just not sure I know enough about this sort of thing for that to help me. For example, I have no idea what "split phase" or "single phase" means...and that is truly an example. It's way over my head.

[Jackalope]

dbs944 wrote:
I think that after 10 years, depreciation becomes less of an issue while maintenance goes up. Probably if you plotted it out, an older, well maintained rig would cost less overall than a newer, and more expensive, one would. Some things, like tires and batteries, are maintenance items regardless of the age of the rest of the structure.

Instead of miles or years, I'd look at condition, maintenance history, manufacturer reputation etc.

I'd agree. Unfortunately, here I can't get maintenance history. I'd also submit that there's a ratio between value and reputation. In other words, I'd be the first to say that the reputation of Damon doesn't match up with that of ... let's say Tiffin, just for discussion. On the other hand, I won't be paying as much for a Damon as I would a Tiffin. Then you also have to factor in the intended use. A number of people have mentioned full-timing. Again, I agree that the needs of full-timers are more ... robust, than those of vacationers. I'm a vacationer, not a full-timer. I can accept things such as less cold-weather capability for example.

My big fear is that I'll get a rig that will require huge expenses over and over again or that I'll buy something that will be unsafe or break down on the road in such a way that I cannot continue on my trip.

[Daveinet]

Diagram is drawn from the outlet side, not the RV side. So its telling you how to supply power to the coach.

[dbs944]

I think that after 10 years, depreciation becomes less of an issue while maintenance goes up. Probably if you plotted it out, an older, well maintained rig would cost less overall than a newer, and more expensive, one would. Some things, like tires and batteries, are maintenance items regardless of the age of the rest of the structure.

Instead of miles or years, I'd look at condition, maintenance history, manufacturer reputation etc.

[Jackalope]

I'm not exactly sure what that very detailed diagram is trying to tell me. I'm afraid my ignorance exceeds the information provided.

[Bumpyroad]

Daveinet wrote:
This should help:

it is confusing and not really applicable to RV 50 amp service.
bumpy

[deandec]

If I were looking at a rig where 30A or 50A rv shore power is not available, I would start the generator. After a short start-up delay it should provide 110v power to test the TV, the Microwave, each roof AC unit, whether the Battery Charger is putting 13.6 Vdc or more into the house battery bank per my multimeter, and the refrigerator initial response (but not the cooling levels unless on for several hours).

Then, I would take a 50A to 30A dog bone connector and plug it to my 50A cord plug a 30A to 15A cord adapter to the dog bone and plug the rig to a shore power connection using a 15A extension cord.

All the above items should also work on the shore power.

Just do not try to run the Microwave plus AC or AC plus AC at the same time while connected to a 15A power receptacle. Also be aware that some units may have a 110v water heater. If it is on, it draws a lot of power.

If the house batteries have 12+ dcV charge in them, I would then turn on the inverter without shore power or generator power and test run a TV or the microwave (briefly).

More than once during your ownership you will need to power the rig in the above circumstances.