New to me AF camper, couple questions

[Grit_dog]

Picked up an 05 AF 860 a few weeks ago and gave 'er a good brake in run from Seattle to Anchorage!
Camper is great. Everything in it works awesome so far, but have a couple questions.
I read in the owners manual (online, didnt come with one) that there is a lock/strap for the slide out. Couldnt find one, PO said he never locked in the slider and it made the trip just fine over much less than perfect roads, read frost heaves. Does the slider have a lock on it?
Is there any sort of manual crank or way to release the slider to push it in by hand of the motor(s)******out?

Next question pertains to fridge operation. It works great, switches automatically between the 3 sources like it should, but what do you all do when the camper is sitting for weeks or months? Is it better to leave it plugged in and the fridge on? Or shut it down if it will be sitting for a while?
Any harm in either way? Are the rv fridges designed to operate for years on end like a home fridge?

What water goes into which tank? Black tank said it was 2/3 full after only using the crapper a handful of times and a little water through the kitchen sink. Used maybe 10 gal of water, at least half of it down the kitchen sink. I dumped the black tank and spaced the gray tank as we were in a hurry to get down the road. Do the sinks go into the black tank or gray tank?

Thanks for the help.

[JacintoKid]

Grit dog wrote:

Gripnriprod wrote:
Can't speak to details on a 2005 however ours has a crank for the slideout which is accessed through a hatch on the back of the camper. There is no strap or lock for it.
We shut our fridge down once parked. Does your fridge switch sources automatically? If so, probably best to shut it down as you could drain your batteries if the AC were to fail. You want to shut off the propane as a safety measure. The fridge should have a fairly long life. Be sure to open the exterior back panel and keep that are dirt and bug free.
Only the toilet goes in the black tank. You may have some tp or something else fouling the sensors if you continue to get a reading after draining. Ours came a equipped with an internal rinse system which works great. Be sure you keep the valves closed as the tanks share the same drain line.

Saw the tag on the back hatch there but didnt see a crank. Maybe it's missing. Will need to do some searchin for it.
Unfortunately I had about 2 hrs to learn myslef about the camper including loading it on the truck before headin north, so still some things I'm unfamiliar with.

Tank level sensor(s) read empty when empty. If just the toilet goes in the black tank (makes sense) then maybe the sensor just got covered on this trip. Not sure if it is reading empty now or not.
Live in Eagle River.

My crank was stored in the flip up storage built into the dinette step. I think your model has the same setup. Might look there

[2BLAZERS]

On my 2011 AF 1150 the Grey sensor seems to work really well. The Black tank sensor like others have said seems to read 2/3 full after just driving around a little bit with 1 gallon of ''stuff'' in it.

We have left our fridge on almost three years now. On propane it can run a very long long time. At home the camper is plugged in 24/7 when parked.(we have a 2-Way)

[wcjeep]

I bought my AF 811 new in 2008. The Grey/Black sensors are terrible. I had a 1978 Vacationer that had sensors that were dead on. The AF 811 are not to be trusted. I've tried filling with water after dumping, driving around and then dumping. I've also tried dumping ice into tanks and immediately drive around. Those sensors are not to be trusted. Only the Fresh Potable water is accurate. If the slide starts to creep while driving down the road, there's a switch that can vibrate to slightly unlocked. Also look into converting to electronic thermostat. Be sure to leave Fridge doors ajar when off. We also use a battery powered fan for inside the Fridge while turned on.

[insp1505]

I also can't speak for the 05 models but if it's like mine there is no lock strap. The motor holds the slide in place. I know this is true in open and closed positions because I left the parking lot once with my slide extended after a lunch stop. I didn't figure out why people were looking at me funny as I drove away until a few miles down the road.

If the motor fails there is a manual crank that inserts from the rear of the camper. Mine looks like this. It's a two piece t-handle tool with a notched end that engages the drive shaft next to the motor.






You'll find that if your tank sensors are like mine they read 2/3 full even after a complete emptying if there is so much as a splash of water on the electrode. I think mine has been on 2/3 for years regardless of being full or empty. I know my black will never be close to full by the time my grey tank is overflowing so I've never bothered with it. I've read that a good cleaning with ice cubes dumped in the toilet works but the first piece of debris that lands back on it it's going to be right back to where it was.

My fridge has been running non stop since May 2010. Sometimes it's on AC and sometimes it's on propane. No problem so far and it doesn't consume much energy in either setting compared to the other appliances (AC, Furnace water heater etc)

[nwjetboat]

I have PDF's of the slide out manual, the overall camper manual, norcold refer, and roof A/C. I could email you them if you wish.

[Grit_dog]

Gripnriprod wrote:
Can't speak to details on a 2005 however ours has a crank for the slideout which is accessed through a hatch on the back of the camper. There is no strap or lock for it.
We shut our fridge down once parked. Does your fridge switch sources automatically? If so, probably best to shut it down as you could drain your batteries if the AC were to fail. You want to shut off the propane as a safety measure. The fridge should have a fairly long life. Be sure to open the exterior back panel and keep that are dirt and bug free.
Only the toilet goes in the black tank. You may have some tp or something else fouling the sensors if you continue to get a reading after draining. Ours came a equipped with an internal rinse system which works great. Be sure you keep the valves closed as the tanks share the same drain line.

Saw the tag on the back hatch there but didnt see a crank. Maybe it's missing. Will need to do some searchin for it.
Unfortunately I had about 2 hrs to learn myslef about the camper including loading it on the truck before headin north, so still some things I'm unfamiliar with.

Tank level sensor(s) read empty when empty. If just the toilet goes in the black tank (makes sense) then maybe the sensor just got covered on this trip. Not sure if it is reading empty now or not.
Live in Eagle River.

[Grit_dog]

KD4UPL wrote:
I leave my fridge on from the time I start it up in the spring until I'm done camping in the late fall. When I'm plugged in it's on AC, when I'm unplugged it's on propane. I never use the 12v battery draining option. I've heard that ref. tend to last longer if you let them run. Something about how it lessens the cycle of thermal expansion each time the thing gets warm and then cold.
Mine is 10 years old and still going strong.

Kinda what I was thinking. But worth getting some opinions. PO said he ran it all the time (2 yrs he owned it), kept it plugged in and the heat on low to keep it dry inside, in wet Washington. Not sure how it lived the first several years though.
Seems like it is easy on the propane too.
I did have to run it on 12V for a while on the ferry (from Prince Rupert BC to Haines AK. They made me kill the propane when we boarded the boat. It ran for about 12 hrs and was still running when I checked it and the batteries (2 decent, newer interstates) were showing low on the panel.
I talked the engineer into letting me plug it in. Dont think it would have lasted much longer.

[KD4UPL]

I leave my fridge on from the time I start it up in the spring until I'm done camping in the late fall. When I'm plugged in it's on AC, when I'm unplugged it's on propane. I never use the 12v battery draining option. I've heard that ref. tend to last longer if you let them run. Something about how it lessens the cycle of thermal expansion each time the thing gets warm and then cold.
Mine is 10 years old and still going strong.

[Gripnriprod]

Can't speak to details on a 2005 however ours has a crank for the slideout which is accessed through a hatch on the back of the camper. There is no strap or lock for it.
We shut our fridge down once parked. Does your fridge switch sources automatically? If so, probably best to shut it down as you could drain your batteries if the AC were to fail. You want to shut off the propane as a safety measure. The fridge should have a fairly long life. Be sure to open the exterior back panel and keep that are dirt and bug free.
Only the toilet goes in the black tank. You may have some tp or something else fouling the sensors if you continue to get a reading after draining. Ours came a equipped with an internal rinse system which works great. Be sure you keep the valves closed as the tanks share the same drain line.

[Gripnriprod]

BTW Where are you located in Alaska?

[RamTC]

The slide out lock straps were used on the 2004 and older TC's.
The slider has a mechanical lock on the motor, unlock it manually to work the slide with the tool, access located on the rear of camper.

I only power the refer when needed, no problems.

Only the toilet goes to the black tank, all other drains are gray water. That's the way it is on the AF 990.