newbie questions

[uglybear11]

i am new to travel trailers. I purchased a sunvally extreme 160 trailer. it is in pretty good shape but i have a few questions - please.

1. the water tank has a pump. It is operated by a switch. Do i leave the switch turned on or just turn it on while i know that we will be using the water?

2. the bathtub faucet has the hot and cold water controls. from the bottom side is a hose going to the hand held shower. there is a diverted valve between the knobs. The top of the divert er is broken off. a square stub extends approx 1/2 inch above the fixture. Can i glue a socket or other device to it to get by until, i have time and money to replace the faucet assembly? what kind of glue would be recommended?

3. can i frame a glass mirror and mount this to a wall via screws? or will the vibration / bounce of trailer shatter the mirror? i have already made and mounted - did i mess up? the mirror is approx 12*12 inches

4. the heater ..... how do i find the brand, model number, etc? i do not see this on the in or outside? i have found all of the remainder of the literature for each appliance.

5. i have a domestic refrigerator. the freezer door is messed up. it pivots downward. the pivots are broken. any suggestions? can i just run without the freezer door until it is fixed? or just hold it in place when the fridge door gets open?

6. tires. it has the original 2006 tires on it. the spare has never been on the ground. the previous owner said that he towed it very little - just left it at his deer lease. i have heard that tires of an age of over 5 years should be replaced?

sorry for so many questions ...... just get started and have a few so i hope that no one minds? help would be appreciated.

thanks
carter

[hcs1947]

To elaborate on the water pump - if you are hooked up to outside water source, you do not need the pump turned on. It is only used if you are using from the fresh water tank, and in that case you can leave the switch turned on while you are camping, as it will only operate when the faucet is turned on. When you are finished camping, turn it off.

As for the tires, at that age they would be getting borderline condition in my opinion, even if you cannot see obvious age cracks or dry rot. Especially if they have been on the bare ground for an extended period of time. I just replaced mine this year ('06 and '07 manufacture) as I have seen what happens to your trailer when you have a blowout, not only that but I certainly think the risk of having a blowout on the highway is not worth taking the chance. Peace of mind and safety of my family is worth more than a few hundred dollars to me.

[ReneeG]

We have owned 5 towables from travel trailers to now a fifth wheel, We always turn the water pump switch off when not in use. As for the tires, most if not all have a 5 year lift span at the most, with some longer, but the more they sit, the more likely they will go bad. Replace all and you will never regret it. When a tire blows, it can take the side of your fender if not more with it.

[dave17352]

uglybear11 wrote:
i am new to travel trailers. I purchased a sunvally extreme 160 trailer. it is in pretty good shape but i have a few questions - please.

1. the water tank has a pump. It is operated by a switch. Do i leave the switch turned on or just turn it on while i know that we will be using the water?

I turn mine on and off but you can just leave it on. No harm unless there is a leak that occurs.


2. the bathtub faucet has the hot and cold water controls. from the bottom side is a hose going to the hand held shower. there is a diverted valve between the knobs. The top of the divert er is broken off. a square stub extends approx 1/2 inch above the fixture. Can i glue a socket or other device to it to get by until, i have time and money to replace the faucet assembly? what kind of glue would be recommended?

Sure you can. What ever kind of glue will stick to the material the nob is made out of.

3. can i frame a glass mirror and mount this to a wall via screws? or will the vibration / bounce of trailer shatter the mirror? i have already made and mounted - did i mess up? the mirror is approx 12*12 inches
When you mounted the mirror, did it appear your screws went into something solid, if so you should be fine.

4. the heater ..... how do i find the brand, model number, etc? i do not see this on the in or outside? i have found all of the remainder of the literature for each appliance.

Take the cover off again and look harder. There has to be make model and serial number someplace.



5. i have a domestic refrigerator. the freezer door is messed up. it pivots downward. the pivots are broken. any suggestions? can i just run without the freezer door until it is fixed? or just hold it in place when the fridge door gets open?
Not sure what you mean. Are there two doors or one.. Regardless the freezer door will have to be sealed for you to have a cold refrigerator. If there are two doors and you can do without the freezer then tape the freezer shut.

6. tires. it has the original 2006 tires on it. the spare has never been on the ground. the previous owner said that he towed it very little - just left it at his deer lease. i have heard that tires of an age of over 5 years should be replaced?
I also would replace all the tires. All of these are only my humble opinion.
sorry for so many questions ...... just get started and have a few so i hope that no one minds? help would be appreciated.

thanks
carter

[lawrosa]

i am new to travel trailers. I purchased a sunvally extreme 160 trailer. it is in pretty good shape but i have a few questions - please.

1. the water tank has a pump. It is operated by a switch. Do i leave the switch turned on or just turn it on while i know that we will be using the water?

I just turn mine on wile using water. I am sure some leave it on, but I always fear if a line burst I would have a flood.


2. the bathtub faucet has the hot and cold water controls. from the bottom side is a hose going to the hand held shower. there is a diverted valve between the knobs. The top of the divert er is broken off. a square stub extends approx 1/2 inch above the fixture. Can i glue a socket or other device to it to get by until, i have time and money to replace the faucet assembly? what kind of glue would be recommended?

What ever you need to do to make it work... I would use 2 part epoxy...

3. can i frame a glass mirror and mount this to a wall via screws? or will the vibration / bounce of trailer shatter the mirror? i have already made and mounted - did i mess up? the mirror is approx 12*12 inches

What did you use to mount? Did you hit studs? I dont like to drill in the walls and usually use strong velcro strips to hang things...

4. the heater ..... how do i find the brand, model number, etc? i do not see this on the in or outside? i have found all of the remainder of the literature for each appliance.

Take a picture and someone here can identify it. There are not too many brands. What year is the trailer?

5. i have a domestic refrigerator. the freezer door is messed up. it pivots downward. the pivots are broken. any suggestions? can i just run without the freezer door until it is fixed? or just hold it in place when the fridge door gets open?

You need to door to seal. Cant run fridge without both doors sealed... That needs to be fixed..



6. tires. it has the original 2006 tires on it. the spare has never been on the ground. the previous owner said that he towed it very little - just left it at his deer lease. i have heard that tires of an age of over 5 years should be replaced?

Thats a debate and what ones personal risk factor is. I have a dual axle camper from 2003 with the original GY marathons. Visually no dry rot and in very good condition. Im getting every mile I can out of them. Now if they were dry rotted and cracked and such, I would replace...

[loulou57]

I would think that if the TT has been just sitting on a lot, grass? for 8 years could possibly have some rot. I would replace all tires including the spare.