Matthew_B
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Joined 20 years ago
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Re: Hitch extension options?
Kayteg1 wrote: We don't know what original poster hitch is rated for, but rule of thumb says that for 2 ft extension you derate it by about 30% so for 12k trailer it would have to be 18k rated. I took a picture before of 22k hitch on my F350. The brackets went all the way in front of suspension mount, when lighter hitches hang on rear overhang only. It would be a shame if OP would try it and come with picture similar to this one. Anyone know the back story on this picture? It looks like the frame failed somewhere forward of the rear axle. I've never seen a complete frame failure on a 1 ton.1KViews0likes0CommentsRe: Battery maintenance while camper is in storage
pianotuna wrote: Add a modest solar charging system and leave the batteries in place. That would be my vote if you have sunlight on the camper. Make sure it has a quality charge controller so you don't fry the batteries by too high of a voltage all the time. If it is stored under cover, I would go the disconnect route. Add a disconnect in the system somewhere, and completely power down the camper. 2 months won't drain a battery all that much. If you have a good charge setup on the truck, it will get the battery in shape while driving home. Plus time plugged in while provisioning the camper at home should suffice before you head out.466Views0likes0CommentsRe: How do you level when needed
I use wood, lengths of 2x10 I stack up. I go double in the rear because of the DRW. I have legos too, but I've broken them when used on rough ground so I stick to the wood unless I'm adding the legos to the top of the wood. The boards don't last long, I often break them on rough ground. But usually they are scraps that don't cost anything so I consider it no big deal.354Views0likes0CommentsRe: How do you level when needed
mkirsch wrote: Wait, I thought EVERYBODY offloaded their campers any time they camped, and I was the oddball for not doing so, and an idiot for not doing so. I don't very often. When I first owned the camper I would more often. Usually if I was staying for 3 or more days. My camper is getting old. I'm afraid one of these days a corner at a jack point is going to fail, and that will be the end of the camper. I don't want this to happen anywhere but at home. I've got the camper on blocks at the same elevation as the truck bed so I'm only lifting and dropping a few inches. When it gets replaced I'll have a camper with electric jacks so I'll be back to doing this more often.354Views0likes0CommentsTrojan T-105 batteries rock
I've always lamented that RV net locks old threads, or I'd post back here . I actually purchased my T-105 batteries in 2007. They've been in use since then. We use the camper a lot. We do summer trips, rarely with hookups. Our oldest did equestrian competition and it got used for those, the next two swim competitively, we use the camper to stay at meets for them. If we're going where there are hookups, I leave the 6V golf cart batteries at home. If we're staying more than one day, I go to the trouble of throwing them in the bed and hooking them up. At home the camper is plugged in 100% of the time with a good 3 stage charger (currently an Iota). They get their proper watering with distilled water, cleaned, etc.. In that useage the 12V battery will last about 3 years. One time I got talked into the SC-220 for $190 and it made it one more year. We recently had a 3 day swim meet, and went to a RV park with plugins so I only had the 12V battery. When I went to dump tanks, it struggled to run the pump; it was totally shot. We were going home for only a few days and then heading out for 4 days in the boonies camping and fishing. I decided to wing it on only the T-105 batteries and figured I might have to run to town and buy a new battery if they didn't cut it as they are getting close to a decade old. Nope, they did just fine. It wasn't too cold so the furnace only ran a bit in the morning but still I'm impressed for such old batteries.6KViews0likes18CommentsRe: License plate light
I've managed to get a wiring diagram for the vehicle. It turns out that while each and every signal filament does have a separate output from the "lights brain" the marker circuits are only divided in half. The front of the vehicle is on one circuit and the rear is on another. Now I just have to find the wire prior to the splice and I can pick-up the license plate and marker lights in one circuit.416Views0likes0CommentsLicense plate light
My previous vehicle I towed had an old school wiring system with switches and relays. For the marker lights I simply tapped into the light feed at the under-hood relay and added a diode there so the tow vehicle could power the entire marker light circuit. Everything lit up when I did that. I'm now getting a Ford Escape Hybrid ready for towing. It has electronic monitoring of marker lights. In that system you shouldn't tap into the whole system, only individual lights as needed. When I look at the kits available, they only connect to the left and right rear marker / turn bulbs. Everything else will be dead. This leads me to ask: What about the license plate light? Isn't that mandatory to be illuminated? Anyone ever get in trouble for a dark license plate light?2.8KViews0likes11CommentsIdeas for a week in Colorado
Hi Folks, I'm looking for suggestions about what one should see spending a week in Colorado. We'll be entering from the NW corner. We'll have a 27' TT behind a pickup and a 11.5' truck camper. Also - is it worth taking a toad behind the TC? Any day trips to take that can't take the TC & TT?2.1KViews0likes12Comments
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