Texas_Bob_140
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Re: Need Quick Answer to Battery Question! HELP!
The short term answer is that you will be fine with one 12 volt battery going home or travelling from site to site if they have 120 volt hookups. Now to the long term solution. If you are not camping off the grid, it probably doesn't matter what battery or batteries you are running. You will get a few years out of them and you will have to replace them. I recommend that you replace in pairs although if you are always on the grid, one battery will do. We have been through several setups. The first setup was to replace the dead battery that came with our first trailer with a 12 volt deep charge battery such as one that might be used on a trolling motor. It was insufficient for camping off the grid in the high country of Colorado. Then I purchased a second one and put it in series. The results were not appreciably better. I then called Trojan Battery Company and talked to an engineer. He said to go to two 6 volt t105 golf cart batteries wired in series. We were able to extend our time off the grid to five days with little performance degradation. We were happy. I bought a 2006 Cougar 5th wheel in early 2006 from a dealer in Michigan and he upgraded the single 12 volt battery to two 6 volt Interstate batteries. We used them for three years but with little extended time off the grid. They appeared to degrade after about 18 months so we went back to the T105's from Trojan at the three year mark.We have four years on them and they are still going strong. I do use Interstate batteries in our vehicles. As several folks have mentioned, there are some newer type batteries out there now. They are more expensive and some like them and some folks don't like them for trailer use. If you go to the 6 volt in series batteries, you will need two new battery boxes. And I would suggest you get a hydrometer at the auto parts store and check the specific gravity before you head out. Just one man's opinion - good luck.365Views0likes0CommentsRe: Upgrading Tires from 15" to 16"- 2006 Cougar 285 EFS
Thanks to all for your comments and questions. With reference to moving the bolts on the hangars, no options exist on this trailer. With reference to the comment "The most common mistake made with an upgrade such as the OP is making is tire pressure", here are a few facts that I did not originally clutter up the first post with. 1. The placard calls for a 225/15/R/D tires inflated to 65PSI. 2. At 2540 lbs. capacity per tire, I should be able to carry 10,160 lbs. capacity on four wheels. Granted, there could be some weight differences per wheel. 3. The placard says the axle rating is 4400 lbs. per axle which is 8800 lbs. for this two axle trailer. 4. The weight on the two axles is 8000 lbs. per the CAT scales at the truck stop. 5. In order to go to a larger 16" rim with a tire that has roughly the same profile as the original tires and will mount in the same space as the original tires, a LT 225/16/R/E is rated at 2680 lbs. at 80PSI. That's why I will go to 80PSI. 6. While I would like to have more reserve capacity, given my space requirements and not wanting to change the geometry of the trailer i.e. blocking the axle, with the LT225/16/R/E tires, my reserve capacity over the GVWR of 9960 lbs. is approximately 760 lbs. 7. As to the comment, "Industry standards tell us to use the amount of tire pressure needed to provide the load capacity recommended by the vehicle manufacturer", it is my belief therein lies the problem. There really are no comprehensive standards for trailer tires and the manufacturers that outfit their trailers with poorly made offshore tires are not doing anything to raise the standard for ST tires. I didn't want to rant on in my original post but I can say that the experience with Goodyear has been dismal. We have towed about 75,000 miles over 13 years. In those years Goodyear replaced four tires they made for Carlisle and the damage on my 24' Wilderness pull behind. On the 5th wheel over the last six years, they have replaced four tires and paid for the blowout damage caused by the blowout, two years later replaced two of the latest tires because of sidewall defeciences and now I have another blowout. So at this point, I have a four year old tire blowout, and one four year old tire still working and two each two year old tires. The 5th wheel has only about 25,000 miles on it. And I do check my tires every time we change locations. The newer tires came without a warranty, so two tires will be presented for warranty when we get home. Enough said, I think.399Views0likes0CommentsRe: Upgrading Tires from 15" to 16"- 2006 Cougar 285 EFS
The bolt pattern is 5.5"-6 lug and is available on the internet from multiple sources. I buy from Southwest Wheel which is in Dallas and also on the internet. My main concern is whether the 2" clearance from the tire to the wheel well is sufficient.122Views0likes0CommentsUpgrading Tires from 15" to 16"- 2006 Cougar 285 EFS
On our annual trip from Double Oak, TX to South Padre Island, TX we blew out two tires and the wheel opening J wrap, fender and wheel well liner and damaged the wheel. The blowouts were within 5 miles of each other. The tires were ST225/R/15/D's. One was a 4 year old Goodyear Marathon with little mileage on it that blew a hole the size of a tennis ball in the sidewall. The second tire was a Mission that had never been used and was the spare and had been covered its entire life. The Mission spare shredded after 5 miles and caused the damage. Weight on the tires is around 8,000 lbs. as measured on the Cat scale at the local truck stop and all tires were aired up to 65 PSI. I also have Tireminder sending units on each tire and there was no warning of any problem. I'm planning on upgrading to a 16" wheel with a BFG Commercial T/A LT225/R/16/E tire. The BRG's have a diameter of 29.4" per BFG and the Goodyear ST's have a diameter of 28.3" Center to center distance on the tandem axles is 33" so I will have clearance between the wheels of about 3.6". There is plenty of room between the ST's and the frame of about 3". I have checked out the slide out mechanism and the closest the slide out bar/track comes to the ST tire is somewhere between 5 1/2 to 6 inches. The limiting factor seems to be the distance from the tire to the wheel well liner. On the present ST's, the distance is 2 1/2" With the LT tires, that should be reduced to about 2". Interestingly, there is no real liner on this trailer - it appears to be plastic coated fabric which looks like the cheap plastic coated tarps they sell at the home stores. I will be replacing the wheels with 80 PSI wheels and metal valve stems. Any thoughts or counsel, especially anyone who has made this modification to this year and model trailer, is appreciated. Thanks.4.8KViews0likes20Comments
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