The CP RVing thread. - Page 5 - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

woob · 06-27-2018, 11:41 AM

Hey all. Another question from me. Have any of you setup a solution that allows you to hook up your propane BBQ to your main RV bottles when out camping? I've read a couple articles on it but one seemed way too complex and the other was lacking information. Is there an easy way to add on a "pigtail" of sorts to run the bbq off of?

Lubicon · 06-27-2018, 12:22 PM

My propane tanks are on each side of my 5th wheel to not connected immediately. I use one of these, connect directly to the propane tank and then one branch of the T runs to my stove/BBQ and the other reconnects to the main supply line to the trailer.

https://www.amazon.ca/Camco-59133-Br...l_3649p6pfaz_e

ken0042 · 06-27-2018, 12:41 PM

For the effort, I just went and bought a 5 pound tank. Small enough to carry around, and just refill it every other trip if required.

MacDaddy77 · 06-27-2018, 01:08 PM

I carry an extra 20lb tank in a milk crate.

FlamesKickAss · 06-27-2018, 06:00 PM

You need a bbq without a regulator.. And then should. Be able to run a line

kevman · 07-04-2018, 09:50 AM

Any product tips for cleaning a fibreglass van roof/bubble top? I've got thousands of little black spots and some pretty serious yellowing all over the place. When I replaced the windows I was able to clean the rough opening perimeter for the new window seal with some wet sanding and a lot of elbow grease but there has to be a better way that won't take all week for the rest of the roof.

flamesfan1297 · 07-12-2018, 08:49 AM

I plugged my trailer into the 30 amp outlet at a campground,but don't have 30 amp power and can't run my AC this way. Any idea why this might be? Thinking maybe it might be my adapter is bad so I'm going to try replacing that. Also It would still work if I used a normal cord plugged into the black one that's attached to my trailer right? Just have to have the adapter on the end of the regular cord?

Fuzz · 07-12-2018, 08:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevman

Any product tips for cleaning a fibreglass van roof/bubble top? I've got thousands of little black spots and some pretty serious yellowing all over the place. When I replaced the windows I was able to clean the rough opening perimeter for the new window seal with some wet sanding and a lot of elbow grease but there has to be a better way that won't take all week for the rest of the roof.

Look up Fiberglass boat cleaning tips. It's probably mold, so a mold killer will work:

https://www.thehulltruth.com/boating...g-my-boat.html

ken0042 · 07-12-2018, 09:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flamesfan1297

I plugged my trailer into the 30 amp outlet at a campground,but don't have 30 amp power and can't run my AC this way. Any idea why this might be? Thinking maybe it might be my adapter is bad so I'm going to try replacing that. Also It would still work if I used a normal cord plugged into the black one that's attached to my trailer right? Just have to have the adapter on the end of the regular cord?

Can you run the "fan only" part of your A/C at the campground? Are you still there? My guess is they may not have enough power to go around. It's more common with campgrounds with 15 amp service- the one time I tried to use my microwave it wouldn't work. But when I got home it would.

Your A/C will be right at the 15 amp threshold, and may draw more than 15 amps at startup. My trick to get mine to work is to set it to fan only, let the fan get up to speed and quickly switch over to A/C. It at least saves the surge of the fan starting up.

flamesfan1297 · 07-12-2018, 09:39 AM

I'm going back later tonight so will definitely try that. Thanks for the tip, never thought of that

flamesfan1297 · 07-12-2018, 10:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken0042

Can you run the "fan only" part of your A/C at the campground? Are you still there? My guess is they may not have enough power to go around. It's more common with campgrounds with 15 amp service- the one time I tried to use my microwave it wouldn't work. But when I got home it would.

Your A/C will be right at the 15 amp threshold, and may draw more than 15 amps at startup. My trick to get mine to work is to set it to fan only, let the fan get up to speed and quickly switch over to A/C. It at least saves the surge of the fan starting up.

I looked at the extension cord I was using and it's only 13 amp... That's embarassing, should have checked sooner. I ended up just moving my trailer closer and plugging in with the 30 amp that's attached to the trailer. Thanks for your help!

gasman · 07-12-2018, 11:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flamesfan1297

I looked at the extension cord I was using and it's only 13 amp... That's embarassing, should have checked sooner. I ended up just moving my trailer closer and plugging in with the 30 amp that's attached to the trailer. Thanks for your help!

How did you get your 13amp plugged into a 30amp outlet? Are you sure you were using the right plug? There would be no adapter for 30amp service, that should be the native plug for your trailer, unless you have some mega trailer.

The other thing to check is the breaker, I've been to a couple of different campgrounds where there is a breaker at every post sometimes it gets tripped and needs to be reset. Also check the breakers in your trailer and make sure none of them are tripped.

flamesfan1297 · 07-13-2018, 12:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gasman

How did you get your 13amp plugged into a 30amp outlet? Are you sure you were using the right plug? There would be no adapter for 30amp service, that should be the native plug for your trailer, unless you have some mega trailer.

The other thing to check is the breaker, I've been to a couple of different campgrounds where there is a breaker at every post sometimes it gets tripped and needs to be reset. Also check the breakers in your trailer and make sure none of them are tripped.

Yeah I checked the breakers and they were all good. And yeah I had the adapter to go from a 30 amp to a regular cord and an adapter to go from the normal cord into the 30 amp on the post.

Incogneto · 07-28-2018, 02:02 PM

Hey guys, I just bought a used tent trailer, and - although useable right now - it needs a little love and care to bring it up to snuff. It's a 1993 Jayco, and I need a few parts for it. Is there anywhere in town that will have random Tent Trailer parts?

As a newbie in this game, TIA.

Jawbone Hill · 07-29-2018, 07:06 AM

Ive had some success at Hobo Camper Country up on Edmonton Trail. You can browse their catalog online which is nice. https://www.hobocampercountry.ca/

I’d also recommend spending some time on the Popup Portal forum (http://popupportal.com/). There’s a really active community full or people who maintain and renovate campers of all ages and sizes. If you find an issue chances are someone there has already dealt with it and posted an answer! I bought my camper last year and this popup forum gave me a lot of confidence in tackling a lot of the work myself.

Incogneto · 07-30-2018, 01:42 PM

Thinking about heading out to Spray Lakes for next weekend (which is August Long).
1) Is Thursday night early enough to get a site?
2) We have a tent trailer....Can I just go and drop it, or do I have to set it up?

FlamesKickAss · 08-01-2018, 11:01 PM

I'm looking to upgrade the lock on the storage door on one side. There is only the single lock and it's a pain in the ass while camping to always need the key to open and then latch it. Any suggestions?

Also someone told me about a faucet attachment for bathroom that only allows water flow whole touching the post that come down where aerator would be. Don't know where to even look for something like that..

woob · 08-16-2018, 02:58 PM

So, I have gone down the rabbit hole of RV electrical and have a few questions of you more experienced RV'ers.

1. Those of you have older model trailers (say 80s, 90s, early 2000s) have you gone through the process of changing out your converter/charger on your trailer? Upon learning that my trailer likely only has a single phase dumb charger, I am now concerned that I'll cook my nice new 6v batteries. How was your experience? What did you go with and where did you purchase from? I've been watching some YouTube videos on this but I also appreciate the experience of the CP crew as well.

2. Who here has installed a battery monitor to replace the lackluster ones that typically come with RVs? I'm a geek, so the ones that provide more info greatly appeal to me. With that being said, price also matters as well. What's been your experience here? Anyone go with a bluetooth model? Is there significant draw for these that they might drain my batteries when they're sitting between trips? What was the shunt install like?

3. When I eventually factor in solar to the equation, are there controllers which will make my battery monitor obsolete, or can I get a basic controller so I'm not duplicating functionality but also not lacking info?

Thanks in advance!

kevman · 08-16-2018, 04:12 PM

We're in the process of a complete rebuild on our van so I've now got a bit of experience on the subject.

1. Is your old charger a stand alone charger or a charger/distribution panel? I haven't gotten around to replacing our charger yet but we also don't have any AC loads so when I do, a simple 3 stage charger is all I need. Things get a little trickier when you still need to maintain your AC distribution.

2. Our unit didn't come with a battery monitor to begin with but I did install a Victron BMV-712 with the new electrical set up. Simply put, it's great. Expensive? Maybe. I don't actually remember what it cost nor do I care. The shunt is dead simple to install and knowing how much power you have left no matter the current load on the battery is clutch. Finally, the built in Bluetooth fills my inner nerd with joy. I can monitor my battery from bed, outside the van or even from the house. I also check on it sometimes while driving to see how many amps I'm getting from the alternator or how close the battery is to a full charge. Long story short, you said "I'm a geek" so just get the Victron one and enjoy!

3. Maybe. Depends on the set up. For example, if you use a Victron Inverter/Charger and Victron Solar controller their ve.bus can monitor battery life through these controllers and make the BMV redundant. However, that's assuming all your loads go in through the charger/solar only and out through the inverter. If you have DC loads directly off the battery or if you charge with an alternator at all you'll still need a shunt based system to monitor these. I'm assuming at least your water pump and lights are DC so unless you don't care to monitor the draw on these items you're going to still need a shunt based system.

I'm going to sound like a Victron rep here but their solar controller is also pretty amazing if for no other reason than the Bluetooth again. We use a DC fridge so our loads are fairly heavy compared to others. The Bluetooth gives me peace of mind to know exactly where the battery is at in it's charge cycle, how much current it's getting, how long we can go, etc.

MacDaddy77 · 08-28-2018, 09:52 AM

Question about Sibbald Lake Campground, I see from the site there's no power which is fine, but where is the closest place to fill fresh water and dump? Do I have to go around to highway 40 at the Barrier lake Visitor Information site or is there somewhere East so I can take the Sibbald Creek exit off the trans Canada highway?

thinking of going September 15th weekend, should I go out Wednesday to get a spot or is Thursday likely ok? I don't usually go first come first serve campgrounds this far away from the city

Thanks,