|
creating an instruction & maintenance manual |
Post Reply 
|
Page <1 45678 25> |
| Author |
 Share Topic Printable Version Google Delicious Digg StumbleUpon Windows Live Yahoo Bookmarks reddit Facebook MySpace Newsvine Furl Topic Search  Topic Options
|
techntrek 
Admin Group - pHp 
Joined: 29 Jul 2009 Location: MD Online Status: Offline Posts: 9062 |
 Post Options
 Quote Reply
 Topic: creating an instruction & maintenance manualPosted: 24 May 2012 at 9:35pm |
|
I really need to get back to adding to this. If anyone else can pitch in and complete some of the unfinished sections, please do. Burt, thanks for the info, I'll add that.
|
|
 |
|
|
Burt
Groupie 
Joined: 04 May 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 62 |
Post Options
Quote Reply
Posted: 25 May 2012 at 9:27am |
|
Thanks for the compliment.
To make it easier on yourself, make this a DIY project by the PHP'ers. Open up a "SECTION" of the forum with the permission of the forum owners' and then classify topically just like a classified ads section of a newspaper does. Create on the forum permanent topics, a catchy title to encourage participation of problems, solutions, products, etc.....related to the mantenance of PODS. I don't have a catchy title in mind other than WIY. Write it yourself, or something like that. As an aside, we own a Kubota tractor and there is a website called ORANGE TRACTOR TALK. It combines what you have described albeit not in a "book" form but also, there are technicians that have short movies on this site with maintenance "how to's" in a form similar to YOU TUBE. The site has been very helpful to all of us that own Kubota tractors. Maybe some techs at Forest River would agree to participate. Kubota itself participates in the site I mention. The site owner on Orange Tractor Talk also provides even a tutorial on how to submit pictures and so those not too familiar with internet technology are encouraged that way as well. Your idea is superb. BTW, I was able to clean under the A/C unit perfectly yesterday using a long paint stick and wrapepd with a paper towel, sprayed down with water. Got all the yuck out of there easily. Burt Your idea is superb. |
|
|
|
|
greynomad
Newbie 
Joined: 20 May 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 22 |
Post Options
Quote Reply
Posted: 05 Jun 2012 at 7:03am |
|
When buying the Model 177 RPOD I didn't realize that you needed a braking system for the trailer.
Thankfully my 2011 Toyota Tacoma had been wired for it so it was a quick install for the Tekonsha Prodigy.  |
|
|
|
|
techntrek
Admin Group - pHp
Joined: 29 Jul 2009 Location: MD Online Status: Offline Posts: 9062 |
Post Options
Quote Reply
Posted: 20 Aug 2012 at 10:45am |
|
Dry Camping
Original discussion here: http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=2843&title=dry-camping-duration
Battery: Making sure to keep lights off that you don't need, using the water pump for dishes and 4 showers (see below), NOT running the fridge on DC (never run it on DC unless you have a good charge line on your TV and you are going down the road), you'll easily go 2-3 days. The big draw is the fan on the furnace so if you need heat be prepared to use it sparingly and use an alternate that does not need DC (see below, too). A new battery might be ok using the furnace nights-only plus the other stuff and make it a weekend, but probably not an older battery.
Propane: The fridge will run a month on a full tank, a bit less if you use the stove, and a lot less if you use the furnace. Like the battery, the furnace is a propane hog too. If you don't use the furnace your tank will last weeks, if you use the furnace it could go just days in cold weather. There are radiative-heat options that are popular with campers that sip propane and don't need electric at all. One is the Olympian Wave which can be plumbed into the pod's LPG system or be used stand-alone outside (a quick disconnect makes this easy). Another is the Coleman Mr. Heater, which uses either the 1 pound LPG tanks or you can buy an adapter so it can also be attached to the pod's LPG system. Water: Make sure the water heater is pre-filled otherwise it will use up 6 of your 30 gallons when you get to camp. Using "navy showers" we can go a weekend on one tank - four showers, washing dishes, brushing teeth. You can buy or make something called a "water thief" which will allow you to fill up your water tank with your hose from a spigot that doesn't have any threads. You will sometimes find this in state parks. The "thief" is a soft rubber extention which will screw on to the end of your hose and slip over the spigot. NOT intended for a permanent connection, but for stopping and filling up and then heading out or back to your site. Waste tanks: On all models the fresh tank is 30 gallons (the specs say 36 because that includes the water heater), and the waste tanks are either 30 or 35 gallons each. Since the fresh water will get divided up between the gray and black tanks neither will be close to full after your fresh tank is dry, and worse case one or the other will be exactly full. Even if you refill your fresh tank and don't dump the waste tanks the black tank should last about 5 days of steady use. The gray tank will fill quickly, 4 showers and it is full. More info from bhamster:
Battery: although the stock configuration can get you through a long weekend, adding a solar panel can get you topped off each day if you stick to normal usage (efficient lights, water pump, light furnace use). Switching to LED lights can help a lot also.
Propane: we've found the fridge to be extremely efficient, but we camp in cooler conditions so that might help. We're running on our first tank of propane and I think it's about half full still. We use the furnace sparingly, so that might be part of the reason why the propane lasts so long. We have a small backup tank under the dinette bench (I believe it's a 4.5lb) for when the main tank finally runs out, but at this rate we could probably run for weeks on just the backup tank.
Water: once you get used to conserving water you can usually get about 3 days of normal usage on a full tank, BUT since the waste tanks are proportionally larger than the fresh tank, you can just fill it again. We bring a 2 gallon tank with us and use it to transport water from the nearest spigot to the rpod. It's a good workout, but you can extend you trip a day or two without much trouble.
Waste tanks: we've never once filled up the black tank (without intentionally filling it for flushing), and the same goes for the grey. I've seen several people transfer grey water to a "blue" tank and then dump it in a designated area (usually by the bathrooms). I've never needed to do it myself, but it's the same principle as with filling the fresh tank, but in reverse.
So... with all that in mind I think you could extend your dry camping capabilities to around 5-6 days with a couple tweaks and some good habits. |
|
|
|
|
betsypgarmy@yahoo.co
Newbie
Joined: 02 Jun 2012 Location: Nebraska Online Status: Offline Posts: 19 |
Post Options
Quote Reply
Posted: 07 Oct 2012 at 11:00am |
|
winterization question for R177 Vallgrl
|
|
|
|
|
Keith-N-Dar
podders Helping podders - pHp 
Joined: 03 Apr 2011 Location: Mayville, WI Online Status: Offline Posts: 1447 |
Post Options
Quote Reply
Posted: 07 Oct 2012 at 4:46pm |
|
On our 2011 the water heater is under the bed on the driver's side. I have the screws out of the plywood under the mattress, so I lift mattress and plywood up, and find the water heater. You will see the plumbing going to it. The valves are against the partition that divides the water heater and the furnace from the storage area under the center of the bed. There is one in the input, output and a bypass tube between them. They are not easy for me to get to, but it is possible.
|
|
|
Keith-N-Dar
Boris & Betty (Boston Terriers) 2011 R-Pod 177 2010 Ford F-150 |
|
|
|
|
Tri-Pod
Senior Member
Joined: 17 May 2011 Location: Liberty Hill Online Status: Offline Posts: 112 |
Post Options
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Oct 2012 at 12:20am |
|
This is a great list. Thanks I am going to use it as a bases for mine, you saved me a lot of thinking. I did noticed that you un choked the wheels on leaving that never got chocked on arrival? Just the kind of thing my wife would notice about my list. Happy Camping.
|
|
|
2010 PR 176 sold 2012 replaced with
2013 SP 240 w outside kitchen 2012 Toyota Tundra Crew Max 4x2 5.7L V8 Me, My Honey, and Max our GSP |
|
|
|
|
betsypgarmy@yahoo.co
Newbie
Joined: 02 Jun 2012 Location: Nebraska Online Status: Offline Posts: 19 |
Post Options
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Oct 2012 at 9:38am |
|
Thank you for the helpful info!
Vallgrl
|
|
|
|
|
wagnert
Newbie
Joined: 09 Jan 2012 Location: Gig Harbor, WA Online Status: Offline Posts: 21 |
Post Options
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Oct 2012 at 2:07pm |
|
It's good to have fact checkers.
See ARRIVAL, item 3, "Chock wheels." I always chock the wheels. At first, if we were staying connected to tow vehicle for a one night stand, I did not bother to chock. But have discovered that even when connected with jacks down, chocking adds stability when we move around inside. Happy camping! Tom |
|
|
Tom Wagner
2012 R-Pod 177 2003 Toyota Sienna |
|
|
|
|
KansasR-Pod
Newbie
Joined: 21 Oct 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3 |
Post Options
Quote Reply
Posted: 13 Nov 2012 at 7:37pm |
|
On the R-Pod 172T the water pump is located behind the lower cabinets in the kitchen. You will want to remove the drawers first to gain access to the free tube for pulling in the antifreeze.
|
|
|
Kansas R-Pod
|
|
|
|
|
Post Reply
|
Page <1 45678 25> |
| Forum Jump | Forum Permissions You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot create polls in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum |
