Wheel
Bearings / Slide-out Rams
If it's
been 10,000 miles or more, or over two years, it's a good
idea to grease the wheel bearings. And while you're at it,
you should put some silicone spray lubricant on the slide-out
rams. Those of you with a flush floor unit, with the older
style rollers or slide plates on the end of the slide-out
room rams, should go one step further and clean and lubricate
the slide plate surface. Your slide-out
room will move up and down freely and continue to give you
trouble-free service.
Water
System
Spring is
a good time to flush your unit's water system. The procedure
is simple. Just mix 1/4 cup of Clorox with one gallon of water.
Pour the solution into your water tank. Then, add 10 more
gallons of water to the tank. Pump the treated water through
your entire system, then let it set overnight. The next day,
flush your system thoroughly with fresh water. In just a few
days, all evidence of the chlorine will be gone.
Exterior
Maintenance
The high
quality fiberglass exterior on you Excel unit will keep looking
terrific with a little TLC! In fact, you care for your Excel's
exterior in much the same way you care for the finish on your
car- with a combination of wax and just a tad of elbow grease.
To retain the shine and luster of your gel-coated fiberglass
exterior, and to keep it looking new for many years, simply
wax it at least once a year with a high quality automotive
wax.
Gray
Water Tank
If the light
on your monitor panel remains on when the tank is empty, it's
a sign that you have a filmy build-up on the sensors inside
the tank. Typically this build-up is caused by grease, soap,
and scum from the kitchen sink. An easy method of breaking
up this greasy film is to put approximately two ounces of
black water holding tank chemical into the tank with five
gallons of water, just prior to leaving on your next trip.
If your traveling distance is 100 miles or more, your tank
should be clean and your monitor panel working properly when
you reach your destination and set up for the night's stay.
Rubber
Roof Maintenance
While the
Excel's "Walk Anywhere" one-piece rubber roof is
a rugged and durable component of your fifth wheel, there's
no question that maintaining it will extend its life and keep
it performing perfectly. First of all, maintenance is simple,
easy, and requires NO special materials. Just clean your roof
at least four times each year using water and a medium bristle
brush or broom. If your rubber roof is extra dirty and has
stains, use 409. Be sure to rinse your roof thoroughly, however,
to avoid residue build-up on your RV.
"Dry
Camping" Tips
Conserving
electricity is one of the challenges of dry camping. At night,
we suggest using one or two lights at a time. Don't leave
the lights on in rooms you aren't using. We also suggest connecting
your unit to your pick-up each day, and running the engine
for about 30 minutes to assure your battery is fully charged.
The first weeks of summer are the best times of year for dry
camping because it's generally warm enough at night to forget
the furnace, and moderate enough during the day that opening
a few windows and drawing the shades against direct sunlight
will keep your home cool without air conditioning.
Slide-out
Fuse
If you've
experienced any problem with blowing the recommended 30-amp
fuse while moving your slide-out room in or out, feel free
to replace it with a 40-amp fuse. The wiring to the slide-out
motor is #8 gauge, which is rated for the higher amp fuse,
and the motor itself is also rated for the larger fuse. Making
the switch to 40-amps is perfectly safe, and should also end
the problem with blown fuses. New units have automatic resetting
breaker instead of a 30-amp fuse.
Dump
Valve Maintenance
You're winding
up a great weekend in your Excel, and you pull up at the dump
station to take care of the "necessary" duty of
dumping your tanks. You dig out the sewer hose, take off the
sewer cap, and out comes the liquids (and solids) that your
dump valve failed to hold in the tank!
When this
happens, don't jump to the conclusion that your dump valve
has failed and needs to be replaced. More than likely, it
is material that has become trapped in the groove where your
dump valve seals.
The dump
valve slides open and closes in a groove that has a rubber
O-ring on each side of a nylon flat plate. What often happens
is this: If you slide your valve closed while the tank is
still emptying, toilet paper and solids can get worked into
the groove--keeping the slide plate from making a proper seal.
Before you
leap into an expensive dump valve replacement, try this easy
procedure for cleaning the groove and O-rings. First, fill
your holding tank completely with a mixture of water and dish
soap (the dish soap acts as a lubricant for the rubber seals
around the dump valve slide plate). As the water is emptying,
repeatedly open and close your valve. This action works the
solids loose and the running water washes them away. You may
have to repeat this process a couple of times.
Black
Water Tank Management
After dumping
your black water tank, put four or five gallons of fresh water
back into it. Adding water to the clean tank will assure that
the solids always flow to the deep end of the tank. Following
this procedure will probably not be much of a factor in your
dumping habits, since your demand is much greater on your
gray water tank and the black water tank is rarely full when
you dump anyway.
Make sure
when you are at full hook-ups, that you keep your black water
valve closed during use and only dump the tank as needed.
Even though you leave your gray water valve open, keeping
the black water valve closed except for periodic dumping is
the best practice. If you have a flushing system, you should
flush the tank every time you dump.
Always use
toilet chemical and make sure to use only RV paper. Tank chemical
reacts much quicker to the RV paper than it does to residential
paper.
Refrigerator
Maintenance
Your refrigerator is one of the most crucial appliances in your RV. Here
are a few tips for making sure your refrigerator keeps its cool!
- Ventilation
is of the utmost importance. Make sure side and roof vents
are clear and free of nests, and check the roof vent from
the top.
- If your
refrigerator isn't working, make sure the LP gas valve at
the refrigerator or on the LPG container is turned on.
- A sweating
or frosting problem in the freezer usually indicates air
leaks or an improper condensation tube.
- If the
freezer is fine, but the food area is warm (or there's an
ammonia smell), it’s probably a bad cooling unit.
- When
you load your refrigerator, don’t pack items tightly...it
will interfere with air circulation.
- The normal
operating temperature for the food compartment is 34-40
degrees F. The freezer compartment should be between 8-15
degrees F.
- When
leaving the refrigerator out of use for an extended period,
prop the door ajar to avoid mildew and odors.
- The flue,
burner, baffle, fins and coils should be cleaned annually
for best performance.
- The burner
jet should be cleaned with wood alcohol and compressed air...NEVER
poke anything into the burner jet.
Following
these simple guidelines will extend the life of your refrigerator
and allow it to provide dependable service for years to come.
12-VOLT
Electric Motors
You’ll
find 12 volt electric motors in many places around your Excel
fifth wheel, powering such things as slide-out rooms, landing
gear, and stabilizer jacks. Because of their size, power,
reliability and convenience, the 12-volt motor is an excellent
workhorse.
A very important
feature of the electric motors is a built-in clutch system,
designed to reduce the stress on the motor and related components,
and to reduce the likelihood of failure. Many of you have
been taught that in order to ensure that a slide-out room
or jack leg is fully extended or retracted, you need to listen
for the clutch to engage or "ratchet."
THIS IS
NOT CORRECT!
In fact,
excessive "ratcheting" of the clutch motor not only
puts you at risk of causing a failure of the clutch itself,
but can also cause damage to components that the clutch is
intended to protect.
Excel Service
Department Manager, Elwin Conrad, advises to "go easy
on the switch" as soon as you first notice the motor
starting to "pull down," or take on excessive load.
At that "pull down" point, the clutch is ready to
engage. This is the optimal time to remove your finger from
the switch.
If you teach
yourself to avoid ratcheting the clutch, and learn to "go
easy on the switch," you'll greatly extend the life of
your electric motors.
Self-Adjusting Brakes
Self-adjusting
brakes have been around for a long time, but like most technologies
there have been some significant improvements over the past
few years in the way they're designed. The older style of
self-adjusting brakes taught many RV owners to go through
an adjustment procedure that included backing up the trailer
and applying the brakes. Many of you still remember that procedure,
and
continue to perform it.
However,
Dexter Axle took away the need for the "back-up and brake" adjustment
method in July, 1996, when they introduced forward self-adjusting
brakes. The new style brakes adjust each time the trailer
is pulled forward and the brakes are applied.
If you have any doubts about which kind of brakes you have on your unit, the
easiest way to check is by looking at the brake shoe. The newer forward self-adjusting
brakes have a round pulley on the brake shoe that guides the adjuster cable.
Always be
certain that if you replace the brakes or axle, only one type
of brake is used. DO NOT mix brakes (e.g. -- some forward
type brakes, some backward).
Awning Care
Now that
many of you are in a warm climate (compared to our seasonal
refrigeration here in Smith Center, KS), you'll no doubt be
using your awning more. Here are a few recommendations from
the manufacturer to help keep it looking like new:
- Use a
soft bristle brush and the least expensive liquid soap you
can buy to clean the surface of the awning (Dawn, Palmolive,
etc.).
- Do NOT
use any kind of degreaser! Degreasing agents can strip the
protective film applied to the awning.
BONUS
TIP:
If you own a unit with oak cutting boards and/or sink covers,
we recommend treating them with cooking oil at least once a
month. Put the oil on a cloth, and rub it into the oak.
Hooking
up your satellite dish is a breeze!
All Excel
models since July 2000 have been pre-wired for dual LNB satellite
dishes.
There is
a connection at the left rear corner of the unit for a ground
based satellite dish and another in the ceiling to accommodate
a roof mounted dish.
There is
an A/B switch near the living room TV and one near the TV
cabinet in the bedroom. The 'A' directs the signal to the
receiver from the roof mount dish and the ‘B’ side
from the ground based dish. A
coax runs from the left rear corner to the living room A/B
switch and another runs from the rear corner of the unit to
the bedroom A/B switch.
To install
a roof mounted dish, locate the end of the coax by the small
tag fastened to the ceiling in the living room area. From
this location we've run a coax cable to the living room A/B
switch and another to the bedroom A/B switch. This wiring
allows you to have a receiver in both the living room and
the bedroom with a portable or roof mounted dish.
In addition
to the wiring discussed, there is a coax run from the antenna
to the living room and bedroom A/B switch boxes so the antenna
can be used in conjunction with each receiver. The center
connection on each A/B switch is to be connected to the receiver
at the "Sat in" hookup.
Follow these
instructions and you’ll be enjoying entertanment in no
time!
Battery Tips
Many RVers
have experienced the mess and inconvenience of batteries that
have boiled over. This occurs because the battery charger
in your unit never completely shuts down when you are plugged
into shore power. Taking any one of the following steps will
prevent battery boil-over from spoiling your day:
- Remove
the positive cable from the battery and wrap the end with
black electrical tape, or,
- Install
a battery disconnect on your trailer, or,
- Order
a battery disconnect when you purchase your new Excel.
TECH TIPS
- To keep
your sinks shining and free of water spots, spray or wipe
them with rubbing alcohol.
- Purchase
a carpet rake at any furni- ture or flooring store to use
on high-volume or matted areas to give your carpet an eye-appealing
lift.
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