My first camper! So exciting!

[Mark Harley]

Time to upgrade the mirrors on the truck.
Looks good!

[FishPOET]

As far as I can tell, this is one that charges the battery, and I believe those two 30A fuses mean that i can run a hot line from the truck's power to charge while running, right? Do I still need an isolator?

An isolator will allow current to flow from the truck to the camper to charge the house battery while not allowing the camper to drain the starter battery in the truck. A fuse only protects the circuit from too much current.

Question on the fridge. When you are driving, do you leave it on electric? does that maintain the cool, by using only the truck's power, and leave you with a cold fridge and full battery when you arrive?

Is it okay to leave propane on while driving? For fridge, furnace, etc?

Is it a 3 way fridge? (110, 12V, LP) If it runs on 12V then leave it on 12V while traveling. If you run it on LP while traveling you need to remember to turn it off while refueling. And the older fridges struggle with keeping the pilot light lit while traveling.

Anyone hooked up a propane gauge/scale to keep an eye on how much is left? Gonna be a pain to just guess like I do on my bbq.

One of my tanks has a gauge but it is not all that accurate. Do you have dual tanks? I just use one at a time and refill the empty as necessary.

[tombodad]

thanks for all the tips, guys!

It is not a 3-way fridge, it's just 2-way. Gas or 12V only. However, the 12V is charged by the truck when driving, and the 110 when plugged to shore, right? So even a 2-way can run on electric when it's plugged in, just it's going through the converter, rather than direct?

I will do some research on an isolator. Any suggestions for an affordable one?

And I do not have dual tanks, it only has room for one, and it's the regular bbq size. I guess I will just bring along a 2nd tank for now, until we figure out how long it lasts.

[FishPOET]

It is not a 3-way fridge, it's just 2-way. Gas or 12V only. However, the 12V is charged by the truck when driving, and the 110 when plugged to shore, right? So even a 2-way can run on electric when it's plugged in, just it's going through the converter, rather than direct?

That should be right

I will do some research on an isolator. Any suggestions for an affordable one?

If the wiring going from the alternator to the 7 pin plug is done correctly it will be isolated from your starter battery. Check that before looking for aftermarket isolators.

And I do not have dual tanks, it only has room for one, and it's the regular bbq size. I guess I will just bring along a 2nd tank for now, until we figure out how long it lasts.

Is your single tank vertical or horizontal?

[tombodad]

Time to upgrade the mirrors on the truck.
Looks good!

Definitely. Can't see a dang thing behind me! I will eventually get the OEM tow mirrors, but they run about $300 aftermarket or $450 from GM. Worth it in the long run... but too much right now.
Got a set of the CIPA slip-on tow mirrors, they get good reviews. $50 on Amazon. Should be here tomorrow in time for my short trip this weekend.
Also found a used set of Torklifts (brackets and stinger things, no turnbuckles) for only $275! They won't be here this weekend, but should e in time for our long trip. Planning a 10 ish day tour down into Cali in July.

If the wiring going from the alternator to the 7 pin plug is done correctly it will be isolated from your starter battery. Check that before looking for aftermarket isolators.

Any idea/links on how to be sure of that? GM's are set up from the factory (well, you have to add a fuse, and sometimes connect a lead) to provide a hot line to the 7-pin. But, it's my understanding that if not isolated, the camper will continue to draw power from your truck when not running, and could leave you stranded. Does the dual battery setup on my Duramax defeat this? I suppose I could remember to unplug the 7-pin when parked, but all it takes is once…

Is your single tank vertical or horizontal?[/QUOTE]
vertical, just the regular bbq type. Small, but at least it's easy to find more. Home Depot will trade them out for $17. Pretty fair deal, IMO.



In other news, I got the furnace and water heater running! I wasn't getting any gas to the water heater, but after I turned the furnace's thermostat on, the gas flowed. I don't know if a valve was stuck or there was an air pocket or what... but it's good to go now!

Filled the freshwater tank (looks like around 15 gallons?) with bleach water, tested out the water pump (works great, but can definitely see an accumulator would be nice), drained the tank. Will fill and rinse again before I use it all.


Tonight's projects are the truck wiring and possibly adding some taillights. I don't have wings, so I don't legally need them, but the camper overhangs the end of the bed by about 18", and the taillights are uncomfortably shrouded. I plan to extend the hot line from the front of the camper around to the back, then add some trailer taillights somewhere, and plug them all in together at the trailer connection on the hitch. Probably some reverse lights too, and maybe put these on a switch.

[Ford Prefect]

Propane...

You can buy an after-market gauge that will read out how much is in the tank. Just place it inline. My wife got one for me, pretty cool, and I love it. Makes it easy to know how soon you will need more and FAR beats carrying around a spare tank.

Nice looking camper you have there.

[tombodad]

Cool, thanks! Any ideas where she picked that up? I've been doing some reading, and it looks like propane lasts quite a while in these guys, used conservatively (and not air conditioner).

Adding taillights and wiring to truck this afternoon. Wish me luck!

[redthies]

Don't drive with the propane on EVER. It is illegal in most states/provinces and also highly dangerous. If your fridge is cold when you take off,it will be cold when you stop driving for the day. Plug the camper in to shore power when you are at home to pre cool it. Propane will cool it off much faster than electric when you need it cold quick, (as you noted earlier).

Nice lookin camper, enjoy it!

[Photomike]

Don't drive with the propane on EVER. It is illegal in most states/provinces and also highly dangerous. If your fridge is cold when you take off,it will be cold when you stop driving for the day. Plug the camper in to shore power when you are at home to pre cool it. Propane will cool it off much faster than electric when you need it cold quick, (as you noted earlier).

Nice lookin camper, enjoy it!

Can you advise where you got this information as far as I know neither is true - I drive with propane on all the time for the fridge and heater, know many others that do as well and never have had or heard of a problem. Also the only time that I know of it being illegal to have propane on is on ferries and parking garages.

Would really like to know if I am breaking a law as I have looked into it and have not found anything.

Thanks.

[redthies]

I did a google search for "propane on in rv while traveling law" (long winded, but it covers all the bases). It took 7/10ths of a second to come up with the answer. Under the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations, it states that all propane tank valves must be closed while the RV is in motion. That is from the BC "Drive Smart" (Gov't road safety) website q&a section. I think you will find most jurisdictions have similar laws. You wouldn't want to be in a wreck, or pull up to the pumps with valves open and pilot lit. Some areas might not make it a law, but the law of common sense should apply.