Past Editions
RV Tech Tips Issue 6
By
Feb 17, 2005, 11:02

Email circulation of this issue: 14,122

Welcome to the 6th edition of RV Tech Tips. This is thelast edition we will email to you in its present form. Fromnow on, you will receive an email notice when the issue isposted to our website. Simply click to the web address weprovide, where the newsletter will be waiting for your readingpleasure. With so much junk email these days, filters areinterpreting a lot of legitimate email as unwanted, andzapping it to the trash folders or simply not delivering it at all,no matter how much a reader wants it. That's been happeningto this newsletter much too often. Our new method will helpensure that subscribers who wish to read the issues will beable to do so.

SEND US YOUR TECH TIPS
Have you found a great technique for fixing or modifyingyour RV? Do you have a neat trick related to RV repair,maintenance or modification that you'd like to share withthe readers of this newsletter? If so, please email themto us. We'll pay you $20 for each 100-150 word tip we use.Email your tips to RV Tech Tips care of Jody at jody@seanet.com. Please include your name and postalmailing address.

DROOPY SHADES
If your day/night shades won't stay up on their ownor seem a little tight, here's a way to make them workbetter. Two small spools are located at the bottomof the blind that anchor the strings to the wall andare used to maintain the proper tension. Adding orremoving a wrap or two on each spool will usuallymake the shade work properly. If you break a string,it's not the end of the blind. The string system insidethe shade is complicated and I have found it's betterto have a pro fix it. Check your yellow pages for ablind company that repair them.

TOILET ODORS
When a toilet bowl doesn't hold water, it can allowodors in from the tank. If you release the foot orhand flush valve too quickly while flushing, paperor solids can get trapped in the slot or the groovethat the knife blade (flapper) runs in. Straighten ametal coat hanger and make an L or right angle onone end (about 3 inches wide) and use it to clean outthe groove while you hold the valve open, and the wateris running. Make sure not to tear the rubber seal anddon't drop your new tool down the hole. When you'redone, apply some petroleum jelly or Armor-all to therubber to soften and lube the seal.

FRIDGE OPERATION
When you're not using your RV or it's in storage, propthe refrigerator door open, put in a box of baking sodaand leave the fridge off until the next camping trip.Most experts agree that leaving it run all the timeserves no useful purpose: it simply waste power orpropane. One of my concerns about leaving a refrigeratoron all the time would be its heat might attract nestingrodents and possibly create a fire hazard. And eventhough it has no moving parts, the electronics thatoperate it can wear out.

FIX YOUR OWN WATER LEAKS
Until recently, repairing water leaks on your fresh watersystems required special tools to install crimp ringsor turn locking nuts. Most of the major hardware andRV parts stores now carry products that you just pushon to stop a leak. They have a special O-ring andcompression seal built into them so if you havea leaking joint, elbow or coupling, you cut out theold one and simply push the new one on. They arevery reliable and a permanent fix. It might be wiseto carry a few of the more common connectors inyour toolbox.

NO COOLING ON PROPANE
If your fridge won't work on propane, before callingthe repair guy you should first check to see if theburner is covered with scale. When a fridge is usedon propane, it causes a rust colored scale to buildup on the inside of the chimney and the scale canfall onto the burner and stop it from lighting. A goodcleaning every year with compressed air will preventthis from happening. Remove the metal cover thatexposes the burner assembly, and gently blow airup and around the chimney. Make sure to wearsafety glasses.

RV FIRES: Be aware and not a victim

RV STABILIZING hints and tricks

We have an 2003 Islander.
The driver's chair has a"swivel" lock in the front of the seat. You pull a leverto allow the chair to rotate. My problem is that the lockhas become loose and it won't center properly and hassome side-to-side swivel. As far as I can tell, the leverpulls a cable that leads back and then forward, but Ican't find the actual lock. I've tried contacting Flexsteel,but they were clueless. Do you have any experiencewith these seats or maybe a diagram of the mechanism?Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated,as this could be a serious problem if the lock should failwhile I'm driving. -- Wil Casanova

Hi Wil,
Have you taken the seat assembly completely out ofthe vehicle? If you do, I suspect you will find the answerto your problem. I have found that working on the chairson a park bench is better and easier than in the coach. Yourproblem may be that the center nut (that allows the seatto swivel) is loose and just needs to be tightened.Sometimes you can get at it without removing the seat.Good luck.

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The advice in this newsletter is that of RV TechnicianTim Collard. It is intended to provide readers with adviceand education regarding the maintenance and repair of anRV. It is not intended to be the last word on the subject.Please consult with a qualified RV technician for a"second opinion," before undertaking a repair or RVmaintenance project based solely on what you haveread here.

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