Monacoers Daily News

2 hours ago, CAT Stephen said:

@dandick66,

 

The large differential between your high and low side is attributed to a  refrigerant filter / dryer may be near end of life.  In addition, you may also have a venturi that is partially obstructed by contamination.

As your cooling performance is currently excellent, I recommend that you defer:

- The replacement of the refrigerant filter / dryer

- The full AC system evacuation, flush, and refrigerant refill to remove any potential contamination from the venturi

Otherwise, enjoy your icy cold dash AC!

Thanks!  That sounds good to me.  I’ll probably research the dryer part number and get it so I have it on hand when the time comes.  Thanks again for the help.

Your coach may have the pressure switch in the area of the Drive axle differential. Very common switch. Used by 4x4ers for suspension. PSI range is 90-120. Be sure there is a loop in the wiring to it, that lets water drip DOWN, so it doesn't end up in the switch. Very common problem.

Does anyone have a user manual for 1999 Dynasty 38'?

I have at least one of 3 slides that need adjustment. I've looked for a procedure on this in hopes that I could accomplish this myself. I have not been able to find anything specific other than "call a professional"

The slides on this model are gear driven from an electric motor.  They are not cable, nor hydraulic. Any help is appreciated. 

@folivier,

I recommend that you consider taking an alternate approach to wiring your solar panels to obtain the maximum output.  Here is why you should not wire all of your solar panels in parallel:

- With 10 Gage wire, you will experience a significant voltage drop of 4.1% because this wire size is very inefficient for the load (athough it is safe), thus wasting 4.1% of your usable energy right out of the gate. 

- To achieve the same low voltage drop (0.7%) that I have (details later in this post), you would need to use 2 gage wire for your parallel installation which is expensive and hard to work with

• Voltage Drop Calculator (make sure that you double your enter double your wire length from your solar panel termination on your roof to your solar controller to accomodate the total length of both your positive and negative wires
  • ScanGauge-D
    Bobkat11208 14 hours ago

    Replaced with BlueFire.  Allows you to monitor, measure, track, and diagnose/reset Diesel engine codes.  Works off of ECM and includes 6-9 pin connector for older J1708 protocol units.  If you are not familiar, you can read more about it at Norcold 1200LRIM s/n 8206262 worked when last parked in 2020; now shows no signs of life
    ak2handr 13 hours ago

    Update on my Fabulous Fridge Foul-Up 

    So, I tried changing two variables simultaneously.  I know: it flies in the face of accepted Scientific Method, wherein one changes only one variable at a time, so as to determine which factor is at fault.

      Even though where I park next to my house is  kinda-sorta-level, this morning I put an official 24" spirit level on the floor of the fridge.  Fore-and-aft was out by right at one whole bubble. I do not have a good conversion to degrees, whose values are specified by the service manual.  Once I engaged Bertha's auto-leveling machinery, she was up to dead-level along both axes. Yay!

        AND

    Amazon finally delivered my stack of neodyium magnets.  Geez, these things are powerful -- rated at 110 lbs of pull. I think I lost thoughts when one passed close to my brainpan. Anyway, I was able to get a satisfying CLICK when I manipulated it around the upper-right corner (as looking from outside the coach.) The red eye of he ogre on the recall box extinguished.  I went in and found the decimal point on the eyebrow display illuminated.  

        So I set the display to "Au"     LP is on, and a 110v, 20A shore power line is attached to Bertha, keeping the batteries at optimal voltage.  After two hours, a thermometer in the freezer shows 4.8 dF, and one in the more-or-less middle of the fridge says 41 dF.

    I have just now opened all 4 doors to let the cold out, then set it on LP and closed the doors again. The flame in the flame box is a nice blue. After an hour on LP the interior temps are 14 dF in the freezer, 47 dF in the middle of the fridge.

    I don't know if the propane delivers substantially less BTU than the 120 vAc heaters per unit time?

    Curiously, however, I cannot hear the muffin fans running, and when I use a mirror and bright flashlight, I do not see anything moving up there.  During all this troubleshooting time, the service cover for the control & combustion chamber has been off.  So I don't know if natural convection through that big, 2-foot-square hole is allowing enough fresh air to come in passively to allow combustion and let the chimney effect take care of all necessary circulation up and over the fridge's cooling fins.  

       The wire loop in the manual shows 1.58 kOhms resistance on my DMM. The schematic in the manual appears to show the fans are in parallel. So, assuming both fans have the same resistance, each fan has a resistance of about 3,16 kOhms, and the current from 13.6 Vdc computes to only 4 mA through the whole loop. The thermal switch and the wire loop for the fans has to have *some* resistance. Actually metering the loop current with a series ammeter shows 49.5 mA. I'm not sure what's faulty with my technique, but the total loop current is just about right for a pair of fans, per the spec sheet by the fan manufacturer.

      But at any rate, it seems the fans *aren't" turning.    I'm sure I'm missing some fundamental factor in my figuring, and (perhaps because of the magnets nearby my brain?) I'd love more input from folks who've gone through this before.  Is the missing cover (during troubleshooting) replacing the fans' function and allowing this whole thing to (at least nominally) work?  I wouldn't relish removing the whole fridge unit just to replace the fans.  Also, I noticed in the manual that my fans seem to be in the "older/lower" position than later units.

    
    
    Monaco Dynasty Emblem Replacement
    Moparlee 13 hours ago

    Ken

    I no longer need Dynasty emblems. 

     

    Lee

    
    
    Norcold 1200LRIM s/n 8206262 worked when last parked in 2020; now shows no signs of life
    96 EVO 13 hours ago

    Fan in back of my Dometic fridge doesn't run unless it reaches a certain temperature back there.

    Usually takes the sun beating on that side for it to start.

    Don't know if the Norcold works the same.

    
    
    Atwood GC10A-4E HWH fires on LPG, but takes several tries to keep burning ... and then it quits some minutes later :(
    ak2handr 13 hours ago

    So, back to my errant Atwood HWH:

    (I've just now updated my Norcold fridge testing over on that thread)

    Yesterday, just as dusk was falling, I installed the new thermostats, thermal fuse, and igniter/sense probe.  I enabled 12v/propane heating and was treated to a nice blue flame at the end of the flame spreader, after polishing 20 years' worth of rust & corrosion off of all the burner components.  I also removed the flue box (more on that later) and washed out the whole combustion chamber and up to the top end with a refrigerator coil brush and lots of running water. After making sure the 10-gallon vessel was full of water, I "fired the boiler" on just propane. I called it a day and periodically peered out in the gloom to see (and hear) a healthy propane fire.  This morning, the flame was gone, and all four running water appliances gave out great hot water (like, hot enough to scald.)   And yup, I got the 140 & 180 dF thermostats in the correct positions. 

      Now, however, I'm confused with the placement of the three flue box parts.  Before I took it out of the control cavity, I'd noticed there was a sort of baffle plate that was loosely placed *somewhere* within the folds and spaces of the larger, more elaborate box assembly. There was also a rather fragile, thin gasket that looks like the seal in a Ball Dome canning jar's lid. I'm assuming that the smaller piece of sheet metal, with the 90-degres bent ends, is for occluding part of the upper, "output" port in the upper left (or upper rear) position in the control cabinet.  And I don't know where the fragile gasket-thingie goes.  The circular hole in all 3 parts matches the diameter of the upper "stack".

        I was unable to find any photos or explanations in the Service Manual (thank you again, whatever nice person posted that link.)  Does anyone have either a fairly simple written description, or a photo, that shows how these things fit into place? If the smaller sheet metal device had been snugly in place as I disassembled it, I'd have been able to replicate it upon re-installation. Presumably it's meant to somewhat slow the exit of the products of combustion, thereby allowing more heat to transfer from the "chimney" to the hot water vessel...?  I can see where choking down the outflow a little would make for more efficient heating, but at some point there's likely to be a safety issue as those same products of combustion are retained so close to the interior of the coach (in our case, right outside the aft bedroom.)

    Here is a pic of the three components I removed (and cleaned.):

     

    

    
    
    Norcold 1200LRIM s/n 8206262 worked when last parked in 2020; now shows no signs of life
    Tom Cherry 13 hours ago

    From the staff and Moderation standpoint, we usually skim or read every post…. Several reasons.  From not going down a path from an inverter issue morphs into an air leak….which happens and as our membership has grown, is NOW a bit “more of an issue”.

     Next is for the accuracy as well as the completeness of some of fhe troubleshooting and suggestions,  This is to ensure that someone, seemingly knowledgeable, may have made an assumption and then posts a comment about a 2001 Dynasty thinking that a 2008 has the same component or the same circuit.  Also, telling a member yo find the solenoid with two yellow and purple wires and splice them. That is the feedback we get when the recommendations do not pertain or even relate to the issue.

    Finally….personal safety issues.  Right, wrong or indifferent the Norcold falls into a “major concern” issue.  Too many times the response may be…cut open the box and splice the wires.  There is a sister topic on Norcold right now and a discussion of how to make it work using alternative means when the recall box has, IIRC, shut down.  

    So….yes….it is frustrating when the most common solution is to remove and replace….but trying to parse and delete or hide or edit the comments is impossible.

    Next up….is the fact that there is a plethora of information in our files on the Norcold.  Documents like the service manual….wishfully asked for early on.  The new topic guidelines call for a SEARCH of the subject.  If that had been done, then this is the result for FILES.

    https://www.monacoers.org/search/?q=Norcold&quick=1&type=downloads_fill

    The main Norcold file has 5 doc….and one is the 67 page service manual.

    Second….if the search phrase Norcold Repair had been executed and used Topics….then ALL of the past info and troubleshooting tips would have been found.  It does take time to scan and read them…but as one poster pointed out, there was a solution….posted PRIOR…that he felt was germane.

    The “hijacking” frustrations are noted…but not following the new topic guidelines is also a frustration….for the Staff and many experienced and mega resource contributors.

    Lets move on.  Please download the manual.  Please do the Topic Search. Please, to all members, stay focused….but when the personal safety and “frustration” of any gas refrigeration pops up….the common….I daresay 90% solution….is remove and usually a Res Refer is the Choice….THANKS

    17 minutes ago, 96 EVO said:

    Fan in back of my Dometic fridge doesn't run unless it reaches a certain temperature back there.

    Usually takes the sun beating on that side for it to start.

    Don't know if the Norcold works the same.

    Ben, please read the posts. This has already been posted.

    UNLESS your ARP is connected to the internal OEM fans….there are TWO, i think on the Norcold and TWO on the Dometic…..there is a SNAP DISK thermostat on the left side of the cooling fins heat “dissipater” on the top.  Visible easily when the upper cover is off.  THAT is what controls the Dometic and the Norcold.  The Dometic comes on around 120 dF.  The fans blow air up (these are muffin fans….so it ain’t a hurricane).  Or helps the flue exhaust the heat….therefore cooling down the refrigerant.  Then if has a Delta T of 15 dF (memory) so, the temp has to drop to 105….and it shuts off.

    NORCOLD uses the SAME size and shape button thermostat.  But theirs has to cool down to maybe 95 or so…the range on the Nor old is 10 - 15 dF cooler…so it runs cooler….  NO IDEA about the internals of the burner…but the outer most fin where the snap disk is…that is the control point.

    
    
    ScanGauge-D
    Just Jim 13 hours ago

    Hey Bob,  If no one else has responded, I'll buy it.  I am in the middle of building a house and I'm not going to have time to mess with the blue fire any time soon, 

    
    
    06 Monaco Slide Adjustment
    Tom Cherry 13 hours ago

    2 hours ago, nvrtoofast said:

    I have at least one of 3 slides that need adjustment. I've looked for a procedure on this in hopes that I could accomplish this myself. I have not been able to find anything specific other than "call a professional"
    
    The slides on this model are gear driven from an electric motor.  They are not cable, nor hydraulic. Any help is appreciated. 

    TWO THINGS.  First, you are required to do a search of all topics.  Suggest Camelot Electric Slide.  Click on Everywhere….choose topic.  Then repeat…add ADJUSTMENT or again Camelot Slide Adjustment

    SECOND.  Hard to guess WHICH slide you are talking about.  Which of the three?  Bedroom or front.  They are different.   There was a post recently.

    Here is 6 or so pages of posts ….

    https://www.monacoers.org/search/?q=Camelot slide&quick=1&type=forums_topic&updated_after=any&sortby=relevancy&page=2

    Need more info and you need to research some.

    Thanks.

    
    
    Norcold 1200LRIM s/n 8206262 worked when last parked in 2020; now shows no signs of life
    ak2handr 12 hours ago

    <sigh>   Sometimes I realize I've omitted something really stupid....

       All this time, the "coldness" control has been set on 7 of 9   (ST-TNG reference just a happy coincidence).  IIRC, that was the setting we last had the fridge on when we drove from NC to WA to NC five years ago.

    So now it's on 9.  I'll check it again in a couple of hours & report back.  Maybe this is all how the thing is supposed to behave.  This MH is the sum total of my experience with RVs and their sundry "moods."

    -- Barney --

    
    
    Monaco Dynasty Emblem Replacement
    Ken Thompson 12 hours ago

    1 hour ago, Moparlee said:

    Ken

    I no longer need Dynasty emblems. 

     

    Lee

    Ok

    
    
    Norcold 1200LRIM s/n 8206262 worked when last parked in 2020; now shows no signs of life
    ak2handr 11 hours ago

    6 hours ago, Tom Cherry said:

    [massive snippage herein]

    There was or is ....don't know if they are STILL in business... company in Hampstead NC that has SOME replacement seals.  This was posted a while back....the POWER OF SEARCHING....as STATED previously.....

    As one who had a 3 year old (was a 2003 Manufactured Year Norcold 1200....The seals started to FAIL in 2008.  DROVE my wife crazy.  We tried to NOT load the doors....and that really cuts down on the USEFULNESS of the unit...and it NEVER went away.  Had Extended Warranty....the Tech did the DOLLAR BILL test.  ALL the DOORS...  I was going to schedule it for fix....and only cost me $100....but then the Camelot came along. 

    [more snippage to endage]

    Yupperz --   C&S Appliance Service            admin_service@csapplianceservice.net              Norcold 1200LRIM s/n 8206262 worked when last parked in 2020; now shows no signs of life
    Dr4Film 11 hours ago

    Pleased to hear that your super magnet worked to reset the NotSoCold "Black Box". That will allow power to your fridge. Now, make sure that if it trips once again within a short time of using the fridge everyday, then most likely you have a failed cooling unit. Do NOT reset it again unless you think it was caused by something else and not the cooling unit overheating.

    Regarding the fans, there is a temperature controlled snap disc located up near the top of the fridge before the rooftop exhaust port. That snap disc has to reach the specified temperature, then it will close and turn on your fans in the rear to help exhaust the heat.

    
    

    Norcold 1200LRIM s/n 8206262 worked when last parked in 2020; now shows no signs of life
    ak2handr 11 hours ago

    16 minutes ago, Dr4Film said:

    Pleased to hear that your super magnet worked to reset the NotSoCold "Black Box". That will allow power to your fridge. Now, make sure that if it trips once again within a short time of using the fridge everyday, then most likely you have a failed cooling unit. Do NOT reset it again unless you think it was caused by something else and not the cooling unit overheating.

    Thank you!

    I'll be putting a couple of independent thermistors in various places inside the "service compartment" for the fridge.  I'll see what they say.  So far everything seems hunky-dory (please excuse the technical term 🙂    And a thermocouple to activate a low-power UHF transmitter so I'll get a timely notice of bad things happening.

    16 minutes ago, Dr4Film said:

    Regarding the fans, there is a temperature controlled snap disc located up near the top of the fridge before the rooftop exhaust port. That snap disc has to reach the specified temperature, then it will close and turn on your fans in the rear to help exhaust the heat.

     

    That's comforting. Apparently the temp up there hasn't gotten high enough to trip them on. I'll be keeping an eye on Bertha over the next several days.  I still have to reassemble the flue box on the HWH so I can close that back up.

    THEN all I think I have to do to make Bertha roadworthy again is re-spool the two electrically-operated shades on the inside of the windshield.  The last time we had them unfurled, the ambient temp was 108dF, and the glue/tape/staples/whatever gave up trying to hold the shades on the dowels.  That's my next project; I'll bring a variable DC supply out to the dinette and work in comfort. 

    -- Barney --

    
    

    Norcold 1200LRIM s/n 8206262 worked when last parked in 2020; now shows no signs of life
    96 EVO 9 hours ago

    2 hours ago, Dr4Film said:

    Pleased to hear that your super magnet worked to reset the NotSoCold "Black Box". That will allow power to your fridge. Now, make sure that if it trips once again within a short time of using the fridge everyday, then most likely you have a failed cooling unit. Do NOT reset it again unless you think it was caused by something else and not the cooling unit overheating.

     

    I agree!

    If you watch the youtube clip in the link I provided, you will see that 'black box' will allow the boiler to get too waaaay too high of a temperature before shutting down the fridge!

    To be honest, I wouldn't sleep well with only that thing preventing the boiler from overheating! 

    The ARP works well!

    
    

    Valid Air Leveling Pressure
    tmw188 9 hours ago

    On 4/29/2024 at 7:26 PM, 96 EVO said:

    What's a BOGO ?

    Why does the '07 Dyn aux leveling system send moist air to the rear brake cans?

     Buy One Get One   BOGO 

    An answer to your other question got left behind it seems? 

    
    

    Proper coolant recovery tank cap?
    Bill R 8 hours ago

    @Malewis11  I upgraded last year to SS tank, and it came with 7# cap.  Just returned from 2,600 mile round trip to Wyoming.  For most part running 195F on flat terrain through Texas with 102F outside temp.  On up and down decent hills through Colorado ran between 195F and 205F, outside temp still 95F.    After climbing from 5,000 ft to 8,000 ft into Wyoming on 287, and one long 6% grade topped at 210F and then went down to 200F while continuing to climb.  All that to say, after the trip, no coolant loss at all using 7# cap.

    
    

    Valid Air Leveling Pressure
    96 EVO 8 hours ago

    4 minutes ago, tmw188 said:

     Buy One Get One   BOGO 

    An answer to your other question got left behind it seems? 

    Yes.

    I don't think Valid was dumb enough to allow air that didn't go thru the air dryer get to the chassis air tanks, but I don't know that for sure.

    I'd like to hear Frank's take on this! 

    
    

    2025 Gathering Update & Agenda - as of September 3, 2024
    Scotty Hutto 7 hours ago

    Greetings All,

    Registrations for the Gathering are progressing nicely!  As of today, we're halfway to the required 40 coaches.  Beat the rush and register now!

    To encourage folks to register, I thought I'd share the latest on the agenda.  We are still working on adding some topics... most notably solar and lithium, but also other topics that aren't quite finalized.  That means this is likely to change somewhat, but I though you might find some of the new topics interesting. I'm still open to suggestions of presenters or presentations...

    Also, Debbie and Stacy are working on additional information on the spouses' agenda, and that will be published soon.

    Here's what we have as of today:

    Session Title & Description	Presenter
    Common Problems and Solutions for Monaco Coaches This presentation will discuss common issues and solutions for Monaco coaches, based on the experience of the Monacoers’ group over the past 16 years. This presentation will help attendees identify solutions and upgrades, as well as help new Monaco owners avoid problems	Scotty Hutto
    Open Roads Fuel Discount Program The Open Roads Fuel Discount program is a membership-based program that provides discounts on diesel fuel.  Tara will discuss the benefits of membership as well as the process of signing up.	Tara Rape, Open Roads
    Belt Line Repair & Roof Rehab The Upper and Lower Beltlines of Monaco coaches require periodic inspections and maintenance to prevent leaks and sidewall delamination.  Ted will share his experience and the advice of experts on beltline repair (and roof rehab)	Ted Zimmer
    Slide Floor Rot Repair & Maintenance This presentation will focus on the issues that cause slide floor rot in Monaco brand coaches and the best solutions to correct and prevent future slide floor rot.	TBD
    Interior Coach Care This session will discuss how to best clean, maintain, and preserve the interior surfaces of your motorhome.	TBD
    Roadmaster Chassis Suspension Handling and Sheppard Steering Upgrades Hear from one of the pioneers in improving the handling and steering for Monaco coaches based on the Roadmaster chassis.	Van Williams
    Coach 120v Electrical Systems, Batteries 101, Magnum Inverters This presentation will review troubleshooting (I don’t have power!!) Monaco brand coach 120v electrical systems and will discuss Flooded Lead Acid (FLA) and Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) battery technology, care, and maintenance. Discussion on setting parameters for Magnum and Xantrex inverters to get the best performance and battery life. Bonus discussion on troubleshooting “No house AC” problems.	Tom Cherry
    Coach Safety This presentation will focus on coach chassis safety.  It will include how to do a pre and post trip safety check, including air brakes and tires.  Also covered will be how to drive a coach with a DFP and how to obtain and interpret a Cummins Insite engine report including parameter setting options an Engine abuse and DPF history report.	Frank McElroy
    Engine & Transmission Service and Maintenance	TBD
    Intellitec Systems Support, Coach Electronics, CPU and Touch Pad Back Ups and Restore. This presentation will cover both the Programmable Multiplex Control and non-programmable systems.  Topics covered will include how each system works including the differences between the two systems, how the CPU is read and programmed, how the keypads work, how they are programmed, and real world troubleshooting and repair solutions	Paul Whittle & Frank McElroy
    Kongsberg Chassis Multiplex history & repair This presentation will cover the saga of how a Kongsberg chassis multiplex coach struck by lightning was brought back to life with all that dash switch modules repaired.  Topics covered will include - how a chassis multiplex system works, how it can be repaired, what typically goes wrong, do's and don'ts, and real world troubleshooting and repair solutions.	Frank McElroy
    Roundtable Discussion Meet the Monacoers’ team Maintenance Q & A Open Discussion - Problems, Upgrades, Modifications, Technical Problems and Fixes Bring your questions and prepare to take notes!!!! This is one of the most enjoyable events at the rally, and it’s especially valuable for new members to the forum and group.	Dave Pratt Scotty Hutto Frank McElroy Tom Cherry

    
    

    Proper coolant recovery tank cap?
    96 EVO 7 hours ago

    11 hours ago, Malewis11 said:

    I have 2006 Monaco Windsor ISL 400 and I would like some input of knowledge and experience, especially for those with my twin. I ran a little hot this summer pulling hills in Arkansas when it was 98. I started digging into this and my 16# cap looked like it had seen better days. Manual say 7# min so I went with 9#. I now notice some weeping from the brass screws (highest temp I saw was 193 when driving) in the surge tank. I just dropped it off to have the radiator flushed and steam cleaned. I’m looking into the steel tank but should I consider canceling my 3 hour trip this weekend? I haven’t seen any reports of catastrophic failures but I don’t want to become a statistic. Several have gone to a 7# cap. Maybe with my clean radiator and new thermostat it’ll run cooler. 

    Unlikely your cap change had anything to do with the brass screw-in fitting beginning to leak.

    
    

    Solar panels system, where to run wires down to battery?
    cbr046 7 hours ago

    Along those lines I found this article on MPPT vs PWM solar controllers enlightening.

    Hard Starting
    gjh2916 5 hours ago

    According to Cummins QuickServe Online my 2001 8.3 Cummins ISC Caps engine does not have a fuel shut off solenoid. How does the engine shut down when I turn the key off? I am having a hard start issue sometimes. Forums I have read says the fuel shut off solenoid could be sticking, but I don't have one. I've have a Fass fuel system and my pressure gauge is at 20psi when key is turned on. Before I install the Fass system a couple of years ago I had a hard start issue , it was the lift pump leaking and loosing it's prime. I replaced the lift pump and hard start issue went away.  Little while later I installed the Fass fuel system and everything worked fine for a couple years. Now the hard start problem is back. Sometimes it starts fine and other times it don't. It always starts but only after a lot of engine cranking with pumping fuel throttle peddle. I've replaced fuel filters, chassis battery (8D) and installed a Blue Seas ML-ACR to keep batteries charged.

    Anyone one ever have an issue like this?

    
    

    Hard Starting
    Superpro14 1 hour ago

    did you leave the original lift pump in place and have the fuel running through it, if so could be sucking air at the lift pump again

    
    

    
    

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