Tankless emergency!...help!

[Judge]

Originally Posted by Harmsy

We’re in southern AZ after a good relatively trouble-free journey…the sunny climes have been wonderful to relax in during the day it has been very cold at night as Ducksface predicted…our previous experience of staying out on cold nights came in handy…it got down to mid twenty’s at night…
Being in a Covid free environment is good…as good as being home…but these Arizonans are pushing the envelope with sooo many not wearing masks…

Thanks to all the correspondents for your support…here’

s an update…
1) Judge, the solar panel fuse has not been found as yet…I have done some logical searching and even asked THOR where they put the damn thing…they can’t tell me…I found the orange wire getting close to the house batteries but it does not appear at the batteries…last sighting was in the forward most passenger storage box…have yet to get into the harness shielding to expose even more wiring…btw, the strapping of ‘excess’ wiring (for longer coaches I guess) under the MH behind the battery box was terrible…cable ties just broke off in my hand…I am only doing a few days of dry camping so it’s not the most urgent issue…
2) Btw, how do you guys all maintain the chassis battery while you are stationary for a week or month?
3) The water pump switch needs a v2.15 update by Firefly, them saying “assuming that this is not the original water pump. It appears as though the G8 is amping out before the water pump turns itself off when reaching full pressure. The output current was raised in v2.2 for this reason. Because several pumps were change to aftermarket/larger pumps, the output current was raised again in v2.15..."
I have no idea whether the water pump has been replaced with an aftermarket…I’ll let my dealer sought that out when I get home in March…the cost of the software update is $75 or a new panel with the software in it at $827!
4) The Tankless water heater worked well until we got to Southern California…it sprang a pin hole leak in the copper…I can see it and hear it…local repairer say that it’s a faulty sweat joint and will only replace it and not repair it…I am now in their hands to get the part and replace it quickly and process it thru my ESP with FESC…fingers crossed that this works out…
5) I had a new awning fitted because the LED lighting was out…it was quiet but now it yelps when being closed…any tips for lubing its joints and swivels?...WD40 helped for the short term but it doesn’t last…
All for now, best for 2021!.

Let me answer your questions in order.....


1. Solar Controller Fuse - Per the schematic I posted, there should be a 10-gauge orange wire needs to connect to the positive terminal of one of the house batteries. There should actiually be three wires (that aren't battery cables) attached to one of the positive terminals. The other two are a yellow 14-guage wire for the auxiliary start and a red 12-gauge wires for the powered steps. If you cannot find three small wires connected to one of the posts of positive posts to the house batteries, your coach could be wired incorrectly (somewhat unlikely nut possible). In my coach i can take my dinnette seat top off to gain access to the back of the solar controller. You should try to gain access to yours to see if the fuse is located there.

2. Maintaining Chassis Battery- If you are plugged into shore power (run the generator) or have solar power, the coach will charge the chassis batteries via the BIM160 (Battery Isolation Manager).


3. FireFly Multiplex System - If your coach is still under warranty, you should not be paying a dime for any FireFly firmware updates. My SV34 has the water pump under the bed. It is not hard to gain access to it to see the model. Mine is a ShurFlow 4008. In ancy case, you want your dealer or the Thor Service Center to deal with this issue because you should not have to pay to address it.

4. Water Tank Leak - Again, if your coach is under warranty, youc an e-mail Thor Warranty Customer Support and explain what happened and you had to have the issue addressed by a third party. They will most likely ask for a copy of the repair invoice and then send you a check for the repair. On my last coach I had an issue with the levelers after driving 6 hours from the dealer for another repair. I determined it was the pressure sensor, ordered one from Amazon for $110 and wrote Thor about it. They had me return the faulity party and receipt and they sent me a check. In the end it was cheaper than having it fixed at a dealer. Your repair will be less expensive than the cost of $500 for the unit opplus labor.


5. Anwing Hydraulic Arm Lubrication - I do not recommend WD40. You want a dry PTFE lubucant like this one. I spray some on a paper towel and then wipe down the hydraulic piston and then spray it on all of the joints. Solves the problem perfectly. You can also use this lube for the slide out.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[Harmsy]

1. Judge, thanks a bunch…I do see a variety red wires that are around the batteries in their house…I found a lone red wire going to the positive side of the battery terminal so my guess is that I should follow that back (next time I get under the coach) and that could show maybe a wire color change at the fuse?...

2. Paul and Judge…I bought a Coleman battery tender…supposed to be 2 amps worth of charge on bright days…the house battery still hovers at 12V…what voltage is a battery at rest on the tender for a week or so expected to stay at or get to while in maintenance mode?

3. Judge, no warranty on my 2018 coach but I have an Assurant warranty plan…(FESC)…I will get the store that sold me the coach to get the costs covered.

4. Judge, again no warranty but the ESP has already rejected the repair as freezing damage…I’ll have to pay for the repair and take them to task to get it covered…we were on the road down here in non-freeze weather conditions for 3 weeks before we saw the first drip before the pin hole appeared the next day…(surely if it was freeze damage it would be spilt rather than a pin hole?)…I am not sure how the repair was presented by the repairer…I am sure that they would rather bill me at retail rather than discount a for the ESP provider…☹

5. Paul and Judge…I got the PTFE but have yet to find me some ladders to reach the swivels…😊

[RickD0]

Originally Posted by Judge

Let me answer your questions in order.....


1. Solar Controller Fuse - Per the schematic I posted, there should be a 10-gauge orange wire needs to connect to the positive terminal of one of the house batteries. There should actiually be three wires (that aren't battery cables) attached to one of the positive terminals. The other two are a yellow 14-guage wire for the auxiliary start and a red 12-gauge wires for the powered steps. If you cannot find three small wires connected to one of the posts of positive posts to the house batteries, your coach could be wired incorrectly (somewhat unlikely nut possible). In my coach i can take my dinnette seat top off to gain access to the back of the solar controller. You should try to gain access to yours to see if the fuse is located there.

2. Maintaining Chassis Battery- If you are plugged into shore power (run the generator) or have solar power, the coach will charge the chassis batteries via the BIM160 (Battery Isolation Manager).


3. FireFly Multiplex System - If your coach is still under warranty, you should not be paying a dime for any FireFly firmware updates. My SV34 has the water pump under the bed. It is not hard to gain access to it to see the model. Mine is a ShurFlow 4008. In ancy case, you want your dealer or the Thor Service Center to deal with this issue because you should not have to pay to address it.

4. Water Tank Leak - Again, if your coach is under warranty, youc an e-mail Thor Warranty Customer Support and explain what happened and you had to have the issue addressed by a third party. They will most likely ask for a copy of the repair invoice and then send you a check for the repair. On my last coach I had an issue with the levelers after driving 6 hours from the dealer for another repair. I determined it was the pressure sensor, ordered one from Amazon for $110 and wrote Thor about it. They had me return the faulity party and receipt and they sent me a check. In the end it was cheaper than having it fixed at a dealer. Your repair will be less expensive than the cost of $500 for the unit opplus labor.


5. Anwing Hydraulic Arm Lubrication - I do not recommend WD40. You want a dry PTFE lubucant like this one. I spray some on a paper towel and then wipe down the hydraulic piston and then spray it on all of the joints. Solves the problem perfectly. You can also use this lube for the slide out.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Question, why not the WD40?

[paulwadley]

I believe that the WD40 might attract or hold dirt to the surface. The CRC with dry PTFE will not attract or hold the dirt to the metal surface. With that being said, my Equalizer Hydraulic levelers call for WD40 on the metal rams to lubricate/clean them. Even with the small solar battery tender, I still like to run my chassis engine at least once every 2-3 weeks for about 20 minutes.

Paul

[Judge]

Originally Posted by RickD0

Question, why not the WD40?

WD-40 isn't actually a true lubricant. WD stands for "water displacing" and its main use is as a solvent or rust dissolver.

The lubricant-like properties of WD-40 come not from the substance itself, but from dissolving components and the effect doesn't last. It also tends attract more dirt to stick to the components.

If you go to LCI's site you will see they don't list WD-40 as an appropriate lubricant. Lubricants with PTFE are what is recommended.

I personally would not use WD40 on any moving part as a lubricant.

[Judge]

Originally Posted by Harmsy

1. Judge, thanks a bunch…I do see a variety red wires that are around the batteries in their house…I found a lone red wire going to the positive side of the battery terminal so my guess is that I should follow that back (next time I get under the coach) and that could show maybe a wire color change at the fuse?...

2. Paul and Judge…I bought a Coleman battery tender…supposed to be 2 amps worth of charge on bright days…the house battery still hovers at 12V…what voltage is a battery at rest on the tender for a week or so expected to stay at or get to while in maintenance mode?

3. Judge, no warranty on my 2018 coach but I have an Assurant warranty plan…(FESC)…I will get the store that sold me the coach to get the costs covered.

4. Judge, again no warranty but the ESP has already rejected the repair as freezing damage…I’ll have to pay for the repair and take them to task to get it covered…we were on the road down here in non-freeze weather conditions for 3 weeks before we saw the first drip before the pin hole appeared the next day…(surely if it was freeze damage it would be spilt rather than a pin hole?)…I am not sure how the repair was presented by the repairer…I am sure that they would rather bill me at retail rather than discount a for the ESP provider…☹

5. Paul and Judge…I got the PTFE but have yet to find me some ladders to reach the swivels…��

See my responses below....

1) I found a lone red wire going to the positive side of the battery terminal - The red wire should be the power to the steps. It is possible that Thor wired your coach with a remote junction block (like the pictre below) near the batteries where the Auxiliary Start and Solar wires come together and then go to the positive battery post.

2) What voltage is a battery at rest on the tender for a week - A 12V flooded battery is at 100% charge at ~12.7V or so. I assume you have no access to any power? Even if you had access to a 15A receptable, you could get a 15A - 50A dogbone adapter and that will provide enough power for the converter to keep the house and chassis batteries maintained. You can also run the generator to charge the batteries. The FireFly panel actually has a low battery voltage setting where the generator will start aitomatically and run until the batteries are charged and then shut off. I replaced the stock WFCO converter with a Progressive Dynamics PD9260 that has four operating modes (Boost, Normal, Storage, or Desulfation). This is the best way to maintain and protect the batteries.


Bummer on the warranty stuff. If you have documentation showing your staying in places for a couple weeks and then printed out the historical weather temps from Weather.com for that area showing it never dropped below freezing, the warranty company may agree to pay for the repair.

[Harmsy]

Thanks guys...agree on the WD40...it freed it off but the noise is coming back...PTFE should fix it for a longer period of time...

I am going to strip the wire covering back a piece and see what I see...that orange wire gets very close to where we expect it to be...

As far as battery longevity while in storage is concerned, I believe that the caretakers in the storage depot will be willing to run the vehicle for a while each week or so...we'll see...but that would help support the little solar pack.

I have already plotted the path we took and the temps are being logged...getting it fixed while on the move is tough...BUT here's the scoop...I used JB WELD 'Water Weld" on the pipe with the pinhole...wiped the 'putty' back and forth...it's been holding for nearly a week already...bloody brilliant and has offset the inconvenience somewhat...

All for now...thanks for being there guys!!!

[Harmsy]

Final update to maybe close this loop?…
Tankless leak is now fixed…the repairer fitted it as soon as they received it and I settled the repair…but it's sad that they never called the ESP for pre-autho and so appear to have told me a little white lie that they had called and had the repair rejected…I have since called the ESP and they said they will review the costs I incurred and most likely make a reimbursement gesture in my favor…in future, I will check that a pre-autho is in process…the ESP may not be as considerate next time.

The other issues are WIP but are now less challenging after the help I have received from the forum correspondents....cheers all...