Dwight Lindsey

Rick: It's not that bad a job. If you've never done it before, it's probably 4 to 6 hours including all the head scratching. Be prepared with the right socket for the heating element. The cheap ones don't work well. You need a real socket or wrench. If you or a helper has done one of these before, then it's probably a two hour job. Nothing rocket science about it. The trick is to get a good socket and breaker bar. Dwight

Rick: You are going to need to remove the water heater to replace the element. That little opening in the wall will let you unhook the wiring and water lines, so that you can remove the water heater. There's no way you're going to be able to get the heating element out through that little opening. Once you get the water heater out of the coach, as Martin said, you will need a good socket. The one they sell for water heaters is cheap and did not work for me. My water heater was sealed in place with a ridiculous amount of silicone around the door. Cutting that out was annoying. In my coach, the real problem was that the water heater was connected to 120v with Romex and wire nuts. The wire nuts melted. The wire nuts must have loosened over time and resistance or arcing caused the wire nuts to melt. After melt down of wire nuts, there was no electrical connection any more. While the water heater was out. I replaced the heating element, which is not real expensive, so why not. Dwight

Brad: I had a similar problem with one jack on our 2005 Knight, which would not retract. Our problem was the retract valve. If it's not clear to you which valve controls the problem jack, you can put the jacks down a bit. I wouldn't jack the coach, maybe just touch the pavement. Then, at the hydraulic pump, manually release the valves one at a time. You should be able to see the two working jacks retract. If you find one valve that does not retract the jack . . . that would likely be the problematic one. I bought a new retract valve stem. At the time the owner of RVA (since retired) told me that simply removing and re-installing the valve stem would often solve the problem. I bought the new valve stem, installed it, and it's been fine since for a lot of years. I don't recall exactly when I did this, but it was probably about 8 years ago. You would want something like this: https://www.rvajack.com/RVA-Hydraulic-Pump-Assemblies-and-RVA-Hydraulic-Pump-Parts/86030445-1-16-22-5-32-Retract-Valve-Stem-only-Solenoid There seem to be three different ones, for different models, so you would need to find out which model jack system you have. If that's not immediately clear you could call RVA and ask them how to identify your system. Dwight

Our 2005 Monaco Knight has RVA Jacks. Your coach may as well. https://www.rvajack.com/ Dwight

This one may work: https://www.amazon.com/DaierTek-Adjustable-Switch-Security-Momentary/dp/B081MT3YCF/ref=sr_1_13?crid=5V4PMOY737E4&keywords=door+plunger+switch&qid=1643231875&sprefix=door+plunger+switch%2Caps%2C113&sr=8-13#customerReviews There's one review that says it was used in exactly the wet bay switch application. I was looking at mine the other day and it's seriously corroded. Your request for a replacement triggered me to search on Amazon. I've ordered one of these, they're cheap enough, and I'll see if they work. One of the reviewers complained that the picture is a package of 3 switches and there were only two in the package he received. I only need one . . . Dwight

That's a barrel key. Monaco used a lot of Southco products, so you could search Amazon and Ebay for Southco Barrel Key Here's one: https://www.amazon.com/Southco-E3-5-15-Motorhome-Campers-E3-26-715-15/dp/B077PLFSK1/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=southco+barrel+key&qid=1640582572&sr=8-3 I don't know if it will work, but it would be a small investment to find out. Dwight

Deryle: My lower convex fisheye mirror was also loose and rattling. One day it blew off while going down the road. The replacement kit worked perfectly. The kit is more than the mirror, it includes the piece the mirror attaches to. Dwight

Deryle: What mirror do you have? In earlier coaches, the mirrors are probably RAMCO or VELVAC. In a 2011 which I guess was Navistar era, I have no clue. You should be able to find out by looking at the mirrors, or by looking at your build sheet or RV Data Card if you have them. I have RAMCO mirrors. I bought a new lower convex mirror glass, just the glass, not the whole mirror, from RAMCO: www.ramco-eng.com My replacement lower convex glass was SNP-GLS171-KIT. It came with a snap on skirt, a small manual mechanism and screws. https://shop.ramco-eng.com/collections/mirror-parts/products/snp-gls171-kit $34. Worked great. If you have a RAMCO, as I do, you should call them, perhaps send them a picture of your mirror and they can guide you to the replacement part you need. Dwight

Charles: The fault code 3 on the generator will repeat. So unless you've pressed the stop once briefly to get the 2nd digit, it could be that the 33 you've mentioned is just the repeated 3. Once you see a 3 fault code, press the stop side of the switch once quickly, then read the 2nd digit of the fault code. Dwight

Charles: What makes you think it's not charging? I guess you are not seeing voltage on the dash gauge . . . but the gauge could be the problem. Have you put a clamp on ammeter on the cable from the alternator? Have you put a volt meter on the battery when the engine is running? Dwight

Do a google search using the search string "automotive upholstery shop tucson" and you'll get a few hits. Any of them could do that. Get some bids. FYI, I had a tear in the drivers seat repaired. It looks like new. Depending on what's wrong with your captains chairs, you could ask about repair instead of re-covering. Dwight

Steve: The transfer switch will be near the place where the shore power cable enters the motorhome. Probably in a rear compartment. Someone with a 2004 Windsor could guide you more specifically. There is not typically a reset switch on a transfer switch. That said, I don't know which transfer switch you have. If you haven't yet, you should certainly check and re-set all of the breakers in your breaker box. Unless you're VERY comfortable with electrical work, I suggest great caution about opening the transfer switch to check it. All power sources must be off, battery disconnects disconnected and shore power disconnected. Dwight

Mike: I didn't follow your troubleshooting tips very well, so my comment may or may not be helpful. If you have an MSW inverter, GFI outlets don't like MSW at all. I replaced my GFI outlet in the bathroom with one from Home Depot, Leviton I think. It would trip any time the inverter was active. Xantrex did some testing that applies to all MSW inverters. You can find the document here: https://nanopdf.com/download/gfci-compatabilities-output_pdf Based on that document, I bought a Pass & Seymour GFI. I had to get it on ebay. No problem at all since I installed the Pass & Seymour GFCI Dwight

Very strange picture. I'm curious to know what we're looking at. It seems to be the roof of a motorhome, without the fiberglass roof material forward of the ladder. But there are no holes for vents or air conditioners. Hmm . . .

Chuck: Some of us like and in fact need the macerator. I am currently dumping into a toilet 100 feet away from the coach. The macerator makes that possible. At campground dump sites it does take a bit longer to dump, but nothing unreasonable. Dwight

Tim: I also did not heed the many warnings about the IOTA that I'd been hearing here for many years. Then in 2019 mine melted. It was really ugly inside and I'm actually surprised it didn't catch fire and burn up the coach. So don't feel like you're alone in alone in not heeding the warnings about the IOTA. Dwight

I've been using Surflow macerator pumps. They last me about 3 - 4 years. I've been pumping weekly since 2016 and they're holding up. One big improvement I made is I put a strainer in the shower drain. It catches my wife's long hair, which was a major cause of failure before that. When I'd take one of the failed pumps apart, I'd find the impeller wrapped with long hairs. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FQ78P4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Dwight

Tim: I wonder if your transfer switch defaults to Generator and switches to shore power when it sees voltage on the shore power side. Mine works the opposite way. If yours works like mine and moving the shore power wires to the generator positions gets you power, then I guess your contactors, or some of them, are melted and welded into position. Or your transfer switch was built opposite to mine, or wired opposite to mine. Interesting. FYI, after mine melted, I have made sure that I never have a big load from air conditioners when I change power sources. I had been leaving a campground with the air conditioners on and starting the generator, then later upon arriving or when the air conditioners weren't needed any more, I'd just shut off the generator. Both of those actions, under load, were causing arcing at the contactors. Now I shut off the air conditioners every time, before changing power sources. Dwight

https://www.amazon.com/Elkhart-LPT50BRD-Automatic-Transfer-Switch/dp/B007HS0ONG/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=ESCO+50+amp+transfer+switch&qid=1627613805&sr=8-3 ESCO (Elkhart Supply Corporation) LPT50BRD

He has a Progressive Industries surge protector, probably an HW50c. That box will prevent the situation you described. Dwight But . . . a similar thing could be happening in the transfer switch, or in the breaker box in the coach . . .

The transfer switch should default to shore power. If you are getting generator power into the coach, then the transfer switch is either switching to generator, or stuck at the generator position. If all or part of the transfer switch contacts are stuck (mine melted), then something strange could be happening. I'd only jump across it if I was very sure I knew which terminals to jump . . . would probably be a last resort for me. I'll ask again, what transfer switch do you have? The IOTA switches are known to fail and cause fires. Mine melted but did not cause a fire. Long story, which I'll try to make short. When we were dry camping near Yosemite, the IOTA melted. We bought a new transfer switch from Camping World in Fresno and installed it. It worked for about 12 hours and then failed. The circuit board fried. So after a call to tech support for the transfer switch, confirming that the circuit board was dead, I removed the shore power input wires from the switch and connected the generator input wires in the shore power positions. Since the dead transfer switch contactors were defaulted to the shore power inputs, this allowed us to get generator power in the coach and continue our dry camping trip. Dwight

That's a DC circuit, shouldn't have anything to do with the shore power. I'm still thinking that the transfer switch is suspect Dwight

When you say: "50 amp circuit breaker says 50 volts one one leg , 145 volts on the other leg." I presume you mean a breaker inside the coach. I had a breaker inline with my 50 amp RV hookup at my office, thatt my Progressive did not like and would not allow power into the coach. My volt meter showed slightly different voltages on the two legs. So I replaced the breaker. All was well, voltage the same on both sides and the Progressive liked it. If I were you, I might replace that 50 amp breaker. Dwight

What transfer switch do you have? If it's an IOTA, it needs to be replaced. Mine melted. I'd open the transfer switch and check for burned or melted contacts and if all looks good, make sure all the wire connections are tight. Dwight I'd turn off the 12 volt disconnect switch to the house and unplug from shore power, before I would open the transfer switch. Dwight

I got mine at Harbor Freight years ago. They don't seem to have the heavy duty ones on their website now. Lowes has 12 ton Jack Stands: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Torin-Torin-Big-Red-12-Ton-Capacity-Ratchet-Style-Heavy-Duty-Steel-Jack-Stands-1-Pair/1002625998 Two 12 ton Jack stands should support one end of the coach, which is the way I do it when changing oil or greasing the coach. Dwight