Mike Wahl

I had a similar situation with the ignition switch in my 2001 Signature.  I had two situations.  Once it would not engage the starter. Another time I had dead chassis battery.  I found that the tumblers were worn to the point the key could be pulled out at any position which would allow us to leave the ignition on and drain the batteries.  I also found that when you turned on the ignition it wasn’t always making connection in the switch and sending voltage out to the starter solenoid.  I tested mine by opening up the dash and checking for voltage on the starter output on the switch.   Mine was also a 1970’s style  GM ignition switch.    I replaced mine and the issues when away.

Mike

1st off thanks for all of  the input.  We made it back home yesterday without issue.

I was able to do some checking when we got to our destination and found that the “Dual Battery Isolator” has failed.  The chassis side checks open when checking in both directions, and the domestic side check with resistance when checking positive to negative and open in the reverse. 

I have read and reread the posts and it looks like the Blue Seas ACR 7622 looks like the way to go.  I have the wiring diagram for the "Dual Continuous Solenoid High current plate" and after reviewing it, I also see someone has done some other changes and has the continuous solenoids jumped out.  From my understanding this would be the override or deletion of the "salesman switch".  

Just for my clarification I should be able to remove the following items and replace it with the ACR7622?

• 200 Amp battery isolator
• Battery Boost Solenoid
• Mattery Maintainer/protector

While I’m doing this is there any reason I couldn’t eliminate the continuous solenoids while doing the rewire of this panel?

Last evening we were head for our weekend destination and ran into an issue with the alternator/charging system.  I noticed we were slowly losing volts on the chassis battery's.  I found a spot were we could safety stop and check the problem out before we ran the chassis battery to low.  When I stopped, I checked the voltage at the battery's and I was getting 11.9 volts on the chassis battery's and 15.8 volts on the house battery's.   For some reason the system is overcharging the house battery's and not charging the chassis battery's when running off the alternator. 

When I would press the battery boost switch, I could watch the volts increase on the chassis battery's.

To get to a place we could overnight, I took a pair of heavy jumper cables and connected them from my house battery's to my chassis battery's.  This worked fine and both sets of battery's then charged.    When I run the generator both battery banks look to be charging properly.  My understanding of the system is that when supplying 110 volts the battery's charge off of the invertor. 

My question is what can be causing the charging problem?  I haven't researched or worked on this part of the electrical system so I don't know it that well.  From my initial investigation it looks like the alternator is working, however I'm not sure what is not functioning properly to cause this.

On a side note:  When we purchased the coach 3 years ago, one of the recommends from this group was to get a engine monitoring system.   We purchased a Bluefire and I have been working on updates to the custom dash.  I quickly saw that we had an issue with the voltage on the Bluefire dash.  I would have not noticed this issue nearly as quickly with the dash gauges.

I recently removed my Norcold and replaced it with a residential Refrigerator.  My 2001 Signature had 2 outlets.  The Norcold was plugged into the invertor and the ice maker was plugged into the shore/generator.  

I removed the RV outlets, (which I think are of poor quality) and replaced it with one outlet.  I removed tab/bridge on the hot side of the receptacle.  Then ran the invertor to the bottom outlet and the shore/generator to the top outlet.

Original                                                                                                                    Updated

I had the same issue with my 2001 Signature.  I had an issue, along with many others, with an overhead issue on the J12 connector on the smartwheel controlller.  In the link post below it shows photos of the issue along with wiring diagrams on how to update the wiring to use a relay and correct the issue of overheading the smartwheel controller.  If the controller is damaged to badly it will also need to be replaced.  Hopefully it is a simplier issue, howver I would check this out.

12 minutes ago, vito.a said:

I'm trying to understand.  Where and how are you measuring the 4 to 4.5 amps?

Sorry I didn't explain it very well.  It was putting out 4 4.5 amps in the past.  Now it is putting out 0.00 amps.

The solar in our 2001 Signature has stopped working.  We have a BP 90 watt solar panel and a RV-30D charge controller.  This was on my list of items to replace, however it was working putting out 4 to 4.5 amps.  Not enough to cover the new residential refrigerator, however it helped.  I tested the panel input and I'm getting 18 volts.  I also checked the fuses at the battery's and they are both ok.  I get voltage readings from both battery's on the RV-30D controller.  I removed the charge controller and there are not obvious defects, however I'm thinking that it is the issue. 

1. Is there any more testing I can do to verify the charge controller is  the issue?
2. If the charge controller is bad, is there any inexpensive options for the short term.  I have other items I want to get to before working on the solar.
3. Is there an option that I start with a new controller and then build from it in the future, however using the current panel and wiring for now.

Thanks everyone for the input. The one I needed to remove I found had staples around the outside.  Someone at the factory wanted to make sure it didn't come out.  There was a lot of staples holding it in.  

Sounds like there were several ways they were done over the years.

There was a post someone on this topic in the last couple of years.  I was looking at it for my 2001 Signature.  I had other things more pressing at the time, however was thinking in the future I would need to address this issue also.  It was a good post with options for mufflers and videos of the sound.   I have searched and can't find it.  I was thinking it was on here or IRV2.  Anyone remember this.

On 8/5/2023 at 11:09 AM, Rikadoo said:

Also my experiance with cob is they get pretty “warm” in a enclosed area like the lamp assy have you found the lens getting warm after being left on for a while? 

I had not noticed an heat problems during my unscientific testing, but after you asked it made me wonder.  So today I was working in the coach so I turned on the one under the sink and the one in the bathroom.  It was about 80°F here today.  I tested the temperature on the outside of the lens in the area of the LED using a inferred thermal gun.

1. After 1/2 hour the lens was 10°F hotter than the surrounding area
2. After 1 hour the lens was 10°F hotter than the surrounding area
3. After 3 hours the lens was 12°F hotter than the surrounding area
4. After 6 hours the lens was 15°F hotter than the surrounding area

From my "testing" it looks like they do grow in temperature over time and run 10°f to 20° hotter than the surrounding surfaces.  The housing are made out of aluminum on these lights so it works as a good heat sink also.

I'm working on my LED lighting project and have some wires that are being difficult to get to.  I'm wondering if in cabinets with the electrical wireway in the bottom have a way to remove the inner cabinet bottom.  This would allow access to the electrical.

9 minutes ago, Dave Pumphrey said:

I saw the link to the controller, how about a link to the light strips?

I have been thinking of a 2nd low level of light for the bathroom, this looks perfect!

Thank You!

Sorry about that should have added that in the beginning.

https://a.co/d/cDO6y3a

Updates for several questions

On 8/5/2023 at 7:44 AM, jacwjames said:

Can you provide a link to the controller you used, looks like this would have multiple applications. 

Link for the controller on Amazon.  https://a.co/d/9o9gwpa

20 hours ago, Rikadoo said:

So mike i saw where you used cob over led, this is the second time i have seen this great modification of getting the old fluorescent lights out an upgrading. Looking at the cob light specs they state must use a dimmer? Are they ok with just direct battery voltage or ? I really like the motion sensor, however during a “nightime visit” i really dont want a bright light have you found a way to tone down the brighness? Also my experiance with cob is they get pretty “warm” in a enclosed area like the lamp assy have you found the lens getting warm after being left on for a while? 

I'm running them on direct 12 volt voltage with no dimmer and have not had any issues..  They do get warmer than the standard LED strips, however I have ran for several hours testing and hasn't been an issue yet.  I will update if I run into any.  For the night visit I only have the center 10" or so of led strip light come on.  If we find it is to much I will pull a section of it off and shorten it.  With the lens in place it defuses the lights well. 

17 hours ago, Ivylog said:

Hope you have better luck with LED strip lights than I have…reduced output and multiple chips out in a couple hundred hours. I agree with Loel’s comments about cob’s as I tried them in a couple of puck lights. Burned much hotter than the 5050 size chips I normally use and one melted a solder joint.

This is definitely a concern of mine, however I have tested this type in household application and they have lasted well, however they do not get the temperate swings and road vibration they will in the coach.  Time will tell.  I like the idea of the panels you attached.  I had not thought of that idea.  If I run into issues with these, that will be my next attempt.

20 hours ago, 1nolaguy said:

Also, I had not heard about activators for 3M type tape as is found on many led strip lights. Over the last 5 years about 40% of the strip lights have lost adhesion and fallen inside the fixtures, primarily , I think, do to temperature swing combined with humidity when in storage.

I looked for lights with 3M tape, these are labeled 3M.  My experience is the 3M tape with the activator works well.  Time will tell. I also did like Ivylog stated and put a few drops of glue on each end.

I will keep you up to date as time goes by with these lights.  What I know so far is my significate other really likes the night light in the bathroom.  She opens the door and the light come on.

We have been working on a project to convert all our interior lighting to LED.  With the recent addition of the residential refrigerator, we are doing ok with battery capacity when boondocking, but every bit helps.  We dislike the yellow color of the Halogen puck lights so we ordered up some new puck lights and are in the process of changing them all to cool white LED’s.

 As part of this process, we changed our 12-volt fluorescent lights over to LED.  We looked at the cost of ordering new lights that were the same size as our Thin Light 716xl. They were not cheap and after reviewing them and a few articles, we decided to convert them over to LED using the original housings, removing the fluorescent light parts, and adding COB LED strips.  COB stands for Chip on Board. With this type of COD LED’s you get a continuous light beam not individual lights.

We purchased the COB LED stirps on Amazen for around $25 and cut them to size and soldered on the wire connections.  It took me a little while to get the hang of soldering the wires to the LED strips, however once I got a process down it worked great.  There are many videos on You Tube that show how to do this.  The LED light strips come with 3M adhesive backing on them, so installation is easy.  Our light housings had a 45-degree angle on them allowed a great spot for installation of the LED strip.  We had 3 fluorescent lights to update.  Below is a photo of the light over the pantry with the lens off.  In this one we used 2 led strips.  In the one over the sink, we did the same but also added a strip down the middle. 

In the bathroom fixture, I also added a motion detector and short strip of LED connected to it as a night light.  I found a wire that is always hot for the fan and was able to drill a hole from one opening to the other and pull the wire.  On this light I have 2 circuits.  One circuit for the standard light which has a switch on the front of the vanity and one circuit for the motion detector night light, which can be shut off using the switch on the light.  With this setup, when the bathroom door is opened at night the light will automatically come on and stay on for the time set on the motion controller.  This addition was easy and low cost.  The controller was about $15 on Amazon and a little more wiring.  I had to drill a 5/8 hole for the motion sensor to mount in the light housing.  I also marked which wires are for each circuit to help when hooking them up.  I copied my wiring diagram and made a hand mark-up for this.  I will do an electronic mark-up when I get a chance.  This is something I’m particular about  because in my industry there is nothing worse than trying to trouble shoot a problem and not have the correct wiring diagrams.  If you have wiring diagrams and do wiring updates, do the new person a favor and update the diagrams.  Hand mark-ups are much better than no mark-ups.

Here is a photo of the light reinstalled with the lens in place.  In real life you can see the light bars through the lens.  I was able to hook up the motion sensor to the fan wires in the photo that are always hot.  I removed the fan cover and drill a 3/8 hole from the fan opening to the light opening and ran my wires over.  I also marked the wires in the fan opening.

Here is a photo of our front run bay which is located under the drivers window.  I have replaced mine with a LED flasher so I could go to LED light bulbs.  If i remember correctly the original is in this same location.  The 2nd photo shows what the original flasher would look like.

In my 2001 Signature, in the right rear run bay,  I have the Lambert Enterprises Model LE-315 "keep it up" battery maintainer.  I had a same problem where my chassis  batteries were not charging.  What I found was at some point the ground wire that battery maintainer to the negative side of the COACH Battery was hooked up in the middle of the 6 volt battery loop, not at the end.   This caused the battery maintainer to  only 6.5 to 7 volts from the coach battery and not allow the chassis batteries to charge  because the battery thought the coach batteries were also low.  

There is an document on the downloads that walk you through testing the system.  I also found another document that I  have included that shows some diagrams on the system along with testing the battery maintainer.

LAMBERT Battey Maintainer.doc

Guys

Thank you.  The reset fixed the issue.   That was a cheap repair.  Its been an expensive year already didn't need to replace the AC units.  I know we will have to in the near future, however I have a few other items we want to do first.  

I have been working on troubleshooting an issue with the AC units on our 2001 Signature.  We have 3 Demetic 630515.312 Penguin AC/Heat Pumps.  We have a 5 button Comfort Control Center for front unit and it is working fine.  We also have a a 5 button Comfort Control Center for center and back unit and are having issues.  Both units the fan will run, however when you go to the AC side or heat pump the fan shuts off and nothing happens.  Both units worked fine when I put coach away winter last year, however this year when we tried to use them they will not run.  I have tested the following on both units and they have all checked out ok.  I'm looking for ideas what to check next. I'm thinking its CCC related because they both act the same but I'm not sure.

1. Both blower motors run fine when on fan.
2. PTCR check good for continuity
3. Both capacitors check fine for there rated mircofarads
4. Checked the compressor for open windings, continuity is fine between all terminals
5. Check the compressor for a short to the case.  There is no continuity between the windings and the case.
6. Check the overload protector and it is fine for continuity.

I have a 2017 Jeep Wrangler 2 Door that I’m looking to set up to flat tow.  I have never had a vehicle set up to flat tow and have some questions.   

1. I have a wench mount in the original front bumper and the plastic cover below the bumper has been changed to steel skid plate.  I’m not sure if this is a Jeep upgrade for the Rubicon or if its an aftermarket.   I’m trying to figure out what I do for tow points on my Jeep.  I’m not sure if I can bolt a universal mount to the metal skid plate, can I get an mounting kit that I can mount behind the skid plate and have holes for the tow bar mounts, do I need to find a different skid plate with tow bar mounts or should I replace the front bumper with one that has built in tow mounts (I like the look of the my current bumper, so this would be my last choice.
2. I have a 2001 Signature and will probably end up with more than 1 vehicle set up to flat tow.  I have been looking at the air systems and wonder if anyone has any input on the air systems (Roadmaster Brakemaster, M&G or something else), the units with air compressor that run  off the tow vehicle battery (Blue XO Patriot, Brake Buddy or something else) or the Mechanical ones (NSA receiver style).  Wondering if one style system is better than others.   
3. What kind of towbar.  There are a lot of options from low dollar two bars and a ball  hitch to high end ones.  There are a lot of options and not sure how to decide.
4. What do I need to look at for a wiring harness for my Jeep.  I have looked and there are several options with ranging prices.  Is there any does and don’ts.
5. Is it a bad idea to purchase used tow bars and equipment?

I want to make sure I don’t waste money but also want to do it right.  I had three local shops quote the project and have totally different answers.  One suggested I could probably just use holes in the wench bracket to tow from, the second what to replace the whole bumper and the 3^rd want to replace the plastic cover with a steel tow plate.  They didn’t look to hard cause I don’t have a plastic cover.  I’m not comfortable with two  of them doing the work and I really don’t want to change bumper.

One of the many items we had on our list of updates was to remove the Norcold 1200 and install at residential refrigerator.  After purchasing the coach a 3 years ago and seeing some of the photos of coach fires and problems keeping items cold it was on the short list for this year.  Last fall on our way home from our last outing the Norcold alarmed with a no electric alarm.  We were a coupled hours from home so I just pulled the power to the control board to shut the alarm off and emptied it when we got home.    We were leaving to visit our Daughter in Austria a few days later and I wanted to get the coach ready for winter and put away in storage before we left, so I didn't have time to research the issue.  My plan was to go and check it out in storage this winter, however that didn't happen either.

This spring was busy and I just got the coach home a few weeks back.  When I opened the electrical on the back of the fridge I found the main control board had shorted and started to burn.  Thank goodness it wasn't any worse.  

There was also burned spot in the cabinet like others have seen.   

I have the Norcold removed and my new GE GWE19JYLFS was delivered this morning and we have it in the coach.  I has some work to do to get it ready to slide into place but it looks to be a easy fit.  All the other post on here have been very helpful in determine what to do. 

I have my old Norcold out and if anyone would like any of the parts before I scrap it please let me know.  I would send them to you for the cost of shipping.

We do a lot of boondocking with our 2001 Signature and we have several places we stay that a dump station is not available.   This isn't a big deal because we have one close to our home that we can take the coach to and dump.  The problem we are having is, once we start traveling down the road we get a sewer smell in the coach.  The smell seams the strongest in the bathroom.  I made sure all the sink and shower traps had water in them.  I have tried adding chemical.  The one think I noticed was the seal on the toilet would leak allowing the water to drain out.  I fixed this, however it didn't fix the issue.  We have had no issues while parked.  I'm wondering if anyone has had this issue and what the cause/fix for it was. 

I wanted to give an update on my over-temperature issue.  After I removed the top cover and was able to get in and get a better look at the belt, I found that the alternator pulley was not running parallel with the water pump and crankshaft pulleys.  I proceeded to remove the back cover and found that the nut that fastens the bottom of the alternator to the block missing and the adjustment bracket on the top that allows for belt tension cracked.  This allowed the alternator to pivot around the look bottom bolt, putting the pulleys out of alignment but the belt stayed tight.  This misalignment caused the belt to wear on the sides as shown in the photo and eventually cause it have limited contact with the pulleys.  

I went to the Cummins site to purchase a new belt and bracket.  The was bracket was $27.00 and like other supply chain issue will ship sometime in the future.  I tig welded the cracked one back together till the new one arrives.  I priced out the belt from Cummins and it was $142.   I had the original belt and part number by Bando.  I did a little internet searching and found the belt by Bando from Diesel Parts Direct for $12.76.  I purchased 2 of them, so I had a spare,  for less than $50 with shipping.  When the package arrived with the new belts, the packaging called it an Isuzu water pump belt.   The Bando Part number is 8972249991 for Onan Model HDCAB11506A 12.5KW Generator. 

Last week I finished reassembling and test ran the generator for about an hour with all three AC's running and had no issues.  It worked fine over the weekend, however it was in the low 70's during the day here in Wisconsin so we didn't run the AC.   Hope this information can help someone in the future.

I have a 2018 Jeep Wrangler that I have started researching to set up for flat towing behind our 2001 Signature.  During my research I ran upon the surge braking system built-in to the tow bar by NSA.  Just wondering if anyone has used this and their thoughts on this style system verse an air or electric system.   Also does this system meet the requirements for supplemental braking.  

11 hours ago, 96 EVO said:

Don't know if your early 2000 model gen has the same design as mine, but, did you pull the upper rad hose out and make sure there was coolant right up to the cap?

The recovery tank on these Onans can show a level even if there is no fluid going back and forth.

Ben

I didn't do that.  That is an easy check that I didn't think of.  From my understanding the early models have that same issue where they can get an air trapped in the line.

We have a 2001 Signature with a Onan 12.5  Model HDCAB11506A generator.  Last year I had posted we had an issue with over temperature fault.  Last year I cleaned the radiator fins and tighten the fan belt and the problem went away.  We put over 125 hours on the generator after this work was done.  The other day we had the generator running with all 3 roof top AC one and the generator shut down for over temp. 

Last evening I pulled the top off of the Generator to check the belt and the tension looks fine.  From what I can see the belt looks like it is in good condition, however it not easy to see.  I can not find any record of the belt being replaced in the documentation we got with the coach.  The generator has about 1900 hours on it.

I also checked that the radiator didn't have anything blocking it and the coolant recovery tank has the proper level in it.

When it shut down I opened the side panel and it was definitely hot.  This then rules out a faulty water temperature sending unit in my mind. 

I started the unit and the fan turns and it doesn't sound like the belt is slipping.  I put the cover back on and I can feel air being push out he back end, however after a 1/2 hour or so the housing in the back area was getting hot to the touch.  From what I can find the shut down temp is 230°F.  The max running temp should be 104°F over the ambient temp.  It was 70° last night and I had check the hose temp at around 185°F.  

Just wondering if anyone else has seen this issue.  I'm trying to decide my next steps.  I'm thinking about replacing the belt.  It could be old and glazed and not driving properly. Do I replace the belt only or do I do the thermostat and water pump while I'm at it.