1nolaguy

What material did you use to replace your mounting plate and who manufactured it (if not DIY)? Our mountig plate has also deteriorated with many of the points close to screw holes cracking. While I like the carbon fiber look of the OEM I find the material used has gotten quite brittle with age. Ours is a 2005 Monaco Safari Cheetah.

I am following this particular post closely as I too need to paint our Safari Cheetah for the first time. The roof is aluminum sheet painted with OEM finish. From what I have read Topseal is preferred over finishes liker Henry's and other elastomeric or silicone based finishes that are apparently made for rubber roofs. Our roof has both Eternabond tape and Dicor self-leveling sealant used on it. This raises two questions: 1) If I paint with Topseal up to the Eternabond and Dicor should I use a separate product to top coat these products. Both the tape and sealant are in good shape as they were put down about 4 years ago and while they look good I want to protect them as well. 2) Does it make a difference if I use gloss or semi-gloss Topseal? I am thinking semi-gloss would be slightly better for slip resistance but am not sure with regard to minimizing heat gain and reducing dirt build up is the gloss better?

Even with "plug and play" batteries, going from LA to Li is not as straight forward as one might think. For example, one needs to make sure their Inverter/ converter can fully charge them. Also you need to install a shunt based monitor. Traditional LA batteries gradually decline in volt output as they deplete but Li have steady voltage output until almost completely depleted. As a result, with out a proper monitor you can go from having electricity to dead is very short order.

I do ot know how much space you have but I replaced 4 6v golfcart batteries with 2-100 AHr SOK LiFePO4 batteries. It turns out our energery ussage is much greater than these two batteries can provide so now I am looking to add a 400AHr server rack battery. You can check out https://signaturesolar.com/promotions?utm_campaign=sale_may_savings_event&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=258952327&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_QRGRAvhQQG4gvDaSKV7l4VrspBMSu7bvNoeClmYW_cx2G9npNINlNxpnsFlwleNtehPAXk315k7u-hFgl6Vz_sHi1iQ&utm_content=258952327&utm_source=hs_email for current promotions. Very cost effective. Also check out Will Prowes on youtube for a lot of great information about Lithium batteries and systems. Changing to Li from lead acid may require other system changes you have not yet anticipated.

So, Just an an update: I ordered new 91447 replacement parts / Thermostat kit, which should arrive Wednesday. In the meantime I checked continuity across the existing thermostats (ECO and Temp Set) and it was good. I also checked the 2Amp fuse on the Circuit Board, and it was good. Currently we are experiencing a thunderstorm so after this passes. Since I already ordered the thermostats I will change them but I suspect this is not the issue as they have continuity. If either was bad and not able to pass current they would not have continuity. Unless there is another inline fuse I missed, continuity at the CB mounted fuse also rules that out. Back to the service manual. Thanks again Veraken.

No, just emptied all tanks including WH. We live in the deep south. We only hD a few days below 30 all winter so no need for true winterizing. Thx, will check that this morning.

Martin, is this an inline fuse or in the 12v panel near the 110v cb panel? Ted, I do not hear LP flow when 12v is switched on. It is as if the wh is "dead". Thanks all for input. Before I order a new thermostat kit, is there a way to test with a MM to verify it is the thermostat or the control board? I would prefer not to just start replacing parts if possable.

Our Attwood 10 gal two way has been regularly cleaned and serviced and generally used on 110v when we are with hook ups. It has never had a issue. Last fall, due to an impending hard freeze I drained the WH while in storage. This spring, on our first trip, I refilled the tank through the system (city water) and turned on 110v. While the light on the switch came one the unit did not heat. I though perhaps the element got damaged while traveling dry. I switched to 12v and LP. Again the light in the switch came on but the system did not heat. The 110 CB is on and not thrown. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

A few additional tricks I learned I want to share as it may be helpful to others faced with this task. 1) It is much easier to add butt crimps when on the ground rather than on a ladder. After changing a few 10ft in the air I decided to put all the crimps on the fixtures first then up the ladder to install. Made the job quicker and physically easier. 2) the smallest crimps I have are red for 18 to 14 ga wire. The LED running lights come with 20 ga wire already attached. Some even come with 22 or 24 ga wire, very thin and hard to get a good crimp on red butt splices. To solve this I stripped the 20 ga wire about 3/4" ,twisted the strands and then folded the wire on itself. This gave a 3/8" end that fit well in the red tube making for a strong crimps. Note if I used a smaller size butt connector it would not accept the thicker wires coming from the coach. While this hack may not be "Hoyle", these led running lights pull so little current that it should not be a issue. 3) I observed that the front cap lights were more heavily silicone than the rear. Whoever installed them completely sealed the fixture and the lens all the way around as well as the bulb and socket. Even with this there was leakage. As a result every lens on the front contained water, as much as 1/2". The new fixture are designed with weep holes to drain out water. Be careful not to seal these closed with calk or the new fixtures will also hold water. I thought this would be a guick and easy project. It took 2 full days. YMMV.

Thanks for all the comments. This has gone a bit off topic but today I changed the the back 5 running lights and this is what I learned: 1) whenever you are working on electric lines inside the walls of your RV, clamp them off with a hemistat or some other device to keep wires from slipping back into the walls. If you don't it may well be a long day. 2) RV manufacturers drilled all different size holes in the outside, regardless of the size of the wires. For my coach running lights Monaco decided to use 1-1/2" holes. Finding replacement grommets to fit this locally proved to be impossible, however a worker at HD telling me a detailed story I was not interested in mentioned something that ended up working great. For each fixture I cut a 2x3-1/2" patch of clear Flexseal tape with a slit half way from bottom. Slid over the wires after making all connections (mechanical). Adheard tape, centering wires with slight overlap of tape to seal slit. Apply a dab of silicone calk and secure fixtures with screws. Apply a small bead of calk on top and sides between fixture and coach. Flex seal tape works extremely well in this application. After all my screw ups it took about 20 min each. Removing the old fixtures and silicone was the hardest part.

Thanks for the hemostat suggestion. I had not thought of that. If this is OEM, What a crappy design. What did you use to remove the black rubber part? Even with HD needle nose pliers I can not get it to budge.

Our coach marker or running lights started to fail and since they were believed to be 18 yr old I decided to replace them with new led versions. The first one was easy to change but the rest are proving to be a real bear. I do not know if it was the factory or some subsequent tech or diy but the fixtures are silicone in place including the screws and housings. The fixtures deteriorated when I tried to remove them. The socket is sourounded by a black rubber material that is like rubber cement and almost impossible to remove. Available wiring is about 1". Any suggestions on how deal with this?

Brad, I agree. I replaced the OEM incondescent bulbs with LED but they are not as visible in (bright) day light. Yesterday I replaced the 12" bar light above the back access doors. To change the OEM tail lights would require substantial FG work and paint. $$$. Instead I am going to add an LED light strip (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07F1PWDP2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1)) just above the doors and below the light bar. I purchased on from Amazon that is 60" long and will signal stopping and also turn signals. It is flexable and mounts using 3M tape for a secure hold. Althoug it is designed to connect using a 4 pin tow connector I am planning to make permanent by by splicing into the existing wiring. I have calculate that by switching from Halogen to LED the current requirement should not exceed the the rating of the wiring. I am also planning to replace the existing running lights with LED fixtures. Hopefully these steps will make us more visible on the road. As an aside, I also plan to replace the Halogen 7" round head lights with LED 7" round (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08NGTQDG8?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details) and am adding 60W LED flood on each side of the tow hitch (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08HV68RSJ?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1). This is to improve visibility when backing up. It amazes me how little though is given by RV manufactures to these important issues, especially on large units like our 40fter.

I am not saying this is your issue but I experienced this in the past and it turned out to be a bad ground. The solution was to clean the ground lead and the area where it is bolted to the chassis. After cleaning and sanding I applied Noalox (also can use dielectric grease) to terminal and fitting and tightened down for a good contact. Worked for me.

Thanks Dr4Film. I will check when I get to the RV, which is currently 100 miles away from me in storage. I was just kind of hoping someone in the group might be with their RV with similar round headlights and willing to share the info.

I'm not sure if this post is in the correct place or not. If it should be moved would the moderators please do so. On of our 2005 Safari Cheetah head lights has gone out and I plan to replace both at the same time since the MH is in storage presently and I will be moving it tomorrow closed to my home for a week of prep work and service. I looked in all the docs I have and can not find a parts number for the lights. I believe they are 7" round but and not sure if that is standard or if it is a item specific to the coach. Can anyone in the group enlighten me? If possible I would like to get the lights on Monday or Tuesday or am I looking at having to order them on line? On a related note: has anyone here replaced these or similar lights with LED's? If so what are your findings having done so?

Gary, your point is correct however I was thinking more form the standpoint of developing issues like increased bad smells or effects on valves etc.

Gary and Dr4Film, how about a follow up testimonial in 3 months or so to let us know how will this works in the field, for both grey and black tanks. If golden it would sure be a more convenient and cost effective option to more specialty products for this purpose. I may also give it a try in the grey tank in the interim.

Dave, I am interested. do you by chance have the dimensions? Want to make sure it will fit in the electrical bay before I commit. Also, where is it shipping from?

Tom, thanks so much for your quick reply and for all the information. I followed the link you provided and while I could not find a manual for our 2005 Safari the 2005 Diplomat is very similar so I downloaded it. It is completely different that the owners manual that came with our MH, which is more like an owners (sale) brochure. The owners manual I down loaded still did not give a filter location but since 96 EVO said they are always located near the engine I will start there, The photo really helps as now I at least know about what I am looking for. Thanks so much for your helpful and informative post.

I am embarrassed to say that I do not know where the air dryer or filter is located on our 2005 Safari Cheetah DP. I do "occasionally" drain some water from the air system at a petcock located at the back passenger side of the MH, to the right of the engine bay. I am not sure if this is the low point of the air system or if there is a separate drain. I do not know where the filter is or even if it exists on our model. Can someone in the group educate me on location(s) and also a recommended maintenance schedule.

Our 2005 S. Cheetah is likely like your. The owner's manual states slides should be deployed and retracted once the RV suspension is fully aired up. This seems counterintuitive as you have to turn on the engine to air it up and then turn it off to operate the slides. Having done both (aired up and leveled) and having also paid to have the slides readjusted, we now go through the air up before hand. As a side note, I use to not wait for the suspension to air down before leveling. This occasionally left us with wheels off the ground. Our air solenoids do not always work so I always press on the brake to release air until the MH is partly deflated before leveling. Hope that helps.

I guess this qualifies as a Lazy Question. Our MS is in storage a state away and I want to by some replacement chassis batteries in advance of our next trip. Ours are at least 6 years old and we are planning an extensive trip so I am trying to avoid as much on the road drama as is reasonable. The coach is a 2005 Safari Cheetah with CAT C7 engine and two chassis batteries. I can not recall the size but I believe they are 31T's. Can some one in the group confirm that?

Hi Roy. Roofs are different. On our coach we have painted aluminum sheet with a seam down the middle and seams on the front and back end caps where the roof transitions from aluminum over wood to fiberglass. The oem was tar tape, with and aluminum face and tar backing to seal the seams. When we bought our coach in the spring of 2018 the tar tape at the front and rear caps was not in good shape and pealing up in places. the center seam was fine. After cleaning the roof very well I removed the tape on the front and rear caps using a heat gun and then MEK and mineral spirits to remove the residual ( first the MEK and then MS for final clean up). I recommend wearing nitrile or vinyl gloves when doing this and do it with the coach outside so you have good ventilation. I then cleaned the area again with rubbing alcohol and applied 4" Eternabond tape. Note in spaces where the transition from the FG cap to the roof were not level or gapped more than about 1/8" I bridged the gap first with self-leveling roof sealant. On the center stripe the tar tape was all good so I cleaned the surface with MS and then RA and after drying I covered with 6" eternabond. This gave me a double layer of protection with the eternabond having a 1" overlap on each side of the tar tape. That was in 2018 and now it is spring 2023 and the taped seams look like the day I put them down. Our coach has been outside and uncovered in the deep south for the full time. As to slide floors there are two types, regular and flush floor. Most slides, particularly those prior to 2010 have regular or raised floors on the kitchen side. This is in part because cabinets usually come fully to the inside edge or over the slide floor so you won't be stubbing your toes or tripping over the raised portion. This raised floor is usually 2" or less in height. If your floor is higher than that you might want to have the slide checked to see if it needs adjustment ( box within the hole). Hope that helps.

Most of the slides already move over vinyl plank that is glued down. The exception is the bed so I need to see where the rollers sit. In general, installation would be on areas like the bathroom in the rear (currently carpet), on the driver slide (weight concerns) and in the cockpit.