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We are here in #46

Hello all - When I removed the Diamond Shield from the front of our rig, I ended up having the most success with Xylene (a solvent available at most hardware or paint stores) and plastic chisel/scrapers from Harbor Freight. I tried everything from acetone to goo-gone to goof off, etc. The Xylene likely causes 8 different types of cancer (!) and smells nasty. I'd recommend wearing a mask and gloves for sure and only working outdoors or in an extremely well-ventilated place. That said, the Xylene did a great job of dissolving the adhesive into a nasty mucus-like slime that was easy to scrape off. The Xylene did not harm the paint at all, and I avoided damaging the paint as I had done on a previous rig when I tried to "chip" the coating off and ended up removing paint and finish as well. I used a spray bottle and series of old rags to apply the Xylene, and then the scrapers and more rags to wipe off the gross sticky mucus. Like others, I also used a steamer to remove the leftover adhesive and goo as well as straggling remnants of Diamond Shield. When I finished, it looked great, but I also understood why removing the covering was an expensive job to hire out. Best of luck, and I hope that this helps. John

Hello all - In the process of trying to eliminate an air squeal in the front of our 2008 Dynasty Diamond IV, one of the proposed "fixes" involved replacing the front manifold 6-pack for the Valid Air Leveling system. I was able to find a new manifold and replaced the old one which I was told could be causing the problem. It wasn't, but that's another tale; replacing the manifold did not cure the problem. I removed and thoroughly cleaned and tested the old manifold, and replaced all of the O-rings and re-assembled with proper lubricant, etc. The old manifold functions perfectly, but now I have the old "spare" that I'm offering for sale should someone need one. I'm happy to ship it at actual cost should anyone be interested. I've included a photo of the 6-pack for the front as well as a photo of the control panel for the Valid air leveling. I don't have the manifold part number, but do remember that it was an exact replacement for the OEM. Any interest, please let me know. Asking $400.00. John

I was cleaning up some files and ran across this photo that I took that shows the Monaco wiring for the 7-pin tow plug on our 2008 Dynasty Diamond IV. The benefit to me was the inclusion of the Monaco wire colors, so that I could be sure of the proper wire for the new/replacement plug matching the OEM wires. I thought this might be useful for someone (?) or just to save for anyone interested. John

Hello all - I am posting a "solution" to the Fantastic Fan lift motors spontaneously operating whenever the salesman switch/12v shutoff was activated or de-activated. I replaced the 3 remaining fluorescent fixtures in the rig last week; two in the ceiling in the bath area, and one over the side counter in the kitchen beneath the pantry cabinets. Instead of using the LED strip lights as replacements as I have done in the past, I followed a suggestion by Veraken and am happy to report great success with the use of the following (Thanks, Veraken!!) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09QY8ZHM3/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1 I never could find any wiring problems, voltage spikes, or other issues when testing power to the 12v lid open/close motors, but after removing the fluorescent fixtures along with their ballasts and replacing with LEDs, I no longer have the phantom Fantastic Fan lid open/close "feature." Thanks to all who responded. I would like to note that Chris at M&M was correct in that the fluorescent ballasts must have been the problem. How the ballast 'surge' activated three different 12v DC motors remains a mystery to me, but the fluorescent removal and LED replacement did remedy the annoying behavior. I was able to test the master switch just now after powering the rig up from storage and zero problem with the lid motors activating. John

Here are photos of the box that I replaced. The pictures are from the interior of the rear wardrobe on the passenger side as detailed previously. John

When I first purchased our rig (2008 Dynasty), the bedroom a/c would not work due to a load shedding issue. This took awhile for the previous owner to diagnose, but the intellitech control box was the guilty culprit. We purchased the rig with full disclosure of the issue, and I replaced the intellitech control box myself to resolve the problem. In my rig, the faulty control box was located in the rear wardrobe on the passenger side behind the door inside the closet where there is a wall full of electrics. The intellitech box at fault was on the lower right side as you face the interior of the panel. It was a simple and direct replacement, and we have had zero issues since replacing the part, which cost about 85.00 at the time. Perhaps your rig is set up similarly? Just offering my experience. John

Thank you all again for the responses. When powering up the battery disconnect after storage, none of the fluorescent bulbs are on. I turn everything in the rig off that can be turned off before shutting down, so on power-up when the fan lid motors start, the fluorescents are not on, nor are any other fixtures. Still, as noted, there are claims that even switched off at the fluorescent fixtures themselves, there is a possible conflicting signal (interference) generated. I have spoken to and worked with Chris at M&M several times in the past with a different rig (SOB) and different issues. He was extremely helpful and clearly knowledgeable about the Multiplex system as well as most of the other 12v wiring throughout motorhomes. I have nothing but respect for M&M and appreciate their willingness to help the RV public. The subject rig here does have several of the fluorescent OEM fixtures in place, with a few of them modified with LED strips as Chargerman described. I do intend to continue the updating to LEDs for the fluorescents. I have already swapped every other bulb in the rig (pucks, lamps, etc.) to LED bulbs and have been pleased with the results. I did look again just to make sure that there are no on/off switches on the fans themselves, but all they have is a directional switch where one can reverse the air flow in or out. The other controls are the wall-mounted Fantastic Fan OEM controls. I may turn off all of the fluorescent fixtures at the switch on the fixtures themselves versus MPX and see if that makes any difference. I will investigate the possible role that the multiplex circuitry may have including tracing the power source to the fans themselves. It is interesting to me that the fans themselves do not turn on, ever, in the situation that I am investigating. Only the lid-lift 12v motors are activated. The small electric motors have no electronics as I understand it, so something is happening that initiates current flowing to the lift motors only. The fan operational switches do not illuminate and there are no other signs of anything else activating. As previously noted, if the fans controls on the fans themselves (the black knobs) are pulled down and are left in manual mode (not automatic), the gears on the motors will not be engaged. The lack of engagement means that the motors will never receive any load, including any amount necessary to provide the current draw which causes the motors to stop. Again, this is part of normal function, and when the lids over the fans reach the end of their stroke or if the handle is held firmly, the overload/stop sequence works properly. So my biggest concern is forgetting to check them when the rig battery disconnect is re-connected after storage, especially since I leave the fan controls (black knobs) in the 'manual' position i.e. disengaged. I always try to report back my findings and outcomes when originating a thread with a new issue. I think that it is critical that not only do we return from where we have received, but also to share so that others may learn from both what works and what doesn't work to address a given issue. It is my belief that this sharing is how knowledge may benefit others while also being an integral component of creating new knowledge. My apologies for the length and verbosity of many of my posts. Finding the proper balance between providing enough information without drowning the reader in words was a challenge in my doctoral work and especially in composing research work for professional publication. Thanks again for the assistance. John

Hi - Thanks again to all for their feedback. I'll make a stab at responding to all in one post. I'm not repeatedly turning the salesman switch on and off. Rarely (if ever) is it used. The vast majority of the time the switch is left on and the rig plugged in at home on a dedicated 30amp circuit. I have used the switch in the very rare instances when I will leave the rig unattended for weeks without being connected to shore power. So I don't know how I gave the impression that I was abusing the MPX system by repeatedly turning it off and on. That is not the case. The only time that I use the battery disconnect switch is if I am leaving the rig for an extended time and I know that it won't be plugged in and we are not traveling and/or not staying in it, etc. I think that maybe it has been off 3 times in the year that I have owned it. The other situation when I have turned it off is when I'm doing something with the electrical system and want to be sure that I have everything powered down as much as possible - in which case I turn off the chassis and house battery cutoffs as well. Perhaps this is overkill on my part, but it has only been done once when I was updating a 12V fixture. I appreciate the feedback for care with powering the MPX system up and down. I did cycle the switch today once (off, then on) to test the "pulling the knob" on the fans to manual mode, which did not affect anything. Again, the vast majority (99%) of the time, the rig is left with shore power connected, driving, or again shore power connected with no touching or using the battery disconnect. There is no problem with the lids opening or closing (blockage or sticking), and the pin switches are lubricated regularly and function as they should. The fans work fine when used as intended and there are no issues with fan speed, function, forward/reverse, etc. and I did try to communicate that in my posting. The sole problem that I was curious about was why the lift motors would power up seemingly by themselves after using the battery disconnect switch, and the fans are OFF at the controls. It has done this every time I have stored the rig without power and then re-powered using the battery disconnect i.e. the lid-lift motors are activated without the fans being activated and the fans are all "OFF". The issue is not a serious one, and I am always able to close or open the lids manually after they are triggered to move. Apparently, no one else has ever experienced the lift-motors activating with all fans turned off upon the restoration of power through the battery disconnect switch. Thanks again - John

Thanks for writing. The issue has nothing to do (apparently) with auto vs. manual. They are "off" for all intents and purposes, but still the lid tries to open/close. I absolutely agree that the 'auto' mode is wonky, and that is why I have always used them manually. I offered the explanation that the auto mode does work properly, even though I don't personally use the 'auto' mode, in case that made a difference to someone who knows far more than I do. It may not be worth tracking down, but I can't help but think that something isn't exactly operating as it should. John

I'm not at all sure that it would be worth it. We are in total agreement. That said - sometimes things that are complex to me are well-known by the group and easy. I did a lengthy search of the forum to see if anyone else had ever experienced the same thing, but couldn't find anything besides difficulties with the switch itself (which we aren't having). I have many times been astounded by the painfully obvious after posing a question or two! Thanks for the response :-) John

AHHHH. Let me try that. I'm not sure if the knob(s) are down or up. I'm on it. I will report back! John Alas, No Joy. I pulled the knob down from the up position on both fans. I cycled the salesman switch off then on, and the same two motors started to move the lids. Same as previously. John

Hi - Yes, so do I. The fans are not turned on when this happens. Everything is off, and when I want to use them, I turn them on, etc. The fan lid covers start to move when I power up the salesman switch from the off position, even when off and/or being operated manually. I'm not sure if this helps....thanks for the response. John

Hello all - Time to chase after a small remaining electrical gremlin. Everything works as it should as far as I can tell when the 'salesman switch' is turned off and on. Power is terminated appropriately when turned off, and all resumes when turned back on. There are no apparent glitches or other problems. However... Whenever I turn the power back on using the salesman switch, two of the lid-lift motors on the fantastic fans start, attempting to the raise/lower the covers over the fantastic fans. The fans in the hall bath/vanity area and the one in the water closet both start and raise or lower the lid, but the kitchen fan lid-lift motor does not activate. The fans themselves do not turn on to ventilate, just the lid open/close. The fans do work appropriately when turned on via switches and using the % cooling/thermostat setting and the select fan speed settings on the fan controls. Does anyone have any clues/reason/understanding of why this may be the case? The fans work appropriately, but every time I power up via the salesman switch, the lid either raises or lowers, depending on its starting position open/close to move the lid opposite its starting position. I await enlightenment from the hive mind :-) John

Hello all - I've been following this thread after having had 'air issues' with our rig. In the interest of gathering information to have and/or share in the future - does anyone have a part number for the internal wet/dry check valve located in the front main tank? I'd like to save it since one never knows! John