DBRV.0

A quick update. I was not aware that available are pumps that are designed to be truly variable, thus eliminating the need for a tank. I believe they are called VSD pumps. For example, search for "VSD pump 12V". Another option I found is a smart electronic box that apparently can be added to any pump - [edit: maybe ...] even those that have a bad pressure switch, because it has its own pressure sensor on the pump's water output. This is wired directly to the motor's wires. Here is an example of a "$180" IRVWPC smart switch:

Hmm. Just a guess here - - - the Sleep Number weight is maybe 50 pounds with compressor. The Brooklyn Bedding Sedona Elite model in Queen is 115 from their website.

This is my attempt to document what we encountered when changing out our mattress for a different size. Late last year, we replaced the 'RV King' sized bed that appeared to be OEM; circa 2008 = 2009 model coach. These are 72" wide. A regular King is 76"; a regular Queen is 60". We like a queen for it's size, plus liked the idea of extra space on the sides. Kings and Queens are all 80" long. First order was to recognize that the original plywood was 70", IIRC, and at least 2" too short to support an 80" long mattress. Therefore the edges of the bed were always drooping. In my mind, that had to be fixed, which means our decision was new plywood, as opposed to tacking something onto the end to lengthen the plywood. If we kept the original, the sides would not be a problem, for we would need to trim down to 60". The original platform top was composed of 3 plywood pieces. A head piece under the pillows, a narrow strip, then the large plywood piece that lifts to reveal the storage area: The above pic shows the first two mentioned plywood pieces, in gray felt, then my new bare plywood replacement (60" wide). I believe the new bare plywood is 57" long, which is longer than the original. Be sure to confirm your maximum length by closing the sides, and allow at least one inch of tolerance! Because plywood comes in 48" wide pieces, I had to buy two 3/4" sheets and connect them down the center. I trimmed the corners to save knees. Beneath the bare plywood are 3 pieces of 2x4, shown above in red outlines. I think I cut up a single 8 foot piece. The center is to keep the edges aligned. The top under the hinge is to keep the plywood edges aligned, but mostly to keep it from warping. The longest 2x4 is at the feet for the same purpose. The one at the feet is 2 to 3 inches away from the bottom storage wall to prevent finger damage. It turns out to be a good handle when lifting. To know where to drill holes, I used a pencil to sketch out the 2x4 perimeters, and used drywall screws. 1.5" works. 2" works if you barely sink them. The underside is shown below. Note at this point the gas shocks had been installed. Carefully measure the distance from hinge on the old plywood, and ensure they are fully inside the storage walls. More detail: The small gray strip was cut in-place. I ran the blade into the top piece a few inches to mark that piece: This is then what it looks like: Then I took it to my saw horse to complete the cuts; I purchased some gray felt to cover the bare plywood, but the felt ($60+) came after the new mattress was installed, so it is still sitting in a box. We're currently using a couple of blankets over the new edges to eliminate snagging. Be careful when ordering a new mattress. My wife insisted on a particular bed, thinking it would be the most comfortable. Coil spring, "hybrid". When it was ordered, there was no mention of height. Turned out it was 15" high. Therefore the top of the mattress on the platform is 36" high. That is higher than counters! Comfortable, yes, but I had to re-learn how to get in an out of bed to stop knocking my head on the overhead cabinet. She had to add a stool on her side. - Jeff

Based on experiences, when things go 'intermittent' or 'multiple issues/items', I try to double-check grounding. With age, it is common that corrosion may alter conduction. One way to test is to use a voltmeter to test between a good frame ground point and the ground point on the affected device. Testing should show little to no ohms resistance, and no voltage between those two points - when trying to use the device. I would first test battery terminal to frame. Battery terminal or cable-to-frame corrosion is very common. On my unit, I seem to recall 3 to 5 cables bolted to the frame around the engine area, therefore each is a ground. There are more ground wires up front, especially with the FRB (Front Run Box) under the driver. If it is hard to connect between the two points, take a spare wire and make a positive frame (or battery negative) connection, and run that wire to where you want to test. [edit:] For the sake of reliability, for all frame connection points, I would use a good corrosion penetrant before removing the nuts if they are corroded, then use a wire brush (manual or powered wire brush) to polish both the cable and frame point, then use electrical corrosion inhibitor before re-attaching.

I discovered this wiring when I replaced my mattress for a queen size, which was narrower than OEM's RV King. With the mattress gone, I wanted to modify the plywood base, so I temporarily removed all of the wood. Took notes on the wiring underneath, and confirmed that my wiring comes up from below then splits to the left and right of the bed under where the pillows are. On the sides of the bed base (pillow area), my unit has a plywood-based covers between the wall and floor which are held in place with screws. There may be a couple to few inches of extra wire available, but probably not 6. Tip: it may not be necessary to fully remove the mattress. Just pull it away from the wall and unscrew the plywood piece that sits under your pillows. Wiring will be accessible.

I like that idea, more than tapping an existing wire.

Thank you, Tom! I will download the Dynasty files soon. I really appreciate your help. I selected the Knight set because (1) it was the same year as mine so thought they might be close, (2) I haven't looked into the Monacoers library to see what is there. I will utilize your link. I will review the Dynasty information to see if I can detect any variances. I do understand the complexity of a working environment where a team in the field/shop may have their process, including on-the-fly process changes, versus the office guy handling documentation who may either not be aware of variances, or may have higher priorities than to edit something to reflect as-built, or may not feel the necessity to make small changes. As for my time delay, I'm flying out to take some time to celebrate a son-in-law's 31 year retirement as a helicopter pilot. He started with the Army flying helicopters, then onto Coast Guard. He's now a base commander and should be flying into the ceremony on his final flight. - Jeff

Thank you, Tom. Yes, I did download some 150 files for a 2009 Knight. It's like drinking from a fire hose, so I apologize that I haven't looked at but a few. From the titles of the files, I tried to find files that had words like "front TV", or "TV" or "recept". I know, I know, that's not the way they are labeled. And it must be natural for you, but even the acronyms in the diagrams can be like another language that I am learning. But I'm willing to try. One of the resources I acquired with my Dynasty is a set of printed wiring schematics from a 2007 unit. I find the wiring documentation a bit daunting because rarely is a drawing specific with a physical location. Again, I'm trying to learn. The sheet you included of a receptacle diagram is interesting. It's not exactly the way my coach is wired, but it gives some good concepts. What I mean is that my hand-drawn diagram is exactly the way my coach is wired. The wires leaving the AV box split off as I have drawn, whereas the official diagram indicates that everything on the circuit is on a single string, plus only the TV can be locked out. Another inaccurate example is the "Bed TV" which is not a predecessor outlet to the other outlets shown to the right of it. For me, the golden nugget of information in the receptacle diagram, and what you initially suggested, was "Sat Controller". Yes, I can imagine that it could provide power to the DirecTV dish on the roof, which would be locked out in addition to the TV because the TV receptacle IS the junction box to that Controller. - Jeff

Yes, what I tried to describe for that the front TV receptacle is a junction box. There is no power going to the out-going Romex, for it has been dangling in the open air for a while now. Good thought, but in response to your suggestion, I have found NO unpowered receptacles anywhere. Nothing in the Bays would be switched power, would they? If a portable freezer or such is plugged into one, an undesired problem would be created. Could it be used as a signal wire for the inverter, instead of using a 12V control wire? I'm not understanding what your "CB" means - I'm confident you are not referencing my built-in Citizens Band radio. - Jeff I think I got it - CB = Circuit Breaker panel. No, see my diagram - the CB panel feeds the AV cabinet, which then feeds the TV receptacle. The kitchen is fed by a separate CB circuit.

I've tried looking at wiring diagrams and cannot figure this out. I've tried Monacoers searches, but come up empty. Here is how my 2009 is wired: The front TV as a double-outlet receptacle. But that receptacle has 2 Romex wires. One is switched power and comes from the AV cabinet, as shown. I cannot figure out what the other Romex is for - it has to be a power feed to somewhere for something. Part of what is perplexing is that it is switched power. It is not any of the 3 floor-level outlets in the front seat area. Anyone with an idea? - Jeff

Now that makes sense. I appreciate your adding to my knowledge of the systems. I had obtained part of my BigBoy information from the "AZ Expert" YT channel - his information was nowhere as complete as yours.

I am new to some of this, but I thought the Big Boy was activated only when you activate the "Battery Boost" switch on the dash. My understanding is that the function is to cross-connect both the chassis and house batteries if the chassis batteries don't have enough energy to start the engine on their own. It is a high amp relay with a significant current draw for the solenoid. I don't understand why yours is needing so much attention. As you mentioned, I don't see how this would affect a TV or TV lift. As for battery charging going on/off while driving, I would suggest the alternator as a possibility. Just a month ago, my diesel dually pickup was doing the same thing, so I replaced the alternator and it is again working perfectly. As for concepts, I find great value in visibility for those things that are not visible - such as electricity. Such as switchable, separate, auxiliary voltage gauges on the dash for chassis and for house. A voltage gauge (maybe with amps and watts) for each AC power leg feeding the circuit breaker panel, or perhaps measuring the incoming power cord. Those are simple concepts and can help stop or simplify searches for sources of mysterious situations because they are educational.

True. If you are the underwriter, how would you make the owner happy with compensation? If, as an owner, you want a higher coverage value, then expect a higher premium. One way or another, a claim will cost you. Used replacements are rarely in your neighborhood. Does their compensation cover the cost to get a replacement to your location? How about sales tax? Registration fees? Forget about any customization or upgrades. There is a delicate dance between coverage and premiums, and we all know that a claim will raise the premium - enough to recover that claim over a short period of time. Not fair in my eyes, but other than shopping for a new provider, or finding 'liability only' coverage, what else is one to do? A year and a half ago, when I got my coach, my insurer looked up the current used book value and said the value was more than what I paid. He asked which value did I want? The premium would reflect the amount covered. Another way of thinking about insurance might be to consider it as protection against catastrophic financial loss. You will have out-of-pocket costs, but it can keep you from loosing your shirt.

That is not surprising, even if there is a benefit to having a tank. It becomes a cost issue for OEM or a sales issue for replacement cases. Imagine if you don't have a tank and the replacement pump mentions having or needing one. I believe pumps will work without one, just not as long, therefore removing a working tank would be counter productive. Before I added air to my failed tank a few months ago, I was constantly annoyed at hearing the thumping of the pump every time ANY amount of water was drawn. We were not hooked up to a constantly pressured water supply line, thus was relying on the fresh water tank and pump.

I understand. After using my MH for 4 months, the pump in mine quit pumping. It was not OEM - prior mounting screw holes were my clue. It too was the pressure switch. I verified by bypassing the switch. I tinkered and found the sensor was not adjustable or fixable, so I bought a Seaflow 5.5 gpm 60 psi for $139. Then I determined that my pressure tank's bladder had failed. I currently have a 5 gallon replacement tank and a place to put it in the bay, and am thinking about wiring both the old pump and new pump in parallel because our shower flow is still dismal, even after new filters. To do all that, I plan to re-plumb the whole setup to include a set of filters for water going into the tank and a separate set for water out of the tank. For pressure regulation, I have a standard water well mechanical pressure switch that I will implement - which is fully pressure-adjustable, BTW. As for my thinking, I would not throw away a pump with a bad switch. They typically have a garden-hose inlet and outlet. If the pressure switch is bypassed, it can be used to transfer water, using standard garden hoses ...