Aidan's tip of the week

[Deleted User] · 21-09-2014 2:37am

Mind if I do one this week Aidan? Guess you're busy...

If you inadvertently swallow some battery acid..take 2 Rennie you'll be grand! :pac:

maudgone · 23-09-2014 5:27pm

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

Mind if I do one this week Aidan? Guess you're busy...

If you inadvertently swallow some battery acid..take 2 Rennie you'll be grand! :pac:

Might give a new meaning to the term "plink plink, fizz." Maybe we should add a bang to it.

Aidan_M_M · 23-09-2014 9:14pm

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

Mind if I do one this week Aidan? Guess you're busy...

:

N ot at all Liam , I'm kinda on the go round the clock so not getting in here much!:(

[Deleted User] · 24-09-2014 9:10pm

I've actually tried it. There was some overzealous hydrometer-age in mine a short while back. My GPS stand was on the floor beside my battery. I went to stick it on the dash later and it wouldn't stick so I gave it a lick and caught a drop or two.

Surprisingly sweet.

Malta1 · 25-09-2014 8:54am

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

I've actually tried it. There was some overzealous hydrometer-age in mine a short while back. My GPS stand was on the floor beside my battery. I went to stick it on the dash later and it wouldn't stick so I gave it a lick and caught a drop or two.
Surprisingly sweet.

Oh ya just cant bate the voice of experience

Aidan_M_M · 03-10-2014 8:24pm

I've said it before folks , but time to hoosh out the flies! I see them nesting in the door rubbers and around the windows of the campers in work , little feckers nesting for the winter.

Aidan_M_M · 12-12-2014 7:54pm

I hope ye all have your water systems drained down?

And inside the door shut of every Ducato is a sticker like this.

It seems MH owners can't read Italian or French, that is only referring to full loads, for vans.
I see a ridiculous amount of campers with 80 psi in the tires.

zambo · 12-12-2014 11:23pm

As I understand it a full load in a van is 3.5 tonne total which is the mass of most A type campervans so I would have assumed 5.5 bar to be correct.

zambo · 12-12-2014 11:23pm

As I understand it a full load in a van is 3.5 tonne total which is the mass of most A type campervans so I would have assumed 5.5 bar to be correct.

Field east · 13-12-2014 8:59am

Re Aidan_M_M last post- so what then is the appropriate pressure or range of pressures. I have been ' playing around' with different pressures for a number of considerations such as:-

(1) the higher the pressure the more miles per gallon. I am at circa 24 ml /gal.

(2) a low tyre pressure gives a more smooth trip especially on uneven road surfaces. This is irrelevant on very smooth surfaces

(3) Tyre wear happens faster at low type pressure - especially if it is fairly soft.

(4) The higher pressure is, above a certain point, the more unstable the vehicle is - especially when cornering.

(5) Type of tyre. Eg Radial, cross ply.

(6) back and front tyre pressures

(7) load on board eg water tank, toilet water, food, equipment, A lot of this stuff is towards the back on vehicle. My other three quarters always packs as we are off for three weeks instead of for the planned two days and insists that we always leave with a full water tank in case we break down going through the 'Sahara Desert'

In summary, if you ignore all of the above and stick to 'What's On The Door' of the vehicle, you will not be going too far wrong IMHO. I am no tyre pressure guru- just an ordinary MH owner- so would appreciate any opinion on the above.

corkbuoy · 14-12-2014 1:17pm

I use this guide

http://www.tyresafe.org/images/tyre-safety-guide/motorhome-leaflet.pdf

campingcarist · 14-12-2014 6:07pm

Field east wrote: »

Re Aidan_M_M last post- so what then is the appropriate pressure or range of pressures. I have been ' playing around' with different pressures for a number of considerations such as:-

(1) the higher the pressure the more miles per gallon. I am at circa 24 ml /gal.

Over the last 3,824 kilometres, I have got an average of 38.48 mpg.
Ford 2005 2.2/4 litre low profile laden to about 3.3 tons.

Field east · 14-12-2014 7:52pm

campingcarist wrote: »

Over the last 3,824 kilometres, I have got an average of 38.48 mpg.
Ford 2005 2.2/4 litre low profile laden to about 3.3 tons.

Lucky you with such a good mileage. Mine is a peugeot talbot 1971 cc petrol Highlander GT I motorhome. Reg in 1994. Weighs 3100 kg.

Aidan_M_M · 21-12-2014 10:51pm

Not really a tip , but before the big day falls upon us , I'd like to wish everyone on Boards a Happy Christmas , and a peaceful and prosperous New Year , from us here at Pat Horan's . And hopefully I'll get to give some of ye a personal greeting at our annual Open Days on the 27th and 28th .

sjfoley · 15-04-2015 9:13am

Aidan_M_M wrote: »

'Nother simple tip...

Seitz style blinds getting sticky ? Get a tin of WD40 , attach the straw and direct a spray into the corners of the frame . if you can get the blind to move up and down a bit , the WD40 works its way into the recoil , and 7 times out of 10 frees it up to normal.

How about the blinds being a little too loose that they won't stay up part way, can they be tightened .? Sime.

Aidan_M_M · 15-04-2015 10:53am

Yes, depending on the style, the spring can be tightened.

Another tip, check your wiper arms, had a good few Ducato s lately where they loosened for some bizarre reason. I've been checking others since and they're rarely tight. 13mm spanner is all you need for most.

[Deleted User] · 15-04-2015 5:17pm

Aidan_M_M wrote: »

...check your wiper arms

Fell for that one myself...way more exciting if you wait until they do battle in a shower on the motorway with nil visibility!

_Brian · 16-04-2015 1:38pm

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

Rigorous inspection I would take to mean remove them and eyeball them in the daylight, not with a head in the wheel-arch, a torch and a mirror.

Increasing the tyre pressure will save you fuel and put higher stress on your suspension. If I'm doing the autobahn I inflate them to the max and get about a 4mpg increase. On Irish roads I drop them about 15psi...if you saw the state of my front leaves you'd understand. :pac:

Axle stands are for axles, I know you can use them elsewhere but the axle is designed to take the vehicle weight. 5 ton stands aren't that expensive and it's good to have 4 for brake work and things anyways.
Concrete blocks, wooden members and wheel rims are a lot cheaper all the same.

I can get a lift on a corner of mine with a 2.5 ton trolley jack, does the job but it's a pain because the handle's short and the clearance is poor (not that having too much road clearance is a known issue of Fiats ). I just went for a 5 ton jack in the end and it's well worth it. Saves loadsa grief, I can lift cars by the centre of the axle and get two wheels up at a time too.

I don't think it's a very good idea to take the weight off the suspension unless you are a long way over the kerb-weight. If you lift it all the way and not by the axle you are creating tensile stresses particularly with coil springs.

Concrete blocks are completly unsuitable to support any vehicle, they are brittle and seriously prone to just cracking and crumbling under point weight such as a vehicle will exert on them.

If you don't have proper jacks then good quality timber such as railway sleeper ends are good. We have a few rings of an oak tree we use round the farm, but if possible I'll use axle stands and slide a rim under the vehicle too.

Nivekork · 08-05-2015 9:05pm

Tip of the week some time back reminded us that Dometic issued a recall on larger fridge/freezers. I have one of the models in question and the previous owner, who is a conscientious chap, had the repair done at the time.

The fridge is coming up on 7 years now and it has leaked ammonia and no longer works and from my enquiries it seems replacement of the evaporator/cooling assembly or even the fridge itself are the only options - and the costs are eye watering.

I’d be glad for any advice and whether Dometic would be likely to offer any help. It seems crazy that such an expensive unit should be reduced to scrap in such a short period and doesn’t say much for Dometic’s materials or manufacturing standards.

Aidan_M_M · 14-05-2015 2:35pm

Unlikely, it's well out of warranty, and they have no way of knowing if the vehicle spent a long while in a corrosive environment, such as beside the sea for example.

For those of you with lhd Ducato vans of 95-01 vintage, with frosted glass headlamps, this may help when fitting beam benders.

[Deleted User] · 14-05-2015 2:39pm

Aidan_M_M · 14-05-2015 3:16pm

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

I didn't know you were a hairdresser.....? Lol!

All messing aside, the reason I put up the pic is that fitting them that way actually deflects the beam up the opposite way, rather than just blocking it out.

campingcarist · 14-05-2015 10:39pm

Nivekork wrote: »

Tip of the week some time back reminded us that Dometic issued a recall on larger fridge/freezers. I have one of the models in question and the previous owner, who is a conscientious chap, had the repair done at the time.

The fridge is coming up on 7 years now and it has leaked ammonia and no longer works and from my enquiries it seems replacement of the evaporator/cooling assembly or even the fridge itself are the only options - and the costs are eye watering.

I’d be glad for any advice and whether Dometic would be likely to offer any help. It seems crazy that such an expensive unit should be reduced to scrap in such a short period and doesn’t say much for Dometic’s materials or manufacturing standards.

How does one know if the fridge/freezer has been modified/checked? Is there a mark somewhere? My motorhome is 10 years old this year, might I have the mosel in question?

Nivekork · 15-05-2015 12:09pm

Thanks Aidan - and yes, Dometic don't want to know. As for a corrosive atmosphere, not really relevant except that I live in Cork.

Campingcarist - just google 'Dometic recall' and you'll find details of the models affected - they were manufactured in the years up to 2007 AFAIK

Aidan_M_M · 28-05-2015 10:16pm

Lots of MHs have Heki skylights, very few people seem to realise the blackout blinds are supposed to be OPEN when travelling. They have a habit of sucking the blind up into the dome and leaving them not inclined to fold back neatly. The later ones actually have this written on them, but in very small writing!

Aidan_M_M · 27-08-2015 12:48pm

Check your flexible gas pipe in the gas locker folks. They're supposed to be changed every 5 years. It's a cheap and simple job.
Also lots of people line the bottom of lockers with mats. If so ensure they're not blocking the lower vent(s).

Alkers · 29-08-2015 11:47am

Any issue with the vent from the gas fridge venting into the awning? Ok for people to sleep in there with the fridge running?

Aidan_M_M · 29-08-2015 1:36pm

Simona1986 wrote: »

Any issue with the vent from the gas fridge venting into the awning? Ok for people to sleep in there with the fridge running?

New thread maybe? Would depend on the ventilation in the awning and the efficiency of the fridge. Ever get it tested?

Wx · 30-08-2015 2:40am

Aidan_M_M wrote: »

Check your flexible gas pipe in the gas locker folks. They're supposed to be changed every 5 years. It's a cheap and simple job.
Also lots of people line the bottom of lockers with mats. If so ensure they're not blocking the lower vent(s).

How about the reinforced Gaslow pipes?

Aidan_M_M · 30-08-2015 2:37pm

Wx wrote: »

How about the reinforced Gaslow pipes?

No, they're something like 15 years I think. But the more commonly used rubber ones are 5 year.

Aidan's tip of the week

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