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Old 03-14-2015, 11:19 AM   #1
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Default Winter camper storage nearly over

Winter is ending, the sun has been out, the temps have warmed into the 50's & 60's and may hit 70 in the next day or two and by then nearly all the snow will be history....although snowfall in late March/early April isn't unheard of.

Either way, the camper storage area sent out letters advising campers will be moved out of the storage buildings and available for pickup starting the beginning of the 2nd week in April.

It will be nice to get it home, check it out and prep it for summer use again. The water/sewage systems will stay winterized until getting ready for the 1st outing as there could be freezing temps until near end of April here.

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Old 03-14-2015, 10:01 PM   #2
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Yes it's that time again!! It's been nice here also , still could go to 32 at night so I will leave the antifreeze in the lines until a few days before I go on my 1st trip this April . Going to the atv trails of hatfield and mccoy trails in wv , about a 5 hour drive . Got anything planned yet eagle ??
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Old 03-15-2015, 10:06 AM   #3
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No plans for the immediate future but probably a few short weekend/3 day excursions.

The main venture planned for this summer is in August, load the camper with the Harley in the back, spend a few days at the 75th Annual Sturgis South Dakota Motorcycle Rally (expected over a million bikers) and then push on to Glacier National Park, down to Yellowstone National Park and further down to the Grand Teatons ~ angle back up to Cody Wyoming and visit the Cody Museum (an awesome place) and then home to complete about a 2 week trip. Wish it could be longer but that is about all the time the wife will be able to leave work.
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Old 03-16-2015, 09:13 AM   #4
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I have used mine twice this year already. Its covered up right now but wil be in use again in 6 weeks for a race weekend at Talladega GP. I don't mess with the red stuff anymore except in the toilet bowl and drain traps. I blow the water out with a small compressor with a regulated pressure.
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Old 03-16-2015, 10:06 AM   #5
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HI roy, I also blew mine out with a small air compressor then added the pink stuff to be extra safe.

It probably doesn't get down to -20 degrees + F in Mississippi; what we in the upper Great Plains states call a "hard freeze." For here, the extra few $$ is cheap insurance in the winter.

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Old 03-16-2015, 10:33 AM   #6
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13 degrees is the lowest we've seen this season and the seasons over since it'll be 82 today.
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Old 03-16-2015, 02:44 PM   #7
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The Heart of Gold is still at the dealer getting his repairs completed. Everything is done ... just waiting for a new burner valve for the range top to come in and we'll pick it up this week sometime. We're heading out this coming Sunday for Branson, MO. for a week



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Old 03-16-2015, 04:25 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by roy
13 degrees is the lowest we've seen this season and the seasons over since it'll be 82 today.
Believe it or not, yesterday it was 79 here ......... and tomorrow they have snow in the forecast again. Not unusual tho as have seen snow in April ~ not much but snow none the less.

Just how it is.
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Old 04-08-2015, 06:17 PM   #9
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I picked up my XT-276 this afternoon from winter storage.

Sure is nice to have it home again. Once it warms up a bit more (only 46 degrees out) will give her a good wash job and check everything out so it's ready for the first outing.

I'm happy!

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Old 04-08-2015, 07:04 PM   #10
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Now comes the fun



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Old 04-13-2015, 09:47 AM   #11
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And the not so much fun part too.

When I picked up my unit from winter storage, I put in the battery (kept at home and use a battery maintainer) so it worked fine running the electric tongue jack for the hookup.

Yesterday when I went to unhook from the tow vehicle, the jack would barely move. I checked the light inside and they were very dim = low battery.

Gheezzz ~ it has an Interstate marine/RV SRM 24 battery dated 04/12 and it's already crapped out? The liquid level has been maintained, the camper plugged in when not in use during the summer and everywhere we went, we hooked into electrical power. Winter storage w/battery maintainer too.

Each cell checked for specific gravity and 2 are OK, 1 is so-so and 3 are bad.

So...it's $$$ for a replacement.
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Old 04-13-2015, 09:52 AM   #12
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Batteries have always been an "imperfect technology" as far as I'm concerned. But then again, in the larger scheme of things, I'm always grateful they are so easy to replace and so readily available ..... can't say that about so many other things that can go wrong

Every once in a while, you can get a good one. I had our boat battery on a maintainer in the garage for 4 years and never thought for a moment it would be serviceable when I sold the boat last October, but it worked as well as the day it was new



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Old 04-13-2015, 10:11 AM   #13
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I agree. I've had batteries last in excess of 12-14 years in a vehicle with no special care.

I just ordered a replacement battery: An Optima Marine/RV deep cycle number 8016-103 D34M. It has more power than the Interstate the came in the unit. I've had excellent service with Optima batteries so that was my choice for $175.45 with free shipping via Fed Ex from streetsideauto.com

In this small town, no one has that battery in stock.
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Old 04-13-2015, 10:20 AM   #14
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I'm often torn between investing in a known better product like the Optima over the cheapy WalMart alternative. I've gotten 4 or 5 years out of a $50 WalMart battery before but I've always wished I could afford a really good battery like the Optima.

I am curious about what brand of maintainer you were using ? Is it possible that it's circuitry failed ?



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Old 04-13-2015, 12:38 PM   #15
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The maintainer I use is the one sold by Harley Davidson and used on my Harley Davidson .. that is I have two of them.

Got the 2nd one super cheap on Ebay but it didn't work. I replaced the blown in-line fuse and it functions properly.

They have been used on the Harley, the riding lawn mower and a car in storage with no issues.

http://www.harley-davidson.com/store/750ma-supersmart-battery-tender?source_cd=SEM_Shop_PLA_Google&_cr=pla|66000 038_10728&gclid=CPKv35_p88QCFQYQ7Aodw34ApQ
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Old 04-13-2015, 01:53 PM   #16
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DISREGARD THE BELOW POST ... MADE IN ERROR

I might be missing something but when I read the description of your charger I do not see anywhere stating that this has a maintenance functon. It shows an output of 750mA which is a small amount of current, but it doesn't have the circuitry to "float" the charge or completely turn itself off when the battery is fully charged. This doesn't match any of the descriptions I've seen for actual chargers with the maintainance function.



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Old 04-13-2015, 04:35 PM   #17
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Here is more info:

http://www.cycleworld.com/2014/03/29...nce-solutions/

the Junior model will charge at 0.75 amps and the Plus will charge at 1.25 amps. Once the battery is fully charged, it will switch to the maintenance mode which is usually a few milliamps unless you have something on the bike such as Lojack that draws more current.
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Old 04-13-2015, 07:09 PM   #18
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My apologies Eagle .... the minute I submitted my response I saw the top of a box with the description describing the maintenance function of your charger. I tried to stop my post from going through but I guess I wasn't successful (it didn't show up when I re-opened the page). It's not the first time I've missed something and probably not the last. They should list that feature in the general description and not isolate it like they did.

In any case, I'm sorry if I caused any confusion or mis-information .... I'm going to edit the post now



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Old 04-13-2015, 07:22 PM   #19
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Hey, no problem Yoly.

Once had an On The Job instructor say "The only person who never makes a mistake is the person that never does anything."

And I've made my share too.
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Old 04-16-2015, 08:11 PM   #20
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Update: Fed Ex delivered the Optima battery this AM. That is fast shipping and it arrived in a HD cardboard box lined with 1" thick dense foam all around the battery.

I put an automatic 2 amp deep cycle battery charger on it this AM and tomorrow AM will put it in the camper. Wanted to make sure it had a full charge starting out.

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