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RV Doctor ColumnRV Doctor #272 Dear Gary, have a Class C mini-motorhome called a Muskeet. It's built on a Toyota chassis and was made in San Diego, as far I know somewhere around 1978. I am trying to find wiring diagrams for the upper running lamps and clearance lights on this unit. Any suggestions? Brian Beesley, (Vancouver, BC) Brian, It must be quite rare Brian. I live near San Diego and have not heard of your motorhome. And I seriously doubt any wiring diagrams exist. In those days, only the very largest of motorhome manufacturers provided any type of schematic or wiring diagram. However, you might try looking behind the panel just to the rear and to the left of the driver's seat. Typically all Class C's made the electrical juncture between cabover chassis and motorhome body in that void just to the rear of the driver's door. There may be a panel that is screwed to the cab chassis in that area. Other than that, some harnesses ran along the frame up to the left tail lamp assembly and then further up to the top clearance markers. From there they could be routed in either direction. Also during that time the front and rear clearance lamps were on separate circuits. If all else fails, it might simply be faster and easier to route all new wires under the coach and then up to the lamps. Dear RV Doctor, a few years ago I read a piece about how to check for propane leaks using a clear plastic hose, with water in it, connected to the stove. Do you know how this is done? Bob Krogman, (Las Vegas, NV) Bob, what you are referring to is probably a home-made manometer. A true manometer is a necessary item for setting the LP delivery pressure, but if you simply want to test for leaks, here's how. Keep in mind, this test will only reveal IF you have a leak, not where it (they) might be. Fasten a 5-foot length of 3/8" clear vinyl tubing to one side of a piece of plywood cut to approximately 6" x 16". It can be any thickness. Use tubing clamps to affix the hose to the plywood. Start with 15-inches of tubing running straight down the left side of the plywood piece and forming a gentle sweeping "U" at the bottom and back up again for another 15-inches or so. The remaining 30-inch length is to attach to one of the stove burner orifice hoods; leave it hanging loose. Take care not to crimp the hose at any point. Use plenty of clamps to keep the tubing positioned into a perfect "U" shape. Add water to the straight side of the tubing until it fills the bottom of the "U" and up about 7" or so on each side. If necessary, add a drop of food coloring to make it easier to see the water level in the left and right sections of the "U." Be sure the LP container valve is open and all the appliances are turned off. Next, remove one of the burners at the stove top and push the loose, open end of the tubing over the orifice hood, while keeping the plywood piece vertical. Nailing a short perpendicular piece of plywood to the upright will act as a base and help keep it upright. Light an adjacent stove burner taking care to keep the plywood and the tubing away from the flame. Slowly open the burner valve with the tubing attached and watch as the gas pressure will push the water down one side of the "U" and up the other. By the way, if water shoots out the open end of the tubing, the LP regulator is faulty and must be replaced before continuing. After the water level stabilizes, turn off the lit burner. You should notice a slight movement of the water. Now turn off the LP container. Open an adjacent stove burner for just a second to bleed off a tiny amount of LP, and then mark the tubing or the plywood at the new level of the water in the left side tube. Wait ten minutes. If the level of the water in the left side of the "U" drops below your mark, there is an LP leak somewhere in the RV. If the water level happens to climb above your mark, the POL valve on the LP container is not fully shutting off and it should be replaced. There should be absolutely no drop in pressure during the ten minute test! If indeed you do have a leak, further troubleshooting is in order and I recommend you take the RV to a professional service technician. This is not an area you would want to compromise! Keep in mind this is just to test for leaks. To set the pressure, the manometer must include a scale that actual measures inches and fractions. Dear RV Doc, can the sensors on a holding tank be removed, cleaned and reinstalled? And how is the best way to do this? Bob Robinson, (Lafayette, IN) Bob, Bob, generally no, but erratic readings on "inside-the-tank" monitor probes are usually caused by tissue, soaps, oils, grease and sludge adhering to the probes and literally "shorting" them out electrically. Of course the monitor panel itself could be at fault, but usually the problem is located at the monitor probes installed through the side of the tank. Though primarily associated with the toilet holding tank, this is also a fairly common occurrence with the gray water holding tank as well. Most problems can be eliminated by frequent rinsings and clean water flushes. Some RVers have had success filling the holding tank halfway with fresh water, then adding bleach or baking soda and taking the rig out for a ride on the bumpiest highway in town, but this practice is not usually be endorsed. Many good additives for odor control and to break down the solids contain live bacteria which actually eliminate the odor-causing molecules inside RV holding tanks. Using chemicals or detergents will kill these friendly bacteria. One good practice is to back-flush the tank, through the dump assembly with the use of an adapter that employs a connection for a fresh water hose and sprays high pressure water into the tank while it drains normally through a connected sewer hose. Another helpful item for those truly stubborn probes is the hose attachment, or wand, which extends down through the toilet and can be directed at all the surfaces inside the tank. This, of course only works on those tanks with a straight drop from the toilet. Other aftermarket products permanently mount to the side of the holding tank and direct a random pattern of high water pressure at virtually every square inch inside the tank. They too, utilize a simple water hose connection. Check them out at your local RV parts and accessory store. In most cases, the probes themselves cannot be removed for cleaning. In some really drastic situations on those tanks that find the probes mounted fairly close to one another, it may be necessary to install new probes into the side of the tank. It seems the closer the probes are mounted to each other, the more prone they are to becoming shorted. New probes, called well nuts, can be purchased through your local parts store also.
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