2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

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Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #50 – October 05, 2020, 08:51:45 am

We are now eastbound heading to Michigan for the Bigfoot jacks install. We stopped overnight in Clayton, NM at a small campground in town and settled in for the evening. To our great surprise another LazyDaze pulled in next to our site for the night. They were Larry & Kathy Jones, members of this forum! We had a delightful evening talking mostly about (what else) our motorhomes. We now have new friends.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #51 – October 05, 2020, 10:55:12 am

Quote from: Mike Coachman - October 05, 2020, 08:51:45 am

We now have new friends.

And you have more friends you just haven't met face to face . . . yet.
Joel

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #52 – October 05, 2020, 11:17:18 am

As Mike stated above, Kathy and I were pleasantly surprised to find ourselves parked next to a brand new Lazy Daze 27 footer here in Clayton, NM. I’ve been following their journey here in the forum, and it’s great to actually meet Mike and Elizabeth and get to see what’s new with Lazy Daze. They graciously gave a us tour, and we had a great conversation. We look forward to seeing them again on the road or in Colorado or Florida.

Safe travels,
Larry & Kathy

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #53 – November 10, 2020, 10:46:10 am

Now that we are back home in Florida and I have the time to start on my list if personalized improvements I will photo document these as they are completed.
On the way back from Arizona we first drove to the Bigfoot factory in Michigan to have the automatic (one pump) leveling jacks installed. We arrived the night before our install appointment and plugged into their 30-amp. service for the overnight stay. The install started at 7AM and was complete by 10:30AM. I requested the controller panel be mounted in a box with the connecting wiring cable emanate from under the back of the drivers seat with the cable long enough to reach outside the drivers door. When the jacks are down I leave the control box on the drivers seat as a reminder.
We then went to visit close friends in New Buffalo, MI before heading south. Along the way we stopped to see the "Ark Encounter" in Williamstown, KY. It is a full scale reconstruction of Noah's Ark (see photo).
Back at our ranch I finally had some time to start on personalizing Villa Verde. The latch on the bathroom door was always a problem when attaching it to the wall by the refrigerator. I replaced that with a cabinet door magnet on the door and additional button magnets on the wall. It holds well and is easy to open. I kept the button latch at the closet.
I picked up a step astro-turf carpet to catch some dirt before entering the coach.
Also from Camping World I added two drawers under the dinette table for paper, pencils, paper and small tools.
I ordered a 30 to 15 amp SmartPlug adaptor if all I want to power the coach in standby/storage mode with a regular (14ga) extension cord instead of dragging out the 25' SmartPlug.
There will be much more to come.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #54 – November 10, 2020, 11:54:54 am

Mike, looks like you even got a little rain for the Noah's Ark visit!

A couple questions: How much weight do the levelers add? I like the drawers under the dinette table. What prevents them from opening while underway?

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #55 – November 10, 2020, 01:10:24 pm

Greg, you would have to call the company for the weight #. Probably not more than a couple of hundred pounds. The dinette drawers have something like a notch that keeps them closed. They are very handy to have.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #56 – November 10, 2020, 05:08:54 pm

Since we are planning on a trip for Thanksgiving a priority was to prepare the toad hitch assembly on the rear of the motorhome. Villa Verde fit well on our vehicle lift where it was easy to access the back hitch. I use the Roadmaster Sterling tow bar that included safety cables that required a special bracket for attaching one end of the cables (see photo). There was no place on our Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk to attach those brackets so I attached them to the motorhome hitch assembly using grade 8 bolts. The rounded ends of the cable fit in descending slots on the brackets and to prevent them from working back up and out (that happened once early on). I put a bolt in the slot to keep that from happening again. Since that part stays with the tow bar on the motorhome only the standard hook at the other end of the cable needs to be released from the Jeep.
Shown in one photo is the electrical cord to the jeep for lights and power to the Jeep battery. I stayed with the LD 6-pin connection with the seven slot plug at the Jeep. As seen in the photo I have attached security steel links to a eyebolt to prevent theft of the cable. That happened at an interstate rest stop a couple of years ago. Yes, with the proper tools this could be removed but it would take some time which the average thief would not do.
Bigfoot (and Amazon) was also selling the Utility Block hard rubber pads for placing under the jacks for additional height if needed. They can also be used to place under wheels for leveling without jacks. The rope handles make them easy to place under the coach and have a grooved interlocking face so they don't slide off each other. They also have two beveled edges for driving upon. They are replacing my old worn out wood blocks I had for additional leveling.
As shown I had the valve stems replaced with the Borg solid extended valve stems. They replaced the Ford pressure transmitter stems. The stem hole in the wheels are standard. Yes, a fault shows in the dash display when starting the engine but the touch of a steering wheel button clears it. That causes no other issues in the Ford computer. I use the TST tire pressure monitoring system for all ten tires.
In the bathroom I added an additional light over the toilet taking power from the ceiling light over the lavatory. There is a white switch along this wiring next to the ceiling that sends power to the TST repeater that is mounted on the rear window.
The rear window shades rested on the sink faucet when pulled all the way down and so I had my cabinet maker nephew (and next door neighbor) fabricate wooden glides to keep the lowered shades closer to the glass and out of the way from using the toilet. They were stained and finished to match the interior cherry wood. Much better now.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #57 – November 10, 2020, 05:24:46 pm

Thanks for the info. That's a nice setup you have there, Mike!

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #58 – November 10, 2020, 10:10:22 pm

Mike, you have a contraption on the toilet (to the left of the toilet towards the back of the toilet in the picture).
I can't tell what... but it doesn't look standard from the toilets I have seen.
Maybe a bidet?

Curious minds want to know....
Jane

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #59 – November 11, 2020, 02:58:35 pm

Jane, you are correct, it is a Magic Bidet MB-1300 available on Amazon. The water line is connected to a “T” valve LD installed in the line to the toilet. That was one of my extra options LD allowed . It’s a very easy install I did on the road.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #60 – November 16, 2020, 09:23:40 am

I'm still busy personalizing Villa Verde and here are more photos. I drilled lube access holes in the ends of the sewer valve assemblies plugging them with a stainless steel screw. I usually use silicone spray but for demo purposes the WD40 was close at hand. To slow freezing of the valves in cold weather camping I wrapped the pipes from the holding tanks with cork insulation tape.
I installed the Camco Quickie Flush system to both holding tanks. I learned the hard way to add hose clamps at each end of the hose as the original crimping does not always hold under high water pressure. Instead of using the bracket at the inlet end of the hose I installed two fresh water ports in the lower skirt of the LD for connecting the hoses. The hoses are wrapped with foam rubber pipe insulation (available at Lowes) to prevent freezing. The joints are wrapped with Gorilla exterior tape to hold it all together. When finished the whole system tested out very well.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #61 – November 16, 2020, 10:01:48 am

I really like the three Fantastic fan roof vents however I would like to be able to use all of them in a rainstorm. To do so I installed MaxxAir II covers over each vent. They don't allow the Fantastic vent lids to open all the way however the are open more than enough for good circulation. The electric lid opener will stop when the lid touches the top of the MaxxAir cover.
My nephew woodworker made a wall mounted magazine rack for the bathroom and a utility tray for the loft bedroom.
At Camping World we purchased two sets of 3-piece carper runners to prevent cold feet on the vinyl floor. It is easy to take them outside to shake off accumulated dirt when needed. They fit perfectly in the Rear Bath floor plan.
For water leak or flooding detection I installed two Reliance Controls THP205 Reliance Sump Pump Alarm With Flood Alert, 9 V Battery, 6 Ft Wire Sensor from Amazon. One sensor is screwed on the floor near the water pump With the alarm mounted on the wall by the toilet. The other sensor in placed on the floor near the water heater with the alarm on the wall in the under the kitchen sink cabinet.
When filling the fresh water tank I like to occasionally observe the water level in the tank while outside. I cut out an opening in the wall next to the front end of the tank inside the storage compartment behind the drivers door. I made a door from the removed wooden piece.
To keep the stored sewer hose in place I installed eye screws in the chamber behind the access door to hold a very short bungee cord across the hose end.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #62 – November 16, 2020, 10:07:14 am

Mike,
In your tank washer pictures, what is the white PVC that can be seen in the last picture?

Linda

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #63 – November 16, 2020, 10:26:19 am

I too was never comfortable with the grade 5 bolts LD used when attaching the rear bumper to the frame extension. I have now replaced these with grade 8 bolts, washers and nuts. Add a little red thread lock and tighten with a strong air impact wrench and now I feel better towing our Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk.
As I have done with past motorhomes I have installed low amperage (0.12 amps) 12VDC computer fans to the inside and back side of the refrigerator. I accessed power from the inside light fixture for the small interior fan and power from the control box at the outside rear of the refrigerator for the larger fan which blows air up over the evaporation coils. Both fans run as long as the refrigerator is powered on.
I found a very nice 3-ring binder notebook in the office supply isle at WalMart which works very well holding all the user manuals of the various RV components including the LD Manual. I place all the paperwork in clear plastic 3-ring sleeves and organize the manuals by electrical, exterior, appliances, mechanical, and miscellaneous. Purchase receipts are kept in the open files in the notebook lid. The notebook fits well in the forward overhead cabinets.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #64 – November 16, 2020, 10:35:17 am

LyndaB,
The larger white PVC to the left is the holder for the remote thermometer transmitter for the inside wall Lacross atomic clock. Removing the pipe plug allows the sending unit to drop down for a yearly battery change. The open pipe end allows outside air to the thermometer.
The smaller white PVC pipe to the right is an air pocket equalizer at the top of the black holding tank.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #65 – November 16, 2020, 12:37:47 pm

Mike and All,

These posts and pictures are making me extremely nervous .... for me, motorhome is the means to attain the goal of seeing all the national parks in next five years ... I researched and and buying LazyDaze to have problem free five years (If I keep it longer, I will not mind bringing it back to factory for refresh) this much modification on brand new motorhome is really required or this is hobby?

And no, I am not backing out trying RV travel style in fact I am hoping to move to UNICAT in five years.

Regards,

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #66 – November 16, 2020, 01:15:25 pm

Quote from: Muhammad - November 16, 2020, 12:37:47 pm

this much modification on brand new motorhome is really required or this is hobby?

No, it's not.

Think about it like cars. Many people are thrilled with the car as it comes from the dealer. They can happily drive for years with just regular maintenance. Others prefer to change the radio and speakers, get different tires, add all-weather floor mats, or upgrade the engine to get things just the way they like it.

Both people can get what they want out of the ownership experience.

As much we love our LD, the best thing about ownership isn't the coach itself. It's the places we visit, the experiences we have, and the people we meet along the way.

The young guy in the old beater car with a tent can reserve the same National Park campsite as the older guy with a $200K motorhome (assuming the MH even fits). How many of us wouldn't love to be the young guy again, even if the mattress isn't as comfortable?

Rich

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #67 – November 16, 2020, 01:33:56 pm

Muhammad,
What I am showing is more of personalizing our motorhome with what we have found to be useful in our many years of RV traveling. This is no negative reflection on the quality of the Lazy Daze motorhome, we chose LD because of the high standard of construction they hold themselves to. After owning our first LD (Monty) for ten great years (and 116,000 miles) of mostly trouble free travel all over North America it was a no brainer to stay with a prover quality motorhome as we now have in Villa Verde. I can assure you, the high quality of construction is still there. Some are skeptical of getting the first of an updated Ford chassis, however I am very impressed with how well our first 4000+ miles we drove across the country (mostly on back roads) went. Engine noise level in reduced from what the V-10 level was. Power is much more than adequate for long steep mountain grades, and overall handling on the road is good. The digital dash requires a little learning curve but is is good to have. There is a significant increase in gas mileage from the V-10. In our initial trip the overall mpg was 10.6, the lowest 8.4 and the highest 11.9. We did use the generator several times when we dry camped. We got those mpg figures from the dash read-outs and our own calculation when refueling each time. Both concurred on the figures. It will be interesting to see how pulling the Cherokee will lower those numbers.
We are very pleased with Villa Verde and are looking forward to our next trip to North Carolina for Thanksgiving with family.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #68 – November 16, 2020, 01:48:38 pm

Thanks Mike and understood the reasoning behind upgrades. Seems like a new house where each owner take their time to make house into home.

Thanks again for sharing ...

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #69 – November 16, 2020, 01:58:55 pm

It all looks good Mike. The only thing is you got a rear bath and green - again.
I do see one advantage of the RB, the water pump can be accessed without extreme body contortions.
You may be the only LD owner with a lift of which I remain jealous.

We are parked in a COE facility on the Alabama River. This is the first time we have been out since we got home July, 2019.
Sort of a shakedown trip, since we are back to newbie status.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #70 – November 17, 2020, 01:07:12 am

Quote from: Muhammad - November 16, 2020, 01:48:38 pm

Thanks Mike and understood the reasoning behind upgrades. Seems like a new house where each owner take their time to make house into home.

Thanks again for sharing ...

Muhammad, yes Mike knows how he likes things and this LD replaces the same exact model he had before. So since he knows how he likes his RV and how he will use it, he knows what modifications he want it to have [right away].
Since so many things can be personalized and it is your first RV, I would suggest using it as is and seeing what you want different before making modifications.
Jane

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #71 – November 17, 2020, 01:09:28 am

Mike - I am on my phone and can not see as clearly - are those shut off valves on either side of the water pump? (I can only hope). Is there shut off valves other places (eg by sinks/shower/toilet) so one part of the plumbing can be worked on without turning off the entire system?

Jane

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #72 – November 17, 2020, 04:03:43 am

Quote from: Jane and Scott - November 17, 2020, 01:07:12 am

Muhammad, yes Mike knows how he likes things and this LD replaces the same exact model he had before. So since he knows how he likes his RV and how he will use it, he knows what modifications he want it to have [right away].
Since so many things can be personalized and it is your first RV, I would suggest using it as is and seeing what you want different before making modifications.
Jane

Thanks Jane. My plan is to keep motorhome as simple as possible and that was the reason I got little worried seeing Mike's modifications, I thought they were required stuff .... I have a very modest list of adding two additional batteries along with battery monitor. I also know where I will be going for hydraulic levelers and who will make my car ready for towing. As for rest of the stuff, as need arise but I am lazy and I know I will prefer a nice hike instead of spending time on upgrades. In long run, I hope I will find an honest person close to my home to help with improvements and maintenance, I know I need to be ready to tackle issues if I get stuck in the middle of nowhere but this is not my cup of tea.

Even for batteries, I seriously thought about getting battery/inverter/charger box but I think it will need more work in long run to have one more electrical system in the mix.

Couple of more months and we are excited to hit the road. I know it may sound illogical to lot of folks on this forum but instead of thinking about motorhome, I am working on places we will be going and routes we will be taking and working on a baseline system which will help for future plans (getting information from lot of places and integrating it on Google Map).

Cheers,

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #73 – November 17, 2020, 06:46:03 am

Jane, those are hand tightening pipe fittings not valves.

Re: 2021 Rear Bath "Villa Verde" What's new & improvements

Reply #74 – November 17, 2020, 08:30:51 am

Don, Glad to see you are back doing what you two love to do. Are you staying at Gunter Hill COE? We have stayed there a couple of times (when you were out of town both times) when traveling westbound on US 80 toward I-20 as we were starting a western states adventure. It is a very nice facility as are most COE campgrounds. Must be cold there today as we dropped down to 50F this morning at the ranch. Your campsite here is always available whenever you want to come this way.

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Reply #50 – October 05, 2020, 08:51:45 am

Reply #51 – October 05, 2020, 10:55:12 am

Reply #52 – October 05, 2020, 11:17:18 am

Reply #53 – November 10, 2020, 10:46:10 am

Reply #54 – November 10, 2020, 11:54:54 am

Reply #55 – November 10, 2020, 01:10:24 pm

Reply #56 – November 10, 2020, 05:08:54 pm

Reply #57 – November 10, 2020, 05:24:46 pm

Reply #58 – November 10, 2020, 10:10:22 pm

Reply #59 – November 11, 2020, 02:58:35 pm

Reply #60 – November 16, 2020, 09:23:40 am

Reply #61 – November 16, 2020, 10:01:48 am

Reply #62 – November 16, 2020, 10:07:14 am

Reply #63 – November 16, 2020, 10:26:19 am

Reply #64 – November 16, 2020, 10:35:17 am

Reply #65 – November 16, 2020, 12:37:47 pm

Reply #66 – November 16, 2020, 01:15:25 pm

Reply #67 – November 16, 2020, 01:33:56 pm

Reply #68 – November 16, 2020, 01:48:38 pm

Reply #69 – November 16, 2020, 01:58:55 pm

Reply #70 – November 17, 2020, 01:07:12 am

Reply #71 – November 17, 2020, 01:09:28 am

Reply #72 – November 17, 2020, 04:03:43 am

Reply #73 – November 17, 2020, 06:46:03 am

Reply #74 – November 17, 2020, 08:30:51 am

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