update on Maiden Voyage October 14, 2011, 02:23:59 pm Yahoo Message Number: 125989We made it home to Alaska (via Alberta route) a little over a week ago - 3800 miles & $4400, she is now in storage for the winter. We managed to try everything but the Heat Pump on this trip, not sure how we missed using that, but we did. We definitely did not want to be home. Despite the chilly nights, we stayed quite comfortable and we had a wonderful trip home. The only issue was the condensation dripping from the escape hatch when we got into colder weather. Am thinking we may have a handle on that by putting the insulated cover on inside to prevent warm air coming in contact with vent. Not sure, but will find out next year. We learned from Dave that we could take a Direct TV receiver from our house and use in our rig for satellite, without notifying Direct TV. If we had known, we would have sent one down to ourselves for the trip home, but we didn't use the TV except to watch movies at night. So will discover how this works next year. The tow/haul feature was a life saver with the 8, 9, and 10% grades we encountered. Never had an issue with these grades in my car, but in the RV - a whole other white knuckle experience. But we survived. Of course, caribou in the middle of the road, added to the whole experience... Think next trip out might be down the Cassias Highway... I don't remember it being that crazy, but again I went down in my car. Perhaps we will re-think that. Wow, what a wild ride... but our LD handled it magnificently! I'm rather proud of the fact we managed to dry camp like we were pros too - well, not quite! But we sure have learned on this trip and will keep getting better at it. We lasted 5 days and loved every minute of it. I think we could have pushed for 6, but not knowing where we could dump or get fresh water put a damper on trying. Have a question or two for my fellow LDer's. When we left the factory, they had our tires at maximum pressures 80 in rear - 75 in front. Had no issues with this, until we stopped in Edmonton to have oil & filter changed (a great place, if anyone needs this info). A guy working there said in colder climates, one does not put maximum air in tires, any tires. He said driving on them will bring them to maximum pressures when hot. Well... that was completely opposite on what we had done up to that point. BUT... my husband refused to budge on this after hearing this guy. So the rest of our trip home, the pressures were 70/65. My husband is not on this mailing list, can you direct me to any info that addresses this? I couldn't find anything, but I suspect I don't know the correct terms to get the info. Thanks if you can help on this.. In our process of winterizing our rig...we did not drain the generator, we just added Sta-bil to our generator. Folks up here swear that is all that is needed. Also, we did not have to remove the house batteries with our Disconnect Switch we had added on our new rig. So we disconnected the engine battery, filled up the propane tank, added sta-bil in engine gas/generator, blew out the water in our system, added a little food-grade anti-freeze in the nooks and grannies of the system and reluctant-ly said goodbye for the winter. A few chuckles for this group! We didn't discover the toilet paper holder until we had driven 2600 miles. And my husband washed our rig twice after we got home and even put on a coat of sealant (all within a 2 days time). At the moment, she is just one month old. No name yet, but after several various names (some not so nice, as we dealt with the grades), we've been calling her Spruce Moose with "Spruce-y" for short. Will see if it still sticks next summer. If it does, we plan to put a moose with spruce boughs on as our logo. Oh it was such a wonderful, enlightening trip home. Hindsight, we should have gotten a LD long ago, had no idea how awesome it is to own one. We are already plotting and planning our trips for next year...just got to get thru this winter.Melinda
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #1 – October 14, 2011, 03:41:13 pm Yahoo Message Number: 125990Next spring, when you get your Lazy Daze out of storage and have it all loaded up for a trip, go by your local scales and get each axle weighed (weighing each of the 4 corners would be the best, but at least each axle). Once you have the weight of each axle, get the tire manufacturer's tire inflation guide (which you can find online) and set the pressures to those PSI's. Unless you're running your Lazy Daze at maximum GVWR, there's no reason why you'd have to inflate your tires to the maximum pressure printed on the sidewalls.Linda Hylton http://earl-linda.blogspot.com
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #2 – October 14, 2011, 04:48:46 pm Yahoo Message Number: 125992On Fri, 14 Oct 2011 18:23:55 -0000, "Melinda" rootsfiber@...> wrote:QuoteWhen we left the factory, they had our tires at maximum pressures 80 in rear - 75 in front. Yep, since they don't know what you will put in the rig, they have to assume max weight.QuoteHad no issues with this, until we stopped in Edmonton to have oil & filter changed (a great place, if anyone needs this info). A guy working there said in colder climates, one does not put maximum air in tires, any tires. The man is right.QuoteSo the rest of our trip home, the pressures were 70/65. Sounds about right. Next year weight the rig and inflate according to the weight. See The Companion for detailed information.Tire pressure is a VERY mis-understood topic.
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #3 – October 14, 2011, 07:32:41 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126000TIre pressure is covered
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #4 – October 14, 2011, 07:46:44 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126003"The only issue was the condensation dripping from the escape hatch when we got into colder weather. Am thinking we may have a handle on that by putting the insulated cover on inside..." Yup. The snap-on vinyl cover will completely eliminate that problem.Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #5 – October 14, 2011, 10:25:11 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126008Quote "Have a question or two for my fellow LDer's. When we left the factory, they had our tires at maximum pressures 80 in rear - 75 in front. A guy working there said in colder climates, one does not put maximum air in tires, any tires. He said driving on them will bring them to maximum pressures when hot. Well... that was completely opposite on what we had done up to that point. I couldn't find anything, but I suspect I don't know the correct terms to get the info. Thanks if you can help on this.. "Melinda Melinda There is NO magic number to use. You must know the weight of your LD, front and rear. Once you have this documentation (from a truck stop scale) you then consult the tire manufactures recommended pressure for the amount of weight your rig is carrying. Nothing else will be correct for your application.Steve S. Lazy Bones & Jiggs
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #6 – October 14, 2011, 11:43:54 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126009Steve, I've tried to find the recommended preessure for my Dunlop tires and I am unable to find a chart for this. Suggestions? Dale.From: lejest2003 To: lifewithalazydazerv@yahoogroups.com Sent: Friday, October 14, 2011 7:25 PM Subject: [LD] Re: update on Maiden Voyage
update on Maiden Voyage Reply #7 – October 15, 2011, 11:15:36 am Yahoo Message Number: 126013Quote from: Melinda""Have a question or two for my fellow LDer's. When we left the factory, they had our tires at maximum pressures 80 in rear - 75 in front. A guy working there said in colder climates, one does not put maximum air in tires, any tires. He said driving on them will bring them to maximum pressures when hot. Well... that was completely opposite on what we had done up to that point. I couldn't find anything, but I suspect I don't know the correct terms to get the info. Thanks if you can help on this.. "Quote Melinda Melinda, That man makes perfect sense. Tire inflation information that I have seen is based on an ambient temperature of 65 F. If the temperature is lower, you should put less air in so that when the tire reaches 65 F. it will be at the proper pressure. Likewise, especially for our Southern and Southwest folks, you should be putting in additional pressure if the ambient temperature is above 65 F or you risk being under inflated for your weight, a very dangerous situation.Rich Gort - 2000 MB - Birch Bay, WA
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #8 – October 15, 2011, 11:49:07 am Yahoo Message Number: 126014Your recommendation for setting tire pressures does not match any I have ever read. For example, on the Michelin site, it simply states "The maximum cold air pressure for each axle may vary, depending on their weights" without regard to actual temperature. http://www.michelinrvtires.com/michelinrv/tires-retreads/load-inflation-tables.jspYou are risking damage to your tires and tire failure if you adjust the tire manufacturer's listed pressures for the ambient temperature; instead, the recommendation is always to set your tires at the pressures listed for your axle weights when the tires are cold. If ambient temperature correction was important, the tire manufacturer and your vehicle manufacturer would tell you this and give you tables to do it correctly, but they don't. This article in Motorhome magazine says the same things and it can be downloaded from the Michelin site at http://www.michelinrvtires.com/assets/pdf/MotorHomeTireArticle.pdfSo, everyone, please continue to set your tires when cold and to the listed pressures for the weight on each axle of your motorhome.Eric
update on Maiden Voyage Reply #9 – October 15, 2011, 12:56:33 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126015On Sat, 15 Oct 2011, Eric Greenwell wrote:QuoteSo, everyone, please continue to set your tires when cold and to the listed pressures for the weight on each axle of your motorhome.Eric Agree - As long as "cold" = 68 F.Rich
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #10 – October 15, 2011, 07:41:34 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126019No, "cold" = tires before you have driven a mile. I have never seen any other definition. Why don't you trust Michelin's recommendations, which don't include a reference to 65 degrees?Eric
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #11 – October 15, 2011, 09:24:32 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126022We found that the vinyl cover alone did not totally eliminate the problem. Adding a 2" piece of styrofoam insulation cut at a taper to wedge into the opening and with a slot cut for the handle to fit in and then snapping the vinyl cover in place did the job for us.Ted H. @ Natural Bridges NM, UT www.ultimatecampgrounds.com www.wxtoad.com
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #12 – October 16, 2011, 10:15:19 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126036Quote Steve, I've tried to find the recommended preessure for my Dunlop tires and I am unable to find a chart for this. Suggestions? Dale. Dale A quick perusal of the Dunlop web site indicates that they are putting pressure recommendations off on the **vehicle** manufacturer... per their statement, "Always use the inflation recommended by the vehicle manufacturer." It seems odd to me that they won't even provide a recommendation for their OWN tires. Kinda flaky that!QuoteSteve S. Lazy Bones & Jiggs
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #13 – October 17, 2011, 01:50:23 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126048Thanks for this tip, we had bought, but haven't installed the snap-on covers. But will get the styrofoam next Spring and get this set up.Melinda
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #14 – October 17, 2011, 02:06:58 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126049Thanks Steve and everyone else that wrote in on this... I must admit when they told me not to weigh until we were fully loaded, I thought with all that we sent down to the Mothership, plus all that we bought on the trip would get us fully loaded. Not, not in our wildest imagination were we close to being fully loaded, so we didn't bother to try to weigh before we got home. So I had not connected the dots that we need that weight to know what our tire pressures ought to be. I'm still learning! But learning nonetheless. We had asked a few truck drivers where would be a good place to weigh. All said not to use the Weigh Stations along the road. I thought that was interesting. They suggested we get weighed at a dump or a recycling place, so we will check on that before we get going next summer.Thanks everyone for your feedback, it is greatly appreciated.Melinda 27' MB
Re: update on Maiden Voyage Reply #15 – October 17, 2011, 05:07:08 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126050You are probably doing this already: use the tire pressures listed on the placard on the driver's door sill. That will be on the safe side until you get the actual weights; likely, you'll be under your GVWR and can lower the pressures for a smoother ride.Eric Greenwell
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