Monaco America
The members of Monaco America have written stories to inform and entertain you. If you have a story to post, contact the webmasters using the Contact tab on the navigation bar above.
GENERAL INTEREST
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This area is for campground reviews and recommended scenic routes.
MAINTENANCE
Battery Maintenance
Contributed by Bert Garcia
Batteries may seem like simple everyday items, but if mishandled, they can have dangerous consequences. The above video was taken in a campground at Key West when an RV was set on fire because the owner failed to take proper precautions while charging his batteries.
The owner added a second dissimilar battery wired in parallel with the RV battery. He used an external automotive charger. He did not remove the batteries for charging.
The owner failed to monitor the charging process. The charger boiled all of the water out of the battery. The battery overheated and set the RV on fire while he was away. Had the owner stayed with his RV, he would have discovered the problem long before the fire started.
Take care of your batteries. Keep them clean using soap and water and rinse thoroughly. Check the connections; keep them clean and tight, and remove any corrosion. Coat clean terminals with a spray-on protectorate. Maintain the water (acid) at the proper level by frequent inspections and adding clean, distilled water when needed. For batteries that are sealed, don't cut open the seal to check the water level. Sealed batteries are sealed for a reason. When dry camping, run your generator to charge the batteries before they are completely discharged. You will damage your house batteries if you completely discharge them. Check your owner's manual to determine how low you can go before recharging. Don't mix dissimilar batteries in the same bank. When replacing batteries, replace the entire bank at the same time.
In very cold regions remove house batteries (wet) and store them inside over the winter. Leave sealed chassis batteries in the coach, but disconnect the negative terminal connection (your disconnect switch may not remove all loads from the batteries).
If you don't know what you're doing, take your coach to a professional battery shop for testing and maintenance. If you do know what you're doing, take your coach to a professional battery shop for testing and maintenance.
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IR Remote Control Extenders
Contributed by Bert Garcia
This article is about using an IR Remote Control Extender to control your video equipment from the bedroom.
The big Monaco coaches have space in the bedroom for a VCR/DVD player and satellite receiver near the TV. But if your coach is like mine, there are no provisions in the bedroom for extra video equipment. All of my video gear is up front -- satellite receiver, VCR/DVD player, digital converter box -- and controlling that gear from the bedroom with a remote control is a serious problem for remotes that use line-of-sight infrared (IR). I have a switchbox up front that allows me to select the video source for the bedroom TV, but controlling that video source from the bedroom with a remote control doesn't work.
I found a solution. An IR Remote Control Extender allows me to control all my video equipment from the bedroom. I take my remote control to the bedroom and the extender allows me to control the video equipment at the front of the coach. (Actually, I bought a second universal remote control and leave it in the bedroom.)
The IR extender has two parts -- a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter is placed in the bedroom. It takes the IR signal from the remote, converts it to a radio signal, and transmits it to the receiver up front. The receiver converts the radio signal back to IR, allowing you to control your video equipment from the bedroom.
There are several brands of IR Remote Control Extenders. Here are two suggestions:
Terk Technologies makes one called Leap Frog. You can purchase it on-line from Amazon.com for about $25. You can read about it HERE. I use a Leap Frog in my coach. I also use another one at home to control my cable box from the bedroom. Both units work flawlessly.
Radio Shack also sells a similar device called a Wireless Remote Extender. It costs about $45. You can read about it HERE. I haven't use this model, but I would expect it to work fine.
The IR Remote Control Extender is a simple inexpensive solution that gives you complete flexibility to control all your video equipment from the bedroom.
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