GENERAL INTEREST 

     Submit your general interest stories for posting in this area.

CAMPGROUNDS AND SCENIC ROUTES 

     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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Trailing Arm Upgrade Kit
     Contributed by Rich Cotterall and Ryan Lee

Monaco RV, LLC, announced the release of an aftermarket trailing arm upgrade kit for the Roadmaster RR4R and R4R chassis.  Read the full story HERE.

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Improving Wi-Fi Performance
     Contributed by Bert Garcia and Thomas Crist

In May 2010 my laptop failed to reach the Hutchinson wi-fi network from the campground. This was not the first time that I have found local wi-fi networks difficult to reach. Often campgrounds that advertize wi-fi do not actually provide adequate service over the entire campground. A solution was needed.

Thomas Crist found a solution with the Alfa Network Long-Range USB Adapter. At Hutchinson he used it to obtain excellent service on a wi-fi network that I could barely detect with my laptop. This article describes the wi-fi adapter he used and which I later purchased. This article has nothing to do with the network adapters provided by AT&T and Verizon which use cell phone technology.

The Alfa Network adapter is an external device that plugs into a USB connector on your laptop with a 3 ft cable.  It replaces the built-in wi-fi adapter in your laptop.

Laptops typically provide 0.25 watts or 0.5 watts of transmit power, and their antennas are usually built into the laptop case. Low power and small antennas limit the effective range. To increase the distance covered and the speed of service, you can install a wi-fi adapter with more transmit power and a larger antenna.

The Alfa Network 802.11b/g/n Long-Range USB Adapter, model number AWUS036NH, has 2 watts of transmit power – 5 times or more the power of built-in laptop wi-fi adapters. I purchased this adapter.

The antenna supplied with the Alfa Networks adapter is six inches long. Alfa provides an optional 2.4 GHz 9 dBi Antenna, no model number, that is 14 inches tall and provides 9.3 dBi gain – approximately 8 times the capability of the smaller supplied antenna. The larger antenna improves the receive capability as well as the transmit power. I also purchased the optional U-Mount, no model number, which is a small plastic cradle with a suction cup that can be attached to a window or the lid of your laptop. The U-Mount is recommended when you use the optional larger antenna.

I purchased the three items (adapter, antenna, mount) as a bundle from Amazon.com for $45 plus shipping. Browsing Amazon.com will show you various products available from Alfa Network. I recommend the 2 watt version rather than ones with lower power.

How well does it work? I have consistently had faster performance from the Alfa Network adapter as compared to my built-in laptop adapter. Faster performance results from a higher quality signal (both transmit and receive) that requires fewer repeated transmissions to correct for errors. I have not yet had an opportunity to test for increased distance.

Is it difficult to install? No. An installation CD disk comes with the adapter containing the operation manual and software drivers for Windows XP, Vista and 7, Mac OS 10.(3, 4, 5, 6), and Linux. Follow the clearly written instructions in the manual. Installation takes only a few minutes from start to finish. Also included is a software configuration utility that you can choose to use in place of the Microsoft Windows Zero Configuration utility (which you currently use to connect to wi-fi networks on your Windows laptop). You should disable your built-in wi-fi adapter, or at least make sure it is disconnected from the wi-fi network. My laptop has a push button to disable the built-in wi-fi adapter. If I have a network connected on the built-in adapter and try to use the Alfa Network adapter, nothing works. You can only use one adapter at a time.

Doesn’t higher power harm other users in the campground? No. The 802.11 standard is a "well behaved" network that provides "equal access" for all users. In fact, if other users cannot hear your weak laptop, they may transmit on top of you, causing you to retransmit, taking up more bandwidth for repeats. With your stronger signal you will be heard by other users and receive your fair share of the bandwidth, and the campground network will hear you better and respond to you more often than with a weaker signal. Also, if your receive capability is improved, you will hear other weak laptops and not interfere with them while they are transmitting. It’s a win-win for the campground wi-fi network.

Bottom line -- If your laptop has poor wi-fi performance when others in the campground have good wi-fi, consider adding an external wi-fi adapter.  The Alfa network long-range USB adapter is a quick, easy $45 fix.

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