My Homage to Mods

[force]

Haha, I'm a klutz more often than I care to admit. On my last camper I used yellow pool noodles, just had to notch out a bit to get it to 90 degrees. Haven't hit my head yet on the new camper I do like the ones you found though, they probably do a better job.

 

[spepi-JAY]

I had my wife by some noodles so I can cut one to wrap the cord that plug into the bumper. It rubs on the tailgate, so I figured something soft, and then I will cut some pieces for the slides. Haven't bumped my head yet, but I've come close

 

[Rustysocket]

Thanks BuddyRay, Good thing about home depot is they pretty much stock the same thing in every store.


I really like what you did with the clips. Reminds me of my grandpas pegboard for all his tools when I was a kid. That will be one of the first things we do.


The corner protectors are also a must have. I have hit my head so many times on slides that I wear a permanent dent. I didn't realize they premade an elbow like that.

 

[DesertJayco]

Some great ideas!

 

[Mustang65]

Thanks for the posts... I now have a few more projects to do.. Velcro for the rubber mallet, small axe...

Don

 

[Danhikeski]

What the original poster got is a great idea. You could do that with a pool noodle, cut a 45 degree angle on a short piece and take the other piece and rotate it 90 degrees and glue/tape, you have an elbow. Same thing, but thicker, just the unwanted colors...

 

[BuddyRay]

Spent all of last week working on the rig. I brought it home from the storage yard on Monday, took it back on Friday morning. Next few posts will show some of the things I got done.

First off I got the Progressive Industries Electrical Management System installed:Progressive Industries RV Surge and Electrical Protection industry lea

In the Eagle HT 26.5 RLS, I thought the best place was behind the power distribution center under the stove - lots of room and easy access to the main power feed.
I didn't take a photo of where I put it - but it was easy to slide the power panel out (6 screws) and pull the 8-3 with Ground wires out of it and connected them to the input on the EMS - then I bought a 3 ft. length of same to go from the EMS to the Dist. Panel (Home Depot).
The real challenge was mounting the remote display. I wanted it up close to the monitor panel - but after reading people's posts about how the blinking display was a distraction I decided to put it in the cabinet over the sink.
I also wanted to mount the remote from the inexpensive battery monitor meter that has been discussed in several other threads.
http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f34/inexpensive-battery-monitor-entry-level-32652.html#post365086

First problem with this was getting the wires from under the stove to above the sink. If you remove the microwave you can see a bundle of wires running across from the back of the refrigerator to under the cabinet (which is hollow). I thought about removing the bottom of the dish cabinet but ultimately I was able to just fish the wire (by following a bundle of other wires) form behind the Power Panel, up the back of the refrigerator compartment across the back of the Microwave compartment and to the monitor panel. I was also able to fish a wire into the basement storage and across to the battery for the 12v monitor.
I got so busy fishing wires I forgot to take photos - but it's pretty obvious once you remove the microwave (4 screws). The only think you might not expect is how easy it is to fish the wire through the small space under the dish cabinet over the sink.
The series of photos in the next post show how I mounted the displays (after a previous attempt documented in one of the threads linked above).

 

[BuddyRay]

So here's the display mounting:
First I bought a Wood outlet cover at Lowes:

I cut the cover using my jig saw clamped in the vise.

You note that I cut all of the trim out of one opening but only part of the trim from the other:

Here's what it looks like with the two remotes in place:

Now you might ask - "how did you mount them?"
On the back I used some scrap aluminum and bolted them with small long bolts as follows:

Now that did fill the holes you would normally use to attach the plate to the wall but that was easily solved in the next post.

 

[BuddyRay]

So in the back of the dish cabinet there are two panels hiding wiring. I think there was room that I could have mounted the two displays below the monitor panel, but as I said above, previous posts by others had commented that the flashing of the displays was distracting. So you can see I mounted the displays inside the cabinet.


Sorry if the photos are sideways for some of you.

I'm pretty pleased with how this turned out - my electrical system is protected and I can monitor both the 12v and 120v systems in one easy place.

 

[BuddyRay]

Guam showed us how to use a simple mail sorter from Office Depot to make a holder for cell phones.
http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f30/guams-19rd-mods-34172.html#post391769
He placed the holder next to his charger in the bedroom.
We also have a charger next to the back door so I thought I'd put one there.

These also have 3 sections and that made it stick out a bit too far for my taste - plus since the charger only has 2 ports - I figured 2 "slots" was enough, so I used a dremmel tool with a cutoff disk to cut the last section off.

Here's the unit on my bench pre cut.

Now I've cut the last section off - I cut that one mostly because when it's mounted, the cut surface faces the wall.

And here it is mounted by the charge port, under the edge of the kitchen counter and above the "large" pots and pans drawer.
You'll also notice that I bought some 4 inch charge cables in black so there aren't wires hanging everywhere. These cables have optional ends that will charge either iPhone or Android.

but no job ever goes perfectly - notice that the Charge port came apart - the metal interior detached from the circuit board and won't stay in. This is unrelated to this project.
I've e-mailed Jayco support to see if they will ship me another - you can't find this type port on the internet (at least I couldn't even with "Deep Google").

 

[Wireman-JAY]

BuddyRay, is your outdoor temp sensor waterproof or do you have to bring it inside when traveling?

 

[BuddyRay]

Wireman,
It's like a watch, it's water resistant.
I leave it out while traveling but take it in when in storage.
But note that it is mounted way up under the 5th wheel overhang.
I used this same unit with my previous TT and there I didn't have a protected place to mount it so I did bring it in when traveling.
But the magnetic mount makes this super easy.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Wireman-JAY]

BuddyRay, thanks for the info. I figured if I ever forgot to bring one in, when traveling it would be nice if it could withstand a rainstorm.


Not that I ever forget anything.

 

[BuddyRay]

Another LED Dimmer Mod

Worked on the trailer again last week.
And I have a new idea for mounting the LED Dimmers to show you!

Like so many of you, I found the brightness of the awning LEDs to be extreme.
It also bugged me that the step courtesy light was on the same switch - since when the LED is on, you can't even tell if the step light is on. It would be nice to have that step light on when you don't want the LED on.
I ordered the Dimmer suggested by iPlumb in this post.
I was expecting a major rewiring job - but it turned out to be easier (at least on my model) than expected. The hard part will be explaining it this may get a little long but bear with me.

First, off, I wanted to find out where the step light and the LED strip were connected in my 26.5 RLS. I was afraid it would be in the wall or something but I started by removing the control panel (where the slideout switches, water heater switches, etc. are.) This panel just unscrews with 6 screws. There is also an area behind it - accessible through the cabinet where the control board for the remote is located. That's where I mounted my power monitors earlier in this thread - you can see photos about 2 pages back.


Above you can see what I found. In this view, the second switch from the right (the rightmost slot is filled by a blank plate) is the LED switch. Notice there is a pink wire with white stripe that supplies 12v + to two switches (the other one is the "security light"). Then a pink wire comes out of that switch and is mated with the black wire. A little experimentation determined that the pink wire goes straight to the Step light. The black wire is a little more complicated, we'll get to that in a moment.


So the first step is to remove the pink and black wires from the connector, add a second switch in place of the blank connector and wire the pink and black wires to seperate switches.
Here is the switch you need.

Here's what it looks like from the front:


Note that in the photo I used a lighted switch - that's because I ordered the wrong thing from Amazon at first - I've since received the plain black switch and replaced it.
So now I can turn the LED's or the Step lights on and off separately. I really don't understand why Jayco doesn't do this from the factory - come on Jayco - it's a $2 switch.

Also note that I've removed the blank plate on the bottom row. I'll also get to that in the next post.

 

[BuddyRay]

On to the Dimmer install

I really wanted to mount my dimmer in the switch panel so I started digging a bit more. Here's what I found.


What you are looking at is the remote control board. Wires attach down the left side for various circuits including slide outs, the Levelup System, etc. The bottom set of screws is for the LED lights.
Notice the two wires (black and white) I'm holding between my fingers. The black wire goes to a terminal on the board. Attached to that same terminal is another black wire that goes through a Knot along with a white wire.
The black and white wire in the knot go to the back of the switch board in the previous photos. The black wire goes to the switch and the white wire simply ties into a common ground.
The black and white wire in my fingers head off through the bottom of the cabinet to the LED lights. I was able to fish enough excess wire from these two to allow me to cut them and install the dimmer into this circuit.

Here is the dimmer control box (opened up for reasons that will become apparent in a minute) with the wires attached. I simply cut the wires my fingers were holding in the previous photo. The "IN" wires are the ones coming from the remote board, the "OUT" wires are those that head out to the LED. I tested everything with it all apart and it worked well.


If you notice inside that dimmer control box there are only two things - a very small control board and a potentiometer (a variable resistor - the thing you turn). No reason they have to stay in that stupid plastic box. The board is held down by two tiny screws, you pry the knob off the potentiometer (also called a POT for short) shaft and unscrew a nut holding it in.

Next I took the blank plate that I removed from the "Awning 2 Extend" position and, using my vise and a 1/4 inch drill, popped a hole in it.


Next I mounted the POT into the blank plate.


You'll also note that I wrote the IN + - and OUT + - on the green connector since, once it's away from the plastic box you need that information handy.

I'll show you how I finished it up in the last post on this topic.

 

[BuddyRay]

Finish of the Dimmer Post

So I took the dimmer control board and POT mounted in the blank plate back to the RV. I hooked the wires to the LED back up to the connectors on the board and stuck the board to the back of the switch panel with double sided foam tape - but frankly you could just let it hang there.
Then I popped the blank plate into it's hole and here's what it looks like from the back.


And here's what it looks like once the panel is put back in place.


Of course the engraved white labels don't completely match but I made a small "Dimmer" label with my label maker.

As I said earlier - I've since replaced the red switch with a plain black one.

So now I have three light switches - Security, Exterior one (which is the step light), Exterior 2 (which is the awning and front cap LED's). And the LED Dimmer is right below the LED switch.

There is still the issue of "if you turn it on with the remote, you must turn it off with the remote" issue. But the dimmer works no matter which switch you use to turn it on. In fact, the dimmer will turn it off as well. In fact, come to think of it, you could probably leave out the switch altogether and just use the Dimmer if you want.

I know this is kind of long winded - so if you have any questions, feel free to ask.

 

[campaholix]

Are you anchoring into the walls or attaching with 3M or similar products? If so, how? I'm always afraid I'm going to end up with stripped out screw holes

 

[BuddyRay]

Dnbgould, which mod are you asking about? Most are screwed in but the broom mount is a 3M.


Buddy Ray - Atlanta
---------------
Jayco Eagle HT 26.5RLS
Ford F150 Lariat, 3.5L V6 Ecoboost
Max Tow Pkg, 36gal tank
Reese Sidewinder and Reese Titan 16k hitch

 

[Mustang65]

There is still the issue of "if you turn it on with the remote, you must turn it off with the remote" issue.

Is it safe to assume (hate that word) that the switches are 12VDC and the output of the RC unit to the lights is 12VDC? If so, do a search on "LATCHING" relays. They only need a single pulse to trigger the relay. So if you press the switch (momentary type) once it will put the lights on, tap it again and it will turn the lights off. You can get them in 12VDC coils or 120VAC coils. They also have wiring diagrams on the Internet. I would recommend that you change your panel switch to a "Momentary" type switch, but you could just press your existing switch on then off.....

Don

 

[campaholix]

Dnbgould, which mod are you asking about? Most are screwed in but the broom mount is a 3M.


Buddy Ray - Atlanta
---------------
Jayco Eagle HT 26.5RLS
Ford F150 Lariat, 3.5L V6 Ecoboost
Max Tow Pkg, 36gal tank
Reese Sidewinder and Reese Titan 16k hitch

None in particular...just curious about your mounting methods. I've mounted some light weight stuff with rivets to prevent screws stripping out due to being in nothing more than 1/8" plywood. For the ones mounted with screws, did you do something special to find the random and hard to find studs in the walls?