sunnyslife said:
To start with, I would like the schematics for the electrical system - also, we know nothing about what we need to do to make sure the propane system and the water/tank systems are okay......basically, everything.
it's more likely than not that the wiring schematics would NOT be in the owners manual. They don't intend for the owner to ever be able to play with the electrical system so there is nothing in the manual except showing you where to locate the fuse panel. A lot of the shop manuals don't have wiring schematics for the whole RV/trailer anyways because they can vary depending on when they were built in the production year.
The propane system, if you've no working knowledge of how propane systems works - I'd suggest watching some YouTube videos on RV propane systems. They all function basically the same way. If you've specific questions, ask here and someone(s) will chime in.
There are usually separate water systems. City water for when you're hooked up to a tap in a park or at your S&B - it's simple. There's a check valve to separate it from the fresh water holding tank and the 12V water pump that's in use when you're using you fresh water tank for supply.
The fresh water tank system is the one you fill from a hose and then use out of the tank. It probably needs to be disinfected if it's not been used in a while. Water runs from the tank drawn by the 12V pump in to the house water system including the hot water tank.
Always use drinking safe marked hoses for filling your water tank and when you're hooked up to a tap. The regular garden hoses are not. I always carried fresh water for drinking separately from the 'fresh water tank' which was used for cooking, dishes, showering but not for drinking just to be on the safe side. I also found my tummy to prefer a consistent water supply instead of switching constantly as I moved around.
Which by the way, don't try to fire up the hot water tank until you're sure that it's full of water.
The gray water tank fills from the bathroom/kitchen sinks and the shower. It's quite a simple system. When it's full you need to empty it, if it overfills it usually backs up in to the shower because it's the lowest..
The black water tank is dedicated to the toilet. I strongly recommend NEVER putting toilet paper in the toilet, use a covered waste basket instead. If the previous owners haven't taken care of the black water tank properly and it's got a lot of build up in it, it's recommended that you put a few gallons of water in it, a couple of bags of ice cubes (by pouring them down the toilet), hook up the trailer and put it on the road for an hour and then dump it. You may have to repeat this a few times to get all the crud off the walls of the tank. I've also seen a trailer that was in use but stationary with a pile of shit reaching to the bottom of the toilet. This was caused by the users keeping the drain open while the trailer was in use. All the liquid ran out down the sewer leaving the solids to, well, solidify!! It took a power washer to loose that crap up!! If you're ever in an RV park DO NOT do this.
When you're dumping the holding tanks it's standard procedure to empty the black water tank first, then the gray water tank. This will flush the common lines at the dump valves and the sewer hose that you're using.
The valves for both the holding tanks usually need a little lubrication every once in a while - vasoline actually works quite well. When first testing your systems, particularly if the trailer hasn't been used in a while, pull gently on the valve handles - I've seen them stuck with crud before to the point where a strong armed approach meant replacing the valves... :dodgy: .
The only way to test all the systems is to put them in use and try them out. Get down on your hands and knees and check inside all the cabinets for leaks as well as underneath. Also, when you're using the fresh water tank/pump, if the pump keeps cycling on and off when you're not running water somewhere, it's a good indication that there is a leak somewhere. The pump keeps the system at a specific water pressure. It should only come on when you're using the water.
I hope this helps at least a little. I hope I didn't assume too little previous knowledge of RV/trailer systems so I took a complete newbie approach...you know -RV 101 instead of 201...
