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This discussion leads to the question of who owns the site. There is an old internet meme that if you aren’t paying to use the product it because you are the product. Privacy? what me worry?

A while ago I ordered 4 new tires for my truck and when I went to have them installed the shop wouldn’t install them with the camper on. It was a corporate owned shop with rules the local outfit had to follow, no exceptions, no floor jack options and no install. Fortunately we agreed that I...

Thanks Old Crow, the Scout video is very informative. I like how they route the combustion air and exhaust outside the camper. I also like how they vent the warm air directly into the camper without a warm air vent exposed to the exterior. Ditto for the enclosed fuel tank. Are there any...

I see that the new Scout popup camper has an external diesel heater mounted on the passenger side rear wall in what appears to be an aluminum case. Any insights as to the manufacturer? They appear to use Autoterm diesel heaters in their hard side camper. Autoterm has a portable diesel heater...

I like the new design and think it’s an improvement for user experience. Search has always been a challenge, I generally use a web search e.g. to find posts about ATC Panther campers enter this string in your web browser: site:wanderthewest.com + "panther"

I went to the local RV outfit that Truma lists as a dealer to get a quote on installing a Truma to replace the standard Dometic furnace. He said I was the second person this month who showed up wanting to check out the Truma. Unfortunately, he said Truma won’t provide Truma he furnaces to them...

I found the Van Cafe knowledge base for Propex a few weeks ago and then had trouble finding it again on their site. Lots of good info here. https://vancafe.com/propex-heaters-for-vans/

I contacted VanCafe tech support and asked them to advise regarding the through the hull vent. Their reply: “ Here the included instructions with the Marine Thru-Hull fitting. As you can see it's a curious product that we don't recommend for many installations. We aren't a fan of modifying the...

After 9 months of troubleshooting the Dometic and replacing the sail switch it has operated without fault for 18 months. The problem I experience in use is the constant cycling on/off and warm to cold. I have been researching options to the Dometic installed in my Panther. Diesel is a...

I’ve had a eye on the Truma furnace for a couple years. Every time I turn on the Dometic furnace I hold my breath until it lights, or doesn’t. I found a dealer close to here who says bring the camper by and we’ll inspect it and provide a quote. I’ll report back with what I find out.

I looked up the specs on the 285 CB and they include the same minimum operating temperature of -40(c/f). Also called Blue Sea and talked to technical support. The tech support engineer confirmed Jon R’s hypothesis that some lubricate had probably hardened due to the cold which prevented the...

Disposable handwarmers are an interesting idea PaulT. It’s been dry here for the last few months. An inch or so of dry snow accompanied the cold front but couldn’t effect the CB in the engine compartment or camper. Thanks for the info on the CB specs. I suspected that there was an...

I have two Blue Sea circuit breakers on the cable between my truck battery and the camper’s lithium battery. We’ve had three nights this past week where the ambient air temperature was within a degree or two of -40F. I wanted to start the truck and run the engine to charge the truck battery...

Vic, we are expecting similar temperatures in north central Montana. I’m a new to lithium and cold weather and decided I’d disconnect the system and remove the battery until it gets to a balmy 0(F) or so. What do you do with your batteries when it heads to -40(F/C)? Do you keep the batteries...

I’m plan to add Thinsulate.

Thanks, I just took it apart, cleaned the exhaust tube and reassembled. I looked inside the chamber that houses the exhaust tube and noted there is an impeller in the ceiling of that housing, for the intake combustion air? I’ve had my issues with the Dometic, but this is an advantage over...

I don’t understand how the Dometic accomplishes this. I’ve read the installation and operating manuals and they do not refer to combustion air intake. The manuals diagrams don’t identify any intake combustion venting and the only apparent venting is the exhaust vent. Is this vent engineered...

After reviewing the diesel and propex installations I started wondering where the combustion air comes from on my 2021 dometic heater. I have a direct vent propane heater in my shop and the combustion air shares an engineered vent with the exhaust. I don’t think that the Dometic has that...

We’ve used a 2 foot Werner aluminum step ladder. It’s ok for me but our disabled son has trouble using it to step down. We are switching to this unit with wider steps...

I seriously considered the SherpTek option and placed a deposit to get in the production cycle. Ultimately I decided not to go through with the install and have second guessed my decision since. SherpTek says they can install their flatbed within an inch or so of the stock bed in your truck...

Thanks Vic for all your efforts on this site. What follows is a list of the best practices I’ve learned about installing a dcdc. I hope any errors will be noted and omissions added. Choose the correct size wire to connect the truck battery to the camper dcdc. I chose 6 awg installing it in...

Photos…

I completed the project and did a “smoke” test late in the afternoon. I saw 25 amps from the alternator which seems right since the solar charge was pretty low due to time of day and cloud cover. That was a relief! A couple of notes on wiring: The solar wiring that ATC installed is 12 awg. I...

I’m making progress inside the camper with a new battery box (16 inch square footprint). It’s a tight fit, but I have the components installed. A little larger box would have probably been a good idea. A couple of wiring issues have come up: 1) IIRC Tacoma Austin has a Blue Sea circuit...

I terminated the ve- cable in the engine compartment at the chassis ground point, ve+ at the Blue Sea CB. Do smart alternators use the Hall effect sensor to manage alternator output?