New BB Owner w/ a few questions....

[John Suter]

Hi John,

Although we do not currently own a Bird, I think 20
years of 3 previous Birds may allow us to welcome you
to the group.

> I also think
> there might be a problem with the dash a/c
> compressor as there seems
> to be a little oily residue around it since we used
> it. I'll have to
> investigate that a little more when I get a chance.

Our experience is it is extremely difficult to keep
dash airs operational (largely due to the long runs
between the compressor unit and the fan coil and the
difficult job to completely purge moisture from that
much coil). Others have disagreed, but I maintain
approximately 1/2 the coaches old enough to be out of
warranty possess non-operating units and it's of
questionable value to repair them for the relatively
short period they will operate between repairs. I've
had warranty repairs on new Birds where there have
been 3 and 4 compressors replaced during the warranty
period.

> I've also noticed that after driving there is quite
> a bit of heat in
> the closet obviously due to the engine & exhaust
> heat. Has anyone ever
> installed a vent or exhaust fan the help expel the
> heat from the back
> of the coach?

I've tried unsuccessfully, for the reasons other
have already stated, and finally settled for simply
opening all internal doors upon arrival at campsites
to cool down the rear areas while the A/C operates on
campground power.

However another important area to exhaust is above
the dash where VCR's, Sat recvrs, etc reside. There,
I've added a 110v master switch to shut off equipment
while riding (at the irritation of losing stored data
such as time) and added switchable, large-diameter,
computer fans to remove hot air after stopping and
before turning any equipment on. Otherwise, I was
replacing Sat receivers about every 9 months.

While speaking of the video equipment area, you
might also want to add a separate, dedicated 12V power
supply within that cabinet to operate your sat, if
your coach 12V is currently being used.

> Oh!, and The acrylic grab handle by the entrance
> door is
> broken. Is that something I will need to get direct
> from BB?

If you want it to say BB and not be generic, you
will have to buy the complete unit including light
assembly - last time I checked (a couple of years ago)
BB wanted close to $100 for the unit. I found a
generic handle at a Flying J but had to "whittle" it
to the correct diameter to fit the existing fittings.
The durn things chip, crack and craze over time.

Enjoy,

John Suter
Birdless at the moment


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