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Advice Q&A Fifth WheelsRV
Advice Q&A Fifth Wheels
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Below
are E-mail questions and answers that are related to service on 5th wheel
trailers. You can send your question(s) using the form at the bottom of
all our Q&A pages.
This page last updated December 26, 2007 containing letters emailed to Pete from August 6th - December 14th
We have an older Kit Companion with a slide. The gear in the slide gearbox has one tooth that sheared off. Do you know who would be able to supply a replacement gear or gearbox for this assembly?
Dear William,
Sometimes you have to buy the whole motor assembly. Usually you can get a name of manufacturer off the unit and contact them.
We have a 1994 Cardinal 5th wheel. At the back, where the ladder is attached, the roof has a soft spot. We keep it caulked and have had no water on the inside but it is just a matter of time. What is the best way to fix the soft spot in the back portion of the roof? Or should the whole roof be replaced?
Dear Terry,
You should be able to remove the ladder, the molding along the side of the roof and across the back; roll back the rubber and repair the damaged area and put it back together.
I have a 2004 Alfa See Ya. The 10 gallon Atwood water heater is mounted in a metal box in front of the left rear tire. I can not get into the area from the rear.
Does the gas line need to be unhooked before the tank is removed from the box?
I seem to have a small leak and it needs to be looked at out side of the rig.
Dear Glen,
Yes, the gas line needs to be disconnected before you can slide it out.
Take a closer look at the metal box, most manufacturers use a removable panel so you can access the water heater without removing it.
I have a 1987 Cari-Lite 5th wheel. Water pressure is fine everywhere except shower both with city water or 12volt. I have changed the shower faucet thinking it may have been clogged due to age however there is still barely a trickle from the faucet or shower head. Looking for advice.
Dear Jim,
Take the lines loose from the faucet and check there; and take a look at your water heater by-pass.
My power went out from the GFI in the bathroom (1994 Four Winds 5th wheel). It is easy to trip it because some appliances ie, hair dryer, curl'iron hit the button and turn it off. I always reset it and am careful not to hit it again. This time it happened and I can't get it to reset.
I also had an electric heater running in the kitchen and forgot to turn it off before using the hair dryer. What could it be and how do I fix it? Do I have to go to a RV store for any parts? Funny thing, the microwave and an outlet in the loft still works.
Dear Kimberly,
Make sure all the load is turned off on the circuit; if it still won't reset, replace the GFI receptacle. You can get it at any hardware store or Walmart.
We just purchased a 35' Gulf Stream fifth wheel. (In advance, please excuse my lack of the right terms). The fifth wheel has an extension of the ball of the hitch that extends beyond the front of the overhang. We also bought a Ford crew cab with a short bed. The question I have is do I need to get a slider hitch? Given the extension, will I ever use it?
Dear Tim,
If the extension is extended far enough so you can jack knife the trailer without hitting you won't need the slider hitch.
Back the truck under the king pin at a 45 degree angle where the king pin would be centered and see if it has enough room to make the sweep straight without hitting the cab of the truck.
We have lost the keys to the storage compartments on a 1987 28 ft. Alpenlite fifth wheel. Is it possible to replace the keys without the original, and who can do it?
Dear Jeff,
You should be able to see a number on the face of the lock and order the keys from any RV parts source.
We noticed early in the summer that our fifth wheel's outside wall seemed to be buckling. When we pressed against it, water came out of the seam. As we camped, it seemed to dry out. But where our awning is attached, the bracket came right out of the wall.
Dear Maureen,
Sounds like maybe the awning bracket may have been the source of the leak. Probably sounds like the damage is severe enough that you're going to have to pull the exterior siding to repair the damage inside the wall.
We just purchased a 5th wheel and haven't even used it yet. I noticed that most parks have cable hook ups. Do we need to buy extra cord to connect to their cable, and how is this done?
Dear Karen,
If you have an external cable hook up on your fifth wheel you will connect your coaxle to your cable hookup on the fifth wheel and to the cable hookup at the campground post.
We have a 2005 Sierra 5th Wheel and every time we go to turn the breaker on to it the carbon monoxide alarm goes off, we then go and reset it and five minutes later it comes on again. What do we need to do in order for this to be fixed, it is a nuisance?
P.S. We have not used it in a few months.
Dear Lona,
You might let it run for a while and see if it will burn itself out (the sensor).
The sensor could be contaminated from setting in storage if there is no apparent odor noticeable to be causing the problem.
It could possibly be a defective or low battery.
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