High-Low up time?
 

Hi everyone,

My high-low fun lite goes up and down fine but my question is how long can it be kept up? I'm parking it at a camp in Pa. for the summer so I was thinking of keeping it up all the time while it's sitting there. Will this hurt anything? I worry because it's an 87 but very fit.

thx. Marty in Pa.

I personally would raise and lower it as needed. Partially, for a security standpoint.

I don't believe there is any time limit on how long you can leave the top up. As long as your lift system and the safety catch are in good shape there should be no problems. For security I would prefer to put it down when not being there for any length of time, that would also relieve the load from the lift system.

Not at all. Might I suggest raising it all the way then lowering it onto the detents (Not pulling the cable as you lower it so the safety catch engages) so you don't have any strain on the lift/lower cables. Keeping the trailer plugged in will overcharge the batteries and boil out the water inside so expect to address that.

"overcharge the batteries and boil out the water inside"
is that true??
i had been keeping mine plugged in so that the battery would stay charged.
so keeping it plugged in will overcharge? at what point is it overcharged?
how long should i leave it plugged in then to avoid over charging?
this is getting complicated. :(

Joan

I suggest getting a trickle charger/battery minder. They will keep a constant charge going to your battery without overcharging it.

Joan, overcharging a battery can shorten the life of a battery, sometimes considerably. Our onboard battery chargers are dumb chargers, meaning they feed a constant voltage to the battery, even when they are fully charged. Leaving them plugged in several days won't hurt but within several weeks, you may start to notice the water level in your batteries starting to drop. The tricke charger or battery minder, sometimes called a smart charger, puts the full charging battery to the battery till they are charged up, then they taper the voltage down to what will maintain the battery. While not necessary, these can be a huge help if you want to leave the trailer plugged in.

If you have never checked the level of water in your batteries, I would suggest finding a friend who has so they can demonstrate how to do it. It's not particularly hard but the battery acid inside is very caustic so you need to be careful. You will need to top off with distilled water.

HiLo up time.
 

Our service manager told us to cut 2x4 to the right length to put on all four corners while the Hi Lo is in the up position.This takes pressure off the cables. Wouldn' solar panel(s) put a trickle charge on the battery?

A solor panel would need a reglulator. A solar panel otherwise is constantly charging, just like leaving your trailer plugged in.

thanks for all the info everyone,

I will be going there almost every weekend and it's not far away so I was thinking of just unplugging it while I'm not there? This way it will only charge while I'm there. I also have a battery jumper pack just in case it goes too low?

Also I was thinking that the safety-lock would keep enough weight off cables? The 2x4s are a great idea tho.

The security is pretty good up there only once in a while a propane thief or tank switcher strikes.

thx. marty in Pa.

I leave mine up in my barn all the time. Only put it down to tow.

Well, you have kind of answered you own question.

I am not an expert, Im just putting in my $0.02 in. The safety lock is only on the cylinder, and has no bearing on the the strain or weight on cables. Cables when up are doing all the work. Plus, I believe this is documented in the replacing cables in the references section, you have to hold camper up like I describe below, to work on cables.

I put mine up when I store it, IF I have work to do, like I do now. BUT, I let it rest on 4 2x4 posts that are 22.5 inches long (just 1/8 inch short of fully exteneded). I do this because I keep hearing people breaking cables, having the cables hold the roof all the time, to me, would have to lead to failure quicker, as I contemplate it, any cable will hold its load for a finite amount of time. I hate to waste my cables' usable days, holding the camper up, while just in storage.

I agree with the post above, it can provide some security, when down, but also telegraphs that youre not there.

Yeah, good idea, I think I'll make some wooden stands too.

regarding leaving it up.
there was an '87/88 towlite listed at a dealer in Souderton, PA (Fretz enterprises)
that was listed for $2700. 24ft, no bathroom or heater in it. i figured i could make do with a porta potty, so i called about it.
my questions:
does the AC work? NO
does the fridge work? NO
water heater? NO water heater
stove? NO
so i said, hows the hydraulics? does it go up and down ok? NO

so here sat a unit for at least a year or longer in the up position and was gonna be sold that way, and towed that way (big no-no)
and still asking $2700 for it! so now i knew why it was there for so long.
after our conversation and my response, "you have got to be kidding me!"
they dropped the price to $1700 and finally sold it
"as is"

Joan,

You asked all the right questions... it is hard to fool and experienced owner!
Makes you wonder how much the previous owner had pulled it with the top up? Since it wasn't a complete wreck, I'm guessing not very far or fast.

Jim

Hi-Lo up time.
 

Great Info so far on this topic. Let me get my 2-cents in on this.

1. Weight on the cables. When the unit goes up the weight is on the four cables. The safety bar drops in place (just like a door stop) and locks the cylinder in the up position. If there is any leakage the unit stays up for safety. But note this: The weight of the top is still supported by the 4 cables. If you don't buy this try cutting any cable. KA-BOOM. The only way to take the weight off the cables is:

a. Insert 2x4 at each corner and lower the top to rest on them.

b. Lower the top all the way down so it rests on the supports.

If I were leaving the trailer for any appreciable time I would lower it for security and to take the strain off the cables. See the forum topic on HYDRAULIC LIFT for more details.

A good trickle charger that will charge but not over charge the battery is a good investment. A weak, under-charged battery is the source of all kinds of problems.

GOOD LUCK

RE. Fretz RV. Sales..lol
 

Well I'm the one that bought the one at Fretz Rv. But here is the rest of the story..
They were asking $2700 for it. So I went there and looked at it then they said $1700. But I said it wont go down so they said make an offer. So I said $600 lol. and they said yes. Then I talked to the Service dept. and they said they could fix it for $500,, so I said yes to all. So I own it for $1100 and it goes up and down great.

Update.. Heater does work great...A/C is perfect I tried it last Friday when it was 80 up here.. It has a stove-top without an oven that works.. I installed a new toilet.. No hotwater heater in it but thats next. And everything else seems to be in working order? I even crawled under it and took a good look at it.
I will post some pics. when it's done soon.

So bottom line is I don't think they checked everything on it when it came in?

thx. everyone Marty in pa.

ps. I wounder if they knew the A/C has a seperate cord? lolol.

so it was you who bought it! i was wondering who would buy it even at that reduced price. they said to me, "its only good for hunters who want a shelter or place to sleep" since nothing works on it.
yeah, it was listed as having "fridge, AC, stove" but none of them worked he said. he probably knew nothing about plugging the AC in first. i had him on the phone and he went out and tried everything.
i was still almost considering it till he said the hydraulics don't work either.
Check please!!! lol
that was the deal breaker for me.
i am glad you got it, they were probably glad to see it go since they had to keep telling all the people who asked about it, the same sad story. i think you certainly got your $600 worth. it gave you a base to build on and it can only get better from there. now you can restore it back to its glory and you have a very nice usable camper.
which just goes to show you these things don't die :)
they just keep on campin!

When I bought it all the sales people were busy with all the Rv. shows so I don't think they cared about the high-low. But I did luck out with everything working tho. It dosen't happen too often where the public gets the upper hand on the dealer?