• Installed 3" casters on rear bumper
• Replaced door seal
• Replaced door latch
• Re-mounted rear baggage door
• Installed grab bar
• Replaced jack with electric model
• Fixed corner leak
• Corner leak, Round 2
• Repaired door holder
• Fixed front storage trunk water leak

• Installed wall-mounted baskets over kitchen counter
• Replaced sliding sofa decks with folding MDO plywood panels
• Replaced side storage compartment covers
• Fabricated cutting board/stove cover
• Fabricated pull-out for dishes
• Installed wall-to-wall carpeting
• Replaced metal table slide with wood dovetail
• Fabricated under-sofa drawers

• Installed dual Optima Blue-top 12-v. deep cycle batteries powering Trip-Lite 1000-watt inverter
• Installed dual 12-v. reading lamps
• Converted power cord to detachable
• Installed battery disconnect switch & re-mounted battery boxes
• Moved TV receptacle to drawer cabinet
• Installed TrueCharge 20+ charger, Fabricated quad battery rack, Installed Blue Sea battery switches, Re-installed Tripp-Lite 1Kw inverter

• Replaced kitchen faucet
• Installed water heater drain valve
• Fabricated gray water vacuum breaker
• Replaced factory water tank filler
• Installed internal water filter
• Fabricated water tank filler funnel
• Fabricated drain hose support
• Installed internal water pressure regulator
• Reconfigured gray water drain

• Installed hookup for propane burner
• Mounted A/C in window
• Repaired Norcold N300 refrigerator

• Installed front-mounted receiver hitch
• Installed 30-amp. outdoor receptacle
• Fabricated sliding jack foot
• Fabricated hitch mirror

Update Moved batteries to quad rack on tongue, Re-installed inverter next to charger in compartment under roadside dinette seat.

Update 10/05: I noticed these are starting to rust pretty good, which is seizing up the swivel action.  Also the rubber wheels are clearly not sufficient to carry the load when they touch down as they're getting chewed up.  I bought a axle flip kit, so I guess it's almost time to bite the bullet & raise the trailer to eliminate this problem.

1. Remove the old lock & scrape off the caulking.
2. Lay out the holes for the new lock.  Protect the Filon with some masking tape so your jig saw won't scratch it.
3. Cut the holes in the face & edge of the door.
4. Install the new lock. Seal with foam tape & white silicone caulk.
5. Mark, drill, & mount the strike plate on the door jamb. I bought a commercial SS model from HD & enlarged the opening to fit the strike & deadbolt. Note: The is a much more secure method to hold the door closed than simply catching the thin extruded alum. tab the weather-strip mounts on.  A few good pulls (by a human or hungry wildlife) could easily bend or break that - now they would have to rip out the entire door jamb to force open the door! 

It pretty much covered all  evidence of the old lock except for a few scratches on the inside edge of the door - hopefully I can find some Polar White paint that matches. Got to say it looks like it should have from the factory and I can finally lock the damn door from the inside without breaking my finger! (4/04 $75)

Update Added some pix of the completed installation with strike plate.

Update 4/8/06 Corrected dead URL to Dyer's RV.

1. Do nothing & take the Chalet back to the dealer to fix it under warranty.  This is probably the legally-correct choice since it won't endanger my warranty, but since I'm leaving for a trip in three days timing might have been a problem.  Also I'm afraid the repairs would consist mainly of pumping the gap full of caulking, leaving the root problem to return later.
2. Make the trip down to the factory.  Same downside as #1 plus I get to drive 65 more miles!.
3. Fill the gap with caulk myself & hope the door doesn't fall off during my upcoming 400 mile trip.
4. Remove the door & reattach it using fresh silicone caulking.

To me the last choice was the best so I went ahead & peeled the door all the way off.  As I thought, there was a perfectly molded impression of the back of the door frame stuck to the Filon skin and not a drop of caulking stuck to the extrusion!  (Maybe it had a light coating of oil?)  I peeled off the old stuff & tried to clean the surface as best one can when dealing with silicone...what a slippery mess!  I laid down a fat bead of latex/silicone caulk & stuck the door back into place with clamps all around & gave it 24 hrs. to cure.

The next day I popped off the clamps...and the door promptly began to slough away from fiberglass skin like a badly transplanted organ!  Damn...the silicone remnants are just too slick for anything to stick!  I scraped off the caulking & cleaned everything with a variety of increasingly volatile chemicals - mineral sprits, acetone, lacquer thinner, etc.  Then I reapplied 100% silicone thinking it would adhere to itself better than anything else & clamped the door back into place.

Another day later: almost the same result only this time the caulk didn't stick to the extrusion just like the original installation.  Down, but not beaten I repeated the messy cleaning process and then marked & drilled some mounting holes in the door frame.  My ace in the hole was an assortment of SS screws & bolts and some nifty little white plastic caps to cover the exposed heads I picked up at HD the night before "just in case".  More silicone caulk and then I bolted the door down tight (probably should have gone with the mechanical fasteners first thing).  Looks OK - I would have preferred the smoother glued-on look, but I'll wager it would have failed again in time.  I expect the front baggage door will need the same treatment too. (4/04 $15)

Update 8/04: When I switched to the electric jack this is no longer needed.

Update After the first trip I modified the clamp somewhat to make this work a little smoother.  The conduit is now permanently attached with longer bolts & the bolt holes were slotted in the "swing" side so the clamp could close with the bolts in place. Now I can hold the entire assembly with one hand when clamping onto the jack post & don't need to worry about losing a bunch of parts!

Update Once I installed the electric jack I discovered the conduit wouldn't clear the motor head, so I made up some brackets from UHMW that clamp around the jack tube.

Update Replaced with reconfigured gray water drain.

But where to mount it?  As Bob so eloquently put it in this Yahoo Chalet group posting you really only have two choices for A/C in a Chalet:

1. Permanently mount it in one of the under seat compartments like the factory
2. Hang it outside the sliding window over the sink.

I tend to discount the Aliner method of stuffing it behind the drawer cabinet with the compressor hanging halfway out in the breeze - seems like an accident waiting to happen IMHO. So, after carefully weighing the pros & cons...

...I decided the window mount was right for me!  I cobbled up a platform to hang it outside the sliding window over the sink from some scrap plywood and a sturdy piece of Oak to brace it.  After a couple seasons I can report it works great & really cools the rig down.  I've been carrying it in the bed of the truck & managed to avoid throwing out my back...so far!

Update 8/06: Constructed a plywood carrying box for the A/C unit so it doesn't get beat up in the bed of the truck.

To eliminate the dragging problem I moved the mounting plate down on the tube about 2½" to tuck the foot up tight against the bottom of the tongue.  Ultra-Fab makes a model with an extendable footpad that drops down to give you an additional 6" of lift (which would be perfect in this application) but I'm pretty sure the outer tube is too big for the Chalet. I'm going to look around for some 1½" OD heavy-wall tubing that will fit inside the jack so I can fab something similar.

Update 9/04: Turned jack head 180° so truck tailgate can open fully without hitting jack.

Update: I had some problems with people (including me!) shoving the carpet around with their feet when sitting, so I added some marine-style snaps in the corners & selected places to hold things down tight. I used the 3/8" Stud with Stainless Steel Screw driven into the flooring and the Nickel Plated Brass Cap. & Stainless Steel Socket.  Works great!

All was fine through the Summer & Fall but then I found water again in the same area in early Dec. & decided my sealing job behind the door frame must be faulty (even though it looked fine).  Because of the upcoming busy holidays I taped plastic sheeting over the entire baggage door & sealed it all around the edges so I could deal with it next Summer.  The amount of water was significant so I had to take everything out from under the sofa & pull the water tank to thoroughly dry out the area. To be sure I left my new oil-filled radiator heater running all month to help dry everything out.  Note: the trailer is open (top up) but not parked exactly level - it tips down slightly towards the the rear curbside corner, which explains why I've only seen water in that corner.

Just after the new year I prepared to reinstall the water tank & button up the trailer for a trip we had planned later in the month; but wouldn't you know I found water on the floor again! Not as much, but definitely more than condensation all along the outside wall from the wheelhouse to the back wall.  Damn!  With the baggage door ruled out the leak must be somewhere else, although I've dealt with enough roof leaks (it rains in Oregon occasionally) to know water can travel a long ways from the true entry point!

I posted a message about this in the Yahoo A-frame and Chalet groups for feedback and got back a lot a helpful suggestions - in fact a couple people were struggling with the same issue!  More importantly, I discovered this was a common A-frame problem long discussed on these forums and was able to find quite a few historical posts to back that up!  Most agreed the water was likely coming in at the corners next to the lift springs, which apparently is difficult to seal properly given the multi-axis movement dictated by the design.

Obviously I would prefer not to deal with neither the water or resulting long-term damage to the structural floor so I followed this plan:

1. My first step was to test the entry point theory. Using clear packing tape, I sealed up the rear curbside corner as completely as possible, paying special attention to the little nooks & crannies that might let water through.  Then I waited a few days & let the rain have a crack at it before inspecting the interior for signs of water. 
   
   
2. I was heartened to find none so the next phase was removing the "beauty plate" & inspecting the stock sealing system.  Behind the plate the end of the white vinyl covering the hinge across the back was stretched around the corner & loosely across the spring end .  Attached to the back of the plate was a small vertical strip of open-cell foam tape that compresses against the upper sidewall (when raised), plus some more laid horizontally that frankly touched nothing - just filler I guess.  Then I noticed a small gap above the upper RH corner of the plate where the vertical foam ends - I suspect this is the source of the leak as any water that runs off the top will follow the edge straight to this area!  See my sketch below for the exact location:
   
   Note the small plastic diverter added by the factory in an attempt to channel water away from this area, but unfortunately it has a gap at the top right where you need it! Aggravating the situation is the mounting rail for my awning, which probably acts like a little gutter to guide water right to the weakest point!
   
   
3. So, what to do? It stands to reason if the entire corner area could covered by some kind of flexible, waterproof membrane that could move with the various pieces as the wall/top is folded up & down the leak could be prevented.  What I really need is piece of EPDM rubber roofing, but my local home center doesn't carry that - however they did have some 40-mil PVC shower pan liner that should work until I can find something better.  I bought a foot off a 48" roll (for a whopping $4.98) and cut out several versions of a "water shield" before I got one that seemed to work the best.  Basically, it fits completely behind the beauty plate and runs up into the side over the end of the spring, back to the top corner, and towards the front along the bottom of the upper side for a couple inches (added a SS screw to secure it in place).  The key is leaving enough material so it can fold back between the sidewall halves when the top is up.
   
   
4. Finally, I didn't like the thin open-cell foam along the sidewall joint - seemed much too porous - so I replaced it all along the curbside wall joint & behind the beauty strip with some denser closed-cell weather stripping.  I'll do the same everywhere else when I get the time.

After a week of fairly hard rain I haven't detected any more water inside so this must have plugged the leak. I'll reinstall the tank & put everything away but plan to keep an eye on this until I'm satisfied it's a permanent fix.  Plus I need to do the other three corners! (12/04 $15)

PS - Sorry for the crappy pictures.  My camera has a hard time focusing on the right place when the flash is turned off.  I'll try to get some decent shots when it's not so overcast!

Update 4/05: So far, so good.  No more water inside I can detect and I still need to do the other three corners!  I'm guessing  the rear road-side is probably the low point when the rig is parked on the side of the house.

Update 10/05: The storage compartment in the RH rear corner stills seems "humid", so I suspect there is still some water getting in. With the amount of postings about this problem in the various boards this is clearly a common issue!  I noticed the bedding at the foot of our bed was damp during a recent trip with heavy rain so I'm leaning towards the "water running down the inside wall" theory.  Stay tuned...

Update 6/06: Bill Marshall did some excellent research and may have found the real source of these leaks.  See Corner Leak Round 2.

In case you don't want to read the email thread, the culprit is that rubber seal that runs across the rear roof section about 3/4 of the way up (seals the front section when closed).  As Bill observed this acts as a "gutter" to channel rainwater across the roof, which doesn't pour off the ends as expected but rather follows the inside of roof edge down to the corners.  I believe this is caused by water's properties of cohesion, adhesion, & surface tension, so if you add some means to divert it off the roof before it can perform this little trick the problem is resolved!

Bill made some diverters to test his theory and I'm trying some plastic gutter spouts I picked up from CW.  We have trip planned for the Oregon coast in late July and since there's always a chance for rain there year-round I may get to test mine in real world conditions.  Stay tuned!

There are some pictures in the thread which illustrates Bill's test & my solution.

My friend has one of these JR Products combination water tank filler/fresh water connections on his new camper and I was impressed how well it worked (and looked).  An added bonus is the locking door that keeps everything clean & secure.  At the same time I replaced the stock corrugated filler hose with some HD braided vinyl tubing because I developed a stubborn leak when I reinstalled my water tank after fixing the corner water leak.

Update 4/05: This really works great!  On the next trip out the water tasted clean & fresh...like it came out of a bottled water dispenser!  In fact, even though we had hook-ups we used the water from the tank until it ran dry because it was so much better!

I did a little investigation and determined a new outlet could be installed just above the existing 110-v. receptacle on the drawer cabinet and decided to run the wiring underneath the trailer rather than around & through the cabinets because of the difficulty going around the refrigerator.  We also opted to replace the old TV outlet with another 110-v. receptacle because A) it would be very handy to have another, and B) the likelihood of us placing the TV on the table in the future was slim to none.

Because of a problem using the stock TV wiring (RG-59 won't work) with our satellite system, I snaked a new length of quad shielded RG-6 coaxial cable in from the exterior connector and ran it down through the floor, across, and up through the drawer cabinet.  Encased with the cable in some corrugated plastic loom for protection are a pair of 12-v. supply wires for the "cigarette-lighter" receptacle.  To power the new 110-v. receptacle I just connected it in parallel with the existing outlet on the right side of the table.  Much better!

Update 4/05: I'm really glad we did this mod.  Didn't have a chance to try the satellite but it worked fine for CATV. I picked up a short (24") coaxial cable & 90° connector which really cleans everything up.

Update 6/05: Works great for satellite too!

My original plan was to machine a set of dovetailed slides like in a dining room table out of UHMW; but Oak is pretty tough & readily available so I went with that.  I used a 14° dovetail router bit to cut both sides & made it the same height & width as the stock slides + mounting rail although a bit longer for more extended support. Next time I'd make the slides about 1/2" wider (2" overall) to better accommodate the screws holding the mounting brackets.  A couple coats of clear lacquer makes them slide real smoooooth!

Update 4/05: The table slides very easy now and seems more stable at extreme extensions. I did have to trim the slide about an inch on each end because it was hitting the support bars when the table was folded down. Guess my tolerances were a little tight, but no big deal.

In that spirit, I figured a higher form of this art could be mine if I made a telescoping support for my gray water hose; which like my gut tends to sag a bit when it's full and slowing down the flow.  For a prototype I cut off a 4' piece of 1½" ABS plastic pipe and split it in half with my band saw.  Then I nested the two halves together & used a couple big zip-ties to hold 'em together just tight enough to allow them to slide & extend.  Worked so good on the last trip I think I'll stop there - no use trying to improve on simple efficiency!

Because we most often use the bedding storage configuration when camping I realized we could get to most of the storage area by using a couple of drawers with metal slides similar to the dish drawer I made last summer. Of course you do lose a little space (about 8" overall across the width - 1" in depth) with the drawer boxes & supporting dividers, but I felt it was a good trade for much easier access! 

I made the drawer boxes from 1/2" MDO plywood; my favorite material for projects like this because it's flat, smooth, stable, & strong.  They hang from 22" full-extension 100#-rated slides, which are mounted to MDO bulkheads on either side of the drawers & between.  The bulkheads are screwed to the sofa framing which worked out almost perfectly for this mod - I just had to remove a couple vertical 1x2 supports that would have been in the center of each drawer.  To cut out the openings for the drawers I first installed all the bulkheads and then used a flush-trim (laminate) router bit chucked in an air grinder.  The bearing simply followed the bulkheads on the sides and the 1x2 sofa framing on top & bottom - very slick & hardly any sawdust!

For the drawer fronts I made some raised panels from Red Oak similar to the other cabinet doors and found some stain that matches pretty close.  Over that went a couple coats of clear satin lacquer for protection.

Since I'm one of those guilty-as-charged fools who leaves the trailer connected to shore power all winter (to power a dehumidifier & keep the batteries charged) I opted for a more sophisticated charging system.  The TrueCharge series from Xantrex seemed to get consistently high marks, and since I got such a good deal from Star Marine Depot decided to spring for the optional remote panel & temperature sensor too.

This also seemed like a good time to build a double-decker rack so all four batteries could fit on the tongue & free up some valuable storage space inside. I'm not too worried at tongue weight since my Tundra is equipped with a class III hitch & can carry 3/4 ton, but first chance I get to stop at a public scale I'll see how it looks.

While I was at it I decided to remount my 1Kw inverter next to the charger to take advantage of the wiring proximity & centralize all the electrics.  As mentioned before this was located under the rear sofa with a couple AGM batteries, but my new pull-out drawers displaced everything back there - it should work out much better in the new location up front under the RS dinette seat.

Finally, I picked up a pair of Blue Sea 9001e 4-position battery switches (again from Star Marine) to direct the power from my batteries to either the trailer loads or inverter or both.  I got some great advice from the guys in the Yahoo Chalet group about using relays to switch the charger & batteries when connecting to shore power; but at this point felt a manual approach would be a good first step.  Besides, I'm not all that thrilled about leaving solenoids energized for months at a time & these switches are proven in similar marine applications.

For safety disconnects I used a pair of Monster Cable PowerFuse in-line holders attached to the back of each bank's primary battery box.  Inside are some StreetWires 20-amp AGU fuses, which I selected primarily because the stock fuse was also 20-amp (even though TrueCharge recommends a 25-amp fuse). BTW, if I had to do it again I might go with the StreetWires fuse holders, which claims to be watertight - the PowerFuse was lacking any kind of water seal on the outside ends.

Wiring Schematic

Still to do:

• Mount the TrueCharge remote panel in a suitable location.  I'm thinking about the side of the drawer cabinet just inside the door?
• Mount the TrueCharge temp sensor to one of the batteries.  Not sure which - AGM or wet-cell.  Maybe I'll hold off on this until I pick up another set of AGM batts.
• Add a switch to control the 120 VAC to the charger.  Now it comes on whenever shore power is available (unless I trip the breaker.  I can see the need to control this closer.  Maybe I can find a lighted rocker switch similar to the pump & mount it next to the remote panel?
• Move the inverter power switch out to an accessible location.  I noticed when it's "on" it may revert to "off" when I switch to a different battery bank - better to switch the batts first & then turn it on.  Maybe up next to the charger switch?
• Run the 120 VAC output of the inverter to outside the compartment.  Now I have to plug any appliances directly into the inverter - it would much more convenient of I had a remote outlet to use.  Perhaps the receptacle that used to be the TV outlet could be used?  Maybe replace it with one of those orange receptacles used to denote filtered power?  Or better yet, figure out a method to send the power to the existing 120 VAC outlets?

Update 6/06: Replaced original flooded-cell batteries with two more Optima D34M's, Updated wiring diagram.

Update 8/06: To make it more convenient when using the inverter I decided to add a transfer switch to route 120 VAC to the trailer from either shore power or the inverter.  This way I could use all my existing 120 VAC outlets when boondocking and not have to run extra wiring to dedicated inverter outlets.  They have automatic switches available that sense the presence of a power supply & switch to whatever is available, but I thought I'd stay with the K.I.S.S. theme for now.  I ordered a 30-amp DPDT switch from Grainger that should be able to handle the load and mounted it in a metal duplex box in my growing "electrical compartment" under the front dinette seat.  I also added a switch to turn off the battery charger so it won't try to charge the batteries when running on inverter power.

But as so often happens on these projects one thing leads to another.  After I finished installing the transfer switch I directed one of the battery banks over to the inverter, flipped on the switch, and voila...the lamp I had plugged in near the sink glowed reassuringly!  Feeling cocky, I next plugged in my small shop vac to clean up.  Ack!  The inverter screamed & immediately shut down and despite my best efforts refused to come alive again.  I snooped around & discovered the 30-amp fuse for that battery bank had blown.  Hmmm...never had this problem before & that vac only draws about 650 watts from my 1Kw inverter?  So I did a little research & was surprised to find this particular inverter can draw up to 100 amps from the batteries at full rated load!  Guess my #8 wiring & 30-amp fuses are a bit undersized - the shorter wire run when I had the inverter & batteries mounted in the back must have masked this problem until now.

No sense going this far without doing it right, so I ordered some appropriately-sized Ancor #4 marine-grade cable, a pair of Blue Sea ANL fuse blocks, and 2 sets of Blue Sea 125-amp ANL fuses from West Marine.  They were on the more expensive side than other suppliers but offered free shipping & I had my stuff in less than a week!  I also picked up some copper lugs & the coolest hammer crimping tool from NAPA - it was worth every one of the 5,529 pennies I paid for it!

Then I somewhat reluctantly removed all the new heavy-duty (so I thought) #8 battery wiring I had just installed a year ago & pulled two sets of fat #4 back to the selector switch for & to the inverter.  I left the #8 jumpers to the Elixir selector alone as I don't think it will draw the amperage of the inverter.  When I fired it up for the vac test again it passed with flying colors, so I guess it was worth it!

The hose adapters screwed off easily enough and I had to cobble up some rather unique brass elbows that were 1/4" MNPT on one side & 1/2" barb (for tubing) on the other.  Apparently no such animal exists so I bought enough pieces to make my own by soldering the appropriately-sized street elbows to some barbed adapters.

I was able to crank up the standing pressure to 60 psi, but noticed it drops to 40 when you turn on a faucet.  Hmmm...that's about what my cheapie regulator delivered?  Granted, I never ventured outside when the water was running to see what the pressure dropped to, but it does seem like the flow is less when using city water Vs. pumping from my tank!  I'll see how it goes and maybe upgrade to the next size up - I've got to believe restricting the passage down to 1/4" negatively affects your flow!

Faced with the prospect of a constant cycle of remounting this thing every six months or so I finally decided to fix this annoyance permanently by replacing it with a metal connection securely attached to something solid.  Using a locking cable hatch I picked up at CW, I removed the original plastic fitting & cut away the ripped up section of the wall with the hole.  Luckily it straddled a vertical framing member so there would be a good attachment point.  While I was at it I decided to incorporate a venting system to eliminate the vacuum lock common to this type of drain (See the mod I did previously to solve this) by running a second pipe up into the refrigerator vent cavity higher than the drain level.

For the record, I realize this plumbing could have been done under the sink without resorting to chopping holes in the side of my trailer, and there is really no need for the access hatch other than to solve the problem with the chewed up wall around the hole!  However it also conveniently covered up the hole from the former fresh water inlet made redundant with the mod that combined it with the tank fill.

I built a drain manifold from 3/4" copper pipe which should maximize my drain performance and was able to snake the vent into place pretty easily.  The brass hose fitting was reamed to fit over the pipe & soldered into place to reduce the projection from a threaded connection. Gotta say, it's solid as a rock once I screwed down a couple clamps to the framing. 

Finally, I picked up a 4x8 sheet of white ABS from Home Depot that closely matches the color & texture of the storage trunk.  Not sure what I'll do with all this; but a small 6x6" piece made a good "wall" to prevent the refrigerator exhaust from infiltrating into the sink cabinet & eventually inside the trailer.  I'll fit some foam insulation around the pipe to provide a little protection from the cold weather when I have a chance.

After returning home I tried a few more times and finally resorted to pulling off the outside access panel so I could watch what was (not) happening while Kristi try to light it from inside.  I could see the igniter spark correctly & could smell propane so all seemed in order, so imagine my surprise when a flame shot out of the air intake hole and not the burner slots where it should have!  Thinking there must be problem with the igniter electrode alignment, I removed the sheet metal shroud around the burner assembly & had Kristi press the gas safety valve button inside so I could light it manually.  After several tries I never did get the burner to light, but each time a small flame would instead pop out of the breather hole just like before. Hmmmm...

I poked around some more and noted evidence this had been happening for some time, as the igniter electrode holder directly above the errant flame was scorched and the silicon-covered wire leading into it was stiff & cracked from the heat. The plastic grommet in the sheet metal shroud which it passed through was also melted.  (See my comments in Fig. 1 below)  Let me point out this is outside the burner box - yikes!  At this point I was convinced the safety valve was not operating properly and only allowed a small amount of gas through; which had insufficient pressure to make it to the burner slots but could leak out of the air inlet ports.

Fig. 1 - from Norcold N300 Parts Manual (pl_n300,n400_619128_120704.pdf)

I did a little research on the web and discovered others had been having trouble with their N300's and that Norcold had finally issued a little-publicized repair kit intended to fix ignition problems - see my thread on this topic.  Thinking it might solve my problem I ordered one & after a couple of weeks (Norcold sent dealer wrong part) I finally picked it up last week and installed it yesterday.

Thanks to Rich Hardesty's excellent step-by-step instructions it only took about 15 min. to unscrew the refrig, slide it out, swap the two wires included in the kit, and reinstall everything.  (The only thing I did differently was unhook the gas line, which made it much easier to slide out)  With everything back in place I turned on the gas, purged the line by lighting the stove, and held down the safety valve button, and pressed the igniter a few times.  Repeated this several times and saw no movement on the flame indicator gauge, but I did hear a muffled pop a few times which meant something was lighting so I went out to investigate.  Sure enough, the area above the breather hole was warm & fresh soot was on the igniter so that damn flame was still burning in the wrong place!

I was getting mad now so I yanked out all the screws again, disconnected the gas line & 12-v. supply, unplugged the 120-v. cord, and pulled the refrig. completely out!  It's surprisingly light so I put a piece of cardboard on my stove lid & set the whole thing on top so I could see what was really happening here.  (Actually, I didn't have a choice since it won't fit through the door!)  I removed all the sheet metal shrouds around the burner & the insulation above so I could expose the entire burner assembly.  Then I removed the igniter & thermocouple assemblies, disconnected the gas line to the pressure tap, and finally removed the burner tube.  No obvious problem with the latter, but possibly the orifice is obstructed?

One interesting side note and possibly the only good thing that may come from this exercise (other that getting this thing to work on propane).  When I removed the insulation covering the boiler tube, burner chimney, and the two electric heaters I noticed the 12-v. heater was just sort of flopping loose. This was in direct contrast to the 120-v. heater which was inserted into a metal sleeve welded to the boiler tube, undoubtedly to help with the heat transfer.  Coincidently there was a 2nd unused sleeve right next to it - could it be this was intended for the low-voltage heater?  I tried to slip it into the sleeve and discovered it would only drop down about halfway, so a quick inspection with a dental mirror revealed a slight bulge in the sleeve from the welding process was impeding it.  A few minutes work with a round file & some sandpaper removed the obstruction and voila - the 12-v. heater now lives in what I suspect was it's intended home!  I'm sure some assembly worker at Norcold tried to insert it correctly, and having failed like I did just stuck it near the boiler & used the insulation to hold it in place!  After all, they're not being paid to think, right?  And unless the inspector was looking right over their shoulder at the time it all looked fine with the insulating wrapper in place.  That certainly explains why the performance on 12-v. has always been lousy - hopefully the better heat conduction will improve things significantly!  Here's a great site that explains how these gas absorption refrigerators work.

At this point I plan to replace the burner/orifice assembly (PN 621953), the scorched electrode spark ignition assembly (PN 619153), and the melted plastic bushing (PN 61606522).  If that doesn't work, well...there's always the AC/DC Norcold DE-490 although I'd wonder about my sanity if I replaced a defective Norcold refrigerator with yet another Norcold!

The next day I called my local distributor & they had all but the bushing in stock, so I picked them on the way home from work. $25 for the burner & $10 for the igniter wire.  (I can find the bushing elsewhere).  It took just a few minutes to install the new parts, so I decided to test everything before I put the refrig. back in place.  I rigged up a small disposable propane tank to the gas inlet & tried to light it - nothing, not even a gas smell.  Hoping it was just a case of low pressure, I stopped at the local hardware store when we went out to dinner for some flare fittings to make up an extension hose.  When we returned I used a 4' piece of PFTE air brake hose to connect the fridge to it's regular gas source - should be fine for a test.  Then I crossed my fingers, held down the safety button for a long 20 count, & hit the igniter a few times.  Eureka!  The needle moved into the green so I checked the back of the fridge and sure enough, there was small but strong blue flame right where it was supposed to be!  Tomorrow I'll reinstall the unit & test it again with all the shrouds & stuff...hopefully I'll get a repeat performance.

The following weekend I reinstalled the refrigerator & tested it again - "Houston we have ignition!". While I was attaching the gas & electric I took a hard look at the whole area from the outside.  There were signs of water pooling under the refrig. and judging by the generous amount of caulking everywhere I'd guess the factory has concerns about that. It looked like water could easily enter along the bottom of the grill during a heavy rain (or washing) as well as through any of the vent openings with some wind behind it.  I had some extruded PVC trim so I installed a section along the bottom to act as a dam to block any water that leaks in.  There were even notches on either side just the size of a 1x2 that were left when the bottom plate was removed - not sure why as the extra space is really not necessary for access.  Some judicious caulking of my own sealed everything up tight.

So I decided to make a more permanent repair and went back to PPL to order a variety of replacement door holders: surely with all these I could make something work!  I finally ended using the metal stud & rubber insert from one kit with the plastic socket from another; primarily because I could bend the metal stud to the correct angle.  We'll see how the plated finish holds up - I would have preferred stainless but...

So far it works well & acts as sort of a bumper if you swing open the door too hard.  I don't think it has the rigid "holding power" of the Grip-O-Door, but that may have it's downfall - "trees that don't bend in the wind break"!

(6/06 $15)

In case you don't want to read the email thread, the culprit is that rubber seal that runs across the rear roof section about 3/4 of the way up (seals the front section when closed).  As Bill observed this acts as a "gutter" to channel rainwater across the roof, which doesn't pour off the ends as expected but rather follows the inside of roof edge down to the corners.  I believe this is caused by water's properties of cohesion, adhesion, & surface tension, so if you add some means to divert it off the roof before it can perform this little trick the problem is resolved!

Bill made some diverters to test his theory and I'm trying some plastic spouts I picked up from CW.  We have trip planned for the Oregon coast in late July and since there's always a chance for rain there year-round I may get to test mine in real world conditions.  Stay tuned!

There are some pictures in the thread which illustrates Bill's test & my solution.

I've been plagued with a water leak in the front storage trunk of my '04 Arrowhead since it was new. I tried tightening the latches, adding extra foam around the edges of the lid, and finally resorted just keeping a tarp over the trailer when not in use. I also placed a couple of chemical air driers inside to try to control the mildew.

Last summer I was camping at the beach & had the lid up as usual on a sunny day to dry things out. We had some friends stop by for a visit & while I was explaining why the trunk was open he said why not run some caulk around the weather-stripping? I was about to dismiss his remark with a "thanks but I've tried everything" when it suddenly occurred to me he might be onto something.

I grabbed the rubber weatherstrip (which is integrated into the U-shaped trim that covers the raw edge of the trunk opening) & pulled it off for several inches. I was amazed to discover the edge of the trunk was simply a flat tab (i.e. parallel to the bottom of the trunk) rather than the upturned lip I had expected. It was obvious any water collecting in the drain cavity "outside" of the weatherstrip - particularly across the top - could simply work it's way under the U & drip inside. IOW, the U is not watertight & relies on friction to hold it in place. This explains why I always see a lot of water in the trunk when I wash the trailer!

I guess I just assumed Chalet would have followed standard fiberglass boat-building practice by providing a upturned edge or dam around any opening. When I got home I pulled off the weatherstrip/trim across the top & about 12" down each side, cleaned the lip well, filled the U with black silicone caulking, & squished everything back in place. I just checked a few minutes ago - after several periods of heavy rain so far this Fall it's nearly bone dry inside!  What little moisture I can see is near the front corners so I'm thinking I'll need to caulk the weatherstrip all the way down both sides.  Those of you with water problems might want to check this out.