Shawn Patterson

I didn't read that like that at all... Perhaps the point was that 5 minutes for the F250 was enough to get it started but as Sehc said, you might want to put a full charge on the batteries with a good charger.

I'd honestly be hard pressed to advise you without writing a novel. Have you been to https://fifthwheelst.com/? They have a great site to answer most if not all of your questions and they have a worksheet you can use for any potential rig you're looking at to make sure you are within your truck's limits.

We had the same concerns but went with a cellular monitor instead. It has worked out well for us. They also have wireless water monitors you can add on. The only downsides are that it only works if there is cell coverage (we haven't been anywhere where is hasn't worked) and there is an annual subscription fee. MarCELL MAR-500A Cellular System Temperature Monitor https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QRMFEAQ

I put on the Spray Master fenders and have been pretty happy with them. I love the Minimizer ones, but they were just too expensive. https://www.raneystruckparts.com/black-spray-master-poly-truck-fenders-for-22-5-or-24-5-wheels/

Yep, I agree, 10 different ways to skin this cat for sure and at the end of the day as long as what you have works for you (and is safe) that is all that matters. Unfortunately, unless something has changed over the last year, DRV will cap him at a #8 if I remember right. They are getting much more cookie cutter as the custom things slow their production.

To the OP: When I inquired about this with DRV a year ago the only option was to upgrade to an 8AWG wire which was pretty cheap to do and I would certainly recommend considering. Now, that being said, Mark are you are saying my solar install isn't serious? I think most would agree that 1340w of LG panels, 600AH of Battleborn batteries and 2 Victron 3000w inverters isn't playing around... I too know how to use a voltage drop calculator and conscientiously did so when laying out my system. With my four panels running 2S2P I will be pushing out no more than 21 amps at a max of 82VDC. Assuming 75 volts (the lowest I have seen from these panels), 21 amps and a 10AWG wire running 20 feet, my loss will be at 1.12% which is well within the general rule of thumb of 2-3% loss for a PV system. The 10% rule is applied more to load circuits within the coach (eg. Batteries to inverter or lighting), not for the PV array to the solar controller. So to your point, I agree that IF the OP is planning on running 24 volts that the #10 wire MAY not be the best choice. But then my first question would be why would you want to do that? Regardless, I guess I should have qualified my answer on the wire more clearly to say something along the lines of "depending on the voltage output of your panels and how you configure them (series/parallel/combination of the two) you will want to take a look at the voltage drop to determine the best wire gauge." So let's look at this case... Four Renogy 12V 100W panels (RNG-100D-SS) all in parallel (pros and cons here I won't even get into). Vmp of 17.9 volts and Imp of 5.72, so in a perfect world we end up with 17.9VDC at 22.88 amps. Now if we are running that 17.9VDC at 22.88 amps through a #10 wire over 20 feet, that equates to a 5% voltage drop which is a bit much for my liking as well. But if we just change the configuration of those same panels to a 2S2P setup we now have 35.8VDC at 11.44 amps and using the same #10 wire only equates to a 1.28% drop which is more than acceptable and I didn't have to spend a dime on heavier wire and wrestle with a #2 copper python to get to an acceptable voltage drop. So in summary, my humble opinion is that unless shading of your panels is a major concern, run some or all in series to up the voltage, reduce the losses and avoid having to spend a bunch of money on the larger wire and the hassle of working with it. ***TECH TIP*** Running solar panels in series requires an MPPT solar controller to handle the higher voltages.

On your original questions, here is my input on what I can speak to... Solar wiring... A 2-4 AWG wire is typically not needed as you will most likely be running at least some of your panels in series which will up the voltage and reduce the necessary wire gauge. I am in the process of installing 4 335w panels with 2 in series and 2 parallel and the stock 10 AWG wire that DRV uses is fine. When I inquired about this when looking at a new FullHouse I was told the largest DRV would do is an 8 AWG wire which I would expect would be more than enough for your needs unless you plan on going full parallel. Installing the wire chase from the basement to the roof would be the best bet if they will do it for you, but if not the #8 wire should be fine. 2800 watt inverter... I don't have it and wish I did. Unpublished options... I know there are a lot of things you could have done in the past, but my understanding is that DRV/Thor is clamping down on a lot of the semi-custom things they used to allow. Talking to Alicia at Rolling Retreats is your best bet to find out what can be done these days.

I second Allie and Jim's recommendation on Rolling Retreats! You won't find anyone more knowledgeable about Mobile Suites than them and Slade's pre-delivery inspection/remediations are second to none.

It was in the Confused What Goes Where post.

It's sort of odd they way they went about it... They knew that the money was going toward paying off the existing loan on the truck and there is verbiage in the contract stating it must be used for that. The interest rates are in line with what they have stated on their website for RV loans, and yet they didn't require to be added on as a lienholder, which is more like it was an unsecured personal loan. It was definitely a very different approach from everyone else I had talked to, but the end result is exactly what I was hoping for!

When we initially purchased our Volvo 730 I didn't want to try and find someone to finance what was a commercial vehicle or outlay the cash from our savings to purchase the truck, so we took out a personal loan through USAA for the purchase with the idea that we would refinance once the truck was titled as a Motorhome. Even with our excellent credit the refinance turned out to be a bit more challenging than I had expected. When we took out the initial loan USAA had said they would be able to convert the personal loan to a secured RV loan once the truck was titled as such. Turns out that wasn't really true... So off I go, contacting lenders to see if anyone would finance us at a reasonable interest rate. Alliant Credit Union, RV Lending Group, Xtreme Motorcoaches, Commercial Fleet Financing and our local credit union all said "no" because we don't fit into their little box of a motorhome and they can't look up the vehicle in the NADA guide. I then tried to see if we could get a better interest rate on a personal loan and pay off perhaps half the balance from savings. Nope, no luck there either... Some of the interest rates were lower, but after the fees were added in it was worse than what we had. I was feeling a bit discouraged at that point and was about to throw in the towel when I came across Lightstream. I submitted the application and supporting income documentation online Monday afternoon, answered some additional questions they had about what the money was going to be used for on Tuesday and had a check in the bank this morning for almost the complete outstanding balance of the truck. AND the loan isn't secured by the truck so we don't have to show a lienholder on the title! The net result was a reduction in the interest rate from 10.99% to 4.74%!! Not sure if this would work out for everyone as credit and income situations are certainly unique, but these folks were great to deal with and would be worth checking out if you are considering financing an HDT.