Tech Q&A: More Winter RVing Questions, Fixing a Bad Thermostat, and More

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Our resident RV maintenance expert provides advice on a wide variety of topics.

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More Questions on Winter RVing in New Jersey

Thank you for being so helpful with my questions about our 22-foot Keystone Cougar and wintering full-time in New Jersey. A few more queries for you here!

— Shelly Sterling-Williams, Bogota, NJ

Q: Staying warm while keeping the humidity level under control has been a big challenge. Thoughts?
A: I suggest using a hygrometer (relative humidity meter) to monitor humidity inside the coach. They’re not expensive.

Q: Should we stuff the storage compartment with storage bins to keep that area warm?
A: Depending on the size of the storage area(s), you could store seasonal clothes there— blankets, towels, bed linens, etc. If that’s not enough, try some foam boards. Empty plastic storage containers don’t insulate well.

Q: Should we try to put something over the outside door before the snow comes?
A: The outside door is fully weatherproof and should be fine in snow. However, if cold intrusion is a problem, rig up an insulating curtain on the inside. (However, make sure it won’t slow egress in case of a fire.)

Q: I was told to change the filter in my 10-cubic-foot Furrion refrigerator every six months. Do I really need to?
A: The filter you refer to is only used for food odor control. It’s not necessary for safe operation—many RV refrigerators don’t even have this feature. Replacement frequency really depends on what kinds of food you have stored in the fridge, and if they are well sealed. Many folks use a package of baking soda, at significantly lower cost. That said, the filter is easy to replace—it basically snaps in. Look at the mounting points on the new one before removing the old one.

Photo Credit: Dometic

Replacing a Faulty Thermostat

Q: We have owned our 2019 Forest River Impression 20RB since new. The Dometic Single Zone LCD Thermostat has always been very sensitive to the touch—hard to select the mode or temperature you’re aiming for. We suspect we need to replace it. What do you think?

— Jim and Pat Thompson, Seaford, DE

A: I haven’t heard of those exact symptoms, but it sure sounds like the circuit board is going bad. Replacements are not very expensive. I suggest changing it for a model that has the features you want. A DIYer can change one quite easily—just keep track of which wire goes to which terminal. I always take a picture of the wiring before taking it apart.

Photo Credit:

Slo-Flo Resolved

Q: We have a new 2024 Grand Design Imagine 2500RL. We have very low water pressure in the shower— worse on city water, marginally better on the internal tank. The flow is not enough to keep the tankless water heater engaged. Water pressure and flow at both bath and kitchen sinks are good. To keep hot water in the shower we have to turn on hot in the bathroom sink. The tankless water heater is factory installed. What’s going on here?

— David Reece, Fort Wroth, TX

A: In my initial response to David, I noted that I strongly suspected the shower head had a flow restrictor installed. It could have been partly clogged with debris—or maybe something was just wrong with it. In a second note, he related that the original dealership had investigated and asked about a brass fitting on the water intake: a pressure regulator he’d used for years. The dealership advised removing it, but that didn’t resolve the problem. A new multi-position head did the trick, working fine with the old pressure regulator.

Photo Credit: Anetlanda/Getty

Tune In

Q: My wife and I are part-time campers, thinking of full-timing it. Currently we have DirecTV in the house as well as in our 2020 Winnebago Adventurer. At some point, we lost local channels in the rig. DirecTV told us to switch the control box, but as it turns out, the local stations are SD vs. HD, so only available with an antenna. Any suggestions? My wife likes to tape her soaps, and (in fairness) I like the golf channels.

— Lance Arnold, Elyria, OH

A: Dish and your current DirecTV are the two options for mobile RV satellite reception. You can get their services anywhere in the country. And yes, you can use an external antenna for over-the-air TV—this can be iffy, depending on where you go. IPTV, or TV over Internet (TCP/IP connections), can get you to services like Netflix, Hulu, Roku, etc. Most charge a moderate monthly fee. However, campground Wi-Fi likely can’t give you the needed bandwidth for streaming. If you don’t want to be a bandwidth bandit, you can get TV applications on your computer. There are a number of TV applications like LinuxTV, in addition to streaming via a web browser. Some, such as Miro on Linux using Bittorrent, can be throttled so you don’t hog bandwidth.