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Old 12-30-2015, 12:42 PM   #1
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New to me camper

I just found this forum. I may need help along my way of owning my first full sized camper. I previously owned a pop up. BIG DIFFERENCE

I won't be camping until spring, so my first question is...

I'm storing my camper in my yard, where there really aren't any "flat" areas. It's on a slight grade (my guess is 6-8" from being level). Am I going to be okay with this, or will it be a problem?
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Old 12-30-2015, 06:00 PM   #2
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If it were me I would run the low side up on a board or block to get it level as possible. What year and size Sunline did you get?
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Old 12-30-2015, 06:02 PM   #3
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Storage no. It would be nice if the slope was on the same side as the water drains.
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Old 12-30-2015, 06:04 PM   #4
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It is a 1995. 22 foot. I believe it's a T 2251.
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Old 12-31-2015, 08:58 AM   #5
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Welcome Eagle!

And congrats on your new to you sunny! We too came from the tent, then the pop up and then the travel trailer. Yes big difference, but all were nice with many good memories and a few stories....

On your storage situation, I'll offer a few things as we do not know your exact situation.

Tires, ideally get them out of the dirt/grass in a long term (non camping) situation. While we all camp on pads in the CG on grass dirt, that is a short term situation. The tires will hold up better out of the dirt and water that can lay in the treads on the bottom. Back up on a 2 x 8 or some other method to get the tire up off the dirt. Cover the tires with a white tire cover to help slow down the sun damage. Air the tires up to max cold side wall pressure to help hold the weight during temperature changes.

Roof drainage. This is something that one needs to think through and to your direct question. A camper living outside all winter can get infected with water damage by increasing the odds or how water can get into the camper. The gutter system on a camper leaves a lot to be desired. The gutter rails are too small for the water volume and leaves, twigs, maple tree hello-copters can plug them real fast. Once plugged issues can start. The awning lag screws are now under water and odds increase to water getting into the camper roof. The same with the vinyl strip that covers the screws that hold the rail to the roof. Once under water, the heads start rusting faster and over time water wicks into the camper roof...

See here on the this issue




I caught the problem before it advanced to the water infiltration issue.


To show how bad this can get, this is a pic of a buddy of mine on his 2 year old camper where the factory did not caulk the roof correctly and those screws wicked water into the roof. He never saw much of any of this inside other then a wrinkled wall paper. The factory stood behind this. This by the way was not a Sunline.


This type of damage takes time but the older the camper and the owner not knowing how death by water can be, the odds increase if you subject the camper to these beating on the seams water conditions.

I would agree the camper is stored close to level left to right. Across the 8 ft wide direction. This allows the water to shed equal left to right and increase your odds of not overloading one gutter rail to have water sit and soak in it.

Next is do you level the camper front to back or pitch it down and then on which end? This in your case is the 22 ft direction. There are several schools of thought on this. None are fool proof. I'll pass along how I addressed it before the new barn to put the camper in came.

Granted you may not be able to create this same setup quickly however you can create the same outcome in different ways.

I created a crushed stone camper parking pad next to my old workshop. The T310 camper was too long and worse, too high to fit inside. In our area the shed blocked/protected the camper from the south sun which could bake off decals, the awning and most any thing that was not aluminum. The roof overhang helped and so did the gutter on the building protect the awning side of the camper. And I had no trees near by to send "stuff" into the gutters or roof area.

There were 2 x 10's leveled up left to right, gets tires off the ground and creates the more equal water drain off on the roof left to right.

In "my" case, when I unhooked I pitched the camper to the back. Meaning nose high. Did not need a lot of pitch but enough water would run to the back. 1 to 2 inches of nose high would do it. This allowed the gutter rails to drain rather then sit filled or partly filled. My floor plan was more conducive to less damage tipped to the back. If I tipped it to the front, the front top side seams would be subjected to more water trying to beat into those seams up at the roof line transition from roof to front siding. Tipped to the back, the rear roof seam then can possibly be subjected to more water. In my case, I put Eternabond sealing tape over that joint and the odds of a problem where lower then the front side seams. Water flying out of the gutter rails then could fly more off the camper then on the camper if you have the standard gutter setup.

Something else you need to look at is the gutter spouts. Camco sells an extension you can put on them to help get the water away from the camper. And short of getting them, use a spring type clothes pin to wick the water away from the camper. Water coming out of the gutter rail and then plastering the side of the camper beating into side seams, windows or cargo holes has been a very well documented (unfortunately) method of how to infect the camper with water damage.

Here are some pics of that storage setup. Again this may be a more long term thing, for this year just get your tires out of the dirt and deal with the leveling/pitching of the roof.






Something else which is as much if not more important is to check and correct any roof caulking cracks/splits "now" before heading into winter. Splits get bigger over the winter in freeze/thaw situations and once it separates enough it is a hole in the roof system letting water in. Your 95 I think has a rubber roof. This post may help on how to address the caulking. Heads up, odds are high unless you have a special ordered camper, your roof is not a "direct" walk on roof. Need to take precautions for working up there. The link shows this
http://www.sunlineclub.com/forums/f7...1-a-11508.html

They also sell AC covers to help keep snow etc out of the AC unit.

I know you may now be in, "oh my goodness" shock... Had some time to type today and water damage from storing a camper may be one of the biggest issues we face owning a camper. And many new folks to hard sided campers do not even know about the problem. So to help the cause, I typed. Others members have dealt with this storage issue differently and they have good options too. The above was just how I came to grips with it.

The best is, store the camper inside if at all possible. That option is not simple or doable in many cases so the next best is to learn the issues of storing outside and do the best you can to avoid them.

Hope this helps

John
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Old 12-31-2015, 11:36 AM   #6
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Thank you for all the info. Much appreciated!!
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Old 01-01-2016, 06:00 AM   #7
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Welcome to the world of Sunline camping Eagle!
For the last 11 years I stored our 92 2470 pretty much like John said, tipped slightly (to the front in my case), wood under the tires, I removed the battery and stored it indoors where I could put a slow charge on it a few times during the winter. But, I still got leaves in the gutters and peeling decals from the sun. We now have a 2007 2499 and I finally decided a winter cover is the way to go. Here's the benefits I can see:
-Less sun damage to roof, decals and stripes, siding, window frames and interior furnishings. (I blocked the windows on the sunny side as well)
-Gutters won't fill with debris.
-Rain won't be running over the roof and seals.
-Hopefully, snow will be easier to clear since cover is sloped over the A/C and roof vents. (I'll see how that goes.)
-Siding stays clean since rain water won't be carrying dirt accumulated on roof down the sides.

I have noticed a build-up of moisture during wet weather under the cover on the roof, but it does dry out once the rain stops.
About a week ago, I saw something I needed to correct. I thought that since I have this cover on and there are vent guards in place, I could leave the roof vents partially open to vent out moisture in the camper. Bad idea, because the moisture accumulating under the cover was migrating into the camper and condensing on the ceiling around the vent.
I check the camper during storage every few days (I really miss not being out camping in it, so just checking things over is a good excuse to be in it) and when I saw that, I closed the vents. No problems with any moisture inside since.
That's my experience, hope it helps you.
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Old 01-01-2016, 09:27 AM   #8
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Oh. Yea. I'm gonna have to take the battery out and charge it. I have no charger. Do you recommend one? Possibly one I can order online or find at Walmart or Autozone?
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Old 01-01-2016, 11:42 AM   #9
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I think any of the stores you mentioned would have what you need, do a search for reviews online to find what others like.
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Old 01-06-2016, 09:43 AM   #10
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Welcome to our Sunline club. The folks here have always been helpful to me, responding quickly and thoroughly to my questions as I learned the "systems" on my travel trailer.
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Old 01-10-2016, 02:49 PM   #11
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Oh. Yea. I'm gonna have to take the battery out and charge it. I have no charger. Do you recommend one? Possibly one I can order online or find at Walmart or Autozone?
Look for a trickle or float charger. They are a low amp charger used to maintain a battery during the off season. You can get them at either place, or amazon, I have one from harbor freight that I use on my deep cell. Also I have always heard that when you remove you battery do not store it on a concrete floor. I always store mine on a wooden shelf in the basement, about 3 foot off the ground.
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Old 01-10-2016, 03:27 PM   #12
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Oh. Yea. I'm gonna have to take the battery out and charge it. I have no charger. Do you recommend one? Possibly one I can order online or find at Walmart or Autozone?
What is wrong with the camper charger? But yes you can buy a battery maintainer just about any where that sells that kind of stuff.
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Old 01-10-2016, 03:35 PM   #13
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[QUOTE=BCS Guy;130754]Look for a trickle or float charger. They are a low amp charger used to maintain a battery during the off season. You can get them at either place, or amazon, I have one from harbor freight that I use on my deep cell. Also I have always heard that when you remove you battery do not store it on a concrete floor. I always store mine on a wooden shelf in the basement, about 3 foot off the ground.[/QUOTE

Myth, the concrete floor will not discharge a battery any quicker than storing it in the kitchen. I store all of my batteries inside right on the floor. If a battery is outside and it is discharged it will freeze. My camper batteries stay with the camper it is in the garage plugged into a replacement modern 3 stage charger.
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Old 01-11-2016, 06:46 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BCS Guy View Post
Look for a trickle or float charger. They are a low amp charger used to maintain a battery during the off season. You can get them at either place, or amazon, I have one from harbor freight that I use on my deep cell. Also I have always heard that when you remove you battery do not store it on a concrete floor. I always store mine on a wooden shelf in the basement, about 3 foot off the ground.
Myth, the concrete floor will not discharge a battery any quicker than storing it in the kitchen. I store all of my batteries inside right on the floor. If a battery is outside and it is discharged it will freeze. My camper batteries stay with the camper it is in the garage plugged into a replacement modern 3 stage charger.

Thanks for the clarification. I figured it may have something to do with any kind of temperature or moisture issue from being on a cold concrete floor.
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Old 01-12-2016, 06:44 AM   #15
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Nope. It's not a good ideal to store it on any thing that can be attacked by the acid so the concrete is most likely the best place. A small battery maintainer is fine for even high output batteries. Most of the newer campers have the more modern switching type converter/chargers they are fine for battery charging over the winter the older chargers are not, they really don't have the electronics to ensure a proper charge and have a tendency to boil the water out of the battery long term. A good battery will not discharge a great deal over the winter the biggest killer would be a frozen one so if you have the means to bring it inside to a heated area that's the best place. A charged battery will not freeze.
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