General help to get up and running

[Banjolectric]

I just bought a 2001 Tail-gator that had been sitting in storage for a while. All my service centers are booked up so I'm trying to check out all the systems myself.
If the power connection is for 110v, why does it have a plug that looks like it's for a 220v?
Any tips on sanitizing the water system?
I'm just getting started and this is my first RV so any help is appreciated.

[dwall]

Your power connects to a 30 amp 120 volt outlet. Do not hook to 220!

[Texas Steve]

Your system is 120 volts but 30 amps. You can buy an adapter dog bone to go from the 30 amp cord to a heavy duty extension cord to be plugged into a standard outlet in the house or garage. You wont be able to run your air conditioner off this circuit because you will pull more amps than is available at the outlet. Typically these are 15 amps. You WILL be able to get your converter to run and charge the battery(ies).

The fresh water tank can be sanitized by adding 1/4 cup of bleach to 10 gallons of water in the tank. Use your water pump to run the water through all the faucets until you smell bleach. Let it sit a few hours then drain the fresh tank and refill with clean water. Run the pump again and flush out the water in all faucets until the bleach smell goes away. You might need to flush the system a couple of times. Drain your grey tank, but not on the grass or flowers! It will kill them!! Best is to go to an approved dump site and drain the tanks.

You might also think about cleaning the black tank also, so you can dump both at the same time.

Good luck. Lots of great information on this forum with many years of expertise. Ask all the questions you want. Its fun to learn about these things!

[flybouy]

To sanitize your water system use about 1/4 cup of bleach per 15 gallons of water. Added to the fresh water tank and open all faucets, including the outside shower and the water heater (with the power off to the water heater). Run the solution out of the system. Then fill and flush with water only until the bleach smell disappears.

The 30-amp service for an RV is 120-volt with a 3 prong receptacle and a single 30-amp dedicated breaker. The 30 AMP is a standard ANSI C73. 13, TT-30P (plug) / TT-30R (receptacle). This designation was made specifically for TRAILERS. Do not confuse it with an old style 220 volt electric clothes dryer plug.

[JRTJH]

^^^^^ What he said. If you plug that "dryer plug" into 220 VAC, you'll destroy everything that's turned on in your trailer...

It's a 30 AMP plug. Wired for 120 VAC, you've got 120 on one leg, neutral on one leg and ground on the round pin. Wired for 220, you've got 120 on both legs and neutral on the round pin.

Countless newbie RV owners have made the FATAL mistake of plugging their trailer into 220. It's usually not covered by insurance and definitely not covered by warranty.....

http://www.myrv.us/electric/Pg/30amp_Service.htm

[wiredgeorge]

RVs have a power converter that converts 110V to 12V (DC). There are breakers in the converter that look pretty much like the ones in a home box. The converts can use 50A service or 30A. 50A plugs have four prongs; ground, neutral ground and two each positive prongs with 110V on each.

[gearhead]

If you haven't replaced the tires, look at them. The tires should be replaced at 3-4 years of age no matter what they look like. Find the "DOT" stamp and to the right of that will be the date of manufacture. 1120 would indicate the tire was made in the 11th week of 2020.
If you know how to pack bearings, do that. If not pay someone. Any mechanical shop should be able to do that.

If the tire and bearings are in good shape you will at least be able to go down the road, no matter what else breaks.

[Roscommon48]

again, as stated above, YOU DO NOT HAVE 220 VOLTAGE ON YOUR RIG!


anyway, get your rig to a campground and start talking to other rvers....we love to tell people what a better way is---whether or not if it is going to work.:-) I usually just stand outside of my rig with a tool and the men come to see what's wrong and how can they help.

[bobbecky]

This or any other book similar would be a great start to get you going with your new rig. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9366318-the-rv-handbook

[nied]

This is a link to a 2002 Keystone owners manual: https://www.keystonerv.com/media/2116/keystone_owners_manual-revision_2002.pdf

You might also find manuals on the appliances and other installed systems on the web.
This is a link to the manual for our first RV. It was one of the better ones. https://www.travelliterv.com/fckimages/PDF/brochures/Travel-Trailer-Owners-Manual.pdf

[wiredgeorge]

If you haven't replaced the tires, look at them. The tires should be replaced at 3-4 years of age no matter what they look like. Find the "DOT" stamp and to the right of that will be the date of manufacture. 1120 would indicate the tire was made in the 11th week of 2020.
If you know how to pack bearings, do that. If not pay someone. Any mechanical shop should be able to do that.

If the tire and bearings are in good shape you will at least be able to go down the road, no matter what else breaks.


On every tire I have owned, the date code is in an oval on the sidewall. As noted, MM YY is how it is read.

[bobbecky]

Actually week and year. https://www.tirebuyer.com/education/how-to-determine-the-age-of-your-tires

[wiredgeorge]

Actually week and year. https://www.tirebuyer.com/education/how-to-determine-the-age-of-your-tires


Sorry, Bob is correct... week in year of manufacture.

[ctbruce]

Best advice I can give is start reading on here. You will learn a ton from questions and answers that have already occurred. You have an encyclopedia of great tips, advice, knowledge and fun at your fingertips.

[wiredgeorge]

Best advice I can give is start reading on here. You will learn a ton from questions and answers that have already occurred. You have an encyclopedia of great tips, advice, knowledge and fun at your fingertips.


Until the OP mentions his tow vehicle or the tires on his camper....

[MNelllis]

I've had a 2001 TailGator as well for the past 15 years and might be able to answer many of your questions. I fitted mine with a 5kw generator and added a second battery but that might be the only difference.

I just pulled mine out of long term, uncovered, storage and unfortunately it's a wreck and needs a lot of work.

Pay attention to the screws that hold the steel garage door frame to the aluminum trailer frame. They used (in my opinion) the wrong type of screws back there to hold the frame in place. Those screws will work loose and the garage door frame will move and pull the rear trim pieces away from the sideing. If not addressed quickly you'll have all sorts of water damage to the garage floor that will leach up and possibly into the living area. I just finished replacing half the flooring in the garage and much of the flooring in the living area. This is not a job for the faint of heart.

Check the condition of the filler hose from the trailer fuel cap into the tank. It's almost 20 years old and you'll notice it's probably crack to pieces.

Here in Texas, the single AC on this unit is not capable of maintaining much less than about 76 degrees in the living area. We have blocked off the garage supply air units and blocked off the shower sun roof and all other sun roofs to help keep the trailer cool.

If the awning has not been replace check that carefully as it will probably need to be replaced.

If the unit has been sitting, as others have mentioned, replace all the tires. They will blow out. This unit has steel wheel wells so a blowout (I've had so many I lost track) won't damage the flooring but it will typically rip off the plastic wheel trip and usually damage the aluminum and the material underneath.

The graphics on ours started peeling quite a few years ago so we've gone ahead used a razor scraper to remove everything on the side except the top stripe on the sides and the front logo.

Check all the latches on your cabinets and I think you'll find most of those are in poor shape.

Check that the refrigerator will fire off when using only propane. The nozzle will get plugged up and the vent area for the refrigerator rusts out and blocks the venting of the flame exhaust. We vacumed our and cleaned the nozzle and it works fine again.

Right now our two fresh water tanks will not hold water and I suspect they are cracked but I haven't gotten that far. Our black water tank sprung a leat at the drain fitting to the tank and I had to replace the whole tank a few years ago. It wasn't a hard replacement but replacing a tank isn't on my top 10 fun things to do.

About 7 years ago I had a reason to pull the exterior cover under the bedroom around the trailer hitch. I found the tongue had a crack and needed to be welded.

The rear leveling jack will easily drag and bend on even small gas station entrances that are not level. After replacing the rear leveling jack twice I just left them off.

Here is what the damage looks like under the vinyl in the garage and living area.

One last thing, check closely for delamination of the fiberglass siding near the rear of the camper on both side.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/ihkaJSMHeJxdSiYx8

[wiredgeorge]

Good info MNellis and welcome to the forum. The OP hasn't been around for almost two weeks so not sure he/she will catch any of your tips! Always good to have another Texan on the board.

[notanlines]

George, "Always good to have another Texan on the board" just where did you get this information? :hide:
On a more serious note, what he said is true. We get many newbies signing on with good questions and then never respond or return to the forum.

[MNelllis]

I hope the OP comes back and the information is helpful. I still have a long way to go before this TailGator is usable again. I didn't take as many before pictures as I would have liked but I hope to do pictorial of my efforts when it's done. I also didn't take any video as I didn't plan on doing a "how to" when I started since I'm learning as I go with this project.

Mike Nellis
'01 Tailgator
'17 Dodge Ram 2500