Cutting a hole in the roof? Read this. (1 Viewer)

[Emmit]

Migrated from "This week I bought"

This winter we discovered that the condensation in the Bathroom of our 'van couldn't escape through the window, (And who would want to see my Ar$e after a shower anyway) so we bought one of these.



We took the rooflight to Tamar Towing in Plympton, Plymouth who did a cracking job of fitting it.
That's not the 'Tip'!!!
The guy who worked on it told me in advance that he would start the job by removing the headlining in the Bathroom first, (sufficient to see what lay between it and the roof).
Half way through the operation he approached me with a foot of conduit and a yard of thick cable. Fortunately, the cable was free at both ends and was there as some sort of 'pull through.' Apparently Hobby, (my 'van manufacturer) had put it up there in order to facilitate possibly the inclusion of a camera at the back, however, it could have been that there was actually live cabling up in the roof and that is why my rooflight was done in this way.
Could have ended in tears.

 

[tonyidle]

But wouldn't it be so much easier for everyone if converters supplied full layout and schematic drawings with their conversions?

 

[ymfb]

But wouldn't it be so much easier for everyone if converters supplied full layout and schematic drawings with their conversions?

why would they do that ? give away their IP and experience

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[tonyidle]

why would they do that ? give away their IP and experience

Car manufacturers do it to a greater or lesser extent. A lot of the kit fitted to the MH comes with installation information including wiring diagrams. A lot of the poor work done by aftermarket workshops is down to not knowing where (or if) wiring exists. I suspect that even their own dealers don't have the information. A simple example: my Hymer has a radio aerial. It has one connection to the radio. Because I'm nosey I researched the aerial manufacturer and aerial model and found that the aerial can be used for DTV reception. What I didn't know until much later when I removed part of the dashboard was that the co-ax for the TV was rolled up and tucked away under the n/s A-post. I have no idea how effective it could be but as I use DTV only when something blocks satellite it would have been nice to know before fitting a separate DTV aerial. In another instance I had to dismantle the drawer under the cooker to trace and understand the step wiring. The generic "User Manual" supplied with my Hymer is useless.

 

[Gorse Hill]

When I was fitting my snipe on the roof I spoke to the dealer about installation and if there is anything I should be aware off, he informed me that Burnster install wiring in the roof , however there was no schematics about where they are and every van is different
As it was only a 20mm I used a hole cutter to go throu the GRP slowly then removed the insulation before going inside and cutting the roof lining

 

[ymfb]

Car manufacturers do it to a greater or lesser extent.

Im not trying to be argumentative, but I have owned more cars and m/c's than I care to remember, not one came with any drawings or information that would assist in a case like this.

In fact if they did companies like a Haynes and Clymer would have no business.

For some motorcycles you can buy workshop manuals as opposed to owners handbooks, they are very expensive. Although older ones can be downloaded of the Internet.

There used to be an onus on the supplier of the aftermarket to provide good quality information, but if the item is like an aerial and could fit any vehicle they cannot be expected to do so.

Personally I think I know when to pay a professional rather than attempting it myself. Risking damaging delicate wires, especially those that cannot easily be repaired is one such situation.

Each to their own, which is what aftermarket parts inherently are.

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[Minxy]

When I installed a 'through the roof' telescopic status aerial on a previous MH of ours (Rapido 709F) I very carefully cut the hole in the roof with a hole cutter, taking my time and stopping every mm to check what was underneath. It was a good job I did as below where I was 'attacking' there was a lighting cable (sod's law!) fortunately I was able to move it to one side but if I'd just drilled it in one go I'd have had to mess about repairing it.

Never, ever attempt any job like this unless you are able to take your time and if you find an 'issue' are able to sort it out.

 

[SuperMike]

Our Winnebago came with two A4 sized spirally bound books, each one about an inch and a half thick that detailed every bit of kit related to the motorhome. It even has it's serial/id number printed on the front cover. Further logging on to the Winnebago website brings up full construction details for our particular motor home. For example, here is the link to the chassis wiring.

 

[Minxy]

Our Winnebago came with two A4 sized spirally bound books, each one about an inch and a half thick that detailed every bit of kit related to the motorhome. It even has it's serial/id number printed on the front cover. Further logging on to the Winnebago website brings up full construction details for our particular motor home. For example, here is the link to the chassis wiring.

... but that's normal for Winnebago owners isn't it? Don't they have a reputation for not being that intelligent (in 'American' form of course!) so have to have everything written out for them ....

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[olley]

I doubt the average non-american could follow the wiring schematic minxy.

 

[Minxy]

I doubt the average non-american could follow the wiring schematic minxy.

Yes, I can quite understand that ....

 

[olley]

The diode bridge rectifier won't work minxy. Probably a schematic from a UK van, no wonder they are all rubbish.

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[Minxy]

The diode bridge rectifier won't work minxy. Probably a schematic from a UK van, no wonder they are all rubbish.

Judging by the spelling I think it's American ...

Your serve!

 

[olley]

Is that your best serve minxy? Game set and match to me I think.