We'll we did it and picked up our (new to us) coach (2000 U320 4010) last weekend and drove back 6 hrs to the house and then promptly had to leave for a Pre-planned golf trip. Boy, That was hard to do!
Teresa loved the way it rode and she decided to drive the last few miles. All in all it made me want to throw rocks at the old one as we had a stout side wind and the FT handled it in style.
I already have close to grillion (bunches more them a billion) questions so get ready. BTW, on the way home we saw a white FT east bound on I20 in the area of Abilene, TX. Saw the motorcade number 1??? but due to a truck only caught a glimpse. It was white and I believe blue(?) striping.
There's a lot of work to do and I already have my Watco oil ready for the cabinets! Got a leak to tend to in the left bay (hydraulic slide hose) but hopefully that won't be be too difficult.
Take care and you'll be hearing from us.
Bruce and Sweet T
I have your coach. You will love it. Ask away….
Congratulations! Welcome to the "family"!
And if you aren't aware, the hydraulic hoses should not have their lengths changed, so you may want to buy a replacement hose as the simplest solution for a leak. The length and other identifiers should be easy to find on the end of the hose. HWH will sell them to you as will Foretravel.
Thanks for the tip, as soon as I crawl under there and figure out which one I'll keep that in mind. Excuse my ignorance but if they are able to replace the end and only take off an inch or two will that make that much difference until I can get a new one in?
I'd call HWH (or email them on their handy online form)...or use the email joe@hwhcorp.com for Joe Portelli and tell him which hose (the specification on the hose) you are wanting to do that to and ask him for the real answer.
Since you haven't identified the leak yet, I'd also point out another possibility. Sometimes folks do not know whether to check the fluid level with the slide in or out...and if someone filled it when it was in the wrong place, the tank can overflow once the slide is moved. When I got my 2002, it had a leaky hose end and the replacement got to me very quickly. ...and I filled it in the wrong position and got to learn that. Barry's fine page will tell you for sure, but I believe your slide hydyaulic level is checked with the slide IN. 2002 main rooms are reversed, check with slide OUT.
Here is a great resource from HWH regarding their systems. Page 18 is where they start to talk about the hoses they use. HWH has tons of great documentation online.
Thank you Brad, I checked it out and read up on some stuff. When I picked up the coach they were replacing an O-ring that kept blowing out and I suspect that is the problem but is it in the hose or in the solenoid? I read something on the hwh site that mentioned problems with the o-rings blowing out if over tightened. The guy working on it said that it wasn't a round but a flat o-ring. Does that sound right? I haven't had time to crawl under and check it out yet and until I do it's a moot point. Another question is how to get rid of all the oil on the carpet in the bay. I'll cross that when I get there. Thanks for all of your help.
Welcome to the Foretravel Community.
Mark and Sweet T(DW)
Bruce, I just replaced the soiled carpet, easier for me than cleaning.
I am happy for you, hope the coach works great for you....enjoyed our visits, looked good in photos, good year coach and model, glad you took it slowly, evaluated all aspects best you could....so good chance will work out minor issues we all have when buying, get er going and enjoy
Mike
HWH uses odd combinations of O-rings in some places. I've been through my 2002 Train system and see that the solenoid valves have both flat o-rings and round ones, sometimes packaged together...like a flat on each side of a round. Luckily, HWH has TONS of material online to find info on your specific 2000 system...and, if you haven't seen the posts, Joe Portelli of HWH spent a LOT of time helping me solve my issues. He is busy and sometimes it would be days between emails, but he knew I wasn't in a rush and really helped me.
Congratulations! Glad you have joined the Foretravel family. We just bought the same coach a few months ago and LOVE LOVE LOVE it! Here's hoping you enjoy all the new adventures ahead!
Follow Up to Slide out hydraulic leak
I finally made time to crawl under and wallow around in the oil and tend to the leak, a high velocity spray that coated the bottom of the bay. It turns out that it wasn't a hose but the locking solenoid that screws directly into the manifold (upper left small solenoid) opposite side of the tank. I removed the solenoid and took it to a gasket retailer and they put a set of calipers on it to make sure we had the right size. He also said that you have to use high quality O-rings.
The solenoid had 5 O-rings, three at the top, 1 round sandwiched between two flat (backup) O-rings. On the bottom was another O-ring with another flat (backup) O-ring at the bottom (towards the solenoid). I should have photographed it but too late now. I called Foretravel and they advised me to only hand tighten the solenoid. After carefully installing the O-rings and screwing it in... viola , it held. I ran the slide in and out a few times and so far so good. The culprits were the bottom two O-rings closest to the solenoid. One was cut in two and the other looked like it had been pinched. I suspect from over tightening. The next chore will be to clean up the mess on the carpet but I already have a idea for that.
Thanks to JC for your help. Brad, I studied the schematics from HWH as you suggested and that helped. Right now I'm a Happy Camper.....on to the next project!
Super! BTW, the HWH part number is R7430 for 8 sets of o-rings ($16.20).
If you get a solenoid valve rebuilt/replacement in the future, they do come with new o-rings. If the slide starts misbehaving, these little valves are the usual culprits according to HWH.