hello everybody, 1972 nomad newbie questions

[Louis Soto]

hi everybody, new to the forum and also new to rv'ing. i am from riverside california. i am 38 yrs young, married and have 3 wonderfull girls (3, 9, and 13). i build choppers (motorcycles) for a living. i deliver these bike pretty much anywhere in southern california. i love to take my family with me on "working vacations" when i do (usually over weekends). we love spending time by the beaches. a few weeks ago i went to visit a friend with my wife and i saw this trailer with a for sale sign sitting in a neighbors driveway. i commented to my wife how i always wanted to buy one but i could never justify the cost of buying it considering the amount of use i would give it. anyhow i asked my friend if he knew how much they where asking and he didn't know. we decided to walk overthere and ask. the owner said he was asking $500 or best offer. needless to say, i offered him $450 and we struck the deal. i couldn't believe my luck!!! it is a 1972 nomad and it is in very decent condition. the owner just never used it so he decided it was time to sell it. i have zero experience with trailers so please be patient as i have many questions. my first question is about the bad odor in the trailer. it smells like it's been closed for many years or something(kinda like mildew i guess). i looked around but i could not see any rot or mold. there is one little corner of the ceiling that had water damage but it has been repaired  and everything is quite dry. i have been reading about how these trailers tend to sweat. is there anything i can do to get rid of the smell? we will be reupholstering all the seat cushions and putting down some new linoleum flooring. we are kinda hoping that will take some of the smell away but i doubt it. any input folks? 

ps: here are a couple pics of what i do and the only pic i currently have of the trailer. will take some later today:

 

 

 

[Louis Soto]

Hi Jana and thankyou for posting. i actually live near tyler st. in the La Sierra area (right next to La Sierra university off pierce street). we are almost done renovating the trailer and are crossing our fingers take it out in april for the very first time. i am basically down to wiring the battery for the interior lights and buying a grey water tank. we reupholstered all the cushions, layed down new vinyl flooring and wall paper(around the sink area). i also converted the closet into an entertainment center! i think this will be very cool. we like going up to ventura/santa barbara with our 3 girls. i'll post final pictures soon!

[Louis Soto]

hey guys just wanted to make it official. today i got this badboy registered. the camper was out of the system so i only had to pay $108 for registration!! the downside, i had to take the camper to DMV for vin verification. i got nervous for a minute because the verifier said half then vin sticker was missing, he was very nice and let me slide. i was issued new plates and stickers. left to do is finish laying a few pieces of the vinyl floor, make curtains and buy a grey water tank. next week my girls are off school for spring break. we will be heading north 3 hours to santa barabara to camp on the beach!

[Louis Soto]

hey guys just wanted to ask a quick question about the water heater. about a month or so ago i tried to light the pilot according to the instruction sticker but i didn't have any luck. i figured i'd just mess with it later. well, next tuesday i will be taking off to camp so i will definately want to get that taken care of asap. i will get right to it in the morning but i was just wondering if anyone knew of these units having trouble like the valves getting stuck shut ect?

[William Briggs]

Louis, the most common problem I've seen is not allowing enough time to bleed the air from the lines. You may have already done this, but hold down the button continuously for at least a couple of minutes.

[Glen Olson]

the easiest way to accomplish the lighting is to heat the themocoulpler with a torch, that allows the gas valve to open and get a greater flow of gas for the first light off, once the line is bled off you should have no problem, I posted earlier that perhaps the mystery switch was a hot rod for your water heater,  ie an electric element to use when hooked up to power, If you go to a campground, you can use their facilitys as fa as showering and other neccessitys there by saving your storage capacity, I wish I would have caught you earlier on the floor repair, never use partical board, oflake board for that matter any exposer to water  or high humidity for that fact will cause problems. good luck on your venture down lifes super highway

[John "T" Nordhoff]

  Lou, as far as lighting the hot water heater problem I AGREE WITH WILLIAM.

 

  If the trailer hasnt been used in a longgggggggg time it can take several minutes of air bleed time BEFORE theres gas only in the line allowing the pilot to light. Ive had to hold the valve down maybe 4 to 5 minutes before the air is gone and gas is present allowing the pilot to operate. Of course the gas has to be on and all flow etc working.

 

  Typicaly you turn the gas valve to the PILOT position then you have to manually hold it down/in or on some theres a spring position for PILOT which you have to hold it in  while having a flame (all the time) on the pilot orfice located under the thermocouple. The thin copper looking tube is the thermocouple and the pilot flame orfice isnt something you really see but the gas comes out under that thin tube looking thermocouple.

 

 Be sure the gas valve is in the PILOT position and often then you depress and hold down/in the button or on some the PILOT position is achieved by turning the valve (against slight spring pressure). YOU HAVE TO HOLD THE BUTTON DOWN OR HOLD IT IN THE PILOT POSITION a longggggggggg time in some cases WHILE HAVING A FLAME PRESENT AT ALL TIMES above the pilot orfice. Sometimes its easier if one person holds the flame in place while another holds the valve down/in or in the PILOT position as it can take a few minutes beforte it lights.

 

  I DO NOT RECOMMEND YOU USE A TORCH ETC TO HEAT THE PILOT TUBE as if the valve then opens to full flame quite a bit of gas can accumulate and when she ignites she can blow back pretty fierce and loud.  

 

  Old John T in Indiana (just returned from Florida yesterday)

[Keith Gigabyte]

looks great lou..good luck on the maiden voyage..getting mine out of mine next weekend.  Hope to post a few pics Easter weekend.  nice touch with the entertainment center.

[Louis Soto]

thank you guys, i love reading the replies. you fellas are full of knowledge on these rigs. i will try to get that pilot lighted today. i just thougth of another question however. i got reservation for a hooked up camping spot with water/electricity. do i have to fill my water tank up to be able to use the water heater? the first time i connected the camper to the water hose i don't remember what happened, tank filled up?

[John "T" Nordhoff]

 PS on the water heater pilot lighting.. Once the pilot lights, you have to continue holding the valve down/in or against spring return for maybe another 15 to 20 seconds so the thermocouple can heat sufficient to hold the valve open. If you release it too soon the gas will shut off, so hold it down a good while and iffffffffffff the thermocouple is working it will stay lit AFTER you release it after which you turn it to full ON. If the pilot goes out when you stop holding the valve down even after several seconds the thermocouple is bad (common problem).

 

 I agree with Pat, use a water pressure regulator especially on an older rig. NO if hooked to a hose you dont require or draw water from your on board holding tanks.  They are for when theres no water hose hook ups available.

 

 PS dont lite the water heater unless it has water in it !!@!@!! Once you have any by pass off and turn on water it takes a good while to completely fill it. When filling it have a hot water faucet in the camper on so air can exit and finally once filled light the heater and after 15 minutes you have hot water .......

 

  John T

[Keith Gigabyte]

We always open the tub hot and cold to purge any air when we get to campground. once air is out my wife shuts off spikets and i light heater.  and yes it takes a long time to light usually a minute.  I use one of those long bic candle lighters.  I can see the bic flam blowing from the pilot purging air.  our system works quiet well.. my dear wife is inside setting things up while i take care of outside with the kids.  we get camp set up in 20 to 30 minutes.   I NEVER went to any campground without a regulator.  they are cheap around 5 bucks at walmart and can stay on your supply hose.

[Louis Soto]

quick update fellas i got the water heater lit up!! i have to admitt that i am feeling like a numbnut right now. after playing around with it for about an hour with no results i finally figured out that i had the flame from my lighter pointed to the wrong spot!!! duuuuuhhhhhhh ha ha ha. i was very glad to get it lit. my next question is how long does the heater take before the flame turns down? i had hot water in about 15 minutes but the flame didn't shut off, stayed full throttle even after 20 or 25 minutes. tried setting the heater to the lowest setting and nada. i finally broke down and turned the heater off. on a side note i also got the brake control unit installed in my ford explorer which came with the towing package. it was very simple with the unit i bought at walmart, i also got the ford plug in harness. i will need to buy a 7 pin connector though i only need 5 pin. i will prolly run wires from the battery to charge the battery while driving. that's in the future for now though

[John "T" Nordhoff]

  My hot water heater can take 20 + minutes and more (first time) before it shuts down. They usually heat it hotter then a home system, maybe 130 and over. It may have a safety over temp shut down in case the t stat fails. Id let her run 20 to 25 and theres a good chance it will finaly shut down but no warranty mind you. The pop off valve is another back up protection feature in case the pressure/temp is too much. The 7 pole RV plug is becoming the most used type thats what you should use. It has an auxiliary pole intened to charge the RV battery as youre driving, I protect that circuit with a 20 or 30 amp circuit breaker (subject to if you use 12 or 10 gauge wire) up on ther truck near the battery source. The trailers electric brakes may need adjusted and their wiring and magnets and especialy ground connections tend to cause problems. Inflate the trailer tires to max load at X PSI. Also trailer axle bearings should be repacked now n then and the tension axle end nut adjusted properly.

 

  John T