Pro-Rig V2.0 - Home Built Compact Composite Pop-up

[java]

Email them, I have always heard back in a day or two. They have been good about warranty and parts for me.

If you pull it out..... Coat the circuit board in conformal coating. It seems that's the issue with these, moisture gets to the board and it's all bare.

Updates are looking good! I need to make some insulated curtains like that!

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

 

[CoyoteThistle]

Email them, I have always heard back in a day or two. They have been good about warranty and parts for me.

If you pull it out..... Coat the circuit board in conformal coating. It seems that's the issue with these, moisture gets to the board and it's all bare.

Updates are looking good! I need to make some insulated curtains like that!

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

Thanks, good to know I can expect a reply.

Any advice on conformal coating? New to me - Google search showed lots of different materials you can use. Is there just one board in there?

 

[java]

Thanks, good to know I can expect a reply.

Any advice on conformal coating? New to me - Google search showed lots of different materials you can use. Is there just one board in there?

No, I have not used any yet. Any silicone conformal should work. Designed to waterproof (water resistant?) electronics. I have not pulled mine apart to do.... I did replace the board in one as it fried, but didn't think of doing it then. Pretty sure this is the one I got.... Its in the garage somewhere. https://amzn.to/34Vi0BV

Yes just one small board under the button area.

 

[CoyoteThistle]

Few select pics from the trip...

First night made it to almost Flagstaff. Free camping, chilly night.


Oh yeah, note the new truck! Decided it was time. Looked at all the new mid-size truck offerings and the only one with a bed wide enough for Pro-Rig is the Nissan. Made the choice easy. The new rig has the heated seats and all the fancy stuff Greystoke didn't have, this keeps Sheri happier and I get a rear locker and a few other treats. Win-win.

First stop, Canyon de Chelly. Guided tour is a must if you want to see most of the canyon. We sprang for a 4-hour tour and saw a good variety of pictographs, petroglyphs, and ruins.


The rock art is a mix of old Ancestral Puebloan going back 1,000+ years and Najavo art from the last several hundred. This one depicts the arrival of the Spanish with their horses, priests, and guns.


Lots of good stories and good chats with the guide, who grew up in the canyon and has been guiding for over 30 years. We only saw a couple other guided groups while there - definitely the slow season around here. Perfect!

Headed next towards Chaco Canyon in New Mexico. Got in to the campground after dark - three or four other folks here is all.

The next morning we started touring the ruins. We had this whole site to ourselves for an hour or more - the perfect way to experience such an amazing place.




Got a short hike in


then decided to stay another night to see the rest of the ruins and maybe do a longer hike. Weather got colder and windier with some snow flurries. Kept the crowds down though.


Skipped the hike due to the weather and instead headed north for a stop at Aztec Ruins then figured we'd try Mesa Verde NP. Found free camping up in the trees.


Other than the fan in the new roof vent not working, all the upgrades are performing well. Especially happy with the doubling of the battery capacity. New pop up walls get some condensation (as ice) but not bad.

The recent storm closed most of Mesa Verde down so we headed for Canyon of the Ancients instead. Hit the visitor center/museum (very good) and a couple sites, it was blowing and snowing on and off but we were able to do some more exploring.


Forecast looking snowy as we pondered our next move...

 

[Terra Ops]

Yeah, only done these warm and dry trips lately so no condensation testing. I never got to test the external intake for the heater (i.e., no later season ski trips )

Any notable difference with the external intake?

 

[CoyoteThistle]

Needs more testing. We ran the external intake one night and it seemed like the heater ran more frequently (i.e., less efficiently), but can't be sure of that. In general, we were in pretty dry atmospheric conditions so we were getting minimal condensation with the heater recirculating and the roof vent cracked. Should have tried the external intake the night it rained/snowed but didn't - things were moist inside that morning.

 

[Terra Ops]

Needs more testing. We ran the external intake one night and it seemed like the heater ran more frequently (i.e., less efficiently), but can't be sure of that. In general, we were in pretty dry atmospheric conditions so we were getting minimal condensation with the heater recirculating and the roof vent cracked. Should have tried the external intake the night it rained/snowed but didn't - things were moist inside that morning.

Yeah I get the concept about positive pressure, but I wonder if you lose some efficiency pulling colder outside air directly through the larger intake. The propex is already designed with a specific fresh air intake. I think if a larger volume of outside air is to be utilized, an air exchanger may be needed for efficiency. It will be interesting to hear your conclusions. Thanks.

 

[CoyoteThistle]

Yeah I get the concept about positive pressure, but I wonder if you lose some efficiency pulling colder outside air directly through the larger intake. The propex is already designed with a specific fresh air intake. I think if a larger volume of outside air is to be utilized, an air exchanger may be needed for efficiency. It will be interesting to hear your conclusions. Thanks.

Yeah, just makes sense that it would be less efficient heating, say, 25 degree air (from outside) than 60 degree air (from inside) - I don't have a good handle on how big that difference is. I think the fresh air intake you're referring to on the Propex is just for combustion (i.e., to feed the heating flame). That side of the air flow gets expelled back out of the camper.

I think the biggest expected advantages in drawing outside air vs. recirculating air to lower inside humidity are, 1) the cabin air will typically have higher humidity than the outside air just due to breathing humans, cooking, etc., and 2) cooler air is able to hold less water vapor than warm air, so the outside cold air has less water in it even if relative humidities in and out are the same; when the colder outside air is heated through the heater, the relative humidity of the "new" air from outside should be lower at the new higher temp. I believe that is the theory of it (someone correct me if I am wrong!!). I think #2 is more important, but again, the magnitude of any difference is unknown to me.

 

[CoyoteThistle]

Part two of the recent trip...

With the weather coming in, we decided to head for lower elevations - west towards Hovenweep NM. Pulled in to an almost empty campground just as the sun was setting on Thanksgiving Eve.


The next morning we walked the trail and checked out the ruins.


Forecast looked like rain down here, so we decided if we are going to get wet, we'd rather be in the snow so we headed up to Natural Bridges NM. Pulled in to an empty campground at dusk. In honor of Thanksgiving, we had turkey burgers.


Had to improvise the bread due to some moldy buns, but it was a fine meal in the end. Got rain late and then woke to this


If you can't see it, Sheri is smiling - a good sign the camper is working as planned and the upgrades were worth it!

The morning was calm and beautiful and we walked through the pinions and junipers before doing a deluxe brunch - nice lazy morning. Finally got going and visited one natural bridge between the building snow squalls.


Started driving south by mid afternoon with no clear plan. Clearing winds behind the storm system were getting a bit crazy. By the time we hit Keyenta, AZ it was blowing 40+ and snowing. We opted for a motel and our first showers in a week. Good Choice. The next morning we headed south towards Flagstaff and spent most of the day at Wupatki NM. More beautiful ruins, good weather, and no crowds.




From there it was the slog home on I-40 and back to the real world. Good relaxing trip. Camper worked well and upgrades were all worth it I think.

 

[java]

Great to see it out in the wild!

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

 

[CoyoteThistle]

Well, 10 days since I sent a message to Maxxair about the roof vent fan and no reply. Not happy. Sent a follow-up message to give them one more chance, but I'm not optimistic...

Edit: Got a quick reply to my follow-up message. New board on the way under warranty

 

[DzlToy]

Are the pictures dead on the last two pages for anyone else or is my browser losing its mind?

 

[The Artisan]

Are the pictures dead on the last two pages for anyone else or is my browser losing its mind?

I don't see any
Kevin

 

[AbleGuy]

I don't see any
Kevin

Worse....I’m getting these BS pop ups instead of the pictures when I clicked on them!
Looks like his pictures page somehow got hijacked.
So.....Don’t open his pictures links!!!

This stuff kinda pisses me off when people post blind links (or download files) here instead of putting their original info right in their posts. Now I’m gonna have to run a virus scan and cache cleaner. ********!

 

[The Artisan]

Worse....I’m getting these BS pop ups instead of the pictures when I clicked on them!
Looks like his pictures page somehow got hijacked.
So.....Don’t open his pictures links!!!

This stuff kinda pisses me off when people post blind links (or download files) here instead of putting their original info right in their posts. Now I’m gonna have to run a virus scan and cache cleaner. ****!
View attachment 557097View attachment 557098

wow that sucks. I use my phone and did not see any popups.
Kevin