Fleetwood Tioga Questions

[MikeyInNY]

New to me 2002 Fleetwood Tioga. Found a switch in the cabinet over the sink, not labeled, previous owner thinks it has something to do with satellite, but not sure. See picture.
Also want to know where the tank heaters are controlled, build sheet says the fresh and waste tanks are heated, but previous owner only camped in warm weather and doesn't know where/how they are controlled. Anyone help on this?
Last question, this has a Winegard crank up satellite dish. I know this is old tech, and needs to be setup manually, but is there a receiver that will work with it?

 

[Rene T]

As far as the switch, I would open it up and see what’s in there. 12 volt DC wiring, 110 volt AC or coax cable.

 

[JudyJB]

My Tioga is a 2012, and i have satellite, but there is no switch like that anywhere. Have you tried pushing the button and see what it does? Maybe turn off hot water heater? Or water pump? Very strange.

 

[DonTom]

Found a switch in the cabinet over the sink, not labeled, previous owner thinks it has something to do with satellite, but not sure. See picture.

I think that is something somebody added, not a stock switch.

-Don- Tucson, AZ (in a Y2K Tioga).

​

 

[Kirk]

Also want to know where the tank heaters are controlled, build sheet says the fresh and waste tanks are heated, but previous owner only camped in warm weather and doesn't know where/how they are controlled.

Do you know where the tanks are? Most RVs have the freshwater tank inside of the living area, typically under the bed and the water pump next to it so that they do not freeze if the RV is kept warm when in use, and thus no tank heater is needed. The waste tanks are probably under the RV and may well have heating pads on the bottom of them. Those pads are typically an option and not standard equipment so make sure that your tanks have them before you spend time trying to locate a switch for them. Look for something of this sort.

 

[DonTom]

Most RVs have the freshwater tank inside of the living area, typically under the bed

In this Y2K Tioga, the fresh water tank is under the kitchen sink. I can see the water level in it, the perfect gauge to see when I am too low to take a shower or whatever, regardless of what the monitor says.

-Don- Tucson, AZ

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

The heat for those tanks is most likely just a duct from the furnace, so that some warm air reaches the tank area whenever the furnace is running. Tioga did offer an optional 12v heater in the 22-29 ft models but not the 31 footer. If you have the optional electric heater, there will be a switch somewhere (probably not labeled). And a fuse (also not accurately labeled). It's typical of Fleetwood owner manuals to not distinguish between options and standard features or the differences between models. Here's the 2002 Tioga brochure.

I can't see that switch well enough to make a good guess, but is that a small display window I see? And a pushbutton switch? That would suggest a satellite control function. Is there a satellite dome or dish on the roof?

The Winegard "batwing" antenna doesn't need a receiver, it just has a coax cable to a tv's antenna input. However, there should be a 12v power module inserted somewhere in the coax cable that powers the antenna amplifier. It is often part of an antenna/cable switch. May look something like this.

 

[Kirk]

I'm wondering if this would get more attention if it were in the motorhome section, rather than the trailer section?

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Dunno, but I'll move it just in case.

 

[MikeyInNY]

I pressed the button on the switch, it gave me two bars, then "LL". After a bit, it when blank again. I didn't see anything else happen. The satellite dish was in the storage position at that time.

 

[JudyJB]

All of the tanks in my Fleetwood Tioga Ranger are between the two main structural beams under the flooring. In front are the two fresh water tanks, followed by the grey tank and finally the black tank. The two structural beams give them a little protection from accidents and avoid them taking up inside space.

I have a front and a rear furnace, and the rear furnace is ducted into the closed utility compartment on the driver's side. That means mostly the heat just protects the pipes and maybe the last two tanks a bit. I keep a remote thermometer in that area so I can tell how cold it is. But there is nothing that opens or closes a heating duct depending on the outside temp--when the furnace runs, heat goes down there.

The problem with this arrangement is that the pipes and last couple of tanks are only heated when the rear furnace is on. In addition, if it is not likely to be below freezing, you are wasting a lot of heat into that area if you run your rear furnace, which I tend to do at night. So, I keep the utility tank duct opening covered with body tape unless the outside temp drops below about 28 degrees F. That way, all the heat goes into my living areas.

I would not rely on this ducting system to completely prevent pipes and tanks from freezing in really cold temps.

By the way, in order to see this duct, you might have to be laying on the ground and looking up at the ceiling of the utility area. It is not easy to find, so use a flashlight.

 

[CharlesinGA]

The Winegard "batwing" antenna doesn't need a receiver, it just has a coax cable to a tv's antenna input. However, there should be a 12v power module inserted somewhere in the coax cable that powers the antenna amplifier. It is often part of an antenna/cable switch. May look something like this.

On a 2002 model, possibly more like this one.......

12v power socket plus on off button w/LED and coax connector. I've tried plugging into the 12v socket on every one of the three RV's I've owned and its the smallest, tightest socket I've ever seen. You really have to force a plug into it.

Charles