Black Series HQ Tips, Tricks, and Learning.....

[Raspy]

The awning on the HQ19 rubs on the top corner of the door, which is very sharp, and will get damaged unless the awning is really tight and pulled out level. Any slope means the door will rub and cut it. Be careful.

I fixed that problem with a wheel mounted on the door.

 

[Bikepals]

Here are a couple pix of my tank strap reinforcement project. They went from simple bent flat stock to beefed up with 1 X 1 x 1/8" wall square tube. I also doubled the vertical part of the straps with 1 1/2 X 1/8 flat stock bent to reinforce the bend at the top where the bolts go through. There are three straps, but the center one is the only strong one, so only the outer two need to be fixed to keep the tank from sagging. I replaced the hangar bolts with 3/8" grade 8 bolts, with washers on top and stainless steel nylock nuts.

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I knew you loved projects after our conversation on the phone. Were you having problems with the tanks? I also have questions about your other projects. Could you give some instructions for wheel alignment and maybe include some pictures. Also interested in your hot water circulation project, pictures of that would be helpful also.
Hopefully sometime this year we can meet up. I have your polyblock hitch in a box ready to give to you. The. Mchitch is fantastic. Thanks

 

[Bikepals]

The awning on the HQ19 rubs on the top corner of the door, which is very sharp, and will get damaged unless the awning is really tight and pulled out level. Any slope means the door will rub and cut it. Be careful.

I fixed that problem with a wheel mounted on the door.

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Already did this project. When we first got the trailer and we extended the awning and we noticed the door would rake across the awning. Got a wheel and did this right away.

 

[Bikepals]

I decided to re-pack the wheel bearings at 5,000 miles so I could get a baseline and then go to a higher interval later. The extra bearings that Black Series included are SKF bearings marked "Germany" , but the bearings in the wheels are YXHT brand with no country of origin. I used Lucas "Red and Tacky" grease and replaced the seals.

So, two of the bearings were loose enough that I could feel the play by push/pulling on the tires. That's OK as they wear in. One was WAY too tight and I actually had a hard time taking the nut off with pliers. That one showed more wear. And one of them had grease flying around in the area that must have been left on the outside of the seal. It has gotten on the magnet, the backing of the brakes and the inside of the drum.

I'm glad I looked into this and the tight one would likely have failed on a long trip.

During the process I also adjusted the brakes and found that after 5,000 miles the shoes were still not making full contact on the drums. I did a break-in process, and they are working fine, but still not fully broken in. I really like the 12" brakes.

Here are pix of the bearings and seals in case you want to order some. The stock seals have no part number, but look just like the one in the picture.

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Good to know. I check my wheels every season. I will check the wheels and see if they are tight. You must have a little play or the bearings will be destroyed.

 

[Raspy]

The only trouble with the tank straps was that the tanks were kinda deformed where the straps were not holding it tight against the bottom of the trailer and the aluminum protection plate was also kinda bent. So now everything is held up nicely and the straps are much stronger than stock .

Wheel alignment.

One of my tires was worn out in about 2000 miles. So I began to look more closely at what was going on. Here is how you check it:

Take a long straight edge, like a long construction level, for instance, and lay it against the two tires on one side of the trailer. Do this with the level parallel to the ground and on center of the wheels. It should touch the tires in four spots, Back and front of each tire. This tells you the tires are parallel with each other. If there is a gap somewhere, adjust the eccentric adjusters on the swing arm pivots to move the swing arms until you get the touch at four points, or very close to it. This takes a bit of looking at it to see what happens when the adjuster is turned. Also, to make the adjustment, jack up one of the wheels under the swing arm (call that wheel #1), until the other wheel (call that wheel #2) is off the ground. Then adjust the one that is hanging (wheel #2). Then set it back down and see how you did. This will have to be done with both wheels and done several times to get what you want. To adjust, loosen the jam nuts on the swing arm pivot bolts, and then adjust it by turning the bolt head that is attached to the eccentric washer to move one end of the swing arm around in an arc. This allows tow-in and camber adjustment.

Now do the other side in the same way.

Once each set of wheels is running inline with each other, it's time to check tow-in for the total set of four. Each pair needs to be running along one line, but the lines on each side are not parallel with each other. To check this you need two levels and a helper. Set a level up as described already, against the tires, on each side. Then measure with a tape measure the distance across in front of the forward tires and behind the rear tires. In front and behind. Compare these two measurements. The front should be less. This is not a precise number and mine are at 5/8" less in front than in the rear. This seemed like more than was optimal, but I've discovered that the swing arms can crush the urethane bushings enough to move around a bit while driving, so some tow in allows for this while averaging out to be, more or less, straight.

If this number is not close to 1/2" or 5/8", readjust the eccentrics to correct it, while keepng the tires running true with each other per side.

When you think you are done, drive straight ahead for about 20' or more without turning. Stop and check with the level again. If the tires are still aligned with each other, you are done.

Proof it's right: I put a new tire on after I aligned mine and then pulled it for 3,000 more miles. That new tire still has a bit of the mold tits showing after 3,000 miles! No measurable tread wear. It seems to be perfect.

Be sure to grease the zerks on each swing arm (2 each). I did not see any grease squeezing out after twelve pumps, but I figured that was enough and left it at that.

 

[hopp150]

OK, city water connection through the outdoor shower on a 2020 HQ 15 (that did not come with city water connection) is complete and working. I removed the handles and faucet that came from the factory and installed a city water connector on the cold water side. The hot water side is plugged for now but Im waiting on a few parts and will install one of these. https://aquorwatersystems.com/shop/universal-outlet/

 

[Robbrown27]

OK, city water connection through the outdoor shower on a 2020 HQ 15 (that did not come with city water connection) is complete and working. I removed the handles and faucet that came from the factory and installed a city water connector on the cold water side. The hot water side is plugged for now but Im waiting on a few parts and will install one of these. https://aquorwatersystems.com/shop/universal-outlet/

im interested in your city water tap simply for the ease of winterization. Livening in Wyoming I some times go through that 2-3 times a year so I can maximize my outdoor usage while being spoiled by lux RV living! The first time I winterized my 2020 HQ15 I was not ready for the effort it took. I’ve had campers for quite some time and have always used the city tap to blow air through the system with great luck for winter. I would only use enough antifreeze to run through the water pump/s and P traps and always had good success minus the one outside shower I lost a couple years back. I’m definitely interested in your success with this mod in that aspect. Regards, Rob

 

[Raspy]

Rob,

Look back at my post number 169 about the city water connection and see what you think. Simple to use and perfect for blowing the system out in the winter with compressed air.

 

[Bikepals]

hopp,

I installed a 6" Frost-Free Silcock up through the bottom of the trailer, under the fridge and behind the pump cabinet area. There is a large area of dead space there. I cut a 4" hole in the divider, at the back of the pump cabinet to access the area. Outside, it came out behind the tires and behind the mud flap. It sits vertical so it drains when disconnected to prevent freezing. I made no holes in the side of the trailer. Inside, I installed a 1/2" stainless steel faucet pigtail that goes from the Silcock to a T installed in the cold water line right after the pressure pump. There is an extra check valve that Black Series installed just downstream of the pump. After that, there is a 90. So I pulled the 90 out and replaced it with a T. The incoming city water goes up through the Silcock, through the pigtail, and is teed into the water system just after the main cold line check valve. This setup is not visible outside the trailer unless you look up behind the mud flap on the driver's side. I keep a hose cap on it when not in use. It is also a good place to screw on a pressure gauge to check how much pressure the on-board pump puts out. It can also be used to hook up a compressor to winterize the trailer.

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It would be helpful if you took some pictures so we could see what your talking about. I have a HQ15 so I would have to adapt your method to my trailer.

 

[Bikepals]

The trim strips are coming off on the windows by the bed. Anyone else have this problem?

 

[LRTechSD]

I am very happy to find this board. You guys have given so much useful information and answer so many questions I had. since this is my first trailer. I cant wait to start modding if the better. First is the MPPT solar controller with two more flexible panels. Has anybody hooked up the whole electrical panel to the inverter yet?

 

[Bikepals]

You can’t hookup the whole electrical box to the inverter. The inverter gets its shore power from the breaker box in the storage area and there is not enough battery power to run the air conditioner. You could move the ac sockets that are on the kitchen side and bathroom to the inverter which would also put the tank heaters to the inverter. I have looked at doing this but it will be after I switch to lithium batteries - the tank heaters will draw a lot of power.
To do this you would need to run a line from the output side of the inverter to the front storage area. Then disconnect the wires from the breaker labeled GFCI which is position 4 on the HQ15. These need to be connected together. On the video that RV of Americ did on this, they used a separate breaker box to connect them together.
If I do this in the future I will post pictures. Do not run with this and do it yourself unless you have good electrical knowledge. I have a degree in electrical engineering and would do a lot of testing first to make sure I am doing it correctly. Proceed at your own risk.

 

[LRTechSD]

I do agree with you on that.

 

[LRTechSD]

I don't know why i watched this video on youtube today but i did and i have some questions for you guys i also have a 2020 HQ15 and i don't have a city water hookup my outside stove has the power port on the outside of my unit and i Had to request the wood/storage hold with the jerry can holder. here is the video

 

[RoA-offroadtrailer]

You can’t hookup the whole electrical box to the inverter. The inverter gets its shore power from the breaker box in the storage area and there is not enough battery power to run the air conditioner. You could move the ac sockets that are on the kitchen side and bathroom to the inverter which would also put the tank heaters to the inverter. I have looked at doing this but it will be after I switch to lithium batteries - the tank heaters will draw a lot of power.
To do this you would need to run a line from the output side of the inverter to the front storage area. Then disconnect the wires from the breaker labeled GFCI which is position 4 on the HQ15. These need to be connected together. On the video that RV of Americ did on this, they used a separate breaker box to connect them together.
If I do this in the future I will post pictures. Do not run with this and do it yourself unless you have good electrical knowledge. I have a degree in electrical engineering and would do a lot of testing first to make sure I am doing it correctly. Proceed at your own risk.

Great post.. Just so you know the heater pad takes about 4 amps.. less than we thought. We just tested it lately. Some 12volt pads take the same amount.