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Re: fridge removal and replacement

Posted: January 16th, 2016, 2:24 pm
by Concourse St Tropez
Blu, any pics of the new counter ?

Re: fridge removal and replacement

Posted: January 16th, 2016, 5:17 pm
by Blue~Go
Concourse St Tropez wrote:Blu, any pics of the new counter ?
Not yet, because I'm still living with the "functional mock ups." Reason is that my cabinetmaker buddy ran into a serious health problem. Oh well, gives me time to come up with tweaks to my plan :D Funny thing is that the mockups are still much more pleasant (for me) than the original setup. I particularly like the "wide" roomy entry hall without the big 'fridge, and the lack of "limbo" needed when cooking with the microwave cabinet gone.

I do have some photos of the mockups in another thread though, when we were discussing remodeling the stove/'fridge area. Not sure if you've seen them:

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=17&hilit=counter+mock+up+stove

Re: fridge removal and replacement

Posted: January 17th, 2016, 2:15 pm
by kdarling
All that reminds me of two questions I had for those of you who have torn down those nearby fridge sections:

1. My 1994 has a dedicated outside exhaust vent for the stove hood. In the newer models, I see that vent disappeared. Do the newer models cheat and vent the stove hood fan inside the RV? (My real house's kitchen vent does that. Useless. Hate it!) Or ?

2. Has anyone peeked inside the area above the closet? In newer models, that's where the generator control and CO monitor is. There's nothing in mine, so it hit me that perhaps I could ream out a nice opening to make a tiny shelf for hats, gloves, etc at the rear entrance. Anyone looked there, or have a photo inside?

Thanks!
Kevin

Re: fridge removal and replacement

Posted: January 17th, 2016, 3:52 pm
by HoosierB
kdarling wrote: 1. My 1994 has a dedicated outside exhaust vent for the stove hood. In the newer models, I see that vent disappeared. Do the newer models cheat and vent the stove hood fan inside the RV? (My real house's kitchen vent does that. Useless. Hate it!) Or ?
2. Has anyone peeked inside the area above the closet? In newer models, that's where the generator control and CO monitor is. There's nothing in mine, so it hit me that perhaps I could ream out a nice opening to make a tiny shelf for hats, gloves, etc at the rear entrance. Anyone looked there, or have a photo inside?
1. Yes. My '01 Concourse had a "ventless" stove hood with monitor panel. Basically just re-vented the filtered exhaust back into the interior. My remodel will use the old Dometic "air shaft" to vent a new exhaust hood that is made to vent outside. It's a smaller Jensen model that accepts the same monitor panel/wire harness.

2. The "above closet" is a small space which seems to be home for the tail end of the wire harness, including the closet lights, C02 and gen-set panels. Be careful when "reaming"... fairly tight area with lots of wires (again, in my '01). My remodel will raise that shelf ceiling panel a couple of inches to allow for taller items I plan to store in the closet.

Re: fridge removal and replacement

Posted: January 17th, 2016, 7:05 pm
by Blue~Go
Same on my '99 as on Hoosier B's as far as the stove vent goes. Fan into one of those Brillo-pad looking things. I ditched mine as I dislike ducking under things to see into pans. I don't tend to cook a lot of greasy/meaty type things, and when I cook fish I usually do it outside, so not sure what I'll do instead. Maybe just a heat shield with a rim (?) Monitor panel functions will be taken over by a See Level panel elsewhere, plus my battery monitors.

On my '99, there was a ton of space over the top of the closet. The gen start panel was there, but the wires were run fairly neatly. The CO monitor was there, but that wasn't a great place for a CO monitor (too high and too far aft) so I've gone with a battery powered one elsewhere (also CO monitors have a finite lifespan and mine was well past it).

What I did, therefore, was make a cutout into a storage "cubby" that is now up where the CO monitor used to be. There is room for a lot of hats/gloves/etc. Sounds like the exact arrangement of each year/rig's "over closet" space might be a bit different. I was able to look around mine to size things up through the hole where I removed the CO monitor.

Re: fridge removal and replacement

Posted: January 18th, 2016, 7:39 am
by Scott
kdarling wrote: 1. My 1994 has a dedicated outside exhaust vent for the stove hood. In the newer models, I see that vent disappeared. Do the newer models cheat and vent the stove hood fan inside the RV? (My real house's kitchen vent does that. Useless. Hate it!) Or ?
Interesting. My 1994 Premier had the useless recirculating vent hood like the other guys. That thing made it nearly impossible to see what I was cooking, the light was nearly useless, and the fan did nothing but suck power and make noise. I find the standard vent fan in the roof, which is located directly above the galley, to be an excellent vent for cooking. I think my roof cutouts are in different locations than a lot of you guys. My monitor panel is up and to the left of the fridge, so removing the vent hood was a matter of removing four screws and disconnecting the two light wires.
kdarling wrote: 2. Has anyone peeked inside the area above the closet? In newer models, that's where the generator control and CO monitor is. There's nothing in mine, so it hit me that perhaps I could ream out a nice opening to make a tiny shelf for hats, gloves, etc at the rear entrance. Anyone looked there, or have a photo inside?
In mine, in the closed area above the hanger shelf is a fairly large space. The only thing there is the Onan start switch. I think it could make an awesome cubby. You should be able to remove that shelf fairly easily and see what you’ll need to do. Also, my CO monitor was back by the entry door. It has since been replaced by CO/smoke combination detector that I installed near the sink.

Re: fridge removal and replacement

Posted: January 18th, 2016, 8:11 am
by kdarling
Wow. Thanks for all the helpful responses!

I can understand why they removed the outside vent. It's controlled by a special combination switch on the hood... which you pull outward to both open the vent and turn on the fan... and so that switch has a round plastic rod that runs towards the wall and is attached to the vent opening mechanism.

That rod attachment to the outside vent cover, means the stove hood isn't easy to play with. When I painted the hood, I had to drop it a bit so I could mask it off in place, and that rod was a real pain. I had to unscrew the fan to get access with my hand to play with the rod attachment, etc.

Re: making an above-closet cubby. Cool, it's always nice to find extra storage space. I think I'll make some exploratory holes this weekend :)

Anyone have any photos of that area?

Re: fridge removal and replacement

Posted: January 18th, 2016, 8:32 am
by Scott
kdarling wrote: Re: making an above-closet cubby. Cool, it's always nice to find extra storage space. I think I'll make some exploratory holes this weekend :)

Anyone have any photos of that area?
I don't think you'll need to make any holes... you should be able to remove the MDF that the hanger rack attaches to and have a look around. The small panel you're referring to should just be 1/8" laminated ply wood stapled to MDF. Well, that's what mine is, anyway. Good luck in your investigation. BTW, in my rig, this whole part of the coach has a lot of opportunity for more storage volume, especially over the fridge.

Re: fridge removal and replacement

Posted: January 18th, 2016, 10:19 am
by Scott
Blue~Go wrote:Funny thing is that the mockups are still much more pleasant (for me) than the original setup. I particularly like the "wide" roomy entry hall without the big 'fridge, and the lack of "limbo" needed when cooking with the microwave cabinet gone.
Yeah, and I bet having it modular and adjustable must be really nice.

I've noticed that everything I've removed from my rig has contributed to a significant feeling of openness, which I love. When I first stepped into my Chinook, I was wowed by all of the features and comforts, but as I learn what they cost in terms of space, openness, and overall functionality, and how they’re not fully utilized by me, out they come! I haven’t regretted any of it (yet).

Re: fridge removal and replacement

Posted: January 18th, 2016, 11:12 am
by Blue~Go
Scott wrote:I've noticed that everything I've removed from my rig has contributed to a significant feeling of openness, which I love. When I first stepped into my Chinook, I was wowed by all of the features and comforts, but as I learn what they cost in terms of space, openness, and overall functionality, and how they’re not fully utilized by me, out they come! I haven’t regretted any of it (yet).
That's about how I am. I was attracted to the Chinook for its exterior size (I had a camper van, and wanted just a wee bit more space but not something super large or wide), the seamless fiberglass shell (I do boat work, so its familiar to me), and the Ford chassis/engine which I was somewhat familiar with (I tow a boat, so that eliminated some other rigs). I also wanted something about 1999-ish so it would be new enough to have airbags, etc.; but "old" enough so that I wouldn't feel guilty just doing whatever I wanted to it (hence why I didn't buy a cherry-interior 2003 I looked at -- too nice and too valuable).

After I got it I felt kind of cramped (ironically), and noticed that I didn't really use much of the "Class A" type stuff. Not because I'm depriving myself, but just... they weren't things I even used in house life. They also happened to be things that made it feel cramped/complicated to me. Instead of a bigger van, it felt like I had bought a shrunken, cramped Class A (this is all just my opinion; I know it's just right for some folks as-built, which is great).

So, much like you, I've been simplifying where I want to, and upgrading in other areas: basic electrical and charging setups, refrigeration, and furniture (there was enough to seat a party, but the bed wasn't comfortable and I wanted more drawers and more entryway space).

Funny thing is, even though I planned it this way, I still had to get over a feeling of "Oh but this is something fancy rigs have, I can't just take it out!" Never mind that I had not once used the refrigerator, microwave, exhaust fan, water heater, or generator for a year..... LOL Funny how conditioning is!

I have taken advantage of the unplanned delay in my cabinet work (for which I'm somewhat reliant on others with skills and shop for such) to play around with my mockups. As you say, it can be interesting. Like the "conditioning" mentioned above, it's funny how certain ideas stick. Like "Gee, should I leave out the second chair that I removed in favor of space I use more? But then I only can seat four... (Never mind that not once in my life have I NEEDED to seat four, and even with fewer someone usually sprawls out on the floor, we sit outside, or etc.) There is this somehow ingrown idea that everyone should be able to suddenly host a group, and never mind if a given person/family is not that type, and it's not the layout that would suit for the 99.9% of the time one is not hosting a group. Interesting phenomenon.