Community Forums

GBill · 02-12-2021, 08:46 AM

I am in the process of purchasing a2007 Excel 36 tke Limited that has be stored for 6 years outdoors at a dealer in the northern climes.....snow ect. It has just been sitting and not moved because the husband of the owner unfortunately passed and it became a sentimental issue. So I will be needing a little help from this group in order to understand the unit and get her road worthy again going forward. I did own a 2004 DRV #1291 that was owned by a IRV2 member that I sold last year thinking that I wouldn't be needing a 5er again. I was wrong and now need a unit so this one owner was my best option based on price point and current location. In that the tires are buried in snow presently would anyone know what size tires were delivered on this unit. I have the original bill of sale and up graded tires were not optioned so what ever came from the factory is what is on it. I have looked all over the net for the tire size with no luck including Petersen brochures. In advance thanks for you help.

rockintom · 02-13-2021, 06:26 AM

Welcome to the Excel Forum! Not to rain on your parade (not pun intended) but I would be very cautious of buying an older rig that's been sitting outside in the weather you discribe. The Excels are wood framed coaches and require regular maintenance to protect the caulked seams. Otherwise water seeps in and does it's damage. Check for gaps on the caulked areas. On a very close inspection of the coach, I'll list a few of the key areas to check for damage below.

Front cap to roof line junction especially at each corner
All four corners where water gutters/drain spouts are
All slide openings on the body - metal and side walls meet
All slide tops for roof damage/caulk issues
All slide outside floors (when open) especially on ends for soft/rotted wood
Check all side walls on the inside for little specks (mold) and/or water damage. These usually start high on the walls. Look in the front closet up in the corners for water damage.

This is a good place to start. Getting in a hurry and failing to check this stuff could cost you 10's of thousands of dollars in major wall repairs.

Excels are great rigs, but one not properly maintained can be your biggest nightmare.

Please let us know what you find on your inspeciton. Tom

The original tires were Goodyear G614 235 X 16 RST.

GBill · 02-14-2021, 09:57 AM

Rockintom thank you for the info on specific areas to check for leaks/rot and mold. It is a shame that it was abandoned for so long without being maintained although I was told that the battery was replaced 2 years ago for what ever reason. As of today it has a foot of snow on it so pulling it out of it's space to open it up has to wait until after a thaw. The only thing that I can say for sure right now is that the landing gear has not let down and the tires are still holding air. It was optioned with hydraulic landing gear what ever brand remains to be seen. Now has as the Dicor caulk/tape held up remains to be seen. If it has that will be something. As you can imagine I hope that all is well but know that this may be a bit of a stretch. It you think of anything else to check please let me know. I know I would have missed checking the front closet for sure. If it was winterized with non toxic antifreeze does it break down over time? Just something that crossed my mind in addition to everything else. Thanks again.

rockintom · 02-16-2021, 06:40 PM

I'm not sure on the antifreeze......but my best guess is no, it doesn't detereate over time.
I Googled it up and appears it doesn't go bad over time.

GBill · 02-17-2021, 07:28 AM

Well that is one less thing to be concerned about. The area where it lies got hit with snow again over the weekend so patiently waiting on Mother Nature. I will post back how this adventure turns out. Thanks again.

GBill · 03-06-2021, 01:28 PM

The rest of the story.......the weather finally cooperated and the owner had the dealer storing the 36tke pull it out and install a battery. Unbelievably the unit did not show any signs of leaking or mold. The interior is in great shape (one owner) but the carpet does show some wear. I was surprised to find a washer/dryer installed because it was not show on the original invoice. The owner said that it was added shortly after purchase. Nice! I did learn that dining room slide did have a problem that showed up shortly after delivery so the unit was returned to the factory for repair....something about missing rollers but other than that no problems. The only thing that I noticed was some wrinkles in the head liner. I was told that the material used had a tendency to shrink and that is what the owner was told by Petersen. Has anyone ever had the problem or heard about this issue? Other than that the exterior, as you can imagine, will require quite a bit time and elbow grease. Maybe give it the Zep floor wax treatment on the front and rear caps. Anyway if anyone has any insight on the wrinkling head liner I would much appreciate your thoughts. Thanks

rockintom · 03-07-2021, 05:43 AM

I'm not any help on the wrinkled ceiling material as we always opted for the optional padded ceiling and didn't ever have an issue. I do have a comment on the Zep wax treatment though. Several of my friends have done it and it looks nice for about 4-5 years, then it starts to flake off due to weather related delamination issues. Quite a job to redo again. Just sayin'.

Another comment relating to the after factory washer/dryer installation. Does the washer have a drain pan under it? That's a pan to catch any water if the washer has a failure. They are nice to have and usually installed on any quality installation.

You also may want to put your rig info in your signature so it's easy for folks to see what your have without having to look it up! Thanks!

GBill · 03-08-2021, 07:48 AM

Rockintom thanks. The headliner wasn't optioned and I suspect had the original owner know he would have optioned it in that he did not seem to spare any expense on the options selected. I will have to get creative on the fix....maybe some type of batten material that is wider that the factory piping. Having worked with the Zep on my last 5er your assessment of Zep is spot on. Done right it looks great and does hold up for some time. I will update my info and you suggested. Thanks again for your help.

Masch · 03-12-2021, 06:53 PM

I am curious, can you post a picture of the headliner????

GBill · 03-13-2021, 07:47 AM

At the moment I can't. I am in Arizona and the 5er is in NY. But in the future is may be able to. I'm not the greatest with posting pictures but I will try.

rockintom · 03-13-2021, 07:52 AM

If you need help posting pix....let me know....I can help.

OK....where's that signature you promised???!!!

TXiceman · 03-13-2021, 07:53 AM

We had looked at several used Excels a few back and every one of them has soft floors at the edges of the slide and some soft slide floors. We have know a few folks that had to have the slide floors rebuilt due to rot from water intrusion.

If you do decide to go for this unit, have a good professional inspection done on it before you sign on the dotted line.

Ken

Masch · 03-13-2021, 05:01 PM

I always thought my ceiling sagged in the center but I believe it is by design. Is has a little give to it but is solid once it pushes thru to the wood.

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rockintom · 03-13-2021, 05:09 PM

If I'm not mistaken.....this looks like the optional padded ceiling. I may be wrong, but that what it looks to me. The padded is so much nicer than the standard ceiling. It's easy to tell because it is squishy when you mash your finger on it. Much quieter when it rains too. It may be my imagination, but it acts as a sound deadner when your bride is fussing at you when your inside!!!!