Idling in campground

[USMCRET]

I can find a hundred different reasons to be aggravated each time we travel. I choose not to.

[Mike and Cha]

Originally Posted by NHRA225

Mike-- With All due respect we meaning all of us that travel anywhere will eventually come across inconveniences, Either staying in Rest areas- Truck Stops Ect and Yes Campgrounds and RV Parks.
Its the nature of the beast! So to Speak ! Get over it or maybe you don't travel very much.

Oh we travel a lot, and I get over it, I just appreciate those who think about others like I and many others do. Maybe your post just seemed a little cocky and I took it that way due to the nature of reading it in a post vs an actual conversation.

[Belgian]

Im glad the OP brought this up again. Maybe the new people to RVing and the longtime RVers will learn how to be courteous.

[WNJeffers]

He's wasting fuel. The turbo is warm and lubed in a couple of minutes of idling or driving at light throttle.

With air bags, leave as soon as you're aired up. Without air bags, start and drive off unless you will be accelerating onto an interstate or similar within a mile or so. In the latter event, idle for 2 or 3 minutes.

Wayne

[Alan_Hepburn]

Back in the dark ages diesels were cheaper to run if you kept them running. But diesels built in the last 20 years or so are different - start them up and once the oil pressure comes up they're ready to run. By the time you get out of the campground, through town and onto the interstate they're good to go. If it takes more than 5 minutes or so to build up your air pressure then either you have a very small compressor or you need to have your air system checked.

An idling diesel engine produces barely enough heat to keep itself running - it'll NEVER produce enough to heat the coolant up to operating temps. It will also do damage to the engine as unburnt fuel washes the cylinder walls, removing the coating of oil that helps seal the cylinders. If the engine is not up to operating temperature then acids can form in the oil, causing more engine wear. A diesel engine will only get to operating temperature when it is under load.

[Okiedoke]

I just hope an old neighbor doesn't camp near us. He would always rev his engine 4 or 5 times when leaving for work every morning. He had three different cars over a four year period.

[0rion]

well....guess I can add this to the list of things that bother campers.
List so far:
people with Lights
people with music
people with dogs
people with kids
people with fires to big
people with fires to smokey
people riding golf carts
people riding bikes
people talking
people walking
people running
people eating
people drinking
people cooking
people driving too fast through campgrounds
people driving too slow through campgrounds
people with old beat up rv's
people with new fancy rv's
people up too early
people up too late
people arriving too early to campsite
people arriving too late to campsite
people with too much stuff
people with not enough stuff
and now people idling their rv too long
I'm sure idling their rv not long enough will come up eventually.

Makes me wonder why most campers even want to go. There's just too many people out there living their lives in close proximity to them.

[DD788Snipe]

Originally Posted by DGBPokes

Well, my brother-in-law is new to RVing, bought a DP last year. Years ago, he drove trucks over the road. Sorry to say, in spite of suggestions from me, old habits die hard. He idles his rig every time we stop, fuel, lunch, campground, rest stops.

In the morning before departure, check the oil, thump the tires, start the engine. Then get everything else ready.

If he has a newer rig with a DPF he'll soon pay for that. New ARD head is expensive and not rebuildable. The newer rigs with a DPF & DEF are not supposed to be idled for extended periods of time. It will mess with the regeneration cycle.

I pull in all the slides disconnect everything then start my engine, hit the store on the jacks. It take about 6 to 8 minutes till the air dryer purges. While I'm waiting I make my final walk around then move out. I try not to leave a campground till after 8 but sometimes, not often, we leave earlier. The night before I turn on my block heater on so that the engine is already warm at start up and I always hookup the toad somewhere close by.

[raineman]

Originally Posted by Mike and Cha

Oh we travel a lot, and I get over it, I just appreciate those who think about others like I and many others do. Maybe your post just seemed a little cocky and I took it that way due to the nature of reading it in a post vs an actual conversation.

I read his post the same way. Basically, he said "I do what I want when I want. Get over it".

[NHRA225]

Originally Posted by Mike and Cha

Oh we travel a lot, and I get over it, I just appreciate those who think about others like I and many others do. Maybe your post just seemed a little cocky and I took it that way due to the nature of reading it in a post vs an actual conversation.

Mike-- No Harm-- No Foul !
Happy Trails

[SpaceNorman]

We do our best to keep the time our coach is idling on our site to a minimum. On arrival - that typically translates into 10-15 minutes of idle time and covers the time needed "drop the toad" while we're still in the roadway, the time required to position and park the coach on the site, the time needed to allow the hydraulic levelers to do their thing and finally, getting the slides all extended. I also need 30-40 seconds to jot down the trip mileage data so I can update my trip logs. Once I kill the engine - it won't start again until the day we leave. Leaving is usually a little quicker .... fire it up, retract the slides, pull up the levelers - and pull out - typically 5-7 minutes total. Once we're in the street ... there's 3-4 minutes to get the toad hooked up and do a check of the lights.

We're not "crack of dawn" sort of folks - so we usually don't get to starting engines until sometime after 8 am. We usually time our arrival such that we're pulling in somewhere in the 4 - 6 pm time frame. Obviously NOBODY likes hanging around an idling diesel pusher - so I do my best to keep it to a minimum - BUT, idling for some period of time on arrival and prior to departure is a necessary evil if you drive a DP. Neighbors who expect otherwise likely have unrealistic expectations.

[MRUSA14]

Originally Posted by SpaceNorman

We do our best to keep the time our coach is idling on our site to a minimum. On arrival - that typically translates into 10-15 minutes of idle time and covers the time needed "drop the toad" while we're still in the roadway, the time required to position and park the coach on the site, the time needed to allow the hydraulic levelers to do their thing and finally, getting the slides all extended. I also need 30-40 seconds to jot down the trip mileage data so I can update my trip logs.

I do ALL those things with my engine OFF. Why can't you?

Engine off, drop the toad. Engine on, back into the spot, engine off. Plug in electric, then slides, jacks, and bookkeeping with engine off.

[mel s]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFugRFKqjFg

[SpaceNorman]

Originally Posted by MRUSA14

I do ALL those things with my engine OFF. Why can't you?

Engine off, drop the toad. Engine on, back into the spot, engine off. Plug in electric, then slides, jacks, and bookkeeping with engine off.

My Coach Owner's manual is explicit. Slides are to be operated with the engine running. Same thing with the hydraulic levelers. Unfortunately, my "bookkeeping" requires the engine to be running as well - the digital display is blank when the engine is off. Simply moving the key to the ACC position bring the screen to a "ready to start" message that you can't get past until the engine is actually turning. The only way I can get to my Trip mileage data is to view it when the engine is turning.