Is my electric switch for the rear jacks are upside down

[Trainman]

My switches on the switch up front (propane cover) are upside down, you push the top side of the switch to go down and the bottom of the switch to go up. This makes no sense to me unless I turn my head upside down when using them, I would think I need to reverse the switches so up is up and down is down, are your that way, or not.

 

trainman

[Mike and Carol]

13 minutes ago, Trainman said:

My switches on the switch up front (propane cover) are upside down, you push the top side of the switch to go down and the bottom of the switch to go up. This makes no sense to me unless I turn my head upside down when using them, I would think I need to reverse the switches so up is up and down is down, are your that way, or not.

 

trainman

Mine are the same.  I press the top of the switch to make the trailer go up and I push the bottom of the switch to make the trailer go down.  Makes perfect sense!    Mike

[topgun2]

Yes, Trainman, I too originally thought that they were installed upside down.  But, then, it was explained to me that I should think about it in terms of the direction I want the front of the trailer to go (i.e. not think in terms of which direction I wanted the jack foot to go).

So - what Mike said!

Bill

[Mainiac]

17 minutes ago, Trainman said:

My switches on the switch up front (propane cover) are upside down,

Have to agree. Mine are the same way. I still think of them as being upside down. But, we do understand what an 'engineer' must have been thinking. Push the button up and the trailer goes up. Push the button down and the trailer goes down. I would have preferred it the other way, but have just never thought about taking the time to pull out and flip over. Guess I should label them?

[topgun2]

Quote

3 minutes ago, Mainiac said:

Guess I should label them?

 

No - someone out there wants you to simply change the way YOU think 😜 to match the way THEY think.

Edited November 22, 2020 by topgun2

[Mainiac]

1 minute ago, topgun2 said:

No - someone out there wants you to simply change the way YOU think 😜

Nope..too old to worry about what others should think what I should think. I got to label them for me. Just going to put an arrow on the switch. My instinct is to push them the wrong way at the first of the season, unless I hear the "clicking"...

[Trainman]

Well I think I will reverse mine, for my age I need up to be up and down to be down. It looks like a 3 min. job, but from my experience these days it will probably take every tool I own and half the day to do the job. Plus for the wife it needs to simple, having to go and explain the operation will just not be worth explaining it. 

trainman

[John E Davies]

After four camping seasons I still get the direction wrong the first few times I use the jacks. After that my mind accepts that “Up” means “Trailer Go Up”. Which really does make sense, especially for the rear ones where you cannot see them moving. And for clueless owners who don’t know better.   😀  For the tongue it is harder to accept because you are watching the ram come down. I guess I could rewire just the tongue switch, that would make things really interesting....

I too find that stuff just takes a whole lot longer to accomplish than it used to, in say 1990. I mentally think “1 hour to do this... no worries!.” -  it usually takes me half a day or more. And I have to watch closely for mistakes that would never happened long ago. There is a reason old people retire from working.....

John Davies

Spokane WA

[topgun2]

With regards to the time it takes to complete jobs -

I like to think that after all those years when I simply didn't have the time to do things the way I knew they should be done, I now have the time to really do it "right".  So what if it takes me a day (or two or three) to do it?  So what if I have to wait until I have the chance to get that exact correct part or shrink tubing or glue or varnish or sandpaper or ....  ?  

My days of doing things in a hurry are over - unless I'm preparing to get on the road with my Ollie.  And even then I start planning just as soon as I can for the next trip so I don't have to rush when the time comes.  To me, this is one of the real joys of retirement.

Bill

[ScubaRx]

Just swap sides with the middle two wires. 

[Mainiac]

Pull two screws..turn switch over...put screws back in. Next switch. Done.

[BackofBeyond]

Find something else to worry about - I have to mentally reset every time - If I reversed the action - I'd still have to adjust.  Oh look- there's  squirrel. Wait, no...

 

[SeaDawg]

No matter the label,I'd be doing it wrong once in awhile.

No big deal.

[Landrover]

I actually get more confused with the outside hot water heater switch is Off up or down?

[John E Davies]

3 hours ago, Landrover said:

I actually get more confused with the outside hot water heater switch is Off up or down?

LOL, it makes no sense, the switch is bass ackwards..... in the USA up is usually ON for a toggle switch. But the Suburban switch is actually labeled the other way, so they did it on purpose. The very first week I had the trailer I wrote down the correct direction. You certainly cannot see the switch itself without bending way over and looking under the box. This is a really good example of a dumb design.

 

John Davies

Spokane WA

Edited November 24, 2020 by John E Davies

[Ray and Susan Huff]

On 11/23/2020 at 8:40 PM, John E Davies said:

LOL, it makes no sense, the switch is bass ackwards..... in the USA up is usually ON for a toggle switch. But the Suburban switch is actually labeled the other way, so they did it on purpose. The very first week I had the trailer I wrote down the correct direction. You certainly cannot see the switch itself without bending way over and looking under the box. This is a really good example of a dumb design.

 

John Davies

Spokane WA

Does the standard water heater not have a switch inside?  (2021 model)

[Mike and Carol]

3 minutes ago, Susan Huff said:

Does the standard water heater not have a switch inside?  (2021 model)

The standard water heater has an inside switch to turn on with propane.  There is an outside switch on the unit to turn on with electricity.  Before leaving for a trip I turn on the electric switch.  If we have hookups it automatically comes on.  If we’re not, we turn on inside to use propane.  Mike

[John E Davies]

The outside hot water heater “shore power” switch is there mostly so you do not accidentally fry the heating element when the tank is drained for winter. If the circuit breaker inside is not turned off, the element will burn out in a few seconds unless it is completely surrounded by water. When winterizing, or any time the tank is emptied (for a flush or anode change) it is a really GOOD idea to trip the breaker inside under the dinette, and also turn off the outside switch, to avoid a senior moment and the inevitable swear words. The element is not expensive and it is easy enough to replace, but it is a hassle best avoided entirely.

There is a little white plastic tab that secures the outside door in place, at the top. It has two sides and rotates. I colored one side with a Sharpie, when the element switch is ON I turn that side OUT, when it is off I turn the white side out. Simple and effective, you can tell at  glance the status of the switch as you walk by. It takes all of ten seconds to color one side. Another thing I do to avoid a burnout is to leave the anode lying on the bottom of the heater and not reinstall it until spring. It is a very strong reminder that the tank is empty and out of service.

I call this stuff Red Flagging, we used to do that on aircraft routinely when we stopped in the middle of a job for lunch, or to go home for the day. It was literally a long red streamer looped around a nearby support, to alert anybody that “this repair is not finished yet!” or “this engine has no oil!” It was mainly in case you got sick and somebody else had to complete the job, but it also prevented very expensive mistakes, like running a Beechcraft Baron’s two freshly rebuilt piston engines without oil, and destroying them both in a couple of minutes. Uh ohhhhhh. Which happened where I worked, but not to me fortunately. I still red flag things, like the gearshift lever every time the trailer is hitched while the jacks are lowered. Or the ARB compressor fridge inside the truck is connected to the Ollie’s solar port. Uh ohhhhh!

John Davies

Spokane WA

 

 

Edited November 25, 2020 by John E Davies

[RnA]

5 hours ago, Mike and Carol said:

Before leaving for a trip I turn on the electric switch.  If we have hookups it automatically comes on.  If we’re not, we turn on inside to use propane.  Mike

Doesn't the inverter power the water heater if the ac switch is on?

Edited November 26, 2020 by RnA

[Mike and Carol]

2 hours ago, RnA said:

Doesn't the inverter power the water heater if the ac switch is on?

No.  If the inverter is off, then the water heater isn’t on.  If the inverter is off and there is no shore power the water heater isn’t on.