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Hi all, (crossposting from Aluminum Camper Forum)

I got a flat on the highway in the middle of no place on the way to Florida from Atlanta. I was probably doing about 80, and while I felt the tire blow, the trailer was well behaved, and I pulled the truck and trailer over on the on-ramp to the next exit.

The tire had completely disintegrated from flapping on the highway, and I was mad at myself for packing my axle jack inside the camper. Such a bad idea. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a H.E.R.O. truck shows up, and the guy pulls out his floor jack and changes to the spare for me. Awesome result!

I had a look at the remaining road tire, and given its age and condition, I fretted about it for the rest of my trip. And now I was down a spare. I had to pick up a tire-on-wheel to have another spare available, and that cost me over $160 at a Bass Pro. I could've probably spent less, but would've had to spend a bunch of my trip staying put and awaiting shipping, dealing with repair, etc.

If you're looking for a tire-on-wheel that's just like mine, you're looking for a 5.3x12 tire on a wheel with a 3.19-inch center hole, and a 5-lug pattern. Note that if you measure distance between lug hole centers and it matches your existing wheel, and you have 5, the spread from the center has to match too (ask your Geometry teacher). If you match that measurement, and have a center hole that matches yours, the wheel should fit.

I had a look at the tire codes on the spare (now on the trailer) and the other original road tire. These are called "DOT Codes", and an online look-up can tell you how old your tires are (I bought my trailer used). Ugh: 2009. It's way past time for all the tires to be replaced.

Here, however is where I make a mistake: I ordered a fairly cheap set of tires from Amazon, that matched my 5.3x12 wheel spec...but after looking at a bunch of tires and buying cheap, these came "Load Range B" instead of the spec "Load Range C". In a double-mistake, I didn't discover this 'til the tires were mounted. Ouch. These tires will carry less weight than the prior set.

I might get this fixed again when I have a spare $150 to drop on nothing I particularly want to buy, but for the time being, Load Range B will just work if they're properly inflated, and I don't add a bunch of stuff in the trailer (I've had it weighed on a CAT scale).

Lesson learned: 5.3x12 AND check the load range.

While we're at it, when looking for someplace to get your tires mounted, make sure and check that their machine will handle a 12-inch aluminum wheel. Don't just assume any tire store can do them. There was a day before aluminum wheels were popular that not all tire stores could mount on them. And it's no guarantee that their machines can handle a wheel of this size.

Hope this helps someone. Would've helped me!

Hi all,

I realize this forum is only lightly-trafficked now, but it's a common hit for info on my camper, so placing this here so someone in need can find it.

I fretted over how to do this for a long time before pulling the trigger. I finally determined it was  time when this spring at Sebring I was able to use the old A/C to get the interior of the camper a bit warmer than it was outside.

The old A/C was a GE:

GE AEH05LMG1 - 5200 BTU 
Body 17-3/4 w at coils/exterior end, 12-3/4 deep from coils end, 12-1/4 high at pull tab 
GE Spec dimensions: 12 7/16 H x 17 11/16 W x 13 5/16 D

As I looked for a replacement, I noted that there are higher-capacity, more efficient, and smaller units available, but what I was really looking for was:

- something of equal or better BTU
- that has a remote
- that is pretty close to fitting the hole.

I chose an LG LW6024R (no, they aren't paying me, nor do I get money from Bezos) because it's 6,000 BTU, and the measurements are:

12.83"D x 17.31"W x 11.13"H

The cord is on the right side (looking at it from the control panel), but that thing is in the way no matter how it goes in. The plug is a little thicker (but smaller in width/height) than the interruptor plug on the GE. Haven't had the whole camper unfurled yet to see that fit.

I discovered I could replace the A/C without opening the camper. I opened the hatch, pulled the AC out on its slides (which are just somewhat robust drawer slides), and unscrewed the 4 sheet-metal self-tapping screws which held the body of the A/C to a couple of aluminum planks at the end of the slides.

These planks and the self-tapping screws looked pretty janky to me, but I embraced the jank and plopped the new A/C in about the same place on the planks, then looked for where to drill.

Note that I'm not telling you to drill into your A/C. Just describing what I did. If you drill into your A/C, you're doing it on your own and I take no responsibility for damage, death or danger.

I HAD TO BE CAREFUL DRILLING INTO THE NEW A/C. I shouldn't have to say this, but I realize that there are plenty of places where drilling into the bottom of the A/C, or placing self-tapping screws may penetrate a refrigerant line or someplace else that is, and should stay pressurized with refrigerant. The info on the A/C indicates that Hell surely awaits if any of that now-flammable refrigerant escapes.

I was careful and didn't puncture anything. I did have to drill a couple new holes in the janky aluminum plates. I got new hex-head self-tapping #8 screws, and secured the new A/C

With that finished and the A/C mounted and sliding in and out, I went over to mounting foam insulation around the perimeter of the A/C to seal it against the existing rubber weatherstripping when the A/C was pulled to working position.

I used black weatherstrip adhesive (I got 3M - they know what they're doing) and followed carefully the instructions to make sure the surface was CLEAN and DRY (gluing weatherstrip to dirt wasn't going to seal my camper). I mounted non-adhesive 1" foam rubber "Air Conditioner Weatherstripping" - purchased as a couple 6' rolls from the hardware store - all around the A/C. I had to note how far I needed to pull the A/C out to run properly before deciding on a mounting spot. I picked right about where I would've mounted the sliding side-panels for the A/C if I were really mounting in a window.

All in place, when I pull the A/C out on its slides, it seals well against the factory weatherstrip.

I'm looking forward to having a little better cooling this summer.

Does anyone have experience repairing stripped threads in the wall of the QS 10.0 (or other QS tent campers)?

The threads are about gone on the wall-side mounting point for the brace near the door. I know about typical thread repairs: helicoil, screw goop/epoxy, drill/tap another hole nearby, long bolt/locknut on other side, aluminum foil in the hole, etc.

I just haven't been inside the wall, the camper's in storage, and I'd like to be prepared to fix it when I go get it for the next trip out.

What's in there, and what do you think might be my best option?

Picture here (that's somebody else's trailer, but generally-speaking the same brace):

https://www.jimmiedave.com/brace-arrow.jpg