Tom,
I just saw your post expressing concern about my inside cover for the shower sky light. I live in South East Florida and my inside dome imploded a long time ago. It has been replaced once. In November it will be replaced again. I'm not sure what I am going to do. It looks like Newmar just replaces the dome with the same part.

The imploding happened long before I put the cover on the sky light. It is just like my basement doors that keep delaminating. Newmar keeps replacing them again and again, but does not seem interested in correcting the root cause of the problem.

I appreciate you expressing your concern on this item.

Being new to this forum, we are really enjoying the topic on modifications and quick tips.

Our 2006 Newmar KS was our first entry into RVing. We feel we did a very good job finding a coach that fit our lifestyle and price although a few things particularly bugged my wife. 1) There was no pantry 2) she wished we had hard tile backsplashes for a distinguished look, and 3)most of all she disliked the bare wall to the side of the refrigerator.

We looked at adding hard tile but quickly ruled it out because we weren't sure if the wall would support the weight. We chanced upon a new product that had just come out at Home Depot - decorative thermoplastic panels. They have the look of tin and come in various colors and styles. This provided the "designer look" my wife desired. I would have included the picture here but I can't figure out how. Hopefully, this link will take you there or perhaps someone can help me.



The project took a few hours and was a little tricky around the windows. You must use the glue suggested by the manufacturer--some are flammable and you don't want that near your stove. Home Depot gave us the wrong glue initially and we had a bit of a panic in the middle of the project when we called the manufacturer because the panels were not sticking.

This provided us the inspiration to complete a small pantry to the side of our refrigerator. We had only a few inches to work with due to the driver-side slide. With some precise measurements we have approximately 1/4" to spare at the slide but we have a small pantry that will story approximately 40 regular size cans/misc. We were worried about matching the coastal cherry wood so my wife decided to paint the unit black and use the backsplash material as inserts. The black coordinates with our appliances and other accessories.
Here is the link to this pic:

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quote:

Originally posted by Dav5942:
UPDATE-just looked at a bunch of '07 &'08 DS, KS, Ventanas, etc.-they ALL are using this battery tray and latch!

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Dav5942:
If you have the battery slideout tray like shown below-sooner or later(if you get off the Interstates) you will break the latch on the tray. To keep from breaking it instatll two pins(one on each side of tray) for proper support

Dave, our tray latch broke as did yours and as you say many others. We were lucky we caught it before it damaged our compartment door. I'm sure a hard left turn would have sent the batteries and the tray through the door. This is clearly a safety issue and Newmar should recall all the Allstar's and Ventana's that have this weak latch. I put two bolts in the corners where you put the pins. It seemed like the only logical way to procure a temporary fix. The holes were not easy to drill.

Here's an upgrade without having to spend the big bucks for those who don't have the high end units. A $10 chrome extension for your Genny exhaust from your local auto parts store. Also available in flaired models.

Here are pictures of our glass storage. You can find the foam blocks at Michael's or other hobby shops. Trace around the glass you want to store and use a sharp box knife to cut out the hole (don't to forget to protect the cutting surface). This has worked great for us for years and never had breakage once we went to this. The glasses on their side is just because the cabinet is not tall enough for them to stand the other way. This lets us keep them all in the same cabinet.

For those with the outsdie freshwater(passenger side) quick release that can only be connected when pressure is turned off the water supply.
A fix is to cut out the center section of the grey pipe(shortening it) to allow the hose to be permanently connected-no more getting wet!

Isn't that the sewer hose storage hole?

quote:

Originally posted by Route 66:
Isn't that the sewer hose storage hole?

No, the sewage hose hole is on the driver's side. This is the freshwater washdown on the passenger side-great for washing bikes, cycles, atvs, etc.

I hadn't seen that feature before, but I knew you wouldn't interchange the two.

Thought it would be an "easy mod" but was a little tougher than planned.
Eliminated the Sony 24" tube TV(82 lbs.) replaced with LCD 26"(40 lbs. with bracket and mounts). Eventually will replace it with a 32" that we are using to replace the 26" that was mounted on the rear wall of the salon.

Original TV

New TV

Bracket

Mount

Finished product(movable)

Next project automatic engine oil change system.
Mid-Engine mods

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