CO/LP Monitor Location

[correpat]

New to RV lifestyle...heard alarm beep coming from coach while driving...could not find offending device...pushed out slide room and - voila! - the CO/LP monitor in our coach is located in the bed base, which is blocked when the slide room is retracted! This is not an acceptable location according to the monitor manufacturer's information. Sent off an email asking FR to authorize local RV dealer to move the monitor and replace the bed panel, which will have a gaping hole once the monitor is moved, and haven't heard back yet, but has anyone else had their CO/LP monitor blocked by the slide room? Has anyone had problems and had their monitor moved?

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by correpat

New to RV lifestyle...heard alarm beep coming from coach while driving...could not find offending device...pushed out slide room and - voila! - the CO/LP monitor in our coach is located in the bed base, which is blocked when the slide room is retracted! This is not an acceptable location according to the monitor manufacturer's information. Sent off an email asking FR to authorize local RV dealer to move the monitor and replace the bed panel, which will have a gaping hole once the monitor is moved, and haven't heard back yet, but has anyone else had their CO/LP monitor blocked by the slide room? Has anyone had problems and had their monitor moved?

On our Forester 2401R, we have probably 2-3" between the couch IPO dinette when retracted and the LP/CO monitor. Blocking it is a definite design or installation error.

[correpat]

Thanks for confirming the monitor is not located where it should be and where it is in other similar RVs. I spoke with an individual from the Forest River Warranty division yesterday. He said FR had worked with the monitor manufacturer and "others" in RV manufacturing on the location of the monitor; that putting the monitor in the dinette area (per manufacturer instructions) would cause false alarms when cooking with LP; that the monitor was probably picking up hair spray, cologne, floor cleaner vapors, etc. No, No, No. The RV is spot cleaned with hot water (we've never used the shower, the oven, the stove top or the microwave, as we've only slept in it overnight outside our son's house and on the road in Walmart parking lots so it hasn't had a chance to really be used); neither of us uses hair spray or cologne because of my asthma. Maybe the materials used in the construction of the RV or the batteries are out-gassing. No matter what, the gentleman who called was condescending and FR isn't going to do anything. Sounds to me like there was a problem with the monitor alarming for other reasons than CO/LP and FR moved the monitor to the bed base without making any design changes (like moving the storage door and putting the monitor in an exposed section of the base bed. Now that there's a problem with the slide room and it can't open, we have no access to the monitor. Worse part? The FR rep told me the monitor was hard wired (yes) so there isn't a battery - wrong - the RV dealer had to change the back up battery because it ran down after we cut the power to the coach. I'm drafting a report to file with the transportation safety board this weekend!

[pgandw]

To be honest, not all RV CO/LP alarms have backup batteries. Mine did not - I took it apart to verify. The chirping was actually coming from the smoke detector - which is 9V battery only.

Just my experiences
Fred W
2014 Rockwood A122 A-frame

[MNtraveler]

I should clarify my comment. If the LP/CO detector is blocked during normal use situations, then that would not be appropriate. If the bed would normally be extended when you would be using the kitchen, then it's not a problem. However, if you would be cooking with the bed retracted, such as at a rest stop, then proper operation would be blocked in that situation.

I'm no expert, but but I don't think the simple fact of not having it in the kitchen area is a problem. CO would spread everywhere in the unit, and LP gas falls to the lowest level and will spread across the floor. I would assume either of these would happen fairly quickly in a closed environment.