Every bus is different, but I have built this over two years. Kept adding things I thought I'd remember. Now that I'm 65 so about to put a name tag on the wheel so I remember who I am...
Ideas welcome:
Pre Start
Outside:
wiper sleeves off
"before flight" banners off mirrors
awnings locked
tool box secure
belly bay items secure
bay doors locked down
propane "on" if fridge on
Engine: un plug bat charger/ block heater
check oil/ coolant/ engine fan oil level
grease
walk around TWICE
Inside:
cabinets and doors pinned
toilet lid down
TPMS awake
radio and Garmin power up
back up camera "on"
water pumps and heater "off"
Start Engine
check oil pressure and other gages
check engine box - oil pressure, belts, look for leaks
blinkers/ lights check
when air pressure up, check brakes before moving.
Shut down:
engine cool down for 5 minutes
check trani level while still running
look for leaks
shut off engine
drain air tanks
propane off
add shore power
plug in bat charger
engine oil and cooling fan dipsticks
Shut off radio/ garmin/ back up camera
Shut off H/W heater/ pumps
Grease
All ideas welcome. If I think they suck I won't tell you.
I regret the snarky comment "if they suck". No idea is a bad one.
Thanks gents.
Added :check under bus after cool for leaky wheel bearings.
I try to do most of that but every now and then I do a old fart moment and crap happens
it's a old fart thing no fixing that
Your state (Georgia) will have the pre and post trip inspection check list for commercial vehicles on their DOT web site. Every state/province is a little different, but pretty well all the same.
Ted -
Perhaps this should help. . .
http://busnut.com/forum/index.php/topic,3259.0.html
FWIW. . .
RJ
All good ideas! Thanks. There is a danger I make it longer than the ten commandments but the list I have now has helped. I hate going to get gas and have doors slamming. Hated it when the old toilet seat used to slam down. I put a no slam on the new toilet, but you know what I mean. I'll study the thread RJ sent. Mostly concerned I am not missing a major mechanical thing I should look at. Still too new at this.
Great list RJ. Mirrors. I forgot mirrors and had to stop twice on the last trip to adjust. Otherwise I guess I'm close.
5 minutes is a long time to idle your 6v92,even working 1 hard a minute or 2 is good
Thanks. You would know.
When I start I make sure I am ready to launch right after I do the engine box "look for leaks and oil pressure", but it takes 5 to 6 minutes for me to get 100 or better on air. Should I be adding a little higher idle for that time frame as far as oil circulation? Maybe the first minute or so? I can do that from the back when I am looking for leaks.
I hate to sound stupid but just trying to keep the old girl lubricated and happy. The PO started it once a month just to air it up, and then shut it off. I can't fix the wear he put on it, but trying to keep it happy. I start it every month or month and a half and then drive it for an hour including 30 minutes of highway time. Tires, bearings, fluids, engine etc get a little work out. I am told by many that is best. Also run my generator during that and put a load on it.
Glad to hear opinions from you, BK, Bob Glines, Buswarrior and others that really know.
Thanks for the help.
People do it different I just parked mine and never had a problem, your bus came with the 1st version of the 6v92 called the "green" engine they never liked the idling even on fast idle they prefer a load
Roger that. I've left it running when I fueled and at rest areas when we are only stopping for 10 minutes.
It always starts in a nano second so I'll quit that. Thank you.
I guess like most "Newbies" I will know a whole lot more about it about the time I sell it....
But it is a fun journey and great to have this forum to speed up fixing my ignorance.
I appreciate it.
Protect the old girl the best you can out of frame rebuilds are close to 30k + on the 92 series now with today's prices and done right with OEM parts,and you don't want to go down that road
One clean pass.
If something has to be touched, arranged, adjusted, picked-up, or otherwise was forgotten and discovered...
Go around again, cuz the thing you had to mess with may have distracted from others.
Takes some steady personal discipline, but as we age, with some luck, as the wandering mind goes in and out of focus...
No clean pass, 'round you go again.
I would also add a very strong desire to check carefully underneath for stray things, accidental or purposeful.
For instance, glass bottles under tires make for dangerous shrapnel. Too many peeps think the underside of a bus is a fine place to chuck things...
Yeah, getting on the ground and back up again doesn't get easier as time goes on, maybe if we got on the ground more, it might get easier?
The engine is cooling right from throttle lift out on the highway, coasting into the decel lane, puttering around to a parking spot. Really no need for further idling at that point. Any city street distance at all, there's no heat there to worry about.
Run the engine to drive it, otherwise, leave it off. Saves wear and saves fuel.
I like your monthly regimen, take it for a proper drive to get all parts up to operating temperature, bearings, transmission and engine.
Happy coaching!
Buswarrior
Once you guys have this all sorted, could you give us a bulleted list that can be printed out and maybe laminated? I'm sure that would be a big help especially for the less experienced owners like myself.
Jim
Will do Jim. How are the cabinets coming?
A benefit for me and those reading this is the other great advice they have offered over the past 2 years.. Like the walk around, don't idle my engine, don't get interrupted.
I have to re-start my hook up list whenever I stop at a campground.
"What year is it, how long have you had it, didn't know they made one without a tag wheel, how much fuel does it carry, what is your mileage...etc".
I force a smile, try not to look annoyed, start checklist over....
You can't blame them. Probably the only thing in the park not made out of fiberglass.
Other gems from Buswarrior and the salty guys on other threads over the last 2 years was the advice on turning.
Watch it start
Watch it turn
Watch it finish
That is one of my favorites. Seems obvious, but it isn't. It has kept me from coming close a few times. Even had to back up a few times and "adjust". If you live by it, it keeps you from hitting gas pumps, curbs, and fire hydrants. (sorry Fred)
Tried to attach this to a PM for you Jim but could not find the icon to do that?
Hope it sticks here. PDF file from a BGM guy.
Quote from: Tedsoldbus on November 15, 2022, 02:31:59 PM
Tried to attach this to a PM for you Jim but could not find the icon to do that?
Hope it sticks here. PDF file from a BGM guy.
Ted -Here's the one I sent a link to earlier, this time in PDF format. Remember, this one is generic for the CHASSIS, doesn't cover the house systems. You should create a separate pre/post-trip checklist for them.
FWIW & HTH. . . ;)
RJ
Thankjs RJ.
I printed 3 pretty good ones now. Spread them across the kitchen counter. Things I didn't think about and of course a lot of duplication. I added a little advice from the guys. Now trying to condense it to one that does not look like the Declaration of Independence....
I give Rita the inside one and she will run through the things I do from the driver seat. GPS and TMPS will reside on her side of the dash when she is with me.
Kind of a fun project while we wait for fuel prices to drop.,,,
:^ a 737 doesn't have a check list that long ,there was one a few years back the guy said turn the propane off at the tank ? that is going to work with the propane fridge
Thanks Ted.
I printed that off and will keep it handy for the next time I fire up the bus, may do a run through then and make notes. Should be a great start. No doubt I'll have to fine tune it for my bus, things like the leveling jacks for instance. But it's very much a useful tool for making sure nothing critical is overlooked. Might want to add awnings to the list if so equipped.
My cabinetry work is just about done, I posted some photos on my build thread. Still have the bathroom to do and I'll need to add those push latches in various places such as the desk drawers but that's fairly minor by comparison.
Jim
Sounds great Jim. Can't wait to see it when you are done.
Agreed Luvrbus. The list I started this thread with fits on one page. Not making it much longer than that and probably shorten it a bit. I look at each Item and ask "Do I really want to skip that?". And Rita is good at inside prep. Problem is she has had to miss a few trips due to ailing 90 year old parents. We have been taking a few separate trips this past year.
But there is a point it seems a bit over the top.
Just looking at what I have now, I'll never get out of the driveway....!
Make a list that fits your needs Ted,me I just use the simple FMCA list with a couple of items added. It has always been an internet thing if you ask for the time of day, somebody will tell you how to build a watch
confession.I got all into making my super duper checklist. I ended up with a stack of different versions and could not consolidate them, too much for my feeble brain.
I was able to take a pen and paper and pick off the ones that really matter. What a relief, a list with just enough items that I can actually check off each drive. it is a lot shorter.
There are longer lists around and I do scan them and ones that jump and shout "IT'S TIME!" get some attention.
Main point is to ensure you have a short list of the must checks and those that trigger at least a mental check off.
If you were to go fully through some of these lists, you'd wear yourself out before pulling out the campground and head to the bed for a nap. LOL
I know it will be a practical, shorter thing when I am done. But I'm leaving some of it on there. Last few trips (by myself) I forgot that damn roof vent in the bathroom. Get on the Interstate all happy, and rattle, rattle, rattle. "Son of a Be achee!. Not going to listen to THAT all the way to Knoxville!".
Take off again and forgot the pin that holds the pocket door closed. Getting off the highway in the bus is not like stopping with a Kia.
As I age I need to write this crap down or I get mad at me.
I will build a good watch Luvrbus, but it will be a $10 dollar Cassio without any buttons on the side that tells me how many steps I have walked that day...
Denial is the first sign of Alzheimer's...
Thanks for all the help and ideas guys.
Ted out
https://shop.diywatch.club/?
Make a list and check it twice, then you'll know what's naughty and not so nice.
I do not necessarily check everything each time we move, but I do have a vital short list that I call using your HEAD.
H-hoses
E-electrical
A-antennae (and other roof stuff)
D-doors (all of them)
If I do that before moving every time, I am unlikely to destroy anything by merely beginning to roll.
Has anyone added the Dump Valve to the list? I didn't think so... me neither! ;D
Add a W to that list for wife
wife for sure = when i leave her behind all the stuff she does to secure the interior all goes flying at the first curve. Then i go back and get her!
Lol
Let's not forget about the pets!