D.I.Y fitting of caravan motor mover

[dan the man]

hi all, has anybody fitted a caravan motor mover at home. I have the chance of getting one and fitting it myself > i have a 2005 van and i expect the chassis to be pre drilled, are they complicated to fit. I an fairly handy on the repair side and i am not put of by d.i.y fitting, just after a bit of advice and a few pointer's..... regards to you all... Dan

 

[GraShe]

Hi Danny

I have fitted a motor mover from previous van to present one. No problems found and works very well. You will need to make sure that the wires to each motor are the same length. Run the shorter run round the caravan to use the excess. If different lengths the caravan will tend to turn to left or right instead of running straight.

The mover I fitted was a Powrwheel. This came with installation instructions and if followed presented no problems. If you have any problems leave me a message and will be in touch

 

[dan the man]

thanks GraShe, very much appreciated not quite sure whot you mean about the cable lenghths, can you explain a little more detail.. Dan

 

[colin-yorkshire1]

hi danny

I got mine from a guy a few doors away that had just changed to a T/A and no longer needed it, I fitted it my self in about 2hrs no drilling required as the units use pinch brackets to fit to the chassis the only drilling required it to get the cables through the floor into the box,, every thing else is quite straight forward, the rollers should be set @25mm from the tyres using the provided spacer "if one is not supplied use a piece of wood 25mm thick" if possible dont cut the wires even if they are too long as you never know if you will need to put it on another van and then the wires may be too short.

the reason GraShe suggest you keep the cables the same length is because if one cable is longer than the other more power could be use by the motor with the shorter cable (as the box will probably be fitted more to one side) due to power loss and therefore spin faster making the van veer to one side when it is supposed to be going straight.

one other point worth considering is the position of the mover motors they can be fitted either in front of the wheels or behind them look at the underside of the van to see if you have a choice of position "sometimes you dont because of obstructions" if you do have the option fore or aft consider the nose weight you have allready, fitting in front of the wheels will increase the nose weight fitting behind will decrease it, (in this sinario the wires will have to be reversed on the box, because the left motor will effectively now be the right one and the controls reversed).

I would also suggest you use a 110amp battery although they will run on anything over 85amp a 110amp will last longer "the movers do tend to caine the power of smaller batteries"

OH" and dont forget the extra weight the movers with box wires ect weigh about 35/40kg plus the weight of a bigger battery this has to be taken off the user payload so you wont get as much allowance, I think that just about covers it unless anyone can think of something I have missed. any other questions just ask bud.

colin

 

[colin-yorkshire1]

just read my last post and forgot to mention fit a isolater switch between the mover control box and the positive battery wire and take the key out when the mover is NOT in use.

 

[WatsonJohnG]

There is a lot of information here

http://www.neleisureproducts.co.uk/index.htm

 

[John3548]

Try and get a friend to help as the motors are very heavy to hold and fit the brackets at the same time.

 

[Guest]

Just two additional comments to the comprehensive Post alreaady made.

Powrtouch recommend if possible put the mover in front of the axle as this reduces the amount of muck thrown at it by the wheels. Although the motors are sealed, water is a devil.

The other small point is to fit the motors will require lifting the van as high as possible, basically until the back end is on the ground, which is another reason to put them in front of the axle. You will need the space to lift the motors into place. So be sure to make sure it is safe and steady before crawling underneath. If yours has a key switch try to put it somewhere easily accesible, but not where you will trip,over it. Usually the end of a seat base beside the door is normal.

 

[Grahamh]

just a minor point but........

you mention the chassis being pre-drilled....

I fitted a mover to mine and no drilling required - apart from those holes for the cables through the floor to the controller and battery.

easy to fit if you have patience (and don't mind lying on the floor ;-) )