We have a lot of people ask us about what upgrades we have for our Airstream. Here is a comprehensive list of what we have upgraded. For a list of must-have accessories, check out our Accessories Page.
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6 Volt AGM BatteriesWithout getting too technical, most RV's come with Group 27, 12V batteries. Each 12V battery on average has an amp-hour rating of 80 Ah. When two batteries are ran in parallel, this creates 160 Ah. Generally speaking, you should only use 50% of your Ah available, which gives 80 Ah.
Running two 6V batteries with 225 Ah rating in series, creates 12V with 225 Ah. Using the same 50% method, this gives you 112.5 Ah of usable power, or about a 37.5% increase in usable power. We purchased two Lifeline AGM 6V batteries. If we had to buy batteries today, we would consider the VMAXTANKS 6 Volt AGM Batteries as they are $100 cheaper per battery (at the time of this writing) and they are rated at 225 Ah per battery instead of 220 Ah (Lifeline). If your interested in an article on information on RV batteries here is one website I found useful: 6-Volt vs. 12-Volt RV Batteries: What’s the Difference? |
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GoPower Solar Flex Panels - GP-FLEX-200-Built to withstand Marine, RV and Long Haul Truck applications
-Curves up to 30 degrees -Durable surface allows you to walk on the panel -Includes everything you need to install -82 percent lighter than framed solar panels We installed solar primarily to prevent our batteries from discharging less than 50% while sitting in storage. Most batteries RV'ers use will result in damage if the batteries drop below 50% charged. Our only other option was to take the Airstream out of storage once a month to charge the batteries. While boondocking, solar has allowed us to add several extra days to our trip. In the sunny months, we can go indefinitely being able to replenish what we use in the evening. The curved panels also help maintain the aerodynamic properties of the Airstream. |
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Victron Energy BMV -712 Bluetooth Battery Monitor-Built-in Bluetooth Communication - Monitor your batteries on Apple or Android smartphones, tablets, macbooks, and other devices
-Easy to Install - The shunt interrupts the negative coming off the battery bank connects to the monitor with a standard RJ12 telephone cable. -Easy to Program - A quick install menu and a detailed setup menu with scrolling texts assist the user when going through the various settings. -Also included are a separate front bezel for a square or round display appearance, a securing ring for the rear mounting and screws for the front mounting. -Next to the basic display options, such as voltage, current, and ampere-hours consumed, the BMV-700 series also displays state of charge, time to go, and power consumption in Watts. |
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Sendel T02 16" RimsOur Airstream came with 15" rims and the notorious Goodyear Marathon tires. After reading dozens of posts of people experiencing blowouts with the Goodyear Marathon tires, we decided to upgrade our rims to 16". The 16" rim allowed us to fit better quality tires. So far we have taken our Airstream on over 65 trips in the last 4 years and no problems (knock on wood). We also upgraded the lug nuts to the McGard Chrome Lug Nuts.
While in the process of upgrading tires we found most people on the forums were switching to Michelin Defender LTX tires. I did some research and found the highest rated tire by consumers was Sumitomo Encounter HT LT225/75R16. The Sumitomo was also nearly half the cost of the Michelin. The Sumitomo had a 60,000 mile warranty compared to 50,000 from Michelin. The Sumitomo also included 2 years of Roadside Assistance and 1 year of Road Hazard Protection. Normally I run Michelin on all my personal vehicles but the benefits of the Sumitomo heavily outweighed the Michelin in this instance. So far it's been 4 years and about 40,000 miles and no complaints so far (knock on wood). |
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McGard Chrome Lug NutsThe factory lug nuts use steel lugs but have a thin aluminum cap over them. These may look like full metal lug nuts but when you attempt to remove your wheel, you may have a hard time getting the factory lug nuts off because the aluminum cap may just spin around over the lug nut underneath. The last time we had our tires replaced, we encountered this exact issue.
I purchased two different sets of lug nut extractor kits to no avail. Luckily it happened before our trip and our local tire shop had the Snap On lug nut extractor set and was able to remove our cheap lug nuts and we immediately replace with them with these high quality chrome lug nuts. |
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Backup Camera / Dash Cam (BlackVue DR750S-2CH)We wanted a backup camera but didn't want to drill holes into our beautiful Airstream. I found a solution which allows us to have a backup camera but also a forward and rear dash cam. The live video and recorded video can be viewed from any phone or tablet. In parking mode, the camera will record any event when it senses motion. The version we use also includes Power Magic Pro which monitors the state of the battery and will automatically shut off if it determines the battery is running low. Click the title above for all the details!
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Dexter Axle - #11 Torflex Lift Kit (K71-724-02)We chose this kit to raise our Airstream's frame height by 2 7/8". We have had issues with our Blue Ox spring bars scraping on speed bumps and driveways and this solved our problems.
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Progressive Dynamics - PD4655VThe factory installed, single-stage, Parallax charger/converter over charges the battery and causes them to boil. By installing this 4-stage charging system it will increase the life of our batteries and will not boil the battery.
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Grass Tiomos Hinge Clip ProtectorThe European style hinges in RV's are notorious for always popping off. These plastic hinge protectors prevent the hingers from accidentally popping off.
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Custom ClosetMaid ShelvesI created step-by-step instructions on how I created custom shelves in our closet to maximize the space. Click the title above for all the details!
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RV Rubber AM/FM AntennaAfter 2 years of being exposed to the elements, our antenna on the roof finally cracked. I found this antenna on Amazon and it was the exact same antenna installed on top of our 2016 Airstream International Signature 19'. The base was still in good condition so I only needed to unscrew the rubber antenna part which only took about a minute to replace and looks good as new!
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Refrigerator Thermal Control SwitchRecently we noticed our refrigerator temperature was getting high. Upon further inspection, we noticed the fan wasn't coming on even though the fan switch (in our 2016 Airstream International 19CB) was turned on. I located this thermal control switch attached to the fan and up against one of the coils on the back of the refrigerator. After bypassing the switch I came to the conclusion the switch was bad. Our thermal control switch was rated for 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees farenheight). There are two versions; NO (normally open) and NC (normally closed). For our purpose, our thermal control switch is normal closed and after reaching above 45 degrees Celsius, the thermal control switch opens and thereby activating the fan.
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