suffolk lady Posted February 4, 2007 Share Posted February 4, 2007 Has anyone got an Autocruise Starfire 2004-2005(with pivot shower door) in bathroom ? This will be my first motorhome and I would be grateful for any feedback on any problems encountered by your members, also having read MMM for some time and seen reviews on vans, do the drain pipes empty quickly or are they sluggish? Just one other thing, lightweight gas bottles, are people happy with them ? Many thanks, Liz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted February 4, 2007 Share Posted February 4, 2007 Hi LIz, Welcome you might get a few more answers if you post again down on the M/H matters forum... Sorry can't help . Good Luck, (lol) Sorry Liz forgive me your in the right place ......it's me that's not :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest starspirit Posted February 4, 2007 Share Posted February 4, 2007 Hi Liz, sorry I can't help with the shower but I would like to welcome you to the madhouse where I am sure someone will be able to help. Water draining away slowly can often depend how you are parked with even a slight angle in one particular direction causing a problem We have an AC Starspirit and I had to reroute a couple of pipes to create a more even run of waste water to the tank, and even now patience has to be a virtue at times. This is partly because they use that 'convoluted ' hose through which water does not flow so well as smooth hose. It also tends to 'gunge up'more quickly than smooth which creates nasty niffs. When the tank starts to smell a goodly dollop of cheap bleach down the sinks, taking care not to get any on the plastic bathroom sink or shower tray plastic, and allow it to slop about in a couple of gallons of clean water in the tank should cure it. Just be careful where you empty bleachy water! I'm far from convinced that paying for lightweight (refillable I presume?) gas bottles has any advantage unless the weight of steel ones is an issue for you or unless you go abroad for a period in excess of your gas capacity which, asuming you have diesel heating, should be about 25 to 45 days depending on how much or how little cooking you do. I have three Calor 6kg bottles so when we go on a longish trip we always start with two full bottles. I also carry a Gaz bottle and pigtail (high pressure hose) with adaptor just in case. You can often buy extra Calor bottles at car boot sales very cheaply and most Calor agents will swop any size or type for any other of your choice. Hope this helps. Rich. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest starspirit Posted February 4, 2007 Share Posted February 4, 2007 Agree with Michele Liz - post it again under Motorhome Matters using a thread title like 'Starmist Shower Door' if you don't get a reply within a day or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suffolk lady Posted February 4, 2007 Author Share Posted February 4, 2007 Thanks for your answer, Starspirit. Yes, weight is the problem. I don't know anything about the gas except it is BP and I saw them at Excel, nobody on the stand though, to help. The Starfire bathroom changed in either 2004 or 2005, its the one with the pivot door I am interested in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest starspirit Posted February 4, 2007 Share Posted February 4, 2007 I too saw the BP translucent gas bottles at a show and was interested as they seem to be the same size as a Calor bottle but hold 10kg of butane instead of Calor's 7kg. Not sure if they do them in Propane which you WILL need when the nights dip down to around 5 degrees C or below? The issues that bothered me were the cost (£46 odd) per bottle, the seemingly very limited sources of supply, the need for adaptor(s) to enable van fitting (unspecified cost), and the stated primary purpose of these bottles was for patio and bbq use. So I didn't bother! Another option maybe the Gaslow refillable bottles. Expensive but, I understand you refill them in situ with 'Autogas' from your local friendly Autogas car filling station. On the assumption that it is both local and friendly towards the still unusual practse of refillable habitation gas supplies it is much cheaper than Calor. Nevertheless it will take a very long time to break even. Another option is a fixed refillable gas tank. Again not cheap to install but it does release an extra locker for other junk and is a favourite with many long term users. All refillable items come into their own if overwintering abroad - apart from Spain which seems to have a problem in some areas with allowing refills, plus of course you will need several different adaptors to cover all European countries. Have a look at the Gaslow website? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suffolk lady Posted February 4, 2007 Author Share Posted February 4, 2007 Starspirit, It is rather difficult to make decisions when I haven't got the van yet, but there is an awful lot of GB to visit before I plan to go to Europe or even camp in low temperatures in England. Re the bottles, I may have to rely on a helpful assistant, give a friendly smile and request help. !! I shall need to look into availability properly before I buy anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suffolk lady Posted February 4, 2007 Author Share Posted February 4, 2007 No worries Michelle, I don't know what goes where yet !Thanks for replying anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted February 4, 2007 Share Posted February 4, 2007 michele - 2007-02-04 6:31 PM Hi LIz, Welcome you might get a few more answers if you post again down on the M/H matters forum... Sorry can't help . Good Luck, (lol) Sorry Liz forgive me your in the right place ......it's me that's not :-S Come on...........get a grip Michele. What are you like. *-) :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Liz: The gas bottles you have asked about are called BP GasLight and there has been a fair amount of previous forum discussion about them. To read the relevant postings, go to the 'Welcome Box' towards the top right corner of this web-page and click on the 'Search' icon. Now type "bp gaslight" (omitting the quotation marks) in the Keywords box and select "All posts" from the Date limit selection lower down. Now click on Submit. This should retrieve 5 records (including this one) in the motorhome forum and one in the caravan forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Liz: A brief follow-up... MMM published a test report in the June 2004 issue on a Marquis Majestic Starfire (essentially an Autocruise Starfire with a few extra bells-and-whistles thrown in) that had the pivoting-wall bathroom. The report is 6 pages long and sufficiently focused and critical to be worth you getting hold of a copy. If you haven't already seen the report, a back-copy would be available from MMM (see page 243 of Feb 2007 issue for details). Alternatively, if you contact me via the forum's Private Message facility (click on PM button just below this posting) and provide me with a postal address I could send you my own copy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest starspirit Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 I forgot to say that with 10kg of gas rather than 7kg will the weight advantage of a lightweight bottle be worth the extra cost? You would need to ascertain the gross full bottle weight of each to find out. You could revert to the smaller 3.9kg propane from Calor? They are much lighter and considerably easier to install in a gas locker than the rather bulky 6kg size. The downside is considerably less gas capacity but if you are only UK camping that should not be a problem other the pain in the bum of having to find a replacement bottle every few days. There again most camp sites stock Calor so unless you are up in the wilds for a longish stay that should not be a problem either. It really is fun switching and empty bottle to a full one when the wee midgies are about, but not as much fun as changing an empty gas bottle for a full one in the pouring rain. Yer pays yer money and takes yer choice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 No liz, It's my fault, I,m sorry you are in the correct place . I am in the wrong place at the wrong time as usual. Please forgive me. You should get the answer's that you require on here. Sorry my mistake. I though that I was on chatter box and I saw your thread and I thought ...I think this lady would get more help on the M/H forum. But you were on it ...Silly me. sorry once again. *-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest starspirit Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 But a more specific thrad title would probably get more specific replies Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suffolk lady Posted February 5, 2007 Author Share Posted February 5, 2007 I have been a camper and caravan owner many moons ago so I know a bit about rain and midges, but I didn't have to lift the gas gottles then. However I get your point about the weight of the gas+ bottles, as I said before I'll have to look into it properly when the time comes, I have read the past discussions now though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest starspirit Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Glad to be service ma'am - enjoy your van and feel free to ask 'does the team think.............?' anytime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Starspirit: A full 5kg capacity BP-Gaslight bottle weighs 9.5kg, while the 10kg version weighs 16.7kg. A full Calor 3.9kg capacity propane cylinder weighs 9.6kg, a 6kg bottle weighs 14.0kg, and a 13kg one weighs 28.7kg. (All figures approximate.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flicka Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Ref Derek's post I read somewhere that the BP lightweight cylinders are both larger diameter than the Calor and the 10kg is also taller, so they won't fit some Gas Lockers. I quess size rather than weight will be a restricting factor for some people. Are the sizes known. The article did not give any dimensions. For anyone wanting the full dimensions, I see Derek posted them in "Lightweight gas bottles" Flicka Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Dimensions of BP Gaslight: http://www.bp.com/faq.do?categoryId=9007793&contentId=7014711 B-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Calor cylinder (diameter x height) dimensions are: 3.9kg - 240mm x 340mm 6.0kg - 256mm x 495mm 13.0kg - 315mm x 580mm (These figures are taken from the current Caravan Club handbook (page 627) that also details sizes/weights of gas bottles from other UK suppliers.) For comparison purposes, BPGaslight container (diameter x height) dimensions are: 5.0kg - 305mm x 393mm 10.0kg - 305mm x 587mm As flicka suggests, the 305mm diameter of both versions of the BPGaslight cylinder will preclude its use in many motorcaravans. Basically, if your motorhome's gas-locker can't accommodate a 13kg Calor canister, then it probably won't accept a BPGaslight bottle. I understand that all UK caravan manufacturers are now deliberately sizing their products' lockers to accept the BP bottle, but I'm pretty sure that UK motorhome builders aren't following suit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest starspirit Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 So factor in the difficulty of replacing bottles when empty and all of a sudden Calor does not look so bad after all? Do you know the difference in the cost of just the gas when you get a replacement Derek as a matter of interest? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 BP's website indicates an exchange price of £12.95 for the 5kg cylinder or £16.50 for the 10kg version. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest starspirit Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Derek Uzzell - 2007-02-06 7:12 PM BP's website indicates an exchange price of £12.95 for the 5kg cylinder or £16.50 for the 10kg version. ..............and I just paid £13.45 for a 6kg Calor exchange today. About 35% more - but is it worth it to be able to get gas almost anywhere in the country? I wonder? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted February 7, 2007 Share Posted February 7, 2007 starspirit - 2007-02-06 8:40 PM Derek Uzzell - 2007-02-06 7:12 PM BP's website indicates an exchange price of £12.95 for the 5kg cylinder or £16.50 for the 10kg version. ..............and I just paid £13.45 for a 6kg Calor exchange today. About 35% more - but is it worth it to be able to get gas almost anywhere in the country? I wonder? Starspirit - just take Howie with you, he's supplying enough gas to keep Britain going for a month at the moment! (lol) (Sorry, Howie, couldn't resist!) :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest starspirit Posted February 7, 2007 Share Posted February 7, 2007 That's not nice Mel - I would never call Howie an old fart - at least not to his face anyway, although I do understand that it is not his face that is the problem just now! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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