Sleeper Fires
- Thread starter Ableops
- Start date
leaning tree
Expert Expediter
2 years ogo i had a small sleeper fire caused by the fan on the fridge shorting out, it overloaded the wireing therefore caused a fire,last year i was in a diffrent truck that someone had connected
chicken lights to the fuse cluster for the sleeper, it shorted out causing a fire. good luck with the repairs hope u get back out quickly
chicken lights to the fuse cluster for the sleeper, it shorted out causing a fire. good luck with the repairs hope u get back out quickly
I would rather not comment on who the manufacturer is at this time as I am in the process of negotiating a price for the refurbishment. I will post what I am 99.9 percent sure is the cause and how to correct it when these negotiantions are complete. In the meantime please check your sleeper's components (fridge, Microwave,Lights,inverter, A/C fan) periodically. I now know that these items should be checked just as you check the fluids under the hood. Wires and components get vibrated and bumped while running up and down the road. These are easy to pull out and visually check from time to time. This truck was purchased new in January 2002 is now just an empty shell of fiberglass, still drivable, but not for running over-the-road loads.
My best advise now is to make sure your Fridge, Microwave, Lights, ect. are all turned off when you are out of the truck for more than a few minutes. In my case it only took the heat source a few moments to ignite the interior which lead to the fire progressing to the rest of the sleeper. All this happened while the driver was inside the house getting a change of clothes together for a run,(maybe 20 minutes). The driver came out to get in the truck and it was fully involved. The damaged was confined to the sleeper and Cab. It's a good idea to keep an additional fire extinguisher accessible from outside the the truck.
Another word of advice, Don't try to save a little money by buying the smallest Fire Extinguisher required. You'll feel pretty bad when you see the flames extinguished down to a little flicker and when you mash the lever for that last squirt, there's nothing left. You stand there and watch the flicker reignite the combustible gases because you saved $15 by getting the smaller extinguisher.
I still worry about what would have happened if the driver had been asleep in there when this caught fire.
My best advise now is to make sure your Fridge, Microwave, Lights, ect. are all turned off when you are out of the truck for more than a few minutes. In my case it only took the heat source a few moments to ignite the interior which lead to the fire progressing to the rest of the sleeper. All this happened while the driver was inside the house getting a change of clothes together for a run,(maybe 20 minutes). The driver came out to get in the truck and it was fully involved. The damaged was confined to the sleeper and Cab. It's a good idea to keep an additional fire extinguisher accessible from outside the the truck.
Another word of advice, Don't try to save a little money by buying the smallest Fire Extinguisher required. You'll feel pretty bad when you see the flames extinguished down to a little flicker and when you mash the lever for that last squirt, there's nothing left. You stand there and watch the flicker reignite the combustible gases because you saved $15 by getting the smaller extinguisher.
I still worry about what would have happened if the driver had been asleep in there when this caught fire.
I drove a brand new 1999 Alumi-Bunk FL70 w/60" condo sleeper for an owner for a little while. It was not hard to see where the sleeper on the thing could be a fire hazard. The sleeper had numerous electrical problems during the three months I ran the truck, and I traced every problem to loose wiring. The main ground wire even came right off from the floor of the sleeper one day! The heater control relay was buzzing one day, and when examined parts of it had started to melt. They don't call em' Alumi-Junk for nothing! Carry BIG fire extinguisher.
-Weave-
-Weave-
I agree Weave completely. One of our first trucks had quite a few electrical problems. It wasnt an Alumni Junk it was another company which will remain nameless (but if you want a hint, think of a southern city and the color orange :+ )
We had some minor electrical problems in the first few months, like curcuit breakers too small for the load. We took our truck to several Freightloser dealers and none of them could find the breaker box! The genius who designed the sleeper placed it inside the floor of the closet of the sleeper! It is scary sometimes how these things are constructed. And were supposed to LIVE in these!!!
I wholeheartly believe the designer of a sleeper should be forced by law to live in one of their creations for 6 months to see how lousy they do! I mean its not just the electrical but the way the heater/ac vents are situated, trying to put all the worldly possessions of two people in one small closet. And if you are lucky there is another self! It gets frustrating sometimes
We had some minor electrical problems in the first few months, like curcuit breakers too small for the load. We took our truck to several Freightloser dealers and none of them could find the breaker box! The genius who designed the sleeper placed it inside the floor of the closet of the sleeper! It is scary sometimes how these things are constructed. And were supposed to LIVE in these!!!
I wholeheartly believe the designer of a sleeper should be forced by law to live in one of their creations for 6 months to see how lousy they do! I mean its not just the electrical but the way the heater/ac vents are situated, trying to put all the worldly possessions of two people in one small closet. And if you are lucky there is another self! It gets frustrating sometimes