Cat Engine

[Tom Webber]

I have a 2006 Monterey with a 350HP, C-9 Cat engine. In the engine compartment there is a shelf that runs from side to side and about 8 inches wide. It is made of some sort of particle board. It is starting to disintegrate. I would like to replace with some form of plywood. Below this shelf is some sort of aluminium cylinder with a hard rubber hose that goes up through the shelf. My guess is this is something to with exhaust as entry is not like an air filter. Has anyone replaced this shelf and how hard is it to do?

[Mike Shumack]

Tom,
I looked at the Monterey Owners manual and did not see a cylinder like you describe. I thought it might be a hydraulic reservoir but the manual shows that as a square tank (like on my Patriot).
I don't think the exhaust would have anytype of rubber hose on it.
Can you post a picture?

[Jim Nichols]

Is it above the outside engine lid? About the height of the middle third brake light? Some coaches have Fiberglas insulation up above that. And some used 2" thick foam in place of the particle board. For the board to rot you must have water coming from above. Like clearance lights. Or is it rotting around the pipe?

[Tom Webber]

This shelf is above the tail lights. Where it is breaking is in the middle, about 14 inches toward the passenger side and away from where the hose penetrates the board. Could be water but I wonder if vibration might be the cause since it appears to be supported only on the ends.

[Joel Ashley]

A photo sure would help... I have an ‘06 Monterey and can’t visualize what you are speaking of.

[Tom Webber]

I will have to figure out how to post a picture, I have never done that before. Advice would be appreciated.

[Joel Ashley]

Go to “Home” in the Forum and under “General Boards” scroll down to “Forum Assistance (Members Only)”.  Opening that will reveal a menu that includes a “Guide to resizing and posting photos”. 

Since we created that resource some years ago, more options have come along, and a lot depends on what device you are using to post the picture from.  The main thing is that the system will refuse any image over 300kb, which is where the Guide can really help.  For example on my iPads I now use an app simply named “Image Compression” aka “Image Compress and Resize...” that’s by far the least complex way I’ve found to reduce the kB of any photo on my iPad.  On a Windows machine, the old “Paint” feature is still simple enough, and the Guide here explains how.

Joel

[Tom Webber]

My wife and I have tried to post pictures. Original picture is 222kb and shrunk is 132kb. Neither will post.

If you would give me your email address I would send photos that way. I appreciate your interest and help in this manner.

[Jim Houghton]

Could it possibly be an added fire suppression system in the engine compartment?

[Joel Ashley]

My wife and I have tried to post pictures. Original picture is 222kb and shrunk is 132kb. Neither will post.

If you would give me your email address I would send photos that way. I appreciate your interest and help in this manner.

The image should be in jpeg format.

Joel

[Joel Ashley]

Tom's photos of his issue are below.

That sure looks like the air filter container to me, so it's the strandboard above and between the aircleaner and the louvered compartment door.  It spans the gap between the rear cap and the framing above and before the engine that supports devices like the air cleaner and expansion tank.  The board needs to be removed and replaced, either notching out for the hose and wiring loom holes or removing and rethreading same.  But first...

Water is getting in above there somewhere and pooling on the strandboard, and perhaps above the engine compartment insulation.  In checking mine out to make sure of what Tom was referring to, I noticed dampness atop a slightly billowed corner of aluminized insulation over the pulley area of my own engine.  Could be the recent fog, but the corner slumping down isn't good either.  Tom may have a long-undetected leak in a roof seam, rear camera installation, clearance lights (microcracks in their lenses are a common malady), or the center stop light bar.
 
Tom, if you have pix on your iPhone I still recommend you download from the App Store the app "Image Compress and Resize", as I've found it the easiest to learn and use of the ones I tried.  It's not loaded with a bunch of features you'll never use, is free, is relatively quick once you've practiced on a couple pix, and adjusts resolution up or down in kb, not pixels or dpi or something different than what you need for sending to a site where given limits are in kb.

-Joel

[Tom Webber]

It definitely is a problem that occurred over time and not detected. My coach is going into the shop on 12/5. I will have them look for a possible source of a leak. I was going to have the piece replaced with marine or exterior plywood not particle board.
Joel, what size were the pictures you received by email. My wife and I tried the app you suggested with no luck. I guess we have much more to learn.
I am trying to get the coach in tip top shape as money and time allows.
I find this forum to be of the upmost help.  If anyone gets near Bushnell, FL give me a shout.

[Joel Ashley]

Tom, the emailed images were 1.84MB and 305kb, both over the 300kb limit per photo on this site.  Did you move the slider “Change Size (percent)” on the app to the left, then check the resultant kb before and after on the following page’s top right, then return and adjust the slider to get below 300kb per photo?  I commonly tend to move the slider to around 30% to start and that often gets the resolution below 300kb right off the bat.  I try not to get much under 300kb so that I don’t lose too much of the photo’s sharpness for the readers.

Admittedly I happened to be on my Windows 10 laptop when I actually did the conversion for you, and used the Edit/resize function of the Edge browser.  But I just used my iPad and the Image Compress and Resize app to repeat the downsize with no problem.  So it’s not your images.  Make sure you hit the “Save images” button after resizing or the ones in your album won’t change.  If the originals are still in the album, be sure you are choosing the downsized ones to add to your Forum post. 

As I recall the app didn’t work for me either the first time;  I vaguely recall either dumping and reloading the app or shutting down and restarting the iPad to rectify it.  Also is it possible you downloaded a version to your iPhone that’s intended for an iPad?

If you can soon get to a BAC area rally, there is often a seminar for newbies to the Forum, and if not there, many regulars at any rally can help with photo-loading, just like you’ll find for just about any other issue with your coach.

Joel

[George Harwell]

Tom, I chased leaks for years on my 03 Monterey. Both front and rear turned out to be the cap seams. I kept coating them with flow sealant but the leaks kept coming back. Finally covered the seams with 4 inch ETERNABOND tape. No more leaking. Great stuff I recommend you put on all openings on the roof. Good luck.

[Scott Hinote]

Hey Tom Webber we live just west of you , we are in a community called Pine Ridge, it’s located in Beverly Hills Florida .