| General Terms |
| A/C |
Air Conditioning |
|
| ball height |
Measurement from the ground to the center of the hitch
ball or hitch ball coupler (trailer) when parked on a flat surface and parallel
to the ground. |
|
| brake controller |
A control unit mounted inside your RV that allows
electric trailer brakes to become activated in harmony with the braking of the
tow vehicle. This device can be used to adjust trailer brake intensity, or to
manually activate the trailer brakes. |
|
| bulkhead |
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| Chupacabra |
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| coupler |
The part of a trailer A-frame that attaches to the
hitch ball. |
|
curb weight
or
net weight (NW) |
The empty weight of a vehicle full of fuel and all
fluids. Curb weight does not include passengers or payload. |
|
| drop axle |
|
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| dry weight (DW) |
The approximate weight of the RV with no supplies,
water, fuel or passengers. |
|
| gross trailer weight (GTW) |
The total weight of a trailer including all of its
contents. |
|
| draw bar |
A removable coupling platform that slides into a hitch
receiver and fastens with a pin and clip, or the "tongue" portion of a
fixed-tongue hitch. |
|
tongue weight
or
hitch weight |
The amount of weight imposed on the hitch when the
trailer is coupled. Hitch weight for a travel trailer should be 10-15 percent
of overall weight. |
|
| hitch class |
- Trailer hitch with capacity of up to 2,000 lbs gross
trailer weight and 200 lbs tongue weight.
- Trailer hitch with
weight-carrying rating of up to 3,500 lbs gross trailer weight and 300/350 lbs
tongue weight.
- Trailer hitch with weight carrying rating of up to
5,000 lbs gross trailer weight and 500 lbs tongue weight. Also sometimes used
to refer to a hitch with any 2" receiver, regardless of rating.
-
Trailer hitch with weight carrying rating of up to 10,000 lbs gross trailer
weight and 1,000 - 1,200 lbs tongue weight. Although many times any hitch with
a capacity greater than 5,000 lbs gross weight is referred to as a Class 4.
|
|
| Hurricane Hinge |
A special waterproof hinge used to attach the galley
hatch to the cabin body. |
 |
| OEM |
Original equipment manufacturer. |
|
| safety chains |
A set of chains that are attached to the trailer
A-frame and connected to the tow vehicle while towing. Safety chains are
intended to keep the trailer attached to the tow vehicle in the event of hitch
failure, preventing the trailer from complete separation. They should be
installed using an X-pattern (criss-crossed) so the coupler is held off the
road in the event of a separation. |
|
| sandwich wall construction |
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| SIP |
|
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| solid axle |
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| spars |
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| torsion axle |
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| shore power |
ampground 120-volt AC electrical hookups |
|
| umbilical cord |
- The wiring harness that connects the tow vehicle to
the trailer, supplying electricity to the trailer's clearance and brake lights,
electric brakes and a 12-volt DC power line to charge the trailer's batteries.
- Can also be the power cable that is used to connect to campground
120-volt AC electrical hookups. |
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|
| Electrical Terms |
| AC |
Alternate Current; Alternating Current
-
An electric flow that regularly reverses its direction. Each forward-backward
motion interval is called a cycle. Electric current in the United States
alternates with a frequency of 60 hertz or cycles per second.
-
Electricity from an outlet
(also see
DC) |
|
| amp |
Ampere
- The unit for measuring the
strength of electric current. It is proportional to the quantity of electrons
flowing through a conductor past a given point in one second. |
|
| busbar |
An electrical conductor in the form of rigid bars that
serves as a common connection for two or more electric circuits. |
|
| circuit |
The completed path traveled by an electric current |
|
| conductor |
A substance that easily allows the flow of electrons as
electricity. Copper and aluminum wires are used, especially copper as it is a
better conductor due to its internal molecular makeup. |
|
| circuit breaker |
An automatic switch that operates like a fuse and
interrupts a circuit when too strong an electric current is passing through.
|
|
| DC |
Direct Current
- Electricity that flows
continuously in one direction
- Electricity from a battery
(also see AC) |
|
| fuse |
An overcurrent protection device that contains a thin
strip of metal that will melt and open the circuit in case of circuit overload.
It must be replaced after a circuit overload. |
|
| GFCI |
Ground-fault Circuit Interrupter
- A
device designed to interrupt the flow of power when a minuscule imbalance is
detected between the flow and return of current. |
|
| insulator |
Any material that will not conduct electricity, such as
rubber. |
|
| inverter |
|
|
| neutral |
Provides a return path for electricity and stabilizes
the system. |
|
| volt |
Voltage
- The unit of electromotive force
or electric pressure. It is the electromotive force which, if steadily applied
to a circuit having a resistance of one ohm, will produce a current of one
ampere. When two charges have a difference of potential the electric force that
results is called electromotive force (emf). The unit used to indicate the
strength of the emf is the volt. The terms potential, electromotive force
(emf), and voltage are often used interchangeably. |
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| Wheel Terms |
| back space |
The distance from the mounting surface to the outside
edge of the inside rim of the wheel. |
|
| bead seat |
Where the beads of the tire meet the wheel. Wheel
measurements are referenced from at the bead seat not the outside of the rim.
|
|
| hub centric |
A wheel that is radially centered by the hub hole being
machined to the same size as the hub. Contrast to Lug Centric. |
|
| lug centric |
A wheel that is radially centered by the taper of the
lug nuts or bolts. The centre hole is larger than the hub. Contrast to Hub
Centric. |
|
| mounting surface |
The flat part of the wheel that contacts the hub of the
axle. AKA Hub Face though technically only axles have hub faces. |
|
| pitch center diameter |
The size of the circle that would pass through the
center of each lug hole. PCD is the second number in a Y on Z description. EG:
a 5 on 4.5 wheel has five lug holes spaced equally on a 4.5" circle. |
|
| rim width |
The width of the wheel measured between the inside
faces of the bead seat. |
|
| wheel diameter |
The diameter of a wheel measured at the base of the
bead seat. Always smaller than the overall diameter of the wheel. |
|
| wheel offset |
The distance between the mounting surface of the wheel
and the centre line of the wheel. A wheel has zero offset if the mounting
surface is at the centre line; negative offset if the mounting surface is
closer to the trailer than the centre line; and positive offset if the mounting
surface is farther from the trailer than the centre line of the wheel. |
|
| negative offset |
The centerline of the wheel is inboard of the hub
face. |
|
| zero offset |
The centerline of the wheel lines up directly with the
hub face. |
|
| positive offset |
The centerline of the wheel is outboard of the hub
face. |
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|
| Web Forum Terms |
| Google |
A search engine used to find data on the web.
When
used as a verb, to search the web up using Google. |
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| IIRC |
"If I remember correctly" |
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| IMO |
"In my opinion" |
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| IMHO |
"In my humble opinion" |
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| pickle juice |
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