Since I couldn’t lift the Bounder high enough with the hydraulic levelers, I went out yesterday and bought tools for the brake job.  I needed a bottle jack that would lift about 4600 pounds which is the weight of one rear wheel of the motorhome.  I bought a 12 ton bottle jack and a pair of 6 ton jack stands.  Since each wheel side weighs about 2 1/2 tons, I should be safe to lift and hold the coach up.

Since having the brakes done would have been at least $800,  I am effectively getting free tools that I can use again someday if the need arises.  That is the nice thing about a do it yourself brake job or any DIY project.  With the money you save, the tools you buy are a bonus you get to keep.

Luckily my brakes are all disk brakes. For me it is easier to inspect the system and replace only the brake pads than it is to do work on a vehicle with brake drums.  My cars all had rear brake drums and I liked replacing the front pads on them, but put off the rear until last since it was more difficult to work on the drums.

I think my next RV job will be repairing the spring tension on the toilet.  The toilet valve doesn’t close unless we lift up on the flush lever.  I replaced the seal gaskets just after we bought the coach and notice the weak spring connection, but didn’t think a lot about it at the time.  I am sure the connecting point is bent on one end and I have lost tension on the spring.  This should be about a 3–4 hour job. 

Removing an RV toilet is usually done by removing 4 nuts that hold the toilet down and disconnecting the water.  The water is held on by a threaded connection the you unscrew.  It is a fairly straight forward job.  Repairing or replacing a toilet is not a difficult job.