Hi Guys
On my 76 Barth 454 the air cleaner over the carb has an opening which has a screen over it, its for the incoming air to the carb.
Should I get a new air cleaner with the snorkel and the damper for cold or hot manifold air before I install the flex hose to the front of the rv for cool air ?
I guess what I'm asking is do I really need the snorkel with the damper.

Thanks much guys Ralph

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The snorkel with damper draws heated air over the exhaust manifold to allow a quicker warm up and less choke operation, which means less pollution and cylinder washing. The snorkel also allows easy attachment of the dryer duct for cold air.
If you find one at a reasonable price, do the snorkel thing.

An older Corvette (with a carb) '70's-'82 has a dual snorkel intake to get more air to the carb. This might be a cheaper solution than Bank$. Bill H. has a great idea with the dryer hose to get the air to the snorkel.

I doubt that a dual snorkel air cleaner would offer any performance on a 454 truck engine. The truck ports are small and we don't rev too high, due to the engine's broad power band. . A little checking with a manometer would tell the tale. Before hunting down and paying for the vette housing, I would attach a second metal snout with pop rivets myself. The vette snouts might not be located to clear a MH accessory setup.

Thanks guys for the info. I have a vette but the airfilter housing will not fit, the aircondition compressor is in the way. I'm going to the local salvage yard as soon as the weather clears I should be able to find a replacement for the Barth .
Another question On my 76 it looks like it was set up for a 3 or 4 inch hose coming from the air cleaner going to the right side of the radiator, would I be better off running a hose to a new location maybe farther from the radiator ?

Thanks again guys Ralph


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This was received from a long time Barth owner Joel Siskovic I hope he doesn't mind me posting this. If he does, he's real mad at me now...

Joel;

"Hi,

You wrote: "Thanks guys for the info. I have a vette but the airfilter housing will not fit, the aircondition compressor is in the way. I'm going to the local salvage yard as soon as the weather clears I should be able to find a replacement for the Barth . Another question On my 76 it looks like it was set up for a 3 or 4 inch hose coming from the air cleaner going to the right side of the radiator, would I be better off running a hose to a new location maybe farther from the radiator ?

I own a 27 foot 1976 Barth and have done some refurbishing in the engine compartment and drive train. To answer your question regarding the hose ... I went to our Home Depot and picked up an aluminum ducting box that you install for a clothes dryer, then I purchased 4 inch aluminum flexible hose and real metal duct tape. I installed the box in front of the radiator to the lower left side when you look at the front if you are standing in front of the rig. I snaked the hose down and up to the air cleaner always ensuring that the hose never kinked or made a fast bend. Once I installed it, I took the doghouse cover off the engine, took off the air cleaner cover, and drove the Barth around to check the air flow. It was great! Cool to cold air moved into the air cleaner just like all of the advertisements for the expensive ones similar to the Banks system. I am using an K&N filter on it also. It seems to breath better, but I cannot prove it. I made this modification because I did not like the air flow coming off of the right side of the radiator where it was originally located. It seemed like the air was too hot and in Texas the air is always hot, so I went out in front of the radiator to get better air, It works and is not expensive. Oh yes, I painted the ducting box flat black so that it will not show up behind the radiator.

Other modifications were:
Electric fuel pump - I do not like mechanical fuel pumps, plus it ensures gas delivery with no chance of vapor block.
Cam replacement - I found that I had a lobe on my cam worn down, so I replace the stock one with an RV economy cam shaft.
Jacobs ignition - This is a great way to get a hot spark and torque. You can look into other MSD types of ignitions too.
Over/Under Drive - Probably the best investment you can make as it really relaxes the 454 engine and provides you with economy. I just could not stand to hear the 454 scream when in "Drive" and now it just purrs along. I got Camping World to do the work installing it.
Doghouse insulation - I used real rigid air conditioning insulation, two layers of 1 inch insulation. This quieted any engine sounds that I heard and reduced the amount of heat I felt from the 454 furnace. This is a big thing in Texas where heat is not good.
Auxiliary pusher fan - I installed a pusher fan on the radiator as I felt that with the radiator, air conditioner condenser, oil radiator, and transmission radiator/cooler all mounted in line, a pusher type of fan would help a lot to move air when I was not on a highway or road doing more than 35 miles an hour. This really helped especially when you are just crawling around sightseeing or doodling in some traffic jam.

I hope some of this helps. I did this by myself after observing what was needed to help me keep this fantastic machine do its work. I also repainted the outside. It really looks great.

Other modifications:
SewerSolutions - The SewerSolution is a simple, water-powered jet pump system with no moving parts. It is designed to both dump your RV waste and to flush your waste system with clean water. The SewerSolution pump and hose are completely self-cleaning! I don't like the way others do the sewer thing. This invention is great and is so very easy to hook up and use.
Power Solutions - I now can use my second air conditioner when I am on shore power by rerouting the powerline to a box and connecting a second 110vac/20amp/10guage cable to the shore electrical post. This really helps and gives me a direct power source for my electric heater during the colder climate so I do not have to use my propane furnace. I am already paying for electricity, so I might as well use it.
Hot shot - Electric heating element inserts into the hot water tank and provides hot water on demand rather thank keeping it always hot by using up your propane.

I hope some of these words help you in making any decisions you might have been thinking about. Your Barth is one of the greatest vehicles produced. I love its construction and the fact that I can drive any where and someone knows how to work on it rather than have to take it to a specialist. The P-30 chassis and all of the systems are off the shelf. Even the stoves, refer, furnace, etc. can be replaced without hurting your pocketbook or tying you to a franchised dealer. This is a great adventure and it just keeps getting better. Plus, if you can, you can do it all yourself. Better, if you hire it out, you can always find skilled craftsmen or mechanics to fix it for you without paying through the nose.

If I can answer any other question, please do not hesitate to write. I am putting Dave Bowers on as CC so that you can ask him if I am telling you the truth about what I have written to you, as I keep him advised as I do these things over the years.

Best of all to you, because you do not need luck, you have a Barth!"

Joel

Joel, if you're still around reading this message board, would you please elaborate a bit on the type insulation. I visited the Lowe's selection this weekend but saw nothing I thought would work. Will order a sheet from JC Whitney if all else fails.

Thanks,

Ron Smith
Huntsville, AL

Ron, Here is your response from Joel.

Dave,

I went to my Home Depot Store, to the air conditioning area, and found some rigid fiberglass insulation, the type that is used to fabricate the plenum area, I bought one 4 by 8 foot sheet. It is probably 3/4 inch, but it looks like one inch thick. It is reflective silver on one side and fiberglass yellow and pink on the other.

I picked up some roofers tin circles that are about 2 inches in diameter and some rustproof wood Phillips head screws to attach it to the doghouse. I also purchased some true metal duct tape, not cloth.

I measured out the area of the center of the dog house and the sides and then cut the board into the pieces I needed. Then I took each piece and scored the fiberglass side, this goes against the doghouse, and bent it into shape. I added some tape for reinforcement and pressed it tightly into the upside down doghouse. I cut another piece and laid that one on the first, ensuring that I had two layers equally over the doghouse. Once this is done, I place some more of the duct tape on the joints and wherever I was going to put a screw. After that, I punched holes into the center of the 2 inch roofing circles, lined up the screws and began driving the screws into the doghouse until I pulled the insulation down a little, about 1/4 inch. After I set all of the screws into the main portion of the dog house, I did the sides.

Now place the doghouse in place to check for clearance from the air filter cover ... it will work well, no sweat. Drive the coach around a little to get some heat on the block, Drive it until the smell of heated insulation abates. Drive back to you work area (driveway), turn the dog house over and check out your work. If everything is correct and it seats correctly, apply the remaining duct tape over the exposed edges, making it look like a finished end piece (you may have to trim a little here and there). Replace the doghouse and you are on your way to a very quiet ride and a great amount of heat retarding.

I am planning on adding some to my generator room as there is room in there that would not hinder the normal air flow. I have a very new 6.5 Onan unit in there. Additionally, I am trying to find out how to reduce the exhaust racket. I believe that if I know the backpressure requirement, I can put on a motorcycle muffler on it that will greatly reduce the sound. Seems like Onan does not have a good handle on muffler construction. I will let you know what happens with that little venture.

Oh yes, all of the fiberglass cutting should be done with a utility knife or box cutter, Do not try to saw it. (Hey, I am just trying to help after all, I saw the warning admonition on a laser pointer that said, "Do not point the laser light into your remaining eye," So I guess sometimes you have to include more instructions for those who are "dain bramaged."

I didn't find the "solid-type" insulation you mentioned, but I did score a sheet from a performance shop that is fiberous (sp?) on one side and reflective on the other. Applied to the interior of the doghouse including the part in front of the hinge. Noticably quieter. I may miss the heat for a few months though.

Next, I used the dryer vent hardware and built an intake for my new K&N. Initial test run over my local steep grade indicates some inprovement (seat-of-the-pants-dyno).

Now, I need to get some heat to my feet. Haven't crawled under the driver's side of the dash yet to see what's missing, but thre isn't ant air flow to the brake pedal/accelerator pedal area.

Thanks for the input.

Hi,

Hope Joel is still around. (maybe this is a new topic?) The part that caught my eye, was "I also repainted the outside. It really looks great." OH?? We have one of those wonderful 1987 Barths that have a Terrible paint job. I was told the original paint job, from the factory, was not primed correctly. (no chemical etch?) The original owner could have had it fixed for free, but didn't. So, how do we paint the big 33' Barth, with peeling paint? What advise and hints can you give us? Have never painted anything metel, let alone a vehicle. Thanks!!

Maureen

Ron

I have every thing off of the dash area of my 1984. Found some good sized holes to the fire wall area, also some small places, let in a lot of fresh air. Found one heater baffle vacuum line broke, was not changing the airflow. Also up at the bottom of the windshield mounting area was some places not welded which let in some outside air.

Charles

Thanks Charles. I can believe the holes, my foot area feels like it's outside the compartment! Did you lift the padded dash unit, guage cluster and all? Wondering how difficult it is to get the dash itself off. Have some "interesting rattles" under there that I'd like to get closer to.

As for the paint, I too have badly peeling paint. I know Dave had his re-painted (?) because the card picture sure looks like a new one. Mine seems to be peeling from the stripe upward. It appears that the stripe has been re-done since the factory original job. The bare metal where the paint has peeled if a beautiful polished-aluminum. Hmmmmm maybe I'll just remove the dull, peeling stuff and go for the mid-1950's GreyHound look. :-)

Ron

Getting the padded area and dash out was easy, now getting then back may be something else. I am recovering every thing in new material.

Charles