Messages

For the 14 I don't think you need WD Hitch, for an F150, it is a pretty light haul.

We use one on our 21RBS, and have found that what you describe (the bounce and ride) are greatly improved with the WD hitch. As far as loads on the aluminum frame, yes, it increases the torque on the front end of the trailer, and with many of the installations on the 21 (RBS/BHS) we were finding that the coupler would bend (posting describing a side bolt on the coupler / frame fixed this).

Given the lighter frame on the front of the 14, and the capacities of the F150, I would shy away from WD for your needs.

Are there any 14 owners that use WD out there?

Just bought a Renogy 200 watt Eclipse solar suitcase and a 20 Amp MPPT Rover Controller.

I can move the panel any where the sun is and have 15 feet of cord to reach the trailer.

Easy Stuff!

I have found that the only items I have in the trailer that must have power are the AC and the Convection Oven. Both Items I can live without, everything else I have propane / 12V versions of.

I am planning an electrical upgrade that includes a couple 100AH lithium batteries and 2000W of Sine Wave inverter (enough to run the Convection, but not the AC). I am still weighing the Pro's / Con's of this (see above do I need it comment). It is not a cheap upgrade to be sure, but it sure will be fun to do.

There have been reports of cracked frames several times before. So much so that it is a part of my "Pre-Trip" inspections that I look for cracks.

Earlier this year I did find cracks along the cross members near the wheels and had them "touched up" at the welding shop.

The WD Bars will throw a downward load on the outside frame rails and that would put the most stress on your point of failure to be sure. I too have WD bars, but they are light duty bars, but I do watch for potential issues as mentioned above.

Out of interest, was it just the one side, both, what happened to the center bar (which should be solid).

Chris

220 V, what country are you in?

Anyway, for the fridge and slide all the power does is operate the converter. The slide is 12V in all cases, and the fridge does use 110 V power when plugged in (Auto mode).

Do other 12V items (Fans, lights) work when on Battery (if not, it is the connection to the battery itself, check the fuse near the battery). If they do, it is something inside the converter (fuses???)

I figured it out, my PDU had blown fuses and wouldn't charge the battery so After fixing that it solved my problems! a 5cent fuse GRRR!

It's always a good idea to keep some extra fuses on hand, just think about where you are when you need one.

This happened to me as well. I just started the truck and the umbilical gave the motor enough juice to close the slide.

Yup, just plug in the Tow Vehicle

Gibby,
        Thanks for your reply, and your situation is exactly what I was afraid of !!!!  If you don't mind telling me , how much did this end up costing you? I hope I can find a service center reasonably close to me that has someone on staff who knows the system. I'll let you know. Thanks again.

In the end it cost me $3,500 CDN, and some was covered by Livin' Lite for some parts, still quite pricey.

Make sure you get someone who understands the system, even though my choice was a Camplite dealer, and a Schwintek OEM provider, I seemed to understand the system as a whole better than they did.

I had an issue with my slide in that the bottom was still sticking out when the slide was in. The process mentioned to "Sync" the system only works on the side to side alignment, the top to bottom can only be fixed by removing the slide mechanism, and replacing. This is because they are locked together by a rod. There is a "Maintenance" kit that replaces the slide "Bushings" and a few rollers, that was tried on mine but to no avail.

Mine was in the shop for months, and it took them 3 tries to fix it (final try involved a completely new mechanism). www.lci1.com might be a good place to find repair manuals so you can at least be up to speed on how it all works.

Trust me, I feel your pain.

We took the settlement, any further damage to the roof / front would have the money paid so far deducted first. Any thing we fix (Awning, AC Shroud) would be like new, any other damage (other than roof / front) is as new.

Too many people (and some experts) were screaming to not tear it apart. Come next year I am going to see if I can do some minor dent repair on my own, and get it re-inspected then.

Suffice to say camping season is done for the year 

Had hail damage to my trailer last August (golf ball sized).  Was actually glad to be in the little tank rather than the alternative.

Damage was all cosmetic (other than plastic vents and plastic covers on roof).  Awnings and side panels were left unscathed.

I decided to repair, roof was cover by insurance (~$5k) and I used my local RV dealer.  The dealer is where I bought my Camp Lite so they had knowledge of the construction (which i felt was important).   

The replaced all the plastic bits, put a new sheet of roof aluminum, front top curved panel and re-gooped / sealed.  The most complex part was the top curved piece at the front as it needed to bent and paint matched. The front on the 14DBS is made of two overlapping pieces of painted aluminum (on top) and one diamond plate on the bottom.

How is this repair holding up, we have the same issue on our 21RBS and I am concerned fixing a cosmetic thing and having bigger problems.

Well, back in the beginning of August, we got hit with hail. A busted roof vent, hole in the AC shroud, damage to the awning, and, of course, dents in the roof (metal) and the front orbit.

Fast forward, we just got the estimate, $7,000.00 to do repairs.

To be honest, the dents are on the roof, and top of the front orbit, and you can't see them from the ground. My concern, is fixing something completely cosmetic worth the risk of all that structural work.

Now here's the kicker, insurance company says fix it or there is no insurance for hail for the entire trailer going forward. Sorta forces my hand.

I saw a thread describing the same issue, wonder how things turned out.

If you use a cpap that runs off of AC you'll need to figure out a workable solution. 

I was able to run my CPAP (no Humidifier) using a 12V adapter, and portable booster pack (I think it has a 25 ah battery in it). An old 15 watt solar panel I had charges it each day fully, so I was able to work that one out. Mind you, you could also run it off of the trailer battery, using the 12V or an inverter (Sine Wave would be better)

We used to do dry all the time in the tent trailer (it had full shower / toilet as well).

In our 21RBS we have been using hookups more, but, are now leaning back to dry as we got it figured out now for our Weekend getaways.

Propane, just filled a tank, can't remember the last time (not last year so...), and there are 2 up front, so, this is not a limiting factor.

Power, we have an 80 folding solar panel, even running the furnace over night, this will give us a full charge each day, so this is not a limit (remember, no AC or Convection oven).

Water, one full tank, 2 people, 2 days (with showers). We also have a way to add water from buckets, and drain gray, without moving the trailer, so we can extend this until black is full (about 5 days, but by then, you want to dump that anyway )

Give it a try.

 

Yes, we knew this day would arrive, we will hang onto our 2014 21rbs period. And if you are wanting one, buy now, they will be harder and harder to find.

At least they should hold their value well, especially the earlier all aluminum ones.