shavings

[Diane Maiolino]

Hi, We recently went to an RV dealer in SC to purchase a 2011 Georgetown 378. We did not complete the purchase because we noticed wood chips or shavings around the slide under the sofa section. The shavings were coming from the plywood, under the slide, on the forward drivers side. Is this common? Has anyone else ever seen this?

[Mark and Linda]

I am sorta new to this forum but have noticed things about manufacturing. We just purchased a 2009 used Puma. Even tough someone owned it before us...I am still finding pieces of sawdust and some metal shavings in corners of cabinets in the floor area. I know that some of it must get into the cracks and then vibrate out. I always think about the quality checks that go on during the manufacturing process. If you have ever worked in a manufacturing facility you might be able to associate with some of this. Workforce, production quotas have a lot to do with the quality but the final inspection should find things like this.

[Malco]

Originally Posted by Diane Maiolino

Hi, We recently went to an RV dealer in SC to purchase a 2011 Georgetown 378. We did not complete the purchase because we noticed wood chips or shavings around the slide under the sofa section. The shavings were coming from the plywood, under the slide, on the forward drivers side. Is this common? Has anyone else ever seen this?

We got our trailer new last spring and after getting it home discovered alot of saw dust around.We cleaned it but still get a fair amount of dust creeping out during trips,so it was certainly common to our experience.

[tncruiser]

We have owned our 2011 about 15 months about 6000 miles and have not noticed any sawdust or metal shavings over all i would rate this motorhome as excellent very few initial adjustments required we love and plan to continue loving it for a few more years. it is the perfect size for us and the ford drivetrain is doing its job well
brianj

[Fire Instructor]

You want dust, sawdust, little styrofoam beads??? Just WAIT until the first few times that you turn the A/C on!!! Seriously, I'd run the A/C new, take it for a ride, run it again, and repeat several times. Each trip bounces more "stuff' out of the ductwork. Much better than firing-up the A/C for the first time while camping, and with food or lothing out....

[RubenZ]

I'd say its common. You may also want to run the furnace a few minutes too before you trips.

[bikendan]

yep, shavings, sawdust, Styrofoam beads in lots of places.
lights, under dinette, in vents and so on.

probably not as much in the more expensive RVs.

pretty common in all brands of RVs

[fast murray]

When I replaced our LP detector the cutout and sawdust was still in there from when the company installed the original. They're probably in a huge hurry.

[Triguy]

The amount also depends on your dealer. Some do a good job prepping the trailer (i.e., cleaning it up, testing systems, etc) and some seem not to do anything at all.

[ret2006]

On our third fifth wheel and YES they all seem to have saw dust shavings in hidden places. The first thing I did when I brought our new Sabre home last week was take the panel off behind the water heater & furnace and vacuum the saw dust out. This week I will remove the panel in the basement where the pump and converter is and do the same. Most RV mfg., just don't seem to bother with getting the saw dust and metal shavings up when they drill or cut. Don't worry about it just get the vacuum.

[GASPEDDLER]

Originally Posted by fast murray

When I replaced our LP detector the cutout and sawdust was still in there from when the company installed the original. They're probably in a huge hurry.

Ditto

[Malco]

That's just the lazy ,don't care,that's good enough attitude that some workers have.I have had to get rid of a few of this type of person that I have hired over the past years of being in business.One sloppy worker can give everyone else working with them a bad reputation.

[RubenZ]

I remember when we saw our trailer in lot the floor was also very powdery with some grey dust. Very fine. You couldn't see it with naked eye but could feel it. When we picked it up at dealer they had cleaned it out.

[Rod Johnson]

It was a mess under and behind all my kitchen cabinets and what not.

Same thing in all of the light covers, too.

Back in 2003, I bought a brand new manufactured home, and it had all those same issues, too.

[cfsoistman]

Saw dust, metal shavings are just the result of meeting quotas. There's no money in clean up. I found more than 2 dozen screws under cabinets and in the upper bed compartment along with numerous wire nuts. I guess they're in such a rush to get things done that they don't take the time to pick up after themselves. This explains why one of my bedroom receptacles was dead. The wire was run from the receptacle to the junction box and was just curled up, but never connected to the other wires. I'm not sure who checks these things but that one got by everyone but me!

[GrowingGoatee]

Out of sight out of mind on the production line. I'm guessing it's too much trouble to stop and vac the left overs between each install? Seen this in videos on Top Dollar units as well. Might be an extra charge to have the dust, chips, and splinters cleaned up? So far I've found/seen all mentioned above plus a coffee cup, screwdriver bits, electrical wire, a drawer glide, screws, other, etc...
GasPeddlers pics are the norm.

[myredracer]

I've been doing a bunch of mods. to our Coachmen TT over the winter and have been under and in behind cabinets and ceiling spaces. I was pretty disgusted with what I found. Sawdust, shavings, wood scraps and other crap. You'd think some blindfolded monkeys with an attitude problem built it. I found a thick layer of sawdust on top of one wheel well enclosure from the front to back.

Not only that, nothing is plumb, level and straight. Cabinets are wonky. Things don't line up. It's like, if something doesn't line up - fugeddaboutit. Stuff isn't attached properly. They do a poor job of laying out and installing plumbing and wiring. They put pipes right smack in the way of usable storage space. I found one 120 volt receptacle with wires improperly installed and the rear which could have lead to a fire. (Now I've got to pull all of them out to check.) Argh, I could go on.

I got talking one day to the owner of the local RV repair and modification shop about this and he said it is pretty much typical for all RVs. They just don't care and often use unskilled low-paid workers. He says there's often sawdust up in the ceilings and it will migrate into light fixtures for a long time. He laughed that often cabinet makers try and make cabinets for RVs and then find they don't fit. He says you have to remove a piece at a time and cut a new one to match identically.

I you have any removable access panels on cabinets fastened with screws, take them off and see what you find. You might be surprised. If anyone using the trailer is allergic to dust, you might want to try vaccuming out what you can.

Personally, I can't believe that the various manufacturers (many are now out of business of course) don't take a little more care when building these things.