very unhappy with my rockwood

[SusanML4650]

Good Luck. We paid a "Prep" fee for Our new Surveyor last year. When we started transferring our stuff from the old Trailer (2015) We had to clean every where. Sawdust in all cupboards, dust and dirt. Floors were filthy.

We Recently had a problem with the TV and had to replace wires to radio (Jensen). We pulled out the radio and yes, full of garbage. BTW, cheap wires from TV to radio. Plastic prongs instead of metal. We love the TT but feel that once The Dealers sell them, they could care less about service.

Originally Posted by Northwest_RVr

just a hail mary, I'm quite fed up

I wish they had a lemon law. I'm sooo unhappy with my purchase of the 8329ss, I took delivery of a new 2015 in late July 2015 after a windstorm and trees destroyed my Jayco 27FB, this was supposed to be an upgrade for me as I am a full time RVr.

Problems thus far,
-Waste lines into gray tank not sealed and the gray tank leaked
-Irv 66 has been replaced for many reasons, the new one works better except you have to ensure you turn off the outside speakers, they come on by default each time you turn it on.
-currently have 3 LED ceiling lights out, Forest River sent replacements to the dealer but they were the wrong model, its been a long time now and we (the dealer and I) are still waiting for the matching lights
-in the last 24 hours my Dometic fridge has failed, all food spoiled (very angry)
-some plastic piece that belongs to the awning arm started sliding out as I was towing down the freeway (to the dealer for service ironically)
-Outside lights (ds flood & ods flood) have both already burned out
-Outside molding is peeling away
-Fireplace made awful noises, I took it apart myself and fixed (bent rod in back that contains foil pieces that create fake flame)
-still chasing electrical ghosts, I have tried two new coffee makers but when they start and the fireplace is running, breaker pops, (no space heaters are running)
-breakers pop in this trailer for almost no reason at all...

As I have had to dig into this trailer multiple times the one thing that has struck me is the lack of quality control, the mess I found behind the radio when replaced (cut wires left laying, extra wire nuts laying in the space), Behind the fireplace, the amount of sawdust and garbage (plastic lunch bags??) and once again behind the panel under the kitchen sink where the sub woofer is? it is obvious the trailer is thrown together quickly without regard to cleanliness. Very disappointed in the amount of garbage that was found, it made my new trailer feel very dirty...

I will add that the few times I have called Forest River it has taken a long time to get to a speaking person and those persons, as cordial as I am, never sound happy and never seem pleasant on the phone. I have called not to complain but to ask very general questions (like what kind of insulation is in the undercarriage as I have had a nice gray tank leak), I am complaining now though, enough is enough.

I know that some people are very happy with the Rockwood purchase and I'm happy for them, I can't help however, feeling like I received a lemon

I cannot in good conscious recommend Forest River.

My hope is that someone at forest river will read this and address the issues, I have however lost confidence that they will after the experience I have had thus far.

[SusanML4650]

Good Luck waiting for a response from FR. We sent numerous emails last year and never received a reply.

[Mr Havercamp]

Originally Posted by SusanML4650

Good Luck. We paid a "Prep" fee for Our new Surveyor last year. When we started transferring our stuff from the old Trailer (2015) We had to clean every where. Sawdust in all cupboards, dust and dirt. Floors were filthy.

We Recently had a problem with the TV and had to replace wires to radio (Jensen). We pulled out the radio and yes, full of garbage. BTW, cheap wires from TV to radio. Plastic prongs instead of metal. We love the TT but feel that once The Dealers sell them, they could care less about service.

I can't sit back and not ask these questions......Sure sounds like your dealer is a bum.

Why did you pay a "prep fee" ? Final cleaning of the unit is typically the dealers responsibility per their agreement with the manufacturer.

After you paid a prep fee why did you pull off the dealers lot with the unit full of sawdust and filthy floors? Did you even look at it?

How about a picture of the cheap wires with plastic prongs? I have never seen all metal RCA or HDMI cables.

Originally Posted by SusanML4650

Good Luck waiting for a response from FR. We sent numerous emails last year and never received a reply.

After you did not receive a response from numerous tries did you ever try another person via email or phone? Surveyor lists 3 different people with both email addys and phone numbers with extensions.

[uhduh camping]

Yeah I replaced mine the same way. Only once though. I have a radio station 3 miles away and with most other radios you get their signal in multiple frequencies. But not with the iRV66. So I tied my tv anntena to the FM anntena Jack using a motorola to f connect adapter and another splitter.

[lakejumper]

I bought the 8329SS in April and have had minor issues including the iRV66 radio. I ordered a replacement directly from the manufacturer as the dealer is several hours away from me. It also defaults to the outside speakers, although the distributor said that it shouldn't. I also have an issue with the kitchen/living room circuit breaker popping when I have a space heater plugged into the plug under the TV and run a Keurig coffee pot. I do have the water heater on electric all of the time. I have to remember to turn off the heater when I make coffee.

Unduh Camping - you mentioned that you can run all types of electrical items without an issue. I'm curious if you are using the plugs in the living/kitchen area and is your water heater turned on when you do so? I also wonder if the Keurig style coffee makers utilize more amps than a drip style coffee pot. I will have to check as I never had this issue with my last two RVs. Lastly, I do use a Progressive Industries power protecter PT30C (their big one) and still have the issue with the circuit breaker in the RV.

Other than this, I haven't had an issue with the fridge or lights. I did install an on/off switch for the fans in the fridge. Eventually, I will replace them with computer fans that are quieter.

Northwest - hang in there! Once you get the fridge fixed, you'll be in a better place!

[uhduh camping]

Originally Posted by lakejumper

I bought the 8329SS in April and have had minor issues including the iRV66 radio. I ordered a replacement directly from the manufacturer as the dealer is several hours away from me. It also defaults to the outside speakers, although the distributor said that it shouldn't. I also have an issue with the kitchen/living room circuit breaker popping when I have a space heater plugged into the plug under the TV and run a Keurig coffee pot. I do have the water heater on electric all of the time. I have to remember to turn off the heater when I make coffee.

Unduh Camping - you mentioned that you can run all types of electrical items without an issue. I'm curious if you are using the plugs in the living/kitchen area and is your water heater turned on when you do so? I also wonder if the Keurig style coffee makers utilize more amps than a drip style coffee pot. I will have to check as I never had this issue with my last two RVs. Lastly, I do use a Progressive Industries power protecter PT30C (their big one) and still have the issue with the circuit breaker in the RV.

Other than this, I haven't had an issue with the fridge or lights. I did install an on/off switch for the fans in the fridge. Eventually, I will replace them with computer fans that are quieter.

Northwest - hang in there! Once you get the fridge fixed, you'll be in a better place!

Yes I can run space heater or AC, water heater, tv, and coffee maker at the same time, but I have 50 amp service. I have to be careful of the microwave.

[wmtire]

Originally Posted by uhduh camping

Yes I can run space heater or AC, water heater, tv, and coffee maker at the same time, but I have 50 amp service. I have to be careful of the microwave.

Show off.

Yep, those with 50 amp (12,000 watts) rigs (which in actuality is 100 amps total, being you have TWO separate 50 amp legs) is a lot different from us ones with 30 amps (3600 watts) total capacity.

You basically have 3 and a 1/2 times more capability, and are mostly limited to only overloading individual circuits and not the main breaker(s).

http://www.rvtechmag.com/electrical/chapter3.php

[uhduh camping]

Originally Posted by wmtire

Show off.

Yep, those with 50 amp (12,000 watts) rigs (which in actuality is 100 amps total, being you have TWO separate 50 amp legs) is a lot different from us ones with 30 amps (3600 watts) total capacity.

You basically have 3 and a 1/2 times more capability, and are mostly limited to only overloading individual circuits and not the main breaker(s).

Electrical Tutorial - Chapter 3 - 30 Amp versus 50 Amp

It is funny, as I was writing that I realized many people only have 30 amps. So quickly threw that bit about having 50 amps. I can see people mobbing their dealers, "he said, he can run "everything", but I can only run 2 things. There must be something wrong with mine"
We have had our share of 30 amp only sites. Yeah that's not as fun, but not the worst thing to worry about. My Jayco was 30, I did not want to go back to that. Mainly do to wanting\needing second AC.

[A32Deuce]

I thought that the Progressive protected from outside in, not inside out!

[RangeMaggotBob]

Originally Posted by uhduh camping

Yeah I replaced mine the same way. Only once though. I have a radio station 3 miles away and with most other radios you get their signal in multiple frequencies. But not with the iRV66. So I tied my tv anntena to the FM anntena Jack using a motorola to f connect adapter and another splitter.

And how did that work out for you? I'm probably going to do the same thing; that antenna that came with ours is pretty useless, but I was hesitant to replace it, the reason being I didn't want to mess with the integrity of the water-proof installation. For the time being we've just been using our portable satellite radio receiver, but I would like to be able to receive local FM stations.

[Mr Havercamp]

Originally Posted by tdst51

And how did that work out for you? I'm probably going to do the same thing; that antenna that came with ours is pretty useless, but I was hesitant to replace it, the reason being I didn't want to mess with the integrity of the water-proof installation. For the time being we've just been using our portable satellite radio receiver, but I would like to be able to receive local FM stations.

What antenna is Rockwood using? The wire Jensen one with the spring base about 30" high? If so they usually work well. What I have seen is when they install them they do not push the connections in all the way. I have had that twice now on two different brands of RV's

[uhduh camping]

Originally Posted by tdst51

And how did that work out for you? I'm probably going to do the same thing; that antenna that came with ours is pretty useless, but I was hesitant to replace it, the reason being I didn't want to mess with the integrity of the water-proof installation. For the time being we've just been using our portable satellite radio receiver, but I would like to be able to receive local FM stations.

Works great now but you have to activate the antenna\TV switch. I forget that from time to time.

[RangeMaggotBob]

Originally Posted by Mr Havercamp

What antenna is Rockwood using? The wire Jensen one with the spring base about 30" high? If so they usually work well. What I have seen is when they install them they do not push the connections in all the way. I have had that twice now on two different brands of RV's

My antenna is about 6-8" long when extended.

[KDHfan]

Originally Posted by tdst51

my antenna is about 6-8" long when extended.

😳😂

[Northwest_RVr]

post removed by nothwest rv-r to post in correct location

[Northwest_RVr]

Well I have been incredibly busy and have not had time to reply or update but here go's again..., sorry..My fridge is a DRM702 with the funky blue light, I had a Norcold in my Jayco, it had no fans and worked flawlessly even in subzero temps until finally the heating element went out, I replaced it and the board went out, it was a 2006 had very heavy use but never any issues.

The DRM 702 has two (I would call) CPU Cooling fans at the top of the fridge, they are not accessible without pulling the fridge, they are very noisy and you have to get used to the sound...its irritating. The cooling issues continue as I have not had the time to dig into it. The dealer thinks it’s a thermistor and ordered one from the factory, it has arrived, he stated I could carefully using a mouse (electrical term for string) pull it through the back, use the mouse to pull the new one through and hook it up. Unfortunately I cannot get any movement in the wire where it goes through the back of the fridge, I'm going to try again today and see what happens.
Symptoms?
ON LP fridge will cool

on electric it's intermittent, sometimes its cold (freezer 3 degrees fridge 34) but it will warm up to 45 degrees in the fridge while maintaining 11-15 degrees in the freezer, it will eventually cool down again but I can't tell how long the temps are remaining above 40 degrees which is not good.

The fans have also stopped turning on, this is something I can’t find any documentation on, currently outside air temps are not getting above 32-35 degrees during the day and overnight it's 28-30 degrees, I don't know if there is a temp range at which the fans will or will not turn on/off. In the summer, they were on every 30 minutes...or so

Another light has burned out and one in the bathroom is beginning to flicker so I know it’s only a matter of time.

Interestingly enough, I don't know if I can post pictures here but I have taken thermal images of my trailer, I'm waiting for the rain to stop to do the outside, very clearly you can see the support systems in the undercarriage and the insulated roof structure, the seals were better than I expected, I was looking for obvious places to plug and didn't really find any. Anyway, if someone wants to see them, private message me with an address and I'll send them along

[Northwest_RVr]

In response to some of the other posts I'll be a little more detailed about a couple of things,

all of the dirt I was speaking of was made during the manufacture process, there was no thought to clean up anywhere the customer "wouldn't normally see" but once you start fixing things, you sure find the mess.

Electrical, so, I'm 30 amps, I have one space heater I use, its a pelonis oil radiator type that I never use on high, only medium and the thermostat is set halfway. It's in the bedroom and does a great job.
In the morning if I have the fireplace with heater going and nothing else on but lights and that space heater and I start to use an iron, I lose power on the 15a breaker, I've tried to plug in in elsewhere bit does not seem to matter where I plug in. I have learned to live with it. you can't in the 30 amp coaches anyway, seem to run very much, not sure I can ever do anything about that.
If the fireplace and wall plugs are all on the same circuit and its only 15 amp I would expect to have a limited number of appliances I can use at one time, I can see arguments on both sides of this coin, Maybe it should have been wired differently however, it is a recreational vehicle right?

If I figure out the fridge I'll post it here..thanks again to all for the comments and I apologize for not replying right away, life takes over ya' know...

[Northwest_RVr]

correction, fridge is dmr702 not drm

[bob caldwell]

Why not add another dedicated circuit from outside to inside? In the desert at night here, it get cold. I'm in a 30 amp rv, water heater, tv, micro when needed, any light or combination of all lights (led's), vacuum cleaner, perc. type coffee pot.....not a problem. I use 1 dedicated circuit for 1500 watt heater, and the other to supply power to slide area that uses the pedestal ( both these do) 20 amp plugs. Also, on factory circuit, have an oil filled heater on high every evening and all night long, and fridge is on elec.

[Northwest_RVr]

Originally Posted by bob caldwell

Why not add another dedicated circuit from outside to inside? In the desert at night here, it get cold. I'm in a 30 amp rv, water heater, tv, micro when needed, any light or combination of all lights (led's), vacuum cleaner, perc. type coffee pot.....not a problem. I use 1 dedicated circuit for 1500 watt heater, and the other to supply power to slide area that uses the pedestal ( both these do) 20 amp plugs. Also, on factory circuit, have an oil filled heater on high every evening and all night long, and fridge is on elec.

I'll look into it, how did you actually add the dedicated circuits?