Lacrosse 318BHS, first trip, problems!!

[Dandy]

So, we completed our first trip withthe beast this past weekend in Mystic, CT. Found a few things that need to be addressed under warranty and am very worried about one problem in particular.

The big problem. WATER. The carpet by the slide just outside the bedroom was wet all weekend and there was no rain, no condensation, very dry out. My only thought is a small pipe leak underneath as the water connection is on that side. I did not see any water coming from the undercarriage, so I am a bit baffled as to why the interior carpet remained wet. I thought about condensation, but it was very localized to just that carpet section.

We purchased in PA and live in MA. The closest place to fix this for us is in NH about 90-minutes away. They can fix it, but mentioned it is most likely due to faulty winterizing and that won't be covered under warranty. The dealer in PA must have winterized but I do not want to travel 8 hours to bring it back them and wait to get it back home.

Other minor problems: IPOD won't work with radio, awning is making a terrible sound when closing, bedroom bed storage shock failed, electric element for HW heater not working.

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by Dandy

We purchased in PA and live in MA. The closest place to fix this for us is in NH about 90-minutes away. They can fix it, but mentioned it is most likely due to faulty winterizing and that won't be covered under warranty. The dealer in PA must have winterized but I do not want to travel 8 hours to bring it back them and wait to get it back home.

Other minor problems: IPOD won't work with radio, awning is making a terrible sound when closing, bedroom bed storage shock failed, electric element for HW heater not working.

Yes, this is a water leak from the plumbing most likely. May or may not be from a bad winterizing job. If the PA dealer (you have called him right?) will not stand behind their work, you most likely will need to pay the local guy to fix it; then sue your dealer for redress.

In either case you most likely will need to pay the man to get it fixed.

IPOD won't work with radio - how are you plugging it in? It has to go through the aux input jack NOT the USB port. The USB port is for photos only; not MP3s.

Awning noise - I assume since you did not say, that it is a power awning. They need to be lubricated (I use silicone spray). Let it dry well before you run it again. I run my awning in and out after every rain to dry the mechanism and fabric in order to prevent rust and/or corrosion from forming on the joints and awning workings.

Electric element not working - again this is most likely due to poor winterizing job or poor understanding on your part of how it works. If you plug in the camper with the outside switch in the "ON" position without water in the tank, even for a minute or so, you will burn up the element.
If during winterizing, they left the switch on, you would destroy the element as soon as you plugged the camper into shore power.

Bedroom shock. Broke how? The shock itself or the mount? Either should be a repair under warranty.

[padave65]

I recommend contacting PT's customer service department for advice. I know they have been excellent to deal with .....

[LadyWindrider]

Without having your floor plan, where the carpet was wet, how close is that to the shower? I'm suspecting leaking drain line. To test the other lines, put some water in the fresh tank, turn on the pump, make sure the whole system is bled, and have a beer, or tea, or whatever you drink, and wait and listen. If the pump comes on, you have a pressure leak. If not, you may have a drain leak. Usually a shower, as nobody ever removes the access plug and checks it on a new trailer at the dealership, except me, and nobody makes me, I just do it, customer service.

[grhodes50]

I'm gonna take a guess that your universal docking station is next to the bed, street side. There should be a panel under the bed that you can take off and check the connections on the backside of the universal docking station.

If it is leaking there, that would explain why there was no water in the underbelly. Probably a slow drip and the carpet is soaking up all the water.

Here's a tip. Use a 2 x 4 or something similar to prop the bed up. Ours will not stay up with the mattress on even with the shocks working.

herk7769 gave you good advice on the iPod and awning. However, the awning may need adjusting. If you take it back to the dealer have them check it out.

Have the dealer check out the water heater or try replacing the element yourself. It could have been turned on accidently by someone when the hot water tank was empty. If so it would burn out in a matter of seconds.
I've read where people buy the element and tool to remove/install at one of the home improvement stores.

[RV Guy]

Dandy - contact our customer service group at primetimerv.com

PTM

[Wildwood Danny]

If you filled the fresh water tank, the leak could come from the vent line coming off the vent, found ours off when filling the fresh water tank (the crimped on fitting was put on about 1/2 inch behind the fitting). We had the water heater element go out on our Wildwood, changed it myself, easy change. Was the breaker turned on in the converter box?

Used Windrider's method to check our system for leaks, found none other than the unhooked vent line problem.

Gary, try raising the bed all the way up and pumping it back and forth a few times, it seemed to help ours even after new struts.

Dandy, good luck with your new trailer, sounds like not many problems and not very major.

[Dandy]

Update:
Found the fill tube for the fresh tank threaded off the dock station fitting. Maybe when I was filling the tank it leaked internally. I have had the water hooked up for two days in the yard and no water at all in trailer. Hopefully it was that simple.

IPOD dock. Needs to be on Aux2. Press the Aux button twice to get to it. It works fine.

Water heater element. Breaker was off. Dealer must have shut it off for winterizing. All set now.

Bed Shock. I relocated the bracket slightly because the screws stripped out of the wood. The shocks will not hold the bed up regardless. Not sure if PT has a higher rated shock or if I should go into a re-design myself here. This compartmnet is valuable to us and it would be easy if the shcks held and didn;t need a second device to hold the bed up.

Awning problem mysteriously solved on its own. Maybe a little moisture or debris caused it to bind and chatter.

[Wildwood Danny]

Glad everything got solved without much trouble. Hope you enjoy your new LaCrosse as much as we do ours for the short time that we have had it.

LaCrosse sent us new 80# struts for our bed platform, installed them, bed better but not exactly what we would like but useable. If after raising platform if we pump the platform back and forth several times it seems to stay up okay. 90 or 100 pound struts might help or correct the problem.

Let's all get out there and enjoy our Prime Time products.

[Dandy]

RV Guy- Can you help me with a couple upgrades? I want to add drawers under the dining sections and a counter extension to the bathroom that collapses. I will need some original pieces to complete this.

[RV Guy]

Dandy - contact Roger at Customer Service on your request, please: rstickel@forestriverinc.com

PTM

[kozzy]

I have the same problem with my water fill hose unthreading from the dock station..every time I try and take the cap off.. Is there a fix for that?

Same with the arms under the bed...are they supposed to hold the bed up? They did on my old camper....but they do not on my 318.... Anything on that? I would like them to stay up...

[autorot8]

Arms on my bed held it up until I put a mattress topper on the bed. The struts now do not hold it up with the extra weight.

[kozzy]

Mine never held up...I just thought they weren't supposed to. Should I be contacting someone for some stronger ones perhaps?

[autorot8]

You could. Just depends on how your location and availability. For me, I have a Lowes, home depot, Ace, etc. within two miles of my house. For the time and effort, I could just as easily get replacements for minimal cost.

[RV Guy]

We've never heard of the complaint regarding the fill hose connection unthreading so we went out and looked at it. Yes, I can see how that could happen over time. If yours has a tendancy to become disengaged, our suggestion is to put some glue on the "tabs" of the fill connection and then reinstall. Once you place the tabs back into the slot in the box, turn the connection 1/4 of a full rotation and you should have the tabs fully engaged into the box. You will probably need to grip the fill hose with pliers to achieve 1/4 of a turn as it's pretty hard to do by hand. We will have a conversation with our vendor to ask for an improvement to the way this connects. Sorry for the problem.

On the bed struts - yes, they are supposed to hold the bed up. However, if you've added weight to the bed platform (replacement mattress for instance) you might have changed the dynamics of the design. A similar issue develops over time as the struts eventually lose some of their abiltiy to hold the same weight. It's usually a simple adjustment to get the struts holding the bed up again - just move the attachment point of the strut and BED BASE (not bed platform) toward the FOOT of the bed. An adjustment of 1" will push the bed up higher and provide significantly more force to counteract the weight of the bed.

[kozzy]

Rv guy thanks for the info...I'm guessing that the fill hose was never fully locked in...cause I def didn't get 1/4 turn when I tried to fix it...I will get on that. Mine is at the dealer now. I'll call them

As for the struts...I have since replaced the mattress....however they never worked from day 1 with the original mattress...might I be able to get some stronger ones from you guys?

[RV Guy]

Not fair putting me on the spot like that

I'm going to give the standard answer on that one. If the original factory struts are not performing the way they are supposed to with standard factory equipment, then we will replace them under warranty.

We can't offer an upgrade unfortunately. Sorry.

PTM

[kozzy]

My bad on that. Didn't mean to put you on the spot like that. I appreciate all the help you provide...my dealer just called and I passed along the information about the fill tube. Thy are going to take care of it

Thanks again

[RV Guy]

It's all good - I laughed when I read your request and started sweating a little, too