Took delivery....problems day 1

[barrie1]

Originally Posted by magpi26

I have already said it a dozen times and will probably say it a dozen more....after enduring more than a year's worth of similar problems, I feel honestly that FR does not know what quality management really means. The waste and redo expenses for their manufacturing problems must be astronomical and I doubt that they actually know what that means to overall image and profits. This is an identical scenario that played out with the U.S. auto industry in the 60s and 70s and they found that it took 40 years to recover and be competitive with foreign manufacturers.

I totally agree with everything you say here magpi26. Perfectly put.

[BigPatCal]

Update: Spoke to the owner at the dealership. They will take the unit in at the end of the season (i have a seasonal so i don't want to take it now and lose time). Turns out someone at the dealership put the caulk on and shouldn't have. They said they will go through the whole list, fix everything and make sure I leave happy. If they make good on that I am fine with it.

In regard to the leak from the vacuum breaker. This is pretty interesting. Upon further inspection I noticed that FR cable tied the vacuum breaker against the wall on the inside of one of the cabinets. They mounted it very high up in the cabinet about 1/4 inch from the shelf above it. When I turned on the the water, there is a small plunger inside the valve that rises and seals off the top. Well, mine didn't have enough clearance from the shelf above it to seal off fully, hence, the leak. I thought I'd call Swain Industries (company that makes San-T-Flush products) to ask if they made an alternate vacuum breaker valve that was designed better than the one they supplied on the flush system. After looking at some pictures we determined that the safety cap on top of the valve was missing. This cap covers the plunger/seal so it cant hit anything when it opens. Therefore, you are guaranteed perfect clearance regardless. They sent me the cap - problem solved.

I week later I get a letter from them saying that because of my call they did an audit at the FR factory in Oregon and it turned out that FR has been installing these breakers without the caps on any of them. This has been causing leaks in trailers everywhere. Anyway, at least Swain cares enough about customer service to take the initiative to investigate why it happened and has taken steps to resolve the installation issues at FR.

Sorry this post is so long, but i guess if you have a black tank flush on your FR from San-T-Flush it would be worth checking to see if your vacuum breaker valve is leaking due to the missing cover. The cover not only protects the seal clearance but it prevents debris and dust from getting in the top of the valve and affecting the seal. Swain also said it prevents the occasional squirt from coming out of the top too. This is normal and happens every so often if its uncovered.

[BigPatCal]

UPDATE

Well turns out a few more issues arose, none major - but still frustrating. Spoke to the dealer and set a day where they will take the time to go thru the whole trailer with me to make sure everything is noted and will be fixed properly. Turns out they actually were responsible for the issue with the caustic caulking on the slide seals. Was unintentional and the person that put it on was unaware it didn't jive with rubber. I guess an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure as they say, and 99.9999999% of these issues would have been non existent with a proper PDI and walk thru.

Anyway, they seem to be willing to properly fix everything and cover all the costs for the mistakes they made also. I guess we will see if they deliver on it at the end of the season. I have no reason to believe they wont, but I hope they do it in one shot as its 3 hrs each way from where i live.

[Terier]

Thanks for posting an update. I hope your dealer does handle this properly so it can become history and you can enjoy your new camper to the fullest.