No one warned me about maintenance

Jimg · 06-25-2013, 04:41 PM

Three years ago I bought a 1994 Jayco 3050. All the information I had told me to buy a 5th wheel. I got a fair price (or so I thought) and the rig seemed to be in great shape. The previous owner said it had new tires, new slideout gasket, good a/c etc. Needless to say on the first trip we had to replace 2 tires and come to find out , for whatever reason, the tires had been upsized and were not suitable for the weight of the unit. 2 trips later I had back to back blowouts on the other 2 tires. Didn't even make the next exit after leaving the tire shop before having the second blowout. Guess I should be thankful for finding a good tire guy in the wilderness of I65 in Alabama. As a sidenote we also had the pleasure of cranking in the slideout manually on the first trip...Generator broke and couldn't recharge the battery. (go figure). Had one trouble free trip (all to the Nascar races at Talladega speedway in Alabama) if you don't count the rip in the roof and the fact that I forgot to chock the wheels and knocked it off the leveling legs when backing up to hook it up. Naturally I couldn't get it up high enough to hook it up. Luckily I'm not the first in that boat so I ran down a maintenance man on a front end loader with the bucket removed which worked perfect to lift the 5th wheel and reposition the legs...25 minutes later we were homeward bound. All in all I've lost a tv antenna, flattened 4 tires, tore the roof (which left unfixed led to more problems) killed 2 batteries and still I'm undaunted. I fixed the roof, replaced the ceiling and insulation in half the trailer and now I'm doing battle with the slideout with it's "new" gasket. No one told me gasket were so valuable. Anyway the slideout leaks and not from the gasket...So now I'm going to fix it...It's just annoying throwing money at a problem and it doesn't go away. I'm not blaming anyone for my mistakes but I'll offer as advice..Don't believe anything a seller tells you (not to say they outright lie) Be from Missouri, show me..better yet get a ladder, climb on the roof, crawl under the unit, run the a/c, run the a/c (checked twice, my seller turned the unit off to keep the noise down so we could talk) Most units blow cold for a short period of time. I'm not discouraged by any means and I do love a challenge..This week the slideout then on to the a/c...

Truth B Towed · 06-25-2013, 04:55 PM

What a nightmare, I guess if you figure your out of pocket expenses you would have been better buying new?

**ependydad** · 06-25-2013, 05:04 PM

In all fairness and you do seem in good spirits in the face of adversity- that's a 20 year old rig and a handful of those "issues" were self-inflicted.

That's not to say my brand new rig has been perfect. I'm 4 new tires in after a nail and a bubble in 2 of them. Various upgrades and fixes of stupid human tricks that I've done. I still see the scratch in the paint from where my father-in-law leaned the metal end of our beach umbrella against the camper and it slide. :-(

jamesroadking · 06-25-2013, 08:11 PM

RV'ing like owning a boat is a expensive learning experience. I'm on my 3rd RV now, have had about 5 or 6 boats, How at sixty years young I'm still learning how to troubleshoot, repair, maintain, and safely operate all my toys.

Jimg · 06-26-2013, 01:30 PM

We looked at new units and almost took the plunge. Sure they were nice and "trouble free" but I would still be making payments. I'm a natural born tinkerer and consider the money put into the projects as a lower cost alternative to making payments that last longer than the warranty. I do however wish I had been more diligent in the selection process. Today's project...Silicon removal.. Googled it, now to see if it works. The slideout will not leak when I'm finished no matter how long it takes and how annoying it gets...

kmr · 07-03-2013, 08:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jimg

I'm a natural born tinkerer and consider the money put into the projects as a lower cost alternative to making payments that last longer than the warranty. The slideout will not leak when I'm finished no matter how long it takes and how annoying it gets...

Good for you! While problems are irritating, it sounds like you're enjoying the challenge. What a great attitude. I really hate the throw-away mentality that seems so common these days.

Here's one story from the "new" side: the microwave in our 2012 Flagstaff 5W quilt--actually, the turntable stopped turning. I took it in to the dealer, but it was out of warranty; in any case, all they could have done was to replace it. Would have cost $350 or so for a new one.

I took it home, took the cover off (after the dealer's service guy nicelyl took out the one "tamper proof" screw for me) and found that the turntable was operated by a small motor. I bought an exact replacement for $18 on eBay and in 5 days was back in business. What a great feeling!

tosh99 · 07-03-2013, 10:52 AM

I thought I was alone but on my first trip on my 2014 Wildwood, I blew out a brand new tire on a short outing. I also just fixed a leak, I hope, on the brand new shower. I also lost the propane tank cover plate somewhere on the freeway.

Luckily I've been a gearhead (hot rods) all my life so although frustrating, nothing new to me. BTW, I also have two boats which require constant tinkering so I bought two brand new outboards for them so I can fish more than tinker! BreakOutAnotherThousand!

Good luck and have fun!

prof_fate · 07-03-2013, 11:44 AM

consider it a 'hobby'. I know guys that blow wads golfing, on sports team tickets, etc.

There's nothing so fine as messing about in boats. My camper is a test / education - I want a 30' sail boat as my next 'toy'. If I had time now I'd get it now.

rockfordroo · 07-03-2013, 12:30 PM

The definition of a boat is: A hole in the water, surrounded by wood, into which your pour your money!

An RV is very similar: A hole in the air, surrounded by wood, into which you pour your money!

kmr · 07-03-2013, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

An RV is very similar: A hole in the air, surrounded by wood, into which you pour your money!

Now wait just a minute! I must dispute that!

The hole formed by many RVs is actually surrounded by fiberglass..... Other than that, you are correct.

rockfordroo · 07-03-2013, 04:38 PM

You're right. And some are aluminum!

jim44646 · 07-03-2013, 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jimg

We looked at new units and almost took the plunge. Sure they were nice and "trouble free"

From what I've read. New units aren't exactly "Trouble Free"

Taylorgso · 07-03-2013, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jim44646

From what I've read. New units aren't exactly "Trouble Free"

Sure they are! Everytime I take mine into the shop to have something fixed, I ask if he can fix it, he says "Sure, No Trouble."

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