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Old 12-01-2015, 08:51 AM   #1
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Angry very unhappy with my rockwood

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.
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Old 12-01-2015, 08:59 AM   #2
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rockwood

WOW, sorry about your problems, yes we have had some very minor problems but nothing compared to you. after two years we still have saw dust migrating out of the walls and cabinets and still finding left overs from construction. hope that you can get things fixed with some satisfaction. good luck.
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Old 12-01-2015, 09:11 AM   #3
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I know your mad and venting now, but FR will make good. Not quite sure I would have a picked a Rockwood for full timing myself. I had some of the same problems that you have had. I really wouldn't call it insulation in the underbelly. If your lucky it might be that silver lined stuff not much of an R value at all. FR really needs to have better QC I agree. I found the same stuff laying all around to, I'm still cleaning saw dust up 4 years later. To be honest I really haven't heard of to many problems with the Rockwood/Flagstaff line and I have been a member for almost 4 years. I know this is easy for me to say I'm not in your shoes, but hang in there they will take care of your problems....Good Luck
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Old 12-01-2015, 09:17 AM   #4
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Sorry to here of your issues. We toured the plant back in Aug and lot of checks ad processes are followed to insure minimal problems. Maybe your slipped throgh the crack. A lady that was on part of our Rockwood tour worked for customer service for Flag Staff, her name is Deb Rimsa you might try to get in contact with her as she said she will work with folks to solve issues. Lter RJD
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Old 12-01-2015, 09:40 AM   #5
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Aside from your waste tank leak, most of problems are very minor, (burnt out bulbs, etc). I'm not making light of your situation, but these problems are easily fixed. The plastic piece on your awning arm, sounds like possibly a channel cover, which is more cosmetic than anything. A dab of silicone at the end should hold it in place. My understanding is, that some of the new LED lights don't have replaceable bulbs. I'm assuming this is what you have. Could have been a bad batch was installed in yours. The fireplace should have it's own circuit, but unfortunately that's usually not the case and is tied into the rest of the AC outlets. Your coffee pot and fireplace, are the same as a microwave and hair dryer. Just not going to get along. You may be able to add a new circuit breaker to run just the fireplace, depending on location. Also you can check the back of your circuit breakers to make sure all connections are tight, these can loosen up and cause breakers to trip. Hang in there and don't get too discouraged.
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Old 12-01-2015, 09:41 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Northwest_RVr View Post

-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)


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.
I hate to hear of these problems, and hope the factory can solve it all for you.

We are a forum of DIY people, and maybe can help with some things that the factory doesn't.

Do you know how many amps the fireplace and coffee maker together use. Anything that makes heat, usually requires higher amps. Is the fireplace on the same circuit (usually a 15 amp breaker) as the outlets the coffee makers are plugged into........ or are you referring to the main trailer breaker tripping (30 amp or possibly 50 amp)? It's possible that if they are on the same circuit, it's just overloading the 15 amps. here is a simple reminder how to check this. Watts= amps X volts or the reverse is amps = watts/volts.

Ex: 1200 watt space heater or perhaps fireplace heater = 10 amps X 120 volts

Estimated 750 watt coffee maker = 6.25 amps X 120 volts.

So you can see these two items would need 16.25 amps if on the same circuit, which may be controlled by a single 15 amp breaker.

On a side note, as per the disclaimer at the bottom of EVERY page here on the forums, this site is not owned nor controlled by Forest River Inc. We are for the most part an owners group of Forest River products, who share our collective wisdom and experiences to help each other out. Although there are some Forest River inc. employees who are also members, they usually do so on their own accord, and not as part of their official job.... as they want to help too.

Hoping they are going to either see or answer your posts here, is not a reasonable expectation. You may have members who will have contact info though for you.
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Old 12-01-2015, 10:22 AM   #7
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Issues,

I didn't expect that many replies so fast...Thanks too all and yes..I'm venting,

AquaMan, I would have been fine with the replacement they sent except, the lights they sent were not as large as the hole drilled into the ceiling for the originals which BTW, I was actually very impressed with when I took them out, It was housed in a solid can with really strong springs to hold it into the hole. The replacements were snap together on a piece of plastic that screws into the ceiling, although cheesy, they would have worked just fine..they just don't cover the hole.

I think the fireplace is tied to a safety circuit of some sort. If operating and you start the microwave it immediately kicks off without popping a breaker, so you know you cant operate at the same time. Totally get that, I would think however, that when there is no load on your electrical system (lights only) and the fireplace is running, a coffee pot shouldn't be enough to pop the breaker.

and yes most are minor, the fridge has been my tipping point though.

gljurczyk;

Not a rockwood for full time?? You may be right, I thought I had done quite a bit of research, I love the floor-plan, the insulation is better than my original Jayco so this is a definite step up, I can say that so far (temps are in the teens and twenties) I'm spending less on propane in this 34 foot than I did in my 27' jayco (no pop outs) and it had a winter package. I would love to hear recommendations though, I seriously considered Arctic Fox but couldn't find a floor plan that suited me. I also had very little time to decide as my Jayco was destroyed and I had no place to stay while working and the decision was made quickly...i was really living online researching and really really want to like this RV...I didn't plan on living in an RV full time, its a work situation and it just is...I'm actually Monday-Thursday in the trailer and home on the weekend..but that takes place all year...

wmtire;

I could check the total amp load, I will this afternoon actually and yup I get the disclaimer stuff. I have tripped both. the breaker in the trailer and at other times the 30 amp breaker on the meter. Interestingly enough, the park I am in had problems with the power on the line of RVs in my row. My spot had a specific full timer in it for years who finally moved on but as a favor to him due to the problems he had his own power installed coming off a caretaker mobile home. The 30 service is on a separate line from the other RVs. I have popped that 30 amp breaker with the fireplace running, lights and TV on, and when the furnace kicked on it popped that breaker..

All, I sincerely appreciate the feedback Thank You. as I get this resolved I will update. My venting may also be due to the nearest dealer being a ways away and having to tow the trailer again to get something serviced (like the fridge) I don't mind performing some of the small things but I don't really want to tackle the fridge in my new trailer...
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Old 12-01-2015, 12:03 PM   #8
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You have a great support group here, and as stated we can try to help where we can.

Since you had a jayco previously, then you are certainly no newbie ..but there may be some electrical differences between the two RV's.

Did your previous jayco have a dual source (propane and electric) Suburban brand water heater as many of the Rockwood/Flagstaffs do? Your Rockwood most likely does, and do you know how to operate it correctly? The reason I ask that, is when the electric heating element comes on due to it's thermostat calling for heat (which you must have the electric element switch for it turned on first), then it has a 1440 watt heating element which uses 12 amps by itself.

This electric heating element can cause breakers to trip, either due to over load or the element itself being burned up. It's explained in the link below.

This thread may help:

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ore-36197.html

We are just trying to help with suggestions on things that you may or may not be familiar with.
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Old 12-01-2015, 01:23 PM   #9
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We purchased our 2016 Rockwood MiniLite in July. During the walk-through at the dealer all of the overhead LED lights worked fine. When we arrived home, 4 of the lights stopped working. I took one of them apart and immediately found the problem. One of the wires had become disconnected from the light. We purchased a soldering gun and solder. My husband was able to fix all 4 of the lights. The repairs are still working fine after a trip of over 2000 miles.
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Old 12-01-2015, 01:27 PM   #10
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What type of Dometic refrigerator do you have? I have the rm2652. I have a 2015 Puma 32DBKS . My refrigerator is on the slide just like yours. And also like urs my refrigerator failed it burned out the cooling unit. Your refrigerator located on the slide is supposed to have a fan kit included for circulation. My rm2652 did not have a fan kit installed. It did not even have a circuit to run a fan kit off of. In installation instructions from Dometic, it states that it has to have a fan kit installed. Look on your wiring diagram for your refrigerator and if you don't see a circuit for a fan or thermostat that has to be installed. On the slide the circulation is very weak and overheats the cooling unit. And good luck getting your dealer and Forest River to admit to that, I had to have Forest River and Dometic talk to each other before Dometic would send out the fan kit.
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Old 12-01-2015, 01:41 PM   #11
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I don't own a Rockwood, but a little Grey Wolf. I have to agree with comment on quality control. We took our trailer out for the first time this weekend. While everything worked like it should it it the little stuff that I am disappointed in. Like bare wood showing where it was joined together and needs some touch up stain. Some shoe polish or stain will touch it up.We removed a warning sticker from the wall beside the refrigerator and while we were being extremely careful a large area of the stain came off. So I will be investing in some of those stick on tile. It is the same size of the a pot holder, so that is what I hung there.

I have worked in manufacturing all of my adult life and I can tell you that the QA's I have worked with would not of let all of the things you listed through, they would stop the line. You would not be finding lunch bag's in there either. We never allowed eating on the line, that is what the break room is for or go outside. It is just poor management. Poor quality usually = unhappy workers I have found. I am just lucky that I have worked with people who took pride in their work, including myself.

The whole point is whether it is a big mechanic issue or a small cosmetic thing, we pay big money for this RV's and should not have to deal with it. We should not have to fix anything ourselves.
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Old 12-01-2015, 03:20 PM   #12
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wmtire;

My Jayco was a dual source, I did not know however, the amp draw was that much. That's a great point Thanks, and I'm never one to not take a suggestion so thanks again. I don't even mind when someone says "hey dummy did you think of whatever"...

OscarsMom;

Good point. I was as I said quite impressed with the quality of those lights. the interesting thing is that as LEDs they would flicker for about 2 or 3 minutes, it was like a two minute warning..then like a brown out, barely any light. you could take the cover off and touch the LED and they would light right back up again, then go out..checked the wires, but with three doing the exact same thing? I think it was, or is a manufacturing defect.

I will say the wiring is a bit suspect, They used the crimp clamps instead of wire nuts which is fine..as long as you perform some QC on the person doing the crimping..Behind the radio when I took the original out as it had failed, some of the wires slipped out of the crimps as they were never in all the way.

Bilcin;

DRM702 is my model number. It is in the slide. I think I may have a board issue as my fans have stopped working. When I first got the trailer I thought "what is that horrible noise" only to learn it was the dual fan system on my fridge. My Norcold didn't need this? Now I have gotten used to the noise and don't notice it except that they are not coming on..this is like an alarm to me now.

Good news is that I just heard my lights are in..I will take pictures of the two and post them after I pick them up.
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Old 12-01-2015, 03:58 PM   #13
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One point I would like to make. You said several times the post breaker popped. Problem with that is, each time it happens they get a little weaker and will pop again. See where I am going with this. Had a friend this happened to in his garage. Finally asked me about it after turning on the lights and popping the breaker. Changed it problem went away. Not saying this is all your elec. problem, but does add to it. Just a thought!
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Old 12-01-2015, 06:04 PM   #14
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Breaker

A32Deuce;

Good call too, I'll look into it, the infrastructure at the park is fairly old, although my service is fairly new, I don't know the exact history of the spot, just that they had electrical issues in my row and this fixed it for the one space...
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Old 12-01-2015, 07:46 PM   #15
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That is a real shame. You got a lemon cuz our 8329ss is 23 months old, we r Also full timers and we love it. We've had minimal problems and consider it our home!
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Old 12-01-2015, 08:07 PM   #16
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very unhappy with my rockwood

What type of electrical management station are you using? If you're not using a high quality one, i suggest you unplug immediately until one is purchased. Sounds to me like your power source is suspect, at best. Actually, it might be the reason for many of your issues.
I think the overwhelming choice on this board is the Progressive Industries PT30C (or the hardwired version HW30C).
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Old 12-01-2015, 08:53 PM   #17
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I have not read all posts, but I do know some of your pains. So many things was wrong with our 8329SS. I very quickly realized I was better off doing the repairs myself.
I strongly urge you to let FR fix the electrical system. I can operate so many electrical items at the same time including a space heater. I strongly believe all the lights, breaker issues maybe even the frig all could be related as if something isn't wired right or malfunctioning.Do you have 30 or 50 amp service. My 120V wire for the water heater was just flopping around inside the wall behind kitchen sink, yup it was hot.
The iRV66 is junk, guessing you have not tried to FM radio yet? Can't get a signal, I can tell you how to fix it.
If you have not figured out the tongue weight is over 1000 lbs. No where near the 870 lbs. listed. Speaking of the tongue, better test your break away switch mine didn't work. Who really checks them? I stumbled upon it when I had to relocate it for WD bars.
The strip of plastic under your awning arm is the cover for the wires. Mine slid out like yours, I pushed it up again and put a dab silicone at the bottom and let it dry. Now the plastic strip hits the silicone and stops.
My ceiling has the strips that cover the seams(?) they are peeling. Dealer says they would cause more damage to fix it than if they would just let it be. What kind of answer is that? It just a lazy way out in my opinion.
Hang in there it will get better, focus on electrical issues first.
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Old 12-01-2015, 09:03 PM   #18
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I forgot, after talking with DW. When I was chasing down the water heater problem I found many of the lugs to the breakers were loose. One of the wires when they cut the insulation off cut a good way into the wire itself. It was nearly broke off when I found it.
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Old 12-01-2015, 11:23 PM   #19
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power issues

KDHfan;

That's a great idea, I have thought about those and just keep forgetting to follow through. it makes sense..Thanks for the reminder!!
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Old 12-01-2015, 11:34 PM   #20
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uhduh camping;

The radio was a mess, the IRV 66 is placed into many RVs form many manufacturers. too many posts to mention that talk about their issues. One however mentioned a gentlemen in Indiana that was providing replacements, he had stated that one of the problems was the dealers had received replacements that were built in the same lot as the originals. He has a line on good working units. I was hesitant, provided credit card info and in a week I had a new IRV 66 and a pre paid return postage label with RMA to send the old one back. I installed it and it works, was never charged a dime, I do get FM but where I am located FM does not work well so its hard to test, as a matter of fact this is one of the few places where there are zero OTA TV signals. the park has cable and if you don't want that you have to have satellite. no antennas will work in this area.

My original IRV66 had numerous issues, none of the HDMI ports worked, the tv volume was very low and would cut out every few seconds, the radio volume on its lowest would blast you out of the trailer and the outside speakers would turn on intermittently without warning, blasting your neighbor. The radio would turn itself off for no apparent reason, and there were other problems, it was in a word laughable. The new one seems to work very well, I have not had issues with it.

What did you do to fix your FM?
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