We will NEVER buy another Coachmen

[Jfkmk]

I love our Coachmen! For what it’s worth, they didn’t make the slide motor or the inverter.

[IslandEd]

Call Tammy at Forest River.
She will answer the phone or call you back quickly.
She's customer service.
(269) 467-8281

[CedarCreekWoody]

"I thought it would be Obvious that we checked fuses"

The circuit breakers in post 14 are not obvious and many people don't know to look for them. People are just trying to help you.

[dianeotte]

Originally Posted by Flybob

A fan attempting to start and then not running is a symptom of a dead battery. If the dealer did not either keep the RV plugged in or turn off the battery disconnect while it sat at the dealer for 3 weeks it would have seriously drained the battery. If you connect to shore power with a dead battery the reverse polarity fuses or the frame mounted breaker can trip. recheck the two high current reverse polarity fuses 30-40 amp ( orange or brown). These could be on the back side of the converter or in the fuse panel. If they are OK then check the resettable breaker under the frame near the hitch. Looks like photo below. Try pushing the small button on the end.. If the battery is dead and a fuse is blown the slide may not work. Both problems could be related and a simple fix.

Thanks- i appreciate your comments and diagram. We can’t get to the frame breaker because the underside of the trailer is all enclosed. In our old trailer it was right by the hitch and easy to get to. It was getting dark so undoing all the screws on the undercarriage was not something my husband was willing to do. When it is light we will give this a try before packing up and driving it right back to the dealer. Thanks again

[dianeotte]

Originally Posted by JohnD10

Mobile techs work evenings and weekends...



Probably more than one in the area.

There are 8 in our area according to the third party coordinator. None were available and one said they would only come onsite if we were an 18 wheeler on the side of the road but we could bring our trailer to them. Sounds like that may be what we do in the AM

[dianeotte]

Originally Posted by Jfkmk

I love our Coachmen! For what it’s worth, they didn’t make the slide motor or the inverter.

Good point

[dianeotte]

Originally Posted by IslandEd

Call Tammy at Forest River.

She will answer the phone or call you back quickly.

She's customer service.

(269) 467-8281

Thanks

[pacin]

I apologize if what I said was over critical. I hope whatever is amiss with your unit gets repaired quickly. Best of luck. Hope you can enjoy your new camper. It definitely is frustrating. Been there. keep us posted

[JohnD10]

By the by...something for the future:

As part of your RV survival kit, it is a good idea to carry some good grounded heavy duty extension cords that can be plugged into a campground power pedestal (might need a 30-amp or 50-amp to household adapter or two) that you can run into the RV through windows, slide seals or through the basement or cubby hole access so that you can run some 110/120 volt stuff inside without using the trailer outlets or electrical systems.

TV's, coffee makers, electric heaters, lights (I carry a few clamp-on household desk lamps from Walmart), phone chargers, computers can still be used that way.

Even though it may be an on the fly inconvenience...it does add to the camping adventure!

And can just salvage an almost canceled campout!

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by JohnD10

By the by...something for the future:

As part of your RV survival kit, it is a good idea to carry some good grounded heavy duty extension cords that can be plugged into a campground power pedestal (might need a 30-amp or 50-amp to household adapter or two) that you can run into the RV through windows, slide seals or through the basement or cubby hole access so that you can run some 110/120 volt stuff inside without using the trailer outlets or electrical systems.

TV's, coffee makers, electric heaters, lights (I carry a few clamp-on household desk lamps from Walmart), phone chargers, computers can still be used that way.

Even though it may be an on the fly inconvenience...it does add to the camping adventure!

And can just salvage an almost canceled campout!

That might work for some failures but the OP stated all 110v stuff works.

Originally Posted by dianeotte

Thanks for all the comments. I’m typing on my phone so I didn’t feel the need to provide all the details about the 2 hours we spent with the campground host testing fuses, charging our battery and trying to just ‘boondock’ for the night. It is true- I am not handy but my husband is decent at that kind of stuff. And YES we tried to call our dealer. As i mentioned we had just picked it up from the dealership and headed to the campground. They swore they fixed the slide issue but the service guys were heading out for the night and didn’t seem to keen on letting us plug into shore power to test their work. When we had the issue we tried to call the dealership but they were closed for the day. It is not a blown fuse, we checked them all. The campground host felt it was a bad converter because all items that are 110 were working and the fan would start to engage, then cut out. He said he had 5 trailers and that was typical of a converter problem. We left the campground because we don’t have any light- we haven’t fully outfitted the unit with lanterns and outdoor camping stuff. I feel that instead of being helpful I am just being attacked because I was incapable of fixing the problem myself or getting a closed dealership to answer my calls.

[Skip12]

If you haven't already, invest in a multimeter. They are easy to use and will give you an idea where you're getting electricity to flow and where it is cut off. I'd be leary about unbuttoning the undercarriage unless you're pretty sure the problem is there.

It's a long shot, but did the dealer say what they fixed?

If I understand the current problem properly, I'd be looking at the battery, the battery connections and they battery cut off switch.

Good luck!

[babock]

I have a Coachmen trailer. It hasn't been trouble free but I am able to fix all the issues. Last one was the Suburban oven that would not remain lit. Most issues are not Coachmen related but parts the Coachmen buys and installs.

[dianeotte]

Originally Posted by JohnD10

By the by...something for the future:

As part of your RV survival kit, it is a good idea to carry some good grounded heavy duty extension cords that can be plugged into a campground power pedestal (might need a 30-amp or 50-amp to household adapter or two) that you can run into the RV through windows, slide seals or through the basement or cubby hole access so that you can run some 110/120 volt stuff inside without using the trailer outlets or electrical systems.

TV's, coffee makers, electric heaters, lights (I carry a few clamp-on household desk lamps from Walmart), phone chargers, computers can still be used that way.

Even though it may be an on the fly inconvenience...it does add to the camping adventure!

And can just salvage an almost canceled campout!

Thanks. We are trying to slowly replace the $4000 worth of things like this that were stolen with our last trailer. We have a zillion (slight exaggeration ) drop cords at the house. Didn’t throw one in the trailer. Have the bare minimums in there because we just picked it up (the first time) from the dealer on the 3rd. I was looking for our battery operated lanterns in the cabinet and my husband reminded me I hadn’t bought them yet.

[dianeotte]

Originally Posted by Skip12

If you haven't already, invest in a multimeter. They are easy to use and will give you an idea where you're getting electricity to flow and where it is cut off. I'd be leary about unbuttoning the undercarriage unless you're pretty sure the problem is there.

It's a long shot, but did the dealer say what they fixed?

If I understand the current problem properly, I'd be looking at the battery, the battery connections and they battery cut off switch.

Good luck!

They replaced the slide motor

[JohnD10]

Originally Posted by Mr. Dan

That might work for some failures but the OP stated all 110v stuff works.

With the kind of electrical issues they are having...I would probably not want to have the TT plugged in until the problems are found and fixed.

[wmtire]

Originally Posted by dianeotte

The campground host felt it was a bad converter because all items that are 110 were working and the fan would start to engage, then cut out.

dianeotte, if it is the converter (either by by a blown fuse on the converter possibly or something else)...you can use a battery recharger and still camp. The battery recharger will keep the battery charged in the RV, and the battery itself will provide all the power to the 12 volt items.


This thread may help explain the converter and it's function:


http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...nt-152813.html


If the battery discharged at the dealership, which is possible, it could be the culprit on even the slide motor not functioning. You said the RV was at the dealers for 3 weeks. If they didn't have it plugged into shore power, then the phantom draws would severely discharge the battery. Phantom draws are what we call things that use the battery like the the CO detector, radio displays, or other things that are really always ON. This is why some RV's come equipped with what is called a battery disconnect switch, that can be used to disconnect the battery from these phantom draws. Does your RV perhaps have this disconnect switch somewhere that could be engaged? Here is just one example of this disconnect as their type/location vary:








Before you head back out this AM to the campground, I would see if your husband has a battery recharger, and take it and an extension cord with you that you can plug into the campground outlet. Recharge your battery and see if the 12 volt DC items (like your lights) function. If so you can use it to finish out the weekend. If not, then you may have to look at something else that is keeping power from getting to/from the battery...like the 12 volt DC circuit breaker, explained here:


http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...et-154141.html


Here is just a sample pic of a type of a 12 volt DC battery recharger that you may already own for your cars/etc.

[Roberte52]

Originally Posted by woo10-210

Sorry you're having trouble but, back on 10/24 you posted:

Yikes! I’m not handy at all. That sounds an incredible amount of repairs for a new TT. It sounds like the quality of the Coachman trailers aren’t what I expected. We didn’t have any of those issues with the Gulf Stream.

Yet you still bought a Coachmen? IMO, owning an RV requires being handy to fix the little things yourself and patience when having the big things fixed. It's not a matter of if something will go wrong, it's a matter of when.

X2 - Why did you still buy a Coachmen? We love our's and I fix issues myself rather than taking it to the dealer.

[nomad297]

I am willing to bet, and hoping for you, that this is a very simple problem related, somehow, to the battery and/or power getting to or from the converter. Regardless of what somebody told you their experience is from owning several RVs, without using a multimeter, their opinion doesn’t mean much.

Please follow-up with us and post what you found the problem to be. Nobody is going to say “I told you so” or criticize you if it turns out to be something that would appear to be “obvious”. Posting the cause and solution will surely help others.

Bruce

[dianeotte]

Originally Posted by wmtire

dianeotte, if it is the converter (either by by a blown fuse on the converter possibly or something else)...you can use a battery recharger and still camp. The battery recharger will keep the battery charged in the RV, and the battery itself will provide all the power to the 12 volt items.


This thread may help explain the converter and it's function:


http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...nt-152813.html


If the battery discharged at the dealership, which is possible, it could be the culprit on even the slide motor not functioning. You said the RV was at the dealers for 3 weeks. If they didn't have it plugged into shore power, then the phantom draws would severely discharge the battery. Phantom draws are what we call things that use the battery like the the CO detector, radio displays, or other things that are really always ON. This is why some RV's come equipped with what is called a battery disconnect switch, that can be used to disconnect the battery from these phantom draws. Does your RV perhaps have this disconnect switch somewhere that could be engaged? Here is just one example of this disconnect as their type/location vary:








Before you head back out this AM to the campground, I would see if your husband has a battery recharger, and take it and an extension cord with you that you can plug into the campground outlet. Recharge your battery and see if the 12 volt DC items (like your lights) function. If so you can use it to finish out the weekend. If not, then you may have to look at something else that is keeping power from getting to/from the battery...like the 12 volt DC circuit breaker, explained here:


http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...et-154141.html


Here is just a sample pic of a type of a 12 volt DC battery recharger that you may already own for your cars/etc.

Thanks- we had a battery charger but my husband put it somewhere safe- where we can’t find it. So our first stop this morning is Autozone. We don’t have a battery disconnect so we always disconnect the battery cables when the trailer is going to sit in storage for a few days. Strange that the dealer said they were able to install the motor Thursday. So how did they test the slide if the battery was dead? We picked it up Friday at 4- that is a pretty quick depletion of a battery charge. We will get to the bottom of this if we have to drive it right back to the dealer today.

[dianeotte]

Originally Posted by Roberte52

X2 - Why did you still buy a Coachmen? We love our's and I fix issues myself rather than taking it to the dealer.

Good question. First, they had the floor plan we decided we liked, at the price we were willing to pay. And, after reading about a gazillion reviews and talking to owners of other brands, it sounded like quality issues are frequent no matter what you get. I figured being part of the Forest River family we would at least get decent customer service. So far I’m more ticked off with the local dealer. I think my anger is probably misdirected. We had a chance to buy a 2015 TT but my husband refused to buy used- he didn’t want any problems....and a good warranty. I guess our experience with our first trailer spoiled us. And we were told that Gulf Stream was not a very good brand. I’m learning that I need to be more patient.