New Rockwood 2109s Owners - Our First Week on the Road

[Markval]

Found missing screws here and there so far. I'm sure the list will grow as we use it and notice things.

[Markval]

Just noticed our 2109 came with a irv 31 installed. I'm guessing this is a older unit in the irv chain.

[wkn4lo]

Ours has the IRV 31 also. This must be a new model. I had the IRV 33 in my 2016 Shamrock 19. I had to replace under warranty once. They were certainly issue prone. I got very good at taking it in and out to rewire speakers and replace! This new IRV 31 seems great so far. The only thing that is odd is my IRV app I have on my iPhone does not work with the 31. I even removed app and installed new version. It does not mention app in the 31 owners manual.

[stevejahr]

Originally Posted by Markval

Found missing screws here and there so far. I'm sure the list will grow as we use it and notice things.

Do you mean "missing" or "extra lying on floor"?

I think extra lying on floor is a "feature" of Forest River/Rockwood trailers: they put about 2x the screws into each TT that they actually use. So you get to find screws all over and wonder "what did this come out of?"

[Markval]

If I find the extra ones on the floor then I could replace the missing ones.
Happy to also discover they installed a strut on the storage compartment at foot of bed. Lift mattress and it opens up.

This actually a awesome rig. Got my Genesis live DVD rocking the camper.

[DavidBo]

Originally Posted by wkn4lo

Here are additional pics. You all have me interested in the height thing now. May have to get my WDH system dialed in a little more. It looks a little high in the front in some pics. Attachment 118401Attachment 118402Attachment 118403

By my Mark-1 Mod-0 eyeball, your rig looks to be around the same height as my 2017 2104S. I know the front looks low in the picture, but I had already removed the bars from my WDH so there was some sagging (a testament to the need for a good hitch like my Equalizer).
No problem with the fridge or slide, and I haven't traveled with a full fresh water tank but I will probably add a strap or two before I do.
Happy travels!!!

[friendofacatahoula]

The 2104S sits higher due to the dinette. It would be nice if the 2109 was that high. They are nice, I like the plastic cladding that goes around the bottom. We just didn't like the front door and never have used a dinette.


If someone thinks of it check out your tire size on the 2017 2109S. I forgot I measured mine. It's 24" from the ground to the bottom of the wheel well in the center between the two tires and 21" on either side to the bottom of the trim. That's hooked to my truck. I think the new ones look at least a full 2" taller maybe more. My dealer doesnt have one in stock to go check out.


Had one of the screws in the pot drawer work itself out over the weekend. This prevented the pot drawer from opening. Added longer screws. Honestly the ones I took out were maybe 3/8" long if that. I put in new 7/8" long ones.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[afjet]

I'm going to buy a 2109s or 2104s to tow with my 2014 Frontier. I noticed you have a Frontier and was wondering how you thought it did as a tow vehicle. Any recommendations?

[High Plains Drifters]

Originally Posted by afjet

I'm going to buy a 2109s or 2104s to tow with my 2014 Frontier. I noticed you have a Frontier and was wondering how you thought it did as a tow vehicle. Any recommendations?

I'm towing my 2109s with an 07 Tacoma V6. It's rated to 6500 lbs with a 650 lb max tongue weight. On level ground with no headwind I can cruise at 75 and less than 3,000 rpm. I went on mountain roads and it did just fine. On the highway, pulling some steeper grades or going into the wind I was wishing I had more power. I also looked at the 2104s, which has an 80 lb higher tongue weight than the 2109s, and less counter space. We decided we really didn't "need" the extra sofa either for just the two of us and opted for the 2109s.

[DavidBo]

Originally Posted by afjet

I'm going to buy a 2109s or 2104s to tow with my 2014 Frontier. I noticed you have a Frontier and was wondering how you thought it did as a tow vehicle. Any recommendations?

Here's my original story:

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...dy-111380.html

The truck did well, but I was pulling with no additional weight. I wouldn't recommend this setup for long trips or any steep grades.

[Mark Ulmer]

Originally Posted by afjet

I'm going to buy a 2109s or 2104s to tow with my 2014 Frontier. I noticed you have a Frontier and was wondering how you thought it did as a tow vehicle. Any recommendations?

I tow my 2109s with a Frontier also. I'm fine on max towing capacity, but I'm probably exceeding the payload capacity by a bit. The frontier does fine in the Midwest where it's relatively flat. However, I would like to take it out to the Rockies, and I have no confidence that the Frontier can handle that. I expect to replace it with a Ford F150 this fall.

[Markval]

I am happy to report that we have taken our new 2109s on two shake down trips with no issues. I did pull one boner though. Hooked up the fresh water to the black tank rinse and cranked it on. And was baffled as to why I hear a tank filling. Slap to forehead shut off water after realizing what was happening. Fresh water inlet is up front dummy. Oh well hitched up and went and dumped black tank. Good practice run I guess if I had spilled any would have been clean as no one had used toilet at that point.

[rockfordroo]

Don't worry - you'll pull some more boners. We all do!

[fanrgs]

Originally Posted by Mark Ulmer

I tow my 2109s with a Frontier also. . . . I would like to take it out to the Rockies, and I have no confidence that the Frontier can handle that. I expect to replace it with a Ford F150 this fall.

We towed our 2012 2109S to Alaska and back with our 2011 Frontier SV King Cab. We live in the Denver area and also towed it all over Colorado.

However, we now have a Ram 2500 and a 5th wheel because 1) the 2109S got a little too small after nearly 3 months of continuous 24/7 Alaska/Canada living and 2) the Frontier could pull 12,000-ft passes through the Rockies, but did so very sloooooooowly. Once we actually had to pull over to the side of the road and spend an extra night in New Mexico because we were towing into a 45 MPH headwind and maxing out at 35 MPH and 5 mpg.

We had the raised panel refer door insert fall out on one of our first trips, just missing my wife's feet (sound familiar? And that was in 2012!). I repaired that with double-sided tape and several long wood screws as per instructions on this forum. The fact that the factory has still not fixed that problem is the reason we ordered our 5th wheel without the raised panel refer door!

Interestingly, we had no trouble with the iRV 33 stereo in the 2109S. It wasn't until we bought the 5th wheel and got an iRV 66 that I had to replace it under warranty because there was only one volume--LOUDEST!

On the Alaska trip, I refastened the slide motor to the wall with Gorilla glue (temporary fix) in Kamloops, BC, and built a wooden cradle for it (permanent fix) on a Whitehorse, YT, campground picnic table. I also had to make a new hanger bracket for the PVC sewer outlet pipe in Kamloops (both repairs were done in the parking lot of a Home Depot). The slide motor repairs were detailed on this forum in 2013 but, based on this thread, it sounds like the problem has still not been fixed by the factory.

Incidentally, I also had to replace the fuse for the slide motor at one point. After searching everywhere, I finally found an in-line fuse holder beneath the trailer near the front of the driver's side frame rail. Why a fuse that critical was not in the 12v fuse panel inside the trailer is still a mystery to me!

We loved the 2109S floor plan when we bought it and we towed it about 25,000 miles before we sold it. Others must love it too because we sold it for what we had paid for it as a new factory-ordered unit, although we did throw in the W-D hitch and a second battery (neither of which we needed for our new 5th wheel). But I do have to admit that the new glass shower door would have been nice to have!

[Jimmy mac 2]

New 2109s owner - 2013 model. Any really great ideas on winterizing?
Question about the anti freeze port on side of unit. Fill it and then pump?
Thanks all .
Ps- been out 2x .no problems yet . Need to winterize now.
Do not have the air compressor. Do I really need?

[Mark Ulmer]

Originally Posted by Jimmy mac 2

New 2109s owner - 2013 model. Any really great ideas on winterizing?
Question about the anti freeze port on side of unit. Fill it and then pump?
Thanks all .
Ps- been out 2x .no problems yet . Need to winterize now.
Do not have the air compressor. Do I really need?

You need to get to your water pump, which on my 2014 is behind a panel just to your left when you're looking into the passthru storage from the driver's side. Remove one screw and slide the panel off. You will find a valve right by the water pump. If you turn the valve one way, the pump will pull from the freshwater tank. Turn it 90 degrees (it will only go one way) and the pump will pull from the antifreeze inlet. Get a short length of hose, hook it to the antifreeze inlet, stick the other end in a gallon jug of antifreeze, turn on the pump and you should be good to go. Generally, the valve handle is parallel to whichever line the pump is pulling from. You might want to label the lines (fresh, antifreeze) before you start turning the valve so you'll know which is which next year. Usually takes 2-3 gallons of antifreeze.

[Jimmy mac 2]

Mark- thanks for your great answer - been looking for other owners of my model. So I do not use the outside a/f inlet next to my city water intake?
These manuals are no help- love to meet who puts them together.
Thanks again
Jim

[Mark Ulmer]

Yes, you do use the antifreeze inlet. It's just that it won't do anything until you turn that valve on the water pump. Once you've done that, connect a short piece of hose to the antifreeze inlet, put the other end into the antifreeze jug. Then turn on the water pump and it will suck up the antifreeze from the jug. Of course, you also need to drain and bypass the water heater before you put any antifreeze into your lines. The water heater is behind the other panel (on the right across from the panel where the water pump is). Once you remove the panel (2 screws on my TT), you'll see 3 valves by the water heater. They all 3 need to be turned 90 degrees from their current position. If you search the forum for "bypass water heater", you'll find lots of threads with pictures, etc. Here's a link to a winterizing checklist that I've found to be useful:

Step By Step RV Winterizing Checklist - RV Information (RV Maintenance)

Just follow the checklist and you'll be fine. It's not really that hard, there's just a lot of steps to complete.

[Jimmy mac 2]

Hey Thanks! The switch is on the lines at the pump right?
Then attach the tube to the input for the a/f.
Then turn on the pump at the switch inside the trailer - right?
-And it should pull a/ f into system -I did all the prep work on draining, etc- just not sure how to get a/f into lines.
Thanks!
Been in offices work for 30 yrs . Just not very mechanical. Thanks for helping.

[Mark Ulmer]

Yes, you got it. As you're running the antifreeze through the various faucets (don't forget the outside shower and the toilet), periodically keep an eye on the antifreeze level in the jug and swap to a new jug when it gets low. It'll take you at least 2 gallons; I usually use 3 just to be on the safe side (Minnesota winters, you know).