2017 Roo 233s Routine Maintenance

[Aonyx]

Hello,

Just purchased a 2017 Roo 233s seemingly pretty lightly used by previous owner. It was still winterized when we purchased it, so I have dewinterized it and sanitized the fresh water system. I checked the tire pressures. Took it for a short weekend trip recently about 60 miles round trip. We are planning a longer trip in about a month, about 500 miles round trip.

Everything seems to be in pretty good shape. I was thinking of taking it to an RV service center to have it looked at and have routine maintenance done prior to taking such a trip. Does anyone know where I can find a good resource for what I might expect to need to be done? Is it even worth doing? I am new to RVing, but have always done most of my own auto maintenance. I don't want to run into any issues on the road or while camping, but I don't want to be scammed by having them do things that don't need to be done. I could probably manage to do it myself if its simple enough and doesn't involve much plumbing or electronics.

Sorry if this is a dumb question. Thanks in advance.

Aonyx

[GalsofEscape]

you don't really need to do anything special for such a trip unless your tires are >5 years old (tires age out before they will wear out).. there is a date code on the tire that will tell you when the tire was manufactured. If they are >5 years, i would consider replacing them. When i replaced mine, i did change from a Load C to a load D tires. i get new tires about every 5 years. make sure you know how to change a tire - and have a jack that is capable of lifting the camper.



no matter the length of trip - i have extra light bulbs for the brake/turn signals.


Under general maintenance, inspect the roof caulking several times per year and recaulk as needed. Clean and treat the slide out and bed seals frequently (I use 303).

[Chuck_S]

Tires and caulking are the main concerns.

Check the manufacturing date on the tires as well as the built date on the trailer. Since the 2017 trailers were made as early as April 2016 and the tires obviously made before the trailer it's likely the tires may age out soon, especially if they were made in China which have a dismal reputation here. And make sure any replacement tires are current manufacture.

-- Chuck

[Aonyx]

Originally Posted by Chuck_S

Tires and caulking are the main concerns.

Check the manufacturing date on the tires as well as the built date on the trailer. Since the 2017 trailers were made as early as April 2016 and the tires obviously made before the trailer it's likely the tires may age out soon, especially if they were made in China which have a dismal reputation here. And make sure any replacement tires are current manufacture.

-- Chuck

I see you're from Richmond. I grew up in Chesterfield. Currently the trailer is at my mom's farm in Quinton. Planning to go to Fairy Stone with it this month.

The tires are from June (I think) 2016. Externally they look good, but I have heard the same about Chinese tires.

I'll get up on the roof and take a look at it, I bought some sealant caulk to use. Appreciate the feedback!

[Chuck_S]

We're in Chesterfield a mile or so south of Hull Street and Winterpock Roads. Trailer is stored indoors all year round in Amelia Courthouse.

Looks like a straight, easy shot out to Fairy Stone. It's often hard on Virginia Interstates but keep our speed down to help keep the tire temperature done as they heat as they flex. You have a good section of I85 which is only a little hectic than I95 . Tire pressure is critical. Inflate to maximum cold pressure as shown on the sidewall (probably 50psi) and torque the lug nuts (typically 90lbf -- don't be surprised if a couple are loose. $20 Harbor Freight 1/2" torque and a 13/16 deep socket is all ya need.

Perfect tire pressure in old tires caused me to have a blowout 4 years ago. Tire pressure was perfect -- tires "looked good" but weren't. Spare was even older but got me home. Blowout, I thought I'd been rear ended.

Regarding speed. Many folks don't realize wind resistance is the primary resistance (and consequent fuel use) and that's exponential. Air resistance at 70mph is twice what it was at 50mph. Nine (9) mph is not unusual pulling my Roo.

Remember this trailer weighs about 6700 pounds loaded.

Happy towing -- and camping.

-- Chuck

[mnoland30]

X2 on upgrading to Load Range D tires. Check the speed rating as well. M is 81 mph and N is 87 mph. Higher is better, but I've had my M rated Chinese Taskmaster's for 6 years on 3 trailers without a flat or blowout.

The joke of a rain gutter over my bunk ends was useless. Mine delaminated a bit. I replaced it with roof flashing that actually keeps water out of the bunk. The mattresss tends to hold moisture under it in wet weather, so you'll want to make sure it is dry before storing.

Many on this forum repack their bearings by hand every year. I never have, even on my boat trailers. If you use the bearing buddies, you should jack up the tire and spin it while you pump grease in. If you pump too much, you run the risk of blowing a seal and pumping grease on your brakes.

I highly recommend a solar panel mounted on your roof with a charge controller near your battery. It will keep your batteries topped off during storage, and will add the last 10% of charge if you boondock with a generator. If you boondock, you'll be much happier with two 6v golf cart batteries wired in series. They are true deep cycle batteries.

[HangDiver]

I might also suggest having the wheel bearings greased as you may not know when they were done last. New tires for sure.

Good luck with the new TT.

[Aonyx]

Originally Posted by Chuck_S

We're in Chesterfield a mile or so south of Hull Street and Winterpock Roads. Trailer is stored indoors all year round in Amelia Courthouse.

Looks like a straight, easy shot out to Fairy Stone. It's often hard on Virginia Interstates but keep our speed down to help keep the tire temperature done as they heat as they flex. You have a good section of I85 which is only a little hectic than I95 . Tire pressure is critical. Inflate to maximum cold pressure as shown on the sidewall (probably 50psi) and torque the lug nuts (typically 90lbf -- don't be surprised if a couple are loose. $20 Harbor Freight 1/2" torque and a 13/16 deep socket is all ya need.

Perfect tire pressure in old tires caused me to have a blowout 4 years ago. Tire pressure was perfect -- tires "looked good" but weren't. Spare was even older but got me home. Blowout, I thought I'd been rear ended.

Regarding speed. Many folks don't realize wind resistance is the primary resistance (and consequent fuel use) and that's exponential. Air resistance at 70mph is twice what it was at 50mph. Nine (9) mph is not unusual pulling my Roo.

Remember this trailer weighs about 6700 pounds loaded.

Happy towing -- and camping.

-- Chuck

I grew up in N Chesterfield near 150 and I95, went to L.C. Bird HS.

Was considering taking 360 to avoid the interstates as much as possible. We have a WDH and didn't experience any noticeable sway, and I would like to keep it that way.

I have a 21 1500 Silverado Duramax 3.0L, towed it to Anvil in Williamsburg a few weekends ago and averaged 13.5mpg on route 60 going about 60mph. It was probably the hottest weekend all summer, but the AC did a good job keeping up.

The tires are 6 years old by the dates, and I decided to just have them replaced to take the guess work out of it, but the only issue is that the supply of tires is super low right now, so the choices are a bit limited.

I am going to try to figure out how to keep water out of the bunks. I haven't seen any inside of the bunks themselves, but every time I open them the canvas has a bit of water sitting on it, so I figure its just a matter of time.

I wasn't even aware the bearings needed to be greased, so I will look into that as well.

Thanks all!

[Chuck_S]

US360 (Hull Street Road) is very easy shot west. Not more than 4 miles of 6-lane suburban road from VA288 until and back on rural divided 4-lane roads at Woodlake. You'll miss the intense truck traffic of I95/I85.

Gotta love the fuel economy of a diesel in the right rpm band.

Perimeter seals around the bed doors leaking on all 3 bunks? I know my end bunks leaked (maybe closer to weeped) thru the clearance lights that removing them and caulking fixed.

-- Chuck