New to Solaire, need beginner advice

Larry L · 05-06-2018, 10:16 PM

I just purchased a 2014 Solaire 297RLDS and I am trying to find information.

1) I went to the Palomino.com website looking for an owners manual, but they only offer from 2015 on. It looks very similar to the very generic Forest River Owners Manual that came with the unit. Is there a more unit specific manual available? Where?

2) There is no roof ladder, can one be installed?

3) Can the roof be walked on for maintenance?

4) The doors do not open 180 degrees but only 90 and tend to blow shut by the wind. How is this resolved?

5) First time we had the awning out, a small gust of wind made the front of the awning blow back to hit the unit. Is this normal?

**bikendan** · 05-06-2018, 11:36 PM

1. There is no type/brand/model-specific owner's manual.
Pretty standard in the RV industry.

2. There has to be factory-installed backers for the ladder. If it wasn't an option in 2014, for that model, the answer is no.

3. Most are.

Larry L · 05-15-2018, 08:19 PM

Thanks.

Any ideas for 4 or 5 ?

Kimber45 · 05-15-2018, 08:26 PM

4. does your door have a hydraulic strut or swings free? most units with a free swinging door have a rod/holder to hold it open.

5. what is your definition of a small wind? beware of all wind and awnings or you will be reading threads of awnings torn off.

RobertJ · 05-16-2018, 09:17 PM

Larry,
You should be able to walk-on the roof deck. You may wish to consider purchasing a collapsible ladder to get up on it, rather than installing a permanent one. Here is a link to one like I have (https://www.amazon.com/OxGord-Alumin...e+ladder&psc=1) You can lean it up against the awning and thus not scratch your rig. It's very lightweight and compact.

RobertJ · 05-16-2018, 09:21 PM

Larry,
Regarding the awning, a small gust of wind should not have done that, but in the future you could always tie each end of the awning to the ground with stakes and some rope. Many RV'ers do this in campgrounds to prevent damage to the awning in case wind picks up and maybe they are away from their rig.

Larry L · 05-23-2018, 09:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kimber45

4. does your door have a hydraulic strut or swings free? most units with a free swinging door have a rod/holder to hold it open.

5. what is your definition of a small wind? beware of all wind and awnings or you will be reading threads of awnings torn off.

It has a hydraulic strut. Can it be easily disconnected and reconnected?

Wind gust was maybe 10 MPH.

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