Host Mammoth camper

[Teagan_s_camper]

Picking up camper on Wednesday, little worried about weight. Have 2017
Ram limited3500 DWR with stock rear air suspension . Camper coming in at
4807 lb also once in a while will tow boat 9300 lb. enough truck?

[burningman]

Wait, you're planning on running your A/C on a 3000-watt inverter?
Where will the inverter get all that power?

[work2much]

Teagan's camper wrote:
Is possible this is 13,500 ? The book that came with unit list only 3.5 kw for 1 unit.
If it was 11,000 kw why will it not work, the first few day we hookups with 30 amp
Service no problem with A/C.

I'm not sure, but interested as we have the same A/C on order with our new Host. We will be using a 3000 watt inverter to run it. The dealer should have spent a fair amount of time going through the camper with you. Showing you everything on the build sheet and actually using the genset with the microwave, the A/C, how to use the solar charge controller etc... A truck camper isn't likely to have a genset any larger than 2500 watts so the air should be sized to that accordingly. There are soft starts you can get to make staring the air easier. The unit shows less than 1400 watts required to run so the 2500 watt generator should be fine once it gets over the initial higher amount needed to get the compressor started.

Who have you talked to so far? Host or the dealer? The dealer should be the first place to go and get things straightened out. If they can't help than you should call Host and find out why the A/c Manual has indicated a higher power generator needed than what was supplied.

[Teagan_s_camper]

Is possible this is 13,500 ? The book that came with unit list only 3.5 kw for 1 unit.
If it was 11,000 kw why will it not work, the first few day we hookups with 30 amp
Service no problem with A/C.

[work2much]

Teagan's camper wrote:
No, $1300.00 for solar is not prep it's the whole thing. As for generator it's
2500 kw, but the A/C model # on my manual is 13,500 btu. The book for A/C
has minimum gen size of 3500 kw, this what's in my package. The A/C I
ordered is 11,000 low profile A/C, which is on there build sheet. They said
It's on them for solar, but A/C problem they haven't answered. The holiday
Weekend cut short due to high temps no hookups , wife couldn't handle
the heat and the dog didn't like it either.

1300 is the retail price for a 160 watt solar panel and charge controller. If you paid for that and it is missing. Not cool. The Air Conditioning should be a penguin 2. It is confusing as the description list it as 13k but 11k in the specs.

https://www.dometic.com/en-us/us/products/climate/air-conditioners/air-conditioners-for-rvs/dometic-penguin-ii-_-20692

In either case it sounds like you need to go back to the dealer. Something is definitely wrong if the manufacturer supplied genset won't bump the manufacturer supplied air conditioner.

[Teagan_s_camper]

No, $1300.00 for solar is not prep it's the whole thing. As for generator it's
2500 kw, but the A/C model # on my manual is 13,500 btu. The book for A/C
has minimum gen size of 3500 kw, this what's in my package. The A/C I
ordered is 11,000 low profile A/C, which is on there build sheet. They said
It's on them for solar, but A/C problem they haven't answered. The holiday
Weekend cut short due to high temps no hookups , wife couldn't handle
the heat and the dog didn't like it either.

[work2much]

SidecarFlip wrote:

Teagan's camper wrote:
Sorry to report , all the good reviews on Host camper didn't happen for me.
Paid solar option find don't have panel on roof, 11,000 btu air trips generator
breaker. Did phone order for this TC , without seeing it first . Probably wouldn't
purchase if I had seen it, but reviews were all good on how Host takes care of
customer. Lots of little things I can fix myself, but thought I was buying the top
of line doesn't seem that way.
Thx

Sure you didn't pay for 'solar prep' instead?

This is probably right. Going through the build there was an option for solar that included "prep" That is essentially pre-wiring from a roof to the battery box to later easily install some panels without having to figure out how to route them. That is an option. Just as generator prep is an option even though it doesn't include the generator.

[work2much]

Teagan's camper wrote:
Sorry to report , all the good reviews on Host camper didn't happen for me.
Paid solar option find don't have panel on roof, 11,000 btu air trips generator
breaker. Did phone order for this TC , without seeing it first . Probably wouldn't
purchase if I had seen it, but reviews were all good on how Host takes care of
customer. Lots of little things I can fix myself, but thought I was buying the top
of line doesn't seem that way.
Thx

What did Host say when you called? From front desk lady all the way through I found Host to be 100% customer orientated. The build sheet and order specifications are very well detailed with Host. After meeting the general manager I doubt very much they would leave you high and dry regardless of how your dealer treated you. If you are missing components from your build sheet call Host and ask for Randall.

After taking a factory tour and and talking endlessly about nuts and bolts and unadvertised options I found Host to be particularly interested in customer service. Our unit is being built right now.

If something happens to change my mind I will post it her, but for now I think you should spend some time talking to the factory and figure out solutions.

[SidecarFlip]

Teagan's camper wrote:
Sorry to report , all the good reviews on Host camper didn't happen for me.
Paid solar option find don't have panel on roof, 11,000 btu air trips generator
breaker. Did phone order for this TC , without seeing it first . Probably wouldn't
purchase if I had seen it, but reviews were all good on how Host takes care of
customer. Lots of little things I can fix myself, but thought I was buying the top
of line doesn't seem that way.
Thx

Sure you didn't pay for 'solar prep' instead?

[jimh406]

Strange that you need 3500 generator for a 11K AC. I'd talk to the dealer. If that doesn't work, Host. Sounds like something isn't quite right.

I believe it is the top of the line, but the line may not be where you want it.

Good luck.

[mike_kellie]

Did you talk to your dealer to see if there was a mistake made on the build sheet?

[Teagan_s_camper]

Don't know what that is, shouldn't this have been done by factory. They gave me
owners manual, with 11,000 btu it need minimum 3500 kw. Not 2500 kw

[Teagan_s_camper]

Don't know what that is, shouldn't this have been done by factory. They gave me
owners manual, with 11,000 btu it need minimum 3500 kw. Not 2500 kw

[GeoBoy]

Teagan's camper, installing a MicroAir on your AC will eliminate your AC/generator issue.

[Teagan_s_camper]

Sorry to report , all the good reviews on Host camper didn't happen for me.
Paid solar option find don't have panel on roof, 11,000 btu air trips generator
breaker. Did phone order for this TC , without seeing it first . Probably wouldn't
purchase if I had seen it, but reviews were all good on how Host takes care of
customer. Lots of little things I can fix myself, but thought I was buying the top
of line doesn't seem that way.
Thx

[Rockfisher1]

Teagan's Camper: I've had my Mammoth for 16 months after switching from an Arctic Fox 1150. The Fox was heavy, but the Mammoth is heavier by almost 500 lbs. I would ignore the "As Built" weight listed on the tag and go to a public scale and pay a few bucks and weigh the truck with and without the camper. Load the camper as you would for your average trip and make sure to fuel up before scaling. I think you'll find that you're weight to be between 5600 and 5800 lbs. As for the suspension, I installed upper and lower Torque Lift Stable loads along with Firestone airbags and Bilstein 5100 shocks all the way around. I'm now installing a new suspension system after discovering that the airbags point load the frame increasing the chance of a frame crack. The new suspension has a completely different spring pack set up along with different rear shocks. Not only will I eliminate the potential for frame cracking, but I'll also eliminate the sagging that bothers my eye. The downside is the lousy ride that I'll get with the new suspension although I don't use the truck without the camper. The Dana Spicer 80 that comes in my F-350 DRW is rated by Dana at 11,000 lb capacity but de-rated by Ford to 8,000 due to the dopes out there that don't consider the tire capacity. Anyway, be careful who you believe and check each component prior to committing the dollars. I'm going the F550 with a custom box next year and that's a major (and final) financial commitment. I honestly wish the TC manufacturers would impart a bit more accurate info on their camper weights and suggested hauling trucks.