CGXterra
Explorer
Joined 14 years ago
User Profile
User Widgets
All Activity
Re: RAM 3500 Diesel Owners - Still Like Your Truck?
I love mine, but man, the recalls are killing me. If it weren't for the awesome service I got at my local Dodge dealer in Huntington Beach CA, I would be seriously bummed at Dodge. They always hooked me up with a nice loaner. Reboots of the computer, airbag wiring harness, tie rods, TPMS system...things are going well at the moment, but I dread checking my emails. Aside from that, I've towed my 15K FW from Virginia to Cali, all over the west Coast for 2 years, then from Cali to Fla via Oregon with no troubles at all. I'm one of those "I can't even tell it's back there" types. The rig has never fishtailed, not even with strong crosswinds, 18 wheelers over taking me, or having to take evasive maneuvers to avoid the random stupid-ness that you encounter from time to time. All that said, I love my truck. I probably won't eve buy another black one, but that's not Dodge's fault. :D387Views0likes0CommentsRe: Boom goes my fresh water tank....
Hi everyone. Sorry to hear about your tank. I am sensitive to every creak and groan this thing makes thinking it's about to implode at any second. :D I have learned my FR Cedar Creek 36' 5th wheel pretty well in the past few months. I had a leaking black tank valve that was repaired and started leaking again. On the first attempt to fix the tank the repairman just pulled the chloroplast away enough to get his hands on the valve, pulled it out, fixed it and put it back. Another drip developed and eventually filled the belly of the camper with black water :E and caused the chloroplast to sag to the point I had to stick a knife through it in order to drain the black water in a controlled fashion. At that point, I decided to take matters into my own hands and took both panels of chloroplast from the wheels forward (2 6X8 panels), pulled all the damaged insulation out and inspected EVERYTHING under there. What does this have to do with the original post you ask? It's not that hard to pull that chloroplast off, roll the insulation back and get a look at what's going on under your camper. You have to get past the DW standing there with her hand on her hip giving you that "Don't mess up our camper" kind of look first. Your warranty is going to run out and you're going to need to know what's going on under there unless you have the kind of disposable income to get it to a mechanic every time. I really inspected the three tanks I have forward of my wheels, the black tank and the two gray tanks. I made sure all the fittings were tight and put a little silicone on everything that could leak water...you can just peel that stuff off if you need to get to the fitting later. I also used it as an opportunity to pull copious amounts of wire ends, plastic cuttings, small wood pieces and other******that takes away from my tow weight. I'm going to pull the two panels behind the wheels and get a look at the fresh water tank one of these days and replace the junk insulation with some good stuff. Lastly, I can't say enough about FR's warranty department. They covered the repair of the black tank and told me to send them a receipt for the cost of replacing the insulation and they would cover it. I haven't gotten around to that yet, but I will put some good stuff in there. Something you have to brace yourself for, there are some engineering shortcuts going on under your camper that will make your head spin. It's clear that the mechanics and the engineers don't communicate well. For example, one of the screws for one of my gray tank valves is backed up to a "L" fitting, which is glued in, meaning you can't get a screw driver onto the screw. You just have to stick your finger in there and remove the nut on the other side with a wrench and hope you can put enough pressure on it to keep it from moving. Get in there and take things apart if you can...I sleep so much better knowing where things are. Putting the Chloroplast back on is a two person job for sure, but get yourself some better screws, the ones with the washer built onto them when you're putting it back in. If any of you 36CKTS owners have any questions about what something looks like down there, I"d be happy to TRY and take some pics for you. It's not a very accommodating place for photography. Ed403Views0likes0CommentsRe: Removing bugs from front cap
I used a whole can of bug and tar remover scrubbing my front cap and after running out and researching how to do it easier I saw a post about the fabric softener. After taking two hours to do half the cap with the bug and tar remover, it took about 15 minutes to do the other half with the fabric sheets. I'll never go back.487Views0likes0CommentsRe: Cedar Creek 34RL
X2 on the service after the sale. We were fortunate to have bought ours from a fantastic dealer in Va. but subsequently moved to California. Our warranty ran out in Feb and of course that's when the black tank decided to leak and ruin all of the insulation underneath. Got the leak fixed and will be getting new insulation, FR warranty said send them the bill and they'll cover it...2 months AFTER the warranty. They've been great. Quality, there are some short cuts that we've noticed. A piece of trim might fall off here or there during a trip, the front cap is fading on the top, but we're in SoCal...LOTS of sun. I suppose it still shouldn't be fading, but overall, we love it and will probably be keeping it for a while.361Views0likes0CommentsRe: How does your slide work?
Another vote for needing the batteries correctly connected and charged for the slides to work. My Cedar Creek 36CKTS came with 4 six volt batteries and they weren't connected correctly. They were connected as per the diagram in the battery box, but they didn't work that way and neither did the slides. The 6 point jack system struggled but it did work. It didn't matter if we were plugged in or not. After going back and forth via email with Forest River, I got a diagram from them on how to hook up the batteries and then everything worked fine. As for the insulation, sounds like someone pulled a fast one on your BIL. I just had to get under mine last week (warranty ran out last month of course). Mine had a thick layer of insulation and the quilted foil liner above the belly pans. I assume that foil is there to keep highway water from getting in there, but I can tell you they sure as hell hold water INSIDE quite well.65Views0likes0CommentsRe: Which is better the Montana or Cedar Creek 5th wheel
We have a CC 36ckts. We love it. It's a big sucker at 40' overall, but it rides like a dream behind the Ram. Minor electrical problem that was fixed via email by the folks at the warranty department. We looked at the silver backs but ended up going with the regular CC. This is our 2nd forest river camper and we love it.1.2KViews0likes0CommentsRe: Recommend seasonal site in VA or NC
In suffolk, Va there's a place called Davis Lakes Campground. They have about 20 "weekender" sites on a lake where you can swim and then there's two other lakes where they pull your camper into a parallel spot right on a lake with a dock right at your step at every site. Stocked lakes, nice people but there is a waiting list to get the lake spots. Call and talk to Denise and she'll give you the details. My wife and I lived there for six months last winter. Cold but awesome. They were building when we left there in April so there might be more going on now. It's minutes from downtown suffolk which has a few good restaurants. About 1:15 from Va Beach. We would go back there in a minute if we get stationed in that part of the country again. Ed450Views0likes0Comments
Groups
Bucket List Trips
Bucketlist destinations you just can't miss. Which spots stick with you?Jan 18, 202513,487 Posts Fifth Wheel Group
Interested in fifth wheels? You've come to the right spot.Feb 16, 202519,006 Posts Full Time RVers
Thinking about becoming a full-time RVer? Ask the experts.Dec 28, 20241,587 Posts Travel Trailer Group
Prefer to camp in a travel trailer? You're not alone.Feb 06, 202544,025 Posts
