dustycoyote
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Re: drain valve blacked and not sealing completely
thanks for the replies. I would just replace the valve but my trailer has the underbelly sealed and the valve is up inside where I'd have to remove the plastic/cardboard liner to access it. I'd rather not do that. I think I may add the Valterra twist on valve anyway but I don't want to just leave those existing valves blocked. I want them working as well. I'll try Agesilaus' solution to flush the tanks and see if that helps. I had wondered if I could just leave those valves open and pour water in from the top (down the toilets). If I leave the end cap in place but both of the partially blocked valves open, it should fill up the pipes until those valves site under water. If I were to leave that filled up for a day or so, wouldn't the compacted toilet paper just disolve naturally? (Maybe I'll add the water softener, etc. just in case there is some more unmentionable material in the blockage as well...) Anyone see any reason not to try that?279Views0likes0Commentsdrain valve blacked and not sealing completely
ON my Carbon fifth wheel toy hauler I have 2 black tank drain valves that seem to be blocked. The valves still open and close, and will drain the tanks, but are leaking slightly when closed. The valves don't seem to be closing completely. When I push the valve closed on each it doesn't close with a definitive stop. as I get close to being completely closed the resistance on the valve increases and when it closes it seems to feel "spongey". The grey valves seem to maintain a consistent level of resistance right up until the valve closes completely. The black valves reach a point where the valve is still sticking out a little farther than the grey valves, and I can push them carther in but they just spring back out to that position. I am pretty sure that some toilet paper or something has gotten impacted into the valve and is holding each one open a little. what can I do to clean these valves out so I can close them?1.6KViews0likes7CommentsRe: keystone carbon 357 the good and the bad
I'm probably too late to the party to be much help on this thread but I have a 2016 357 and have been really happy with it. Great layout, lots of storage, really attractive design (inside especially). Lots of LED lights. Tons of room and great to camp in. Honestly, I still haven't been able to find any trailer that seems to be comparable in the value you get with the cost of this model. (other than the Torque line which I mention below) Before buying mine, many forum members told me that all Camp trailers are generally not built with a super high level of care so I should expect to use my first year addressing a lot of (hopefully minor) issues under warranty. It was good advice and I have had some quality problems and issues, but nothing that seems out of ordinary compared to what I've read about others experiences (both with Carbon and with other brands of trailers). My toilet in the rear bathroom had to be replaced, I had a bunch of staples that I had to have sunk, a couple lights started to fail intermittently, some screws on a panel weren't secured tightly, and an outside light wasn't sealed correctly, and I had it re-sealed. I may just have been lucky with the unit I got but I'm very happy with the quality on this. Seems great. My only negative and potentially serious maintenance concern is that there are a couple staples on the roof that aren't completely sunk. This creates a really sharp stress point where the rubber roof is stretched over the raised staple. As the temperature changes and the trailer moves I expect that the rubber roof is rubbing back and forth over those staples and will eventually wear through. Keystone wouldn't fix this under warranty as they said that something has to actually fail before they will fix it under warranty. Not great..... My original dealer had very poor service but my local camping world has been great. It takes a LONG time to get any service done, but I don't mind generally as I have things done in winter and just never call them to see if the repair is done until I think I'm going to use the trailer. They usually don't contact me proactively so I basically let them store the trailer for months at a time. Seems to be an odd business model but works for me.... If I could change anything I would want an extra foot of length in the garage.That's probably my biggest complaint. Would also have been nice if they offered the option to choose hydraulic stabilizers as well, (but honestly, it would probably have been so expensive I would have skipped it anyway) A more minor complaint (that is really just a choice of priorities in what we value in a trailer layout) is that the hall access back and forth in the camper is effectvely stopped when someone reclines one of the couch recliners. The entire walkway is covered by the foot rest of the recliners. And only the recliner closest to the garage really has enough leg room for someone my size (6 foot male). But The leg room issue isn't that big of a deal, I can recline in the other seats comfortably but my feet are up against the counter wall and I can't quite lay all the way out. Ultimately this is kind of a necessary evil in order to allow for all of the excellent counter space that the "island" in the 357 gives you. We were deciding between this and a Torque toy hauler and I really like the counter space and layout this one gives us vs more leg room but less counter space in the Torque. (and also, after crawling all around the Torque and the Carbon, the carbon seemed to be much better built and appointed). FYI, I bought mine with both AC units, Onan generator, winter package, etc. etc. Chevy Duramax Wife, three young kids and a dog. bring 2 Can AM "two up" ATV's (8 foot long each) and a pit bike when we camp. Use the Anderson Ultimate hitch system (can't recommend this enough! Super convenient and works like a charm.)781Views0likes0CommentsRe: newbie who would appreciate some advice
Still just a best guess but here are some real world numbers from the CAT scale. I believe that my rear axle weight (unhitched truck with me and a dog in it, half a tank of gas, if I remember correctly) was about 3K. Published pin weight of the trailer online is 3066 lbs. I have the Onan 5500 installed on mine though so I recognize it would be higher than the published number. My actual weights from the scales; new camper, no stuff loaded up yet, Steer axle - 4620 Drive axle - 6380 Trailer axle - 9700 camper loaded up including an ATV in back & 1/4 tank of fresh, Steer axle - 4660 Drive axle - 6300 Trailer axle - 11300 My tire ratings on my truck are 6396 lbs for either axle, so I'm getting pretty close to maxing my tire ratings... Concerned to see what the pin weight is if I travel with full fresh tank. Most on the forums have said that it shouldn't add a lot to the pin weight because it sits close to the trailer axle though, Will have to check next time I plan to dry camp.542Views0likes0CommentsRe: newbie who would appreciate some advice
FrankandBeans, I haven't weighed it since we last took it out in the fall, and I can't remember what it was then. I'll have to look at post it here when we get out again. I will say that it was heavier than I expected. I'm concerned about it since I'm pulling with a 3/4 ton. The truck has handled it like it was pulling much smaller load. Very stable and power for days. The integrated exhaust brake on the truck and the mechanical brakes on the truck and trailer have all been fantastic and have never seemed stressed, but..... I keep looking for ways to reduce the pin lbs to get closer to my trucks spec. I bought a 4 wheeler to put in back and that didn't seem to change it much. I've pulled with a full tank of fresh and am assuming that the water added to my pin weight, though I don't really know for sure. either way, I'll try to post here again when I measure it the next time.542Views0likes0CommentsRe: newbie who would appreciate some advice
I know its been quite a while but just wanted to respond to the thread and tell everyone thanks again for all of the help. I ended up going with a Carbon 357 toyhauler and we've loved it. Bought it in August last year. Great decision as far as accomodating the family and enjoying the camping experience. Still don't love the size and it's a big pain to pull but we've been able to go plenty of neat places in it. It has an even heavier pin weight than the Torque we were considering but the truck seems to pull it like a champ. No towing issues at all. Still worry about it. I bought an ATV to help add weight behind the rear axle and pull some weight off of the pin. Even with the ATV though, the pin weight is higher than I expected. I'll buy a second one in another couple of months to help the pin weight even more. Regardless, thanks again to everyone! Happy camping!542Views0likes0CommentsRe: newbie who would appreciate some advice
I thought the same thing about the generators. Would be REALLY nice to be able to have portable ones that could be used in other applications butfinnally decided that the integrated exhaust, fuel, convenience, and the ability to use it in bad weather really trumped the portability. How much am I going to need the generator anyway? (when camping with no hook-ups) Are the batteries able to run a whole RV, including AC? For how long?334Views0likes0CommentsRe: newbie who would appreciate some advice
BTW, MackyB, after reading your note I looked into the Spartan 1032. Very nice rig. It seems like it's a bit pricier than what ive been quoted on the Torque 325 though. Am I wrong? (Sorry about grammar in my replies. Typing on my phone..)291Views0likes0CommentsRe: newbie who would appreciate some advice
Thanks again for all the feedback! KSSS, Makes me feel much better to hear that size (length and height) hasnt been a big problem to you in the same areas I'll be heading to. I know places like Island Park wouldn't be an issue but I've worried about other areas. What types of camping do you do? Areas you like to go to? BentPushRod, We actually really looked at the 356 hard. Really nice camper and we loved it. Unfortunately the bathroom layout didn't work for us. One of the big issues that's making us look at other options (other than the Puma Unleashed) is that we really want the opposing couches option for the bottom bunk in the toy hauler area. Makes that area perfect for the kids. Puma is charging almost 2k to the dealers to replace the bed with the convertible couch bed! That alone starts to bring it closer to the price of other units like the Torque. I've been wondering about the generator options too. Either the built in On an or buying a couple Hondas. I had decided on the Onan because of the convenience and integration but am interested to know what you like/don't like about your Hondas vs a built in?291Views0likes0Comments
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