new 172

 

I picked up my 2013 R-Pod 172 Hood River Edition about 5 days ago.  Thanks to all of you for your posts as I have been reading through the forums for information both before and after the purchase.  Very very helpful!  I have an open bed cargo trailer but this is my first RV.  There have been a few challenges, some solved, some still remain.  I will list them here but may post again to the specific forum area if I stay stuck...

 

unsolved...

 

Can't find the serial number on the air conditioner.  Manual says its on the base plate.  Don't know what the base plate is.

 

Either burner on the stove tends to go out when the other burner is lit.  The manual talks about them being difficult to light the first time due to air in the lines.  I'm guessing this will resolve itself eventually.

 

Can't find the 3 valves (bypass etc) related to the hot water heater.  Don't need to find them right away, but just want to know where they are. If they are on the inside of the vehicle, near the hot water heater, then they would be under the driver's side of the dinette.  That particular wood plank has been screwed in place and is not liftable as far as I can see.

 

The manual describes valves to empty the fresh water and gray water tanks.  I think I found them, but why would there be a gray water tank valve in addition to the combo dump station tubes?

 

solved...

 

Rear stabilizers scrape slightly when pulling into my driveway.  The street and driveway are both on slopes.  We got 2X6 or 2X8 planks and temporarily put those down and it can get by without a scrape now.  To give you an idea of how minimal the change is, we support the planks by putting a piece of a 2 by 4 underneath each of them.  One of the pieces can slide under with the 4 inch dimension upwards, but thats about the extent of the space.  I had been reading about clearance issues with the stabilizers, and now that I have experienced it, the way I see it that its the distance form the single axle to ther rear of the RV that results in the stabilizers scraping depending on the terrain.  In other words, the distance is long enough that the rear hasn't come off the hill before the front starts ascending, and that results in scraping.  As I was working on this project, I realized an advantage to the wheel placement outside of the body is that the planks provide greater clearance that way....in other words, the stabilizers aren't in line with the wheels, so the stabilizers are at less risk of hitting the planks, if there were any risk of that.

 

My driveway is sloped with no accessible flat spaces nearby.  Not sure what the actual degrees are, but its not extreme.  I get close to being level by being tongue toward the upside slope, tongue lowered as far as it can go, rear toward the downside, with chocks.  Stabilizers are down....the rear ones give the appearance of lifting the rear, but they aren't...they are just touching and the vehcile holds its own without them.

 

I could have sworn that the dealer said they filled the fresh water and showed me the gauge as full during the walk through.  When I got home, on the sloped driveway, the gauge said empty.  After I leveled it out (mostly), the gauge still said empty.  So, I filled it up - it took quite a bit of water, and I saw no leaking.  Once it was filled (with water coming back out), I checked the gauge and now it was full.  Not sure what happened.  Maybe they didn't fill it all the way.  Maybe there was the filling of the hot water heater that complicated things.  Maybe the sensor temporarily malfunctioned due to the slope.  I've now gone through the water start up procedure and everything flowed great, pump shut off when I turned off the faucets, etc.

 

By pulling the RV, I lose the bike carrier on the tow vehicle.  I know I can put one on the R-Pod but for now I am nervous about the weight issues.  I tested it out and know that I can put at least one bike INSIDE the R-Pod.

 

The television reception seemed very flukey until I did a channel scan.  Now seems OK with 20+ channels in the urban environment of Portland, Oregon.

 

Small issue - the big sticker on the microwave does not peel off easy.  It leaves a lot of paper/glue residue to work off with wet washcloth and fingernails.

 

So thats all for now.  I will be doing a few weekend trips if I can get the time off work....leading up to the biggy...my 15th consecutive Burning Man festival - a week on on the Black Rock Desert of Nevada....first time in an RV.  It will be dusty for sure.  Always is.