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Old 06-11-2013, 12:58 PM   #1
Pilotmickey
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Default First trip with our 3124KB - Lessons Learned

We camped for our first time out at Pueblo Reservoir in Pueblo Colorado. When we first got there, we looked around at everyone elses campers, there were a lot of pop-ups, a few travel trailers and a HiLo but no other trailmanors that we could find. When setup time came, a few people came out to watch...I'm assuming...because they've never seen a trailmanor before and they've never ever seen a camper that size being pulled by a Honda Pilot. I think they were quite impressed too when our entire camper was up and running in less than 10 minutes...and they saw the before and after size.

So I had set it up in our driveway a time or two, but I was impressed that i could actually do it as easily at a campground. Now comes the fun part.

Leveling doesn't need to be that hard. Our Dewalt drill wasn't powerful enough to extend the jacks so there I was, trying to hand crank them down to level the camper...but wait!!! I have an electric tongue jack. Ah Ha...I used it to get the camper level front to back...then I extended the scissor jacks with the Dewalt drill so easily. No cranking required. It worked for side to side as well. Good Job!

Now, it had not had water put in it since I bought it until this trip, so I had a Campco filter that I bought at Walmart (something I had read on another post) that I installed between the water source and the hose. The water tasted great coming out of the hose so off I go to fill up the camper. I was so proud of myself that I did it all on my own (stay tuned at the end of the post to find out why )...so I went inside and turned on the pumps and WHALA I heard the water start filling the pipes...and filling the pipes....and filling the pipes...but the pump didn't turn off. Uh Oh. I checked the sinks, there wasn't any water coming out. Oh No, what is wrong. Well, after listening closely I heard water running outside. Oh No...I forgot to turn off the low point valves so all that water I'd just put in the tank ran right out. After turning off the valves, I filled up once again and this time everything worked...sinks and all. I filled up a 5 gallon bucket, heaved it inside the camper and poured it in the toilet...then I realized that I could have used the shower head just as easily. Another duh on my part. That sucker really does take a lot of water to fill it. So now, I have the water running, the toilet full and everything is as it should be. I must say I was quite impressed that I could actually cook, take a shower, hang out and watch a movie and sleep great (after buying a 3 inch memory foam) because until now, I've done nothing but camp in a tent. What an awesome experience. I definitely learned a lot about how the camper works and i wouldn't trade it for another one ever. Even dumping it was a breeze although I must say, they ought to make a spot for the sewer hose that is more easily accessible while the camper is closed. All in all though, it was a very successfull trip and I can't wait to take it out again.

(oh yea, for the part about setting it up by myself...my husband who was pulling the boat decided to keep driving even after the transom mount for the motor fell off. So needless to say, when we arrived at the campground, the 800lb motor was hanging half off the boat and the transom was ripped half off as well. He must have seen the look in my eyes because he went zooming out of there really fast to get stuff to hopefully fix the boat before something terrible happened to him...and there I was, left to set the camper up by myself which I didn't really mind. He did end up fixing the boat which I was quite impressed by, and we spent a great evening out on the lake which was like glass)
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Old 06-11-2013, 06:42 PM   #2
fallsrider
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I'm glad you had such a great time on your first trip. It sounds like you have many fun trips ahead of you. I've yet to own a TM, but with everything I've read, you made a wise purchase.

I do need to point out a couple of things, though. Those things you call jacks are not jacks. They are stabilizers. They are not to be used to level your camper. They are only meant to stabilize it after you have leveled it both front to back and side to side. The tongue jack is the correct way to level front to back, but you need to use boards or Lynx Levelers, or a device called a BAL Leveler to level side to side. You back your low side tire onto either of the first two, or use the BAL to raise that low side tire. Only then do you lower your stabilizers, and only turn them a turn or two after the pad touches the ground. They just take some of the wiggle out of your TM. Using the stabilizers to level your TM can damage the stabilizers, or worse, your camper's frame.

Regarding the toilet, if I understand those recirc toilets correctly, you only "charge" them with 2 or 3 gallons of water. You don't fill them up.

I'm sure TM experts will chime in. I am a far cry from being one. Everything I know about them is from reading, not doing.

Enjoy your future trips!
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Old 06-11-2013, 07:43 PM   #3
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if she has a newer model the scissor jacks are for leveling.
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Old 06-11-2013, 07:45 PM   #4
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Agree with the toilet fill. What I do is use the shower head and fill only till I can turn on the pump motor and it flows water into the reservoir, probably less than 2 gal. That way, it has a minimum of water and I can use the reservoir to the maximum capacity over several days.
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Old 06-12-2013, 05:00 AM   #5
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Since we don't normally have water in the fresh water tank, I have a 2 gal bucket. I fill it the first time and then second time only go to a mark on the bucket. This is a total of 2 1/2 gals which is just enough to charge the toilet.
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Old 06-12-2013, 09:27 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kidkraz View Post
if she has a newer model the scissor jacks are for leveling.
I learned something new! Didn't know that.
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Old 06-13-2013, 07:09 AM   #7
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Wow - welcome to the group - I think we have all been there...it is just part of the whole fun experience. I had the water problem too - totally forgot that our new TM had an outside shower - hit the pump and well we had water were we didn't want it - lesson learned. The more times you use it the more you learn, and of course the more time you spend here on the site. Hey, don't be too hard on the husband...its a guy thing, but God bless the women who love us. Finally, we here in Colorado love our TMs. Have more fun experiences!!!
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