We just purchased a FWC a little over one year ago. Wouldn't trade it in even though we have run into a few problems. These problems were not with the FWC. The first problem was with the Attwood furnace. It stopped working out of the blue. Yup, had it on and woke up in the middle of the night with frost on my nose and a furnace that was dead. We took the furnace for repair to Evergreen RV service in Seattle WA and the guy basically put a new fuse in the unit and gave it back to us broken. Terrible service. Stay away from this place if your thinking about any type of RV repair. Anyway the unit stopped working again and we ended up taking it to Camper World in Burlington WA. GREAT SERVICE!! Can not give them enough props!! Unit fixed. Now we are dealing with getting Attwood to warranty all the work that was done. If anyone wants to know it was the Blower Unit that failed. Out of pocket cost for us was about $500. Attwood is not quick to warranty anything either. The other problem that occurred had to do with the wiring from the truck to the camper male connector for charging the camper batteries. This problem also had nothing to do with FWC. This was the fault of the FWC dealer in Tigard OR which is no longer open. Anyway not really having a service department for FWC close by Seattle I took matters into my own hands. Calling FWC and other FWC dealers I was instructed to look at the battery and the truck bed outlet. Both batteries for the camper are brand new. The truck bed outlet I changed. We were still not getting the truck to charge up the batteries. I started poking around and finally ended up tracing the wire from the engine back to the outlet in the truck bed. I was told by a tech at FWC that the routing of this wire was done according to their SOP. Maybe that was true but common sense, you would think, might tell someone that when running wire next to something hot you need to protect it. The bright person who ran the wire did nothing to protect it from the heat of the engine exhaust system. The wire melted over time. I'm guessing that we could have had a fire or gotten shocked. There are these products called thermal sleeves. I would have paid the extra 15$ to have one put onto the wire to prevent this. I'm now trying to get FWC to warranty the installation cost that we paid to the FWC dealer out of Tigard OR for the bad work they performed. Like I said in the topic title. These are just issues to be aware of.
Issues to be Aware of
- Thread starter Aussiedor
- Start date
Roaming_Eagle
Advanced Member
I can't speak for the warranty issues but, I had my Atwood fail after ten years and just tossed it in the dumpster since they cost $1100 new. I'll figure out something more reliable and cost effective to replace it.
My Atwood heater is over 20 years old and still works perfectly. I got install an new blower motor a few years ago because the original started squeaking. The new motor was under $100. Removing the unit wasn't difficult and I cleaned and inspected the rest of it while I had it out.
cwd
cwd
An UPDATE - 1) Atwood - I just received an email from the Director of Customer Service today. They are willing to reimburse me for most of the warranty work that was performed on the furnace but not all of it. My problem with this is that all of the furnace work should be covered under warranty because that is what they "say" they will do. I sent back an email asking why they would not warranty all of the work. Have not received anything back from them. 2) Four Wheel Camper also called me today regarding the wiring job that was done by the Tigard OR dealer that has gone out of business. FWC is willing to take care of this. I told the person I spoke with at FWC that they would have been appalled by the wiring job that the Tigard OR dealer had performed.
Aardvark - I am aware of this and the fact that as a tech the company you work for would also be taking care of this warranty issue for me. This is due to the fact that you would also be working for an authorized dealer that services Atwood furnaces. This was an unusual situation where I had to take care of the warranty.
Aussiedor said:
Different perspective...Tigard FWC dealer did a great job for us when we purchased our '16 Hawk...installation and set-up was excellent.
Exactly what was the issue with the wiring outlet in bed that you replaced? What didn't they do correctly? Didn't route the wire such that the exhaust was too close to the wire? How did you correct it? In what vehicle?
Thanks,
Phil
Unfortunate encounter with the Tigard OR dealer, however I can empathize completely. Understanding that it's water under the bridge by now, as that dealer is closed, though a new one has opened up there in the same neighborhood and I'm not entirely sure if the same "technicians" aren't still there.Aussiedor said:
I had an uneasy feeling about the dealer even before installation, but afterwards made it a point of going through the entire FWC rig with a fine tooth comb. A couple of loose electrical connections and extremely weak and cheap sets of turnbuckles (which I had to install myself because the "technician" wasn't physically capable of accomplishing himself) that I replaced with better quality stainless steel turnbuckles from a marine supply. I would suggest looking at your turnbuckles, as you may have gotten the same poor quality aluminum ones.
Sad to hear of your experience, and fortunately you didn't have a worse scenario with the possibility of a fire. I must admit I feel a bit vindicated for a previous comment I made disparaging of the Tigard dealer that was pounced upon.
Phil - I wish now that I'd taken a video of how this wire was routed through the truck. We have a 2015 F150. I didn't have a problem with how it was routed. My problem was with how it was protected from heat. The Tigard OR people only used a plastic protector around the wire and ran it right next to the catalytic converter. Also it was not zip tied to stay away from the catalytic converter. So over time it had contact with the heat and melted. It melted through the whole wire. Since people like to see pictures I'll take a picture of the piece of wire I cut. I have to tell you that I know nothing about wiring and could tell you this was not done right. I "THINK" i've solved the problem by installing the wire again and protecting it with a heat sheath. If you look at the engine of a car you'll see heat sheath around pipes and wire that come into close contact with parts of the engine that get hot. I also made sure to zip tie the wire in such a way that it would not have a chance to come in contact with anything hot. I'm not saying that this is the right way to fix the problem. For me this just makes sense.
Cuervo - Funny you should mention the turnbuckles. My wife hates the ones that came with our FWC. They leave a weird residue on your hand after handling them. We have noticed that they do wiggle themselves loose. This is also a safety issue and we are in the process of getting this corrected. Thanks for pointing this out also.
The bodies of the turnbuckles were a VERY soft aluminum, hence the corrosion/residue. Combined with a sloppy fit of the eyebolts and they quickly wear and loosen up, I had the same problem just in the brief amount of time waiting for the new stainless turnbuckles to arrive. 'Suncor' makes good stainless turnbuckles, I got them here:
https://www.bosunsupplies.com/turnbuckle-open-body-cast-hook-hook/
https://www.bosunsupplies.com/turnbuckle-open-body-cast-hook-hook/
Santiam Camper
Advanced Member
Oh, oh! My installation was done by the same Tigard dealer. I guess that I better check my wiring.
I hate the turnbuckles too! I did read somewhere on here that there are a different style of turnbuckle available that allow a quick release and re-tightening. I'll have to look them up again.
I hate the turnbuckles too! I did read somewhere on here that there are a different style of turnbuckle available that allow a quick release and re-tightening. I'll have to look them up again.
No doubt that wire should have been routed away from any exhaust section to prevent melting..ugly indeed. The burnt wiring is a big screw up for certain; big time error.
As for Cuervo's observation that the tech was not capable of installing the turnbuckles, I believe you missed something. When we picked up our '16 Hawk the owner handed me the turnbuckles and told me how to install and tighten them and he did this for a damn good reason: So that I would know how to re-tighten them and check them periodically. He even had me plug in the electrical connector between the Hawk and the Tundra; I know that was done right. My stance is that doing as much as you can on your own makes you more aware of issues before they get bad and helps you trouble shoot and fix what does go bad.
I found the dealership in Tigard to be first rate but I also assumed the responsibility for my rig and FWC when I drove out of the dealership . Just my approach but I have found less disappointments and fewer "break-downs' by getting hands-on and learning to maintain and understand the systems and mechanical aspects of the Hawk and my Tundra.
This forum really helps in presenting the nuances of what works and what doesn't; but being an off-road oriented seeker, I need to be as self-sufficient as possible to avoid being stranded or not enjoying the get-aways. Few service centers out in BFE.
Aussie...please post [photo?] how you routed the wiring or shielded it...I am interested.
Thanks,
Phil
As for Cuervo's observation that the tech was not capable of installing the turnbuckles, I believe you missed something. When we picked up our '16 Hawk the owner handed me the turnbuckles and told me how to install and tighten them and he did this for a damn good reason: So that I would know how to re-tighten them and check them periodically. He even had me plug in the electrical connector between the Hawk and the Tundra; I know that was done right. My stance is that doing as much as you can on your own makes you more aware of issues before they get bad and helps you trouble shoot and fix what does go bad.
I found the dealership in Tigard to be first rate but I also assumed the responsibility for my rig and FWC when I drove out of the dealership . Just my approach but I have found less disappointments and fewer "break-downs' by getting hands-on and learning to maintain and understand the systems and mechanical aspects of the Hawk and my Tundra.
This forum really helps in presenting the nuances of what works and what doesn't; but being an off-road oriented seeker, I need to be as self-sufficient as possible to avoid being stranded or not enjoying the get-aways. Few service centers out in BFE.
Aussie...please post [photo?] how you routed the wiring or shielded it...I am interested.
Thanks,
Phil
Fasgun Derringers. They work great!Santiam Camper said:
Wallowa - I will post a pic of the wire that I put back into our F150. I have to crawl back under the truck and take a pic of it. About the Turnbuckles. I left the FWC dealer in Tigard knowing how to put them on the right way. We have done this many many times. Even doing this the right way there are some really rough roads out there that give these turnbuckles a good test. We've found a couple times that they just wiggle their way loose. Sure you can stop driving and retighten them every couple miles but this is an irritating hassle. The turnbuckles provided with the system are cheap. We have since replaced them with a set of "Fastgun Derringers". These turnbuckles clamp down and lock into place. They just work better for us.
Aussiedor said:
Hey, thanks for your input....even after a months of pounding many miles of dirt tracks in Utah, Nevada, Idaho and Oregon I have only had to tighten my turnbuckles once just after taking delivery like I was instructed to do; even then they were not really loose but snugged them up anyway...but having said that as a precaution after reading many posts on this topic on this forum, I have installed steel turnbuckles and added jam nuts...no problema!
Is the bed of your Ford aluminum? Tundra bed is steel, if that makes any difference..Rhino spray-on in bed but no bed rug or slide-in mat.
If you get pictures fine but don't struggle to get them....appreciate your posts.
Phil
This is a pic of the Wire that I reconstructed to go back into the truck. The silver sheath is a heat resistant material that can be purchased at any automotive store. The cost is $15 and can probably be purchased for less but I would have paid $50 or $100 to have had this done right in the first place. I will crawl under my F150 and take some pics to show how I placed it back
Attachments
Even with that sheath on there, it shouldn't be placed in contact with hot surfaces. Catalytic converters are super hot, so try and reroute to avoid them if you can.
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