Dometic Thermostat in 3400RL

[Dean A Van Peursem]

In reading the latest (September) issue of Trailer Life I noticed a full page Dometic Advertisement on their Duo-Therm climate control system. I am now embarrassed to realize I don't know if our unit in the late 2006 3400RL is supposed to be capable of handling multiple zone settings or not. The manual (if we have one) is not nearby but I do know that our 3400RL only shows one zone.

What capability is the 3400RL supposed to have?

I am so frustrated with the poor or the outright lack of documentation we have have received with our unit, I now almost diliberately avoid looking at the manuals we do have. We were missing several manuals to begin with but have added to the collection with hand made copies from the factory. Keystone Montana should be taken to task by all of us owners simultaneously for their inadequate and poor documentation. I do not understand how they get by with it. Anyone willing to put together a petition?

We had more than our fair share of start-up problems with our new 3400RL but that seems to have subsided and are presently down to an erratic LP Gas Sensor which seems to be sensitive to vibration. A replacement control unit arrived today so will install it to see if that solves the problem. I'd rather install it myself than go to the expense and time of taking the 3400RL into the dealer.

[hazmic]

I have a 3475 with the CCC unit and your 5th wheel is like ,we do NOT have zone heating or cooling. It is in one of the manuals and is probably in one that you don't have. Good luck.

Mickey,Mary and Wilson[the westie]2006 3475 5th wheel 2000 f350 crew cab dually diesel

[richfaa]

The lack of manuals is a strange thing.When I went to the dealer to do my Pre-PDI They opened up the camper and I was the first person in it since it left the factory. One of the large drawers in the island(3400) was jammed packed with manuals, I could barely open the drawer and as part of the paper signing our dealer went through every manual to make sure it was there and filled out all of the warranty forms and mailed them in for us..perhaps when on the factory tour at the fall rally we might find out who/how/when the manulas are put into the camper and how the ball gets dropped in some cases.???

Rich& Helen N.Ridgeville,Ohio.

F-350SD, Lariat, V-10,4:30 Diff, tow command Long bed, Crew Cab Dually, 06 3400RL
Mor-Ryde Pin Box

[Dean A Van Peursem]

At this moment in time I am leaning towards the manual problem as that being caused by the dealer, not the factory. The reason I say this is from personal observation watching the dealer personnel fixing some of our start-up issues. Defective parts were replaced by parts taken from other RV's in the lot. I suspect the same occurred with the manuals. Totally unacceptable business procedures.

I was very surprised and disturbed to see this kind of repair procedure being used as I know it is bad business practice. Our dealer has been in business over 30 years in a relatively small community so it would lead one to believe they have been doing something right in the past. I suspect that current dealer laborer issues are part of the problem. But correct and acceptable procedures are established by supervision all the way to the top. But Montana is not setting a very good quality example either.

[Parrothead]

Dean
Just because your dealer is not the gratest don't blame Keystone. It sounds to me like your dealer robs one unit to supply another without replacing anything.
Happy trails........................................

Sue and Ed Rowe
Hemet California

2005 3400RL

2006 GMC 3500 Dually, D/A, Crew Cab, Long Bed

[MAMalody]

It sounds to me like the dealer is trying to keep a current customer happy and get him back on the road and then order the replacement part and put it on the one that was canabolized. In that way the customer is happy and the new part is put on the floor model before it is sold. If the name of the game is keeping the customer happy, that does it. When I picked up my rig, the microwave was bad. I could have waited a week for the replacement to arrive or I could have one from a similar model on the floor,...I opted for the model from the floor. Have not had a problem.

Mike

F350 7.3L LB
2003 3575RL

[Dean A Van Peursem]

Parrothead:

I think you have misinterpreted my statement. I presently believe that the shortage of manuals was caused by the dealer, not Keystone. That is subject to change however. My statement about Keystone not setting a very good example is related to the quality of the manuals and the quality of the product produced. The extent and number of startup issues we had to deal with on our new 3400RL was flat unacceptable. That is criticism primarily aimed at Keystone. Although the dealership could have been much more proactive in getting them resolved before the PDI. So there is some blame to be shared.

If Keystone is not setting the right example relative to quality, and in our case they did not, the dealerships do not have a good role model. That is the only point I'm trying to make. Yes, I blame Keystone for not producing a quality 3400RL in our case and generally I blame Keystone for not providing appropriate and adequate documentation for all 3400RL's.

Statements have been made to the effect that some documentation will never be provided simply because even Keystone doesn't know how it was assembled. For those of you who have ever been involved in trying to produce a quality product and gone through the ISO 2000 qualification process you will relate to how offensive and disturbing that fact is. One of the basic tenants of ISO 2000 and of producing a quality product is that all products are all built using identical processes and procedures. Without that there is absolutely no chance of consistently producing a quality product. Just will never happen. The supposed fact that fuse panels can be wired to the whims of the assembly line worker is just unheard of in quality oriented manufacturing facilities.

The support costs of these kinds of immature and inapropriate assembly procedures have to multiplied over and over, from Keystone, to the dealers, to we the owners and I can only assume we are paying for these inordinate costs in our grief and time to get them straightened out including an inflated purchase price to cover these unnecessary costs for the manufacturer.

I don't want to make this an on-going bashing of Keystone and will not comment on this any further in this thread, but I think making excuses for Keystone's inability to provide precise documentation is not ever going to improve the quality of future products. Or help us in the future as more problems arise later on when our units are no longer under warranty. Think about how much it costs extra for a dealer or repair shop to repair something if they have no way of knowing how it was built to begin with. The $60 to $70 an hour labor it takes to figure it out is not being paid for by the manufacturer. It is us my friend. And let me assure you it is not insignificant. To me the costs and inconviences of getting these issues resolved under warrantly is unacceptable much less the cost of these repairs required when out of warranty.

Rant over! :-)

[Dean A Van Peursem]

Mike:

There is no question that the dealer was robbing Peter to pay Paul. And to a degree I guess we should appreciate that being done to get our problems resolved quicker. However, some of the problems we experienced were caused by that very process. Apparently our unit had been cannibilized earlier to solve another customers problem. As a very minor example: Our DC flashlight didn't work. The solution was to find one that worked in another unit. It was obvious that our flashlight had seen several RV's prior to being placed in our unit. I suspect a later customer faced the same issue later on. The proper solution is higher quality products and having adequate spare parts at the dealership such that cannibilization is the exception rather than the rule.

[Ozz]

Yea, what Dean said.......
Another example of poor quality control is the breaker panel. Yesterday, I undertook the ordeal of installing my double pole dryer breaker. In the real world, you would take off the breaker cover, snap in the breaker and wire in your new wire.
Not with these RV's. The 'Electrician' (Old world craftsman) had wired in about 6" of extra wire on all the breakers, the same with the neutral and ground wires. It looked like a bowl of spaghetti. I had to remove EVERY wire, cut the excess wire off, strip it back and rewire the entire panel. I am glad I did, because I found 3 neutral wires that were not even tightened. I was one grumpy individual after that nightmare.
I have been over my unit with a fine toothed comb, the assembly and quality is not bad, the inspectors at the plant are what I see as a problem, they let too many things go unchecked. I know as a businessman, you have to stay compettive, so real quality may not be on the horizon for any RV maker. (In my price range.)
Ozz

'07 3400RL 2nd RTU
2 Golf Cart batteries 3,000 watt inverter, automatic transfer switch
Honda 2000 Generator, 2nd one and twinning kit coming
Maytag's with 220 Dryer
Stationary domed Sat. dish
LCD 12 Volt Amp gauge
LCD Tank Monitor
3 added 120 volt outlets
On Board Air; 12 Volt Viair 450C compressor
2006 Ford PSD 4x4 Off Road Lariat
Hadley Air Horns
Truck inverter with 110 volts for laptop
Color Backup Camera
Awning lock

[Kathi]

When we picked up our 3400RL and did our PDI we had this huge orange notebook full of everything on the trailer. Even had some duplicate manuals. So I think that the dealer must have either trashed yours or misplaced them. I believe that Keystones policy is everything they install or put in the trailer they are to leave the manual to it somewhere in the trailer. Our dealer took it upon themselves to put everything in their own notebooks making it very convenient to locate. I would read and read that darned booklet on the dometic thermostat and still it doesn't work right. So it is being replaced.

Paul & Kathi Landau
Lola, Beulah & Hamel (BLk/Tan Coonhounds)
Max (Doxie) all rescues
Kalispell Montana

02' Dodge 3500 Cummins Diesel, Dually Longbed,
Banks Exhaust Sys.,
5"exhaust, Prodigy Brake Controller, Reese 22K Hitch, Magellan Roadmate 700 GPS.

05' 3400RL

[MAMalody]

I agree that factory QC is the way to go. I also agree that canabolization is for the customer benefit. While not stated, it is then up to the dealer to fix the canabolized unit...this could be another reasons to order factory direct. At least then you don't have to worry that your unit was canabolized.

Mike

F350 7.3L LB SRW
2003 3575RL