Mountaineer 319BHS - Montana Owners Club

Montana_3747 · 05-10-2005, 02:50 PM

Hello,
Does anyone here own a 2005 Mountaineer 319BHS fiver? We just purchased one and have a few questions and concerns. The first is that the unit does not have any tags on it....the tag that is found on the outside of the coach with GVWR, etc nor the one on the inside of the coach with the weights, etc. The service dept. said they are ordering them from the factory, but no explanation as to why they were not on the coach in the first place. Does anyone have any info on weights, heights, etc...these can not be found in the 2005 brochures or on the website! Also, the only way to access the hot water heater winterization valve is to remove the louvered panel under the refrigerator, which is not meant to be removed over and over again as the screws will strip out...as it is, the two bottom screws aren't even screwed into anything at all! They told us we could access this valve by lifting up the plywood on the bottom bunk, but I'd like to know how we are supposed to do that when the plywood fits snug to all 3 1/2 bedroom walls....I suggested to my hubby to use a hole saw and make a hole in the plywood to use to lift it up! Also, they put the electric switch for the hot water tank on the outside of the coach where the hot water tank is located....our other coach (Jayco) had both the gas and electric switches on the inside of the coach...hubby is not happy about this either, because we usually leave the electric on all the time, but switch over to gas when showering as it seemed to heat up faster. What do you all do as far as heating your water....use gas only, electric only, or switch between the two? He's also a bit upset because our other coach had a hinged access panel for the hot water heater (on exterior of coach), but our Mountaineer does not! I'm hoping to get some ideas and suggestions from anyone here who is willing to share in hopes that my hubby will eventually "re-like" the Mountaineer we just bought....wish he had checked these things before our purchase! I love it so far....the floorplan, etc...a few things that need adjusting and minor repairing, but nothing extreme in my eyes! Just trying to make the other half feel better about our purchase! Thank you all in advance!

faeb and genb · 05-10-2005, 04:29 PM

Can't help you with anything except the hot water switch. All of them are like that even the Montanas.
Gene

sreigle · 05-11-2005, 10:28 AM

Welcome aboard, Wmott1122, and congratulations on the brand new Mountaineer! Despite the early concerns I think you'll find the Mountaineer is an excellent choice.

I see on the Mountaineer website your model has the weights listed as "TBA", which I guess means To Be Announced. You'd think this would be determined and the stickers in place before the unit is shipped, but apparently not. I think this is a brand new model.

You can run both the electric and the gas side of the water heater at the same time. Many of us have done that. So you can leave the electric on all the time. Just be sure you turn it off if you drain the tank. That electric element will fry in a few seconds if turned on and not in water. I, too, wish they would put a switch inside but they don't. By the way, Keystone didn't put the switch outside. That's done by Suburban or Atwood or whoever manufactures the water heater.

Ours has a hinged door access to the winterization valve on the water heater but our prior Montana had the same setup as you. We never had any problem with the screws not holding. Is there some way to make that into a hinged door? As for the plywood under the bunk, I'm surprised there is not at least a finger hole to lift that. I would think just a small hole would be enough.

Are you saying there's no panel access to the water heater on the outside of the coach? I've never seen one like that but suppose it is possible. How do you access the electric switch and the adjustments for the flame, etc.?

I hope you won't let these things sour your pleasure in using your Mountaineer. They are a very nice unit. Good luck and please let us know how this all turns out.

sectres · 05-12-2005, 02:04 AM

I have a 2004 318bhs which is the same floor plan only difference that I can see in the bath tub. Everything else looks the same as far as I can tell. The 2004 Specs are on this web site and these should give you an idea until your sticker comes in. Mine came in at 9630 LBS empty and about 6 inches longer than the specs say.

stiles watson · 05-12-2005, 02:43 AM

Welcome to the MOC Forum. The work-a-round I use for the electricial water heater switch is to leave the outside switch in the "on" position all the time and use the inside breaker switch to control. I my case the water heater has a breaker dedicated to only the WH in the inside breaker panel. In either case, as has been said, you have to make sure that the juice is off if the heater is not full of water. Like Steve, we run propane and electricity simultaniously for better heating turn around time.

I would think that anytime one changes brands of RV, there will features of the old that you liked. You bought a different brand because it has features that the old one didn't have. I wish it were posible to find the perfect unit with al the features of all the best from all the units and brands. On the other hand, it would be difficult to get agreement on what those features might be.

When Ford built the Edsel, they did extensive surveys on what the public wanted and then designed the car to reflect the indicated features. Well, you know the rest of the story, Edsel was a bust.

sreigle · 05-12-2005, 04:45 AM

Yeah, Stiles, but that 1958 Edsel was a sweet road car. I learned to drive on one of those! The recession hit at just the wrong time for the Edsel. That and the funny looking front end probably combined to kill it off rather quickly. Plus, it was slotted between Ford and Mercury. Even though the research supported that niche, I have to wonder if the research was faulty. That's a pretty small slot.

Montana_3747 · 05-12-2005, 12:13 PM

Thank you for the help and ideas!

Montana_2913 · 05-17-2005, 01:09 PM

We have the same unit. When the dh gets home I will ask him if we have the info/stats you are looking for and will get back to you.

party of 5 · 05-18-2005, 09:34 AM

I have the 2004 318bhs and I only see a couple of differences. The bathroom setup and the entertainment center setup. The GVWR on our is 12060lbs. The height (to top of ac unit is 12'6") I have the same complaints about the hot water heater electric switch. I usually leave it off and use gas only, get plenty hot for us. The exterior door is not the best thing in the world. I am going to see if I can change to a different type of door.

Montana_2913 · 05-19-2005, 02:19 AM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by sixcampers

We have the same unit. When the dh gets home I will ask him if we have the info/stats you are looking for and will get back to you.

I realized afterwards that the model numbers were different and that I have the 318BHS. I went to check out the floor plan of the 319BHS and now wish I had that model! I would LOVE to have that bathroom!DARN!

You may also like: