377 RLBH initial impressions

Magnolia Tom · 01-17-2016, 08:09 PM

We spent the night in our driveway last night in our new North Point 377. Here is some of our initial impressions.

The heat pump works great. It was about 45 degrees and the heat pump kept us toasty warm. We also tested the AC, and were quite impressed at the low noise level.

The fireplace did not seem to put out as much heat as the one we had in our previous unit, but may be due to the larger area/volume of the rear living area as compared to our old rig.

The fridge water/ice was not working. Found the shut off in the worst place...up behind the oven. After I turned it on, still no water. Then I remembered reading a second shut off for the bypass under the sink. I had to pull off the dummy panel that hides the wires and pipes to find it hidden behind the drain pipe at floor level. What a dumb place to put it! Finally got water/ice to work but water wasn't coming out very fast--may have a kink in the line.

The couch and theater seats are very comfy.

The stereo speakers are not that great.

The LED toe kick lights all come on at once instead of independently.

The outside fridge doesn't have any type of thermostat or on/off switch.

Overall, very happy with it and impressed with the fit/finish of our unit. We LOVE this trailer!

Bookemdanno · 01-17-2016, 08:15 PM

Tom - Please explain what the heat pump does for me, as my new unit will have this feature. I don't know much about the heat pump...I thought it just heated the water while in the lines. Also, keep the info coming, as I plan on learning a TON of new info from you!!

Thanks!

Dan

Magnolia Tom · 01-17-2016, 08:31 PM

The heat pump is basically an electric heater. It's nice because you don't need to burn up all your propane to warm your trailer on milder evenings. No need for space heaters.

How it works is It dumps cool air to the outside and warm air inside. It's basically the AC working in reverse. It only works when outside temps are over 40 degrees or so. Also, it will only come on when you set the thermostat to no more than 5 degrees of the interior temperature. So, if inside is 50, and you set it to 70, the furnace will come on first to warm up the coach to 65, then the heat pump will take over. But if it's 50, and you set it the 55, the heat pumps starts right up. Also, if it dips below 40 at night with the heat pump on, the furnace will automatically come on to keep you warm.

RobinA · 01-17-2016, 08:38 PM

Thanks for the explanation. We were wondering as well. We could hear the furnace kick on when we had it set to electric heat ant that explains it for us!

Magnolia Tom · 01-17-2016, 08:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RobinA

Thanks for the explanation. We were wondering as well. We could hear the furnace kick on when we had it set to electric heat ant that explains it for us!

Happy to help [emoji1]

nhfire152 · 01-18-2016, 06:48 AM

Is the outside fridge a "large" dorm style fridge? Or one of the extremely small units? Also, brand? I have a PDI brand in the outside kitchen of my 375BHFS and the power/thermostat dial is in the upper right corner when the fridge is open.

Hope this helps!

Magnolia Tom · 01-18-2016, 07:42 AM

It's a really small outside fridge. It's a PD brand and there are no controls that I can see inside of it

nhfire152 · 01-19-2016, 07:38 PM

Well, I was hoping to come back with a nice screenshot of the owners manual or something else that would help you. Unfortunately the only thing I learned is that PD stands for Pummel Drive. That is apparently the manufacturer of these units. I could not find anything else in them. Odd to say the least.

Magnolia Tom · 01-19-2016, 07:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nhfire152

Well, I was hoping to come back with a nice screenshot of the owners manual or something else that would help you. Unfortunately the only thing I learned is that PD stands for Pummel Drive. That is apparently the manufacturer of these units. I could not find anything else in them. Odd to say the least.

I think I saw the manual in my packet but I didn't read it. I'm actually thinking about removing that little teeny tiny fridge for more outside storage. We have the residential fridge so we have lots of room in it [emoji41]

nhfire152 · 01-19-2016, 07:44 PM

We have the residential fridge as well. I'm trying to get an answer from someone on here as far as how long the inverter will power the fridge on battery power alone while underway.

We typically take one big trip a year to Maine which is about 5 or 6 hours for us. I'm hoping it is still running when we get there.

Magnolia Tom · 01-19-2016, 07:48 PM

If I'm not mistaken, your truck "should" be able to keep the battery charged while driving so in theory you could drive 5 hrs and not have an issue. I made sure my dealer installed a second battery for that reason...along with the ground control issues that I read about.

Kahoneys · 01-19-2016, 07:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nhfire152

We have the residential fridge as well. I'm trying to get an answer from someone on here as far as how long the inverter will power the fridge on battery power alone while underway.

We typically take one big trip a year to Maine which is about 5 or 6 hours for us. I'm hoping it is still running when we get there.

If you have 2 deep cell batteries for your 377, your residential refrigerator will run for 17 hours without the door being open. I did lots of research on it prior to our purchase.

Magnolia Tom · 01-19-2016, 08:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kahoneys

If you have 2 deep cell batteries for your 377, your residential refrigerator will run for 17 hours without the door being open. I did lots of research on it prior to our purchase.

Awesome. Thank you for that info. I take it that's without being plugged into the truck? Or does it draw more than the charging system of the truck can keep up with?

nhfire152 · 01-19-2016, 08:08 PM

My dealer wanted me to
Upgrade to "two golf cart batteries" but I got skittish around the $350 price tag. Figured I'd try to stick it out to see how the one performs.

The truck does provide a trickle to the battery but I believe the inverter is pulling more power than is being delivered.

Kahoneys · 01-19-2016, 08:10 PM

I have a chevy and it doesn't charge the batteries. From what our RV dealer told us is that only one brand of TV has the feature but I cannot remember which brand it is

nhfire152 · 01-19-2016, 08:13 PM

You must request that the Chevy dealer install the fuse or solenoid to allow the 7 pin to deliver power to the trailer.

Magnolia Tom · 01-19-2016, 08:13 PM

I got a second battery (regular Rv battery) with mine...not golf cart ones. I'd be skittish too for that price.
I'll never drive that far anyway so I think I'll be okay. [emoji1]

Magnolia Tom · 01-19-2016, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kahoneys

I have a chevy and it doesn't charge the batteries. From what our RV dealer told us is that only one brand of TV has the feature but I cannot remember which brand it is

Not sure about Chevy but with ford I think you need to make sure the relay for the tow package is installed in the panel for it to send power to the trailer

Magnolia Tom · 01-19-2016, 08:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nhfire152

You must request that the Chevy dealer install the fuse or solenoid to allow the 7 pin to deliver power to the trailer.

Beat me to it [emoji1]

Kahoneys · 01-19-2016, 08:22 PM

Any idea on the possible cost of that solenoid??

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