Water Problems on new Pinnacle

[bgelyhome]

Purchased a new Pinnacle in September 2016 but have not been able to use it due to problems getting water to the Hot Water side of the plumbing. In November began trying to schedule repair with the local Jayco Dealer. After finally getting the dealer to give me a service date, I decided to investigate it on my own and I found the problem with not having water to the HWH or HW faucets when my panel is lined up for City Water. I removed the side panel in the storage compartment to gain access to the back of the Uni-Dock Panel and found 3 water lines with kinks in the lines. Two of the 3 lines that were kinked, completely collapsed the hoses. I have attached a picture of the supply line to the HW Heater. Very disappointed in Jayco Quality Control.

[FeatherFam]

Hi bgelyhome, we are a few miles down the road in Helena. I assume that you bought your Jayco from Burton(?). If you take it to them, I would be very interested in knowing your experience. We have received subpar work and lack of response to promised work on a couple of occasions. The last items that I needed fixed, I did myself. I will only resort to the dealer if I absolutely have to. Can you access enough of the lines to shorten or reroute them yourself?

[bgelyhome]

I shopped at Burton's years ago for a 5th wheel and found the sales person was arrogant. I wound up purchasing a 2010 Designer from Back Country RV in Meridian, MS (140 miles from here0. They were great during the sale and after the sale anytime I need work. Gary is their Service Department is top notch. Certainly did not mind driving the 140 miles for great service. I purchased the Pinnacle from Camper Corral in Madison, MS (260 miles) as I was looking for a specific model and that was the closest dealership with that year and model. They also gave me a great price so the drive was worth it. Now back to your original question… This Pinnacle came from Camper Corral in Madison, MS. Even after my first experience with Burton’s, I have never heard anyone who really liked doing business there. I thought I would give them a try on this issue as it seems pretty simple and I don’t want to pull the 5th back to Madison for simple warranty work. I just need Burton to replace the 3 hoses (not just straighten them) and am making the assumption they can fabricate hoses. In addition, I have one slide that lacks about 1 inch in fully retracting. I will need that one adjusted. It was interesting in that I first contact Burton Service by filling out the service request form on their website, as they indicated that was their preference in scheduling service. Never heard from them so I called and talked to the service manager who would not give me a schedule date on the phone but said he would call me back. Never called me back, so I went to the dealership and talked directly to the service manager to get a date. I hope that was not an indication of what is to come. My appointment is the week of January 14 so I will let you know my experience after I get the 5th wheel back.

[FeatherFam]

Thanks for the update. I will be curious to know how it shakes out with Burton. I will not call them or any other dealer unless it is a huge issue that I cannot fix. That's why I am known to say, "Warranty, Schwarranty - I have little use for them." I hope that you receive honorable care.

[Rolling_Fortress]

Hi all, just joined the forum and this is my first post. I too had hot water pressure issues first time out with my North Point 377RLBH this past week. We basically didn't have any pressure coming out of any hot water outlet. I tried researching and troubleshooting with no luck. Finally had to resort to calling a tech out to take a look (thanks Bob's RV service in Orlando, FL). Jason from Bob's found the issue to be a kink in the hot water hose in back and a bit underneath the HW heater (pic attached). After dipping deeper into my wallet to by a quality brand needless to say my wife and I are not at all happy with Jayco quality control. And not for nothing but Camping World could have also caught this had they performed a complete pre-inspection.


https://www.flickr.com/photos/503685...7674886046134/

[RedHorse1]

The water lines look like it's a "semi-flexible" plastic with fiber reinforcement and not PEX. Has Jayco stopped using the PEX?

[oldmanAZ]

Hi to you. Congratulations on your new North Point and welcome to the forum.

Just curious... When you did your PDI prior to leaving the dealer with the unit, was the water flow OK?

[bgelyhome]

To Rolling Fortress:
Interesting that we had similar issues with kinked hoses. It appears Jayco are making all the connection from the Uni-Dock station to the Hot Water Heater while the HWH is outside the trailer. Then when they slide the HWH in-place the hose can become bound by the trailer structural members and kink. If your North Point is still under warranty, you should contact Jayco and they request they pay for the repairs. Definitely a Jayco Quality Control Problem.

[Rjhuser]

Just curios.
Why don't you just fix the hoses yourselves. The hoses and clamps are available in any big box plumbing department.
I didn't have any problems with kinked hoses, but made several mods (water softener, accumulator tank, etc) and had no problems finding parts or rerouting hoses.
In my book, better than the long drive to a service dealer and the lost time there.

Rick

[FeatherFam]

Originally Posted by Rjhuser

Just curios.
Why don't you just fix the hoses yourselves. The hoses and clamps are available in any big box plumbing department.
I didn't have any problems with kinked hoses, but made several mods (water softener, accumulator tank, etc) and had no problems finding parts or rerouting hoses.
In my book, better than the long drive to a service dealer and the lost time there.

Rick

2x^^ And you can do it right. We are into our second unit now, we have never received quality work from a dealer, never. Gotta be resourceful in this world, not just with trailers. If you are not physically able to do the work, maybe you can find a helper. I do both. I teach a lot of young men how to do things, mainly tasks that my back will no longer handle. Or sometimes I employ them to help expedite a task. As a teacher, I find my guys at our high school and church. With just DW and I (no kids), they are a blessing. I will admit that it is getting increasingly harder to find kids with a work ethic and the humility and desire to learn manual skills. But they are out there.

[bgelyhome]

Originally Posted by Rjhuser

Just curios.
Why don't you just fix the hoses yourselves. The hoses and clamps are available in any big box plumbing department.
I didn't have any problems with kinked hoses, but made several mods (water softener, accumulator tank, etc) and had no problems finding parts or rerouting hoses.
In my book, better than the long drive to a service dealer and the lost time there.

Rick

I typically do all my repairs on just about anything. I grew up on a farm fixing farm equipment, put myself through college working as a carpenter building houses and have a degree in Electrical Engineering. I can certainly fix the hoses but I have a problem with one of my slides not fully retracting and I don't know how to adjust the slides. Figured since the unit is under warranty I would just let the dealer replace the hoses when they fix the slide problem.

[Rolling_Fortress]

@bgelyhome - that's exactly what I thought. They put it all together outside the unit and then slid it in over the hoses.

@Rjhuser - well, I am pretty handy so I did research and troubleshoot the issue with the help of another camper for a while but unfortunately, no luck. My research led to the issue possibly being a faulty HW bypass valve (actually found that info on this forum). So being this is my first 5th wheel and having it on its maiden voyage I decided to call a service man ($150) to confirm my findings before taking anything apart. After a few minutes of investigating the issue, Jason from Bob's RV Service in Orlando found the kinked hose. In the end it didn't cost me anything as Jayco has reimbursed me the full amount and I learned a lot about my new North Point's plumbing in the process. If any hoses do need to be replaced from here I will be doing that on my own.

[Deerslayer]

I have never been on a forum not sure how to use. I am about to order a new pinnacle tomorrow asking peoples opinions and suggestions anything to look for things to deft add ect. This will be my first Jayco

[bgelyhome]

Originally Posted by Deerslayer

I have never been on a forum not sure how to use. I am about to order a new pinnacle tomorrow asking peoples opinions and suggestions anything to look for things to deft add ect. This will be my first Jayco

Congrats on your decision to purchase a Jayco. While I will say they are top quality, the problems identified with my Pinnacle and the North Port posted in this thread reveal a potential assembly problem. On your Pinnacle in the large storage area, there are 6 screws that hold the rear side panel in place. At your delivery inspection, have the dealer pull that side panel to expose the back side of the Uni-Dock and HW Heater and inspect for kinked hoses.
Another design issue I found was Jayco placement of their drawer latches on wide drawers. They place the latch on the right side of the drawer near the drawer rail. When you grab the handle in the center of the drawer to pull it open, it jacks the drawer to the side until the latch disengages. When closing the drawer, you have to push it on the right side to ensure the latch engages. If not, it will not latch and allow drawer movement and possible damage while in tow. I had 3 such drawers in my Pinnacle. I purchased like-kind latches at Lowes and mounted a second latch on the left side of each of those drawers. They open and close easily and securely latch.
Jayco's are well build with quality materials so you will have an excellent 5th wheel.