First 5th wheel

[Tony97gt]

Hello all. Just got my first fifth wheel two weeks ago. I got a 2013 Redwood 31SL. It's got the onboard Onan and so far I love it! I live in South Florida where the double a/c's are a must. Any advice on upgrades or quirks is welcomed. Thx!

 

[XCMARK]

Hello all. Just got my first fifth wheel two weeks ago. I got a 2013 Redwood 31SL. It's got the onboard Onan and so far I love it! I live in South Florida where the double a/c's are a must. Any advice on upgrades or quirks is welcomed. Thx!

welcome to the club! I am not sure any of them have quirks or common problems. I will say if you have a residential refrigerator and plan on doing a lot of moving around you may want to look at your battery compacity and your 12 vdc from the truck and consider some low dollar up grades. for example 2 100 amp hour flooded battery will only get you about 8 hrs. on the inverter before they are at 50% and need recharged. adding a Victron energy 12/12/18 DC to DC charger to the trailer will make the truck charge the trailer batterys much faster. without the DC to DC charger you only get about 4~5 amps to the trailer from your truck because of voltage drop and the distance from the alternator. The DC to DC can boost the voltage back up to 14.4 VDC and give the trailer a constant 18 amps at bulk rate charge if needed and its can be programed to drop back the charge rate once it see that the battery voltage is at full charge. Basically you can run 10 hour on the road and your battery is full charge when you stop driving. This is really only a issue with a refrigerator that runs on a inverter when not plugged in to power.

 

[Tony97gt]

welcome to the club! I am not sure any of them have quirks or common problems. I will say if you have a residential refrigerator and plan on doing a lot of moving around you may want to look at your battery compacity and your 12 vdc from the truck and consider some low dollar up grades. for example 2 100 amp hour flooded battery will only get you about 8 hrs. on the inverter before they are at 50% and need recharged. adding a Victron energy 12/12/18 DC to DC charger to the trailer will make the truck charge the trailer batterys much faster. without the DC to DC charger you only get about 4~5 amps to the trailer from your truck because of voltage drop and the distance from the alternator. The DC to DC can boost the voltage back up to 14.4 VDC and give the trailer a constant 18 amps at bulk rate charge if needed and its can be programed to drop back the charge rate once it see that the battery voltage is at full charge. Basically you can run 10 hour on the road and your battery is full charge when you stop driving. This is really only a issue with a refrigerator that runs on a inverter when not plugged in to power.

Thanks Mark! I still have the factory LP fridge. I did upgrade the LP tanks to 40lb and I'm looking to add a backup camera.

 

[XCMARK]

Thanks Mark! I still have the factory LP fridge. I did upgrade the LP tanks to 40lb and I'm looking to add a backup camera.

good luck with the back up camera , I have been thinking about what to do for 3 years. most wireless cameras are no good at 50' from the receiver without boosters using Bluetooth , some of the newer ones claim they use WIFI type signal and claim they work fine without boosters. I know I can wire my current truck with a camera but honestly I will not own this truck in two more years. I put over 25,000 miles a year on my trucks just for work so at 3 years old I am looking for the next one. If GM decides to change how the camera connects to the truck then i would have to change the camera on the trailer at $500+ for the next latest GM camera. all set I will get out and look.

 

[Shane Wood]

Thanks Mark! I still have the factory LP fridge. I did upgrade the LP tanks to 40lb and I'm looking to add a backup camera.

I have the Furrion observation wireless on ours
It comes with a booster that goes in the battery compartment and it works great

 

[Ford truck guy]

I too have a Furrion with NO booster that was purchased in 2020... The system works great and I have never NOT had a signal ....

My wife loves it as well, she can stand behind the Redwood and talk in her normal voice and the camera picks it up and I hear it in the cab ...

 

[mhs4771]

I wonder how much will change since Lippert has just completed the buy out/take over of Furrion. Looks like Lippert is looking to take over the whole RV Industry.

 

[R time soon]

Here is what Lippert did with Furrion back in 2015.


https://www.southbendtribune.com/story/business/2015/07/08/lippert-lands-11-million-deal/46408177/


Here is what recently happened:


https://www.businesswire.com/news/h...Agreement-to-Acquire-Furrion-Holdings-Limited


Another article from RV News


https://www.rvnews.com/lippert-furrion-together-again/

 

[Tntniemi]

I recently installed Sailun S673 in 245/70/R17.5. They are 18 ply, but can be run at much lower pressure. It made a huge difference in ride, and I know I am good for load capacity on my 3881ES.

 

[Travelin' Texans]

I recently installed Sailun S673 in 245/70/R17.5. They are 18 ply, but can be run at much lower pressure. It made a huge difference in ride, and I know I am good for load capacity on my 3881ES.

Just a reminder that if you've upgraded to a heavier load rated tire then run them at a lower pressure you've actually gained nothing.
Running ST type tires at lower than recommended pressures is running them in an underinflated condition which is the biggest adverse condition for rv tires.
Those Sailuns recommend 125 psi, 120 may be ok, but wouldn't run them at any less if you want to utilize the benefit of the upgrade & prolong the life of those tires.
If you're concerned about the stiffer ride I'd have to ask who is riding there to notice the 15 lbs more than the GY G 614s.