After some very basic additions to our Geo Pro G19RD “Howie”, we did a three-day shakedown trip to Campland-On-The-Bay Nov 18-21 2020. We bought a long list of support equipment recommended by the numerous YouTube videos we watched on essentials.
Following a tip I saw online, I painted the trailer’s hitch a light gray to make it easier to see in the Tacoma’s backup camera. It helps a lot when aligning the ball hitch to trailer hitch without a second person. It took awhile to remember the sequence of attaching the Equalizer E4 wdh but after referring to my notes and a few retries, I had it hooked up properly. An electronic tongue jack, standard on the Geo Pros, really helps speed up the process.
Campland-On-The-Bay is an “urban” bay-side campground in San Diego on Mission Bay, about 34 miles from home. It’s a short drive through town then mainly freeway, with only minor elevation changes. Towing went fine until we pulled off the Campland freeway exit then I noticed a slight “push” from the trailer when braking. The brake controller read “n.c.” – n.c. means “no contact or connection” so we lost our trailer brakes. Fortunately, the G19RD is less than 4000lbs & light enough for the Tacoma to stop unassisted. Campland is less than a mile from the freeway exit so we were able to make it to our campsite without issue. My wife booked a pull-through site so I thankfully didn’t have to remember my trailer backup skills. We leveled the trailer using a bubble level, Beech Lane leveling block and our LevelMate Pro+ which I had calibrated at home. Campland has full hookups (photo) so I connected the pressure regulator, water filter and fresh water hose. The water pressure gauge initially read over 60psi(!) so I adjusted it down to ~45psi. Next was power, attaching the 30amp surge protector and power cable to Howie. I threaded a cable lock through the surge protector since I read they are often stolen. Lastly, I attached the Rhino flex hose to the sewer fitting, using the hose-support slinky and sandbag to keep it seated tightly. Everything worked fine – no leaks were detected inside because of the initial 60psi water pressure. On shore power, we used the electric water heater vs propane.
The “east-west” full bed was comfortable but cozy with two smaller adults (5’9″, 5’1″) and 38lb dog (photo). We added a memory foam topper to the stock mattress and it’s good enough for now. It’s a heated mattress but we didn’t test it out. San Diego in November was still warm.
Our next mod: someone in our Geo Pro Facebook group posted a modification that extends the mattress, converting the “east-west” bed to “north-south”. They constructed a short, retractable, plywood board that pulls out from under the mattress. Adding cushions the height of the mattress, extending the length the bed.
Day 2 started with breakfast cooked on the propane griddle that comes standard with the Geo Pro/E-Pro trailers. I hooked it up to the external propane connector and it works really well. We read that using it against the trailer can scorch the side panel. So we used it on a separate stand-alone table well away from Howie. The exterior metal shelf, also standard, works fine for holding plates, utensils & food. The kitchen’s propane stove was used to boil water for tea & coffee. A small Nespresso machine will travel with us next time. But this time I used a manual Nespresso coffee press which worked fine but requires some effort. Microwave-heated milk topped the latte – I’m debating on whether a milk frother is worth carrying. The 12v fridge worked great although some bins or bungees could be useful to minimize shifting of taller items during transit. Since we were hooked up to shore power, our 2 6v batteries never dropped below 100%. We tested the AC & furnace – they worked fine although a bit noisy – but neither was needed. It was cool enough during the day to just open the windows & use the MaxAir fan. At night, we used a small electric space heater instead of the furnace. Moisture was visible on the stove top when using propane even when using the oven fan hood. But the windows never had significant condensation since we kept the MaxAir fan on low full time & a window cracked. We also had a DampRid passive dehumidifier. But buy the end of our shakedown, there was very little water condensed at the bottom. The weather was dry all 3 days with very little humidity even though we were bay-side.
Getting back to the brake failure problem: I fussed with my Tacoma’s fuse box to see it the brake control circuit needed a new fuse. It was fine – the Tacoma’s main fuse box is in the engine compartment. It’s lid has a key to all the fuses, identifying the brake controller fuse (photo). There are also a few spare fuses & a fuse puller clipped to the fuse box lid. I brought assorted spare fuses (bought from Amazon) too since trailer fuses often need to be replaced. I called my RV dealer and the service manager gave me some trouble-shooting tips to try. The best tip he gave me was to ask my neighbor if I could hook up my Tacoma to their trailer to see if the brake controller works. It did, so we knew the problem was with the brand new trailer.
Next, I tried Forest River Roadside Assistance (FRRA) that’s listed in the binder that came with the trailer. It’s the wrong number but the person who answered gave me the right number (866)209-2895. Since we did not have a membership # yet, FFRA couldn’t really help us – when you take delivery of the trailer, your RV dealer submits the application to Forest River for you. If they do not submit your application right away, it can take quite a long time to get your card. Some dealers wait until they have a stack of applications to submit, so ask your dealer to expedite your application just in case you need roadside assistance early.
When I called our dealer back for a service appointment. They said, because of Covid, “walk-ins” were not allowed & the next appointment was in March 2021 (so much for buying locally getting priority). I asked about our Forest River Roadside Assistance application & they said they would check on its status & expedite submission if needed. (Update: we received our membership # & card yesterday Jan 19 2021 after taking delivery Nov 12 2020.)
I was able to talk to a Forest River’s technician but his suggestions didn’t fix the problem.
Finally, I asked the concierge at Campland for a mobile repairman recommendation and he gave me a card. The mobile RV repairman (Guillermo from www.sosrepair.services) was kind enough to squeeze us into his full schedule. He came by ~6:30pm Nov 20, diagnosed & fixed the problem in 10mins. I took him longer to do the electronic paperwork, invoice me $150, & accept payment.
The problem he found was the ground to the brakes were faulty. He replaced the two crimp connectors (photo), which he thought were the wrong gauge, with the correct ones. (Sidenote: if you want a career that’s in high-demand & great-paying, become a RV repairman.) After explaining our situation & experience to Forest River. They were kind enough to reimburse us the full $150. Something they said they do not usually due.
We had a great first trip and learned a lot about setting up a rv. We are planning our 2021 trips although in California. Many campgrounds are still closed due to the pandemic.
