Kyle/Karl your humility is refreshing. None of us are born knowing how to do everything. You have my utmost respect for trying!! Thank you for your wonderful videos.
That's how i learn to fix stuff, boss said go fix this, watched me fail then said this is what you did wrong try again. Now I'm the guy saying this is what you did wrong on most things.
Our 2023 397 has been at GD since 7/8 getting extensive repairs and we are still waiting for it to be done. Thank you both for sharing the good, the bad and the ugly truth of RVing.
One of the many things I like about living my Class B van is that, in a sticks and bricks, if you get terrible neighbors, you are stuck. In my van, I simply drive to another place. Same with really bad weather, I have the option of driving to someplace with better weather. I like having choices. Safe travels you guys.
Don’t be embarrassed! We all learn together and I appreciate the transparency and humbleness you show. I’ve messed up so many times with our RV’s over the years and still make mistakes. Y’all are awesome!
Good for you for staying debt free! That Solitude has a LOT of miles left in it. No need to buy a new one. Free advice: Plan your exit strategy (not for a long time yet, I hope) and keep up your nurse's licenses.
Agree that this channel is one of the most warts-and-all RV channels, which we love! QUESTION for Kyle/Renee: have you considered a Class A/B/C instead of a 5th wheel? For the current cost of buying/maintaining both vehicles, you could easily full-time in a decent motorhome, IMHO. I'm just asking b/c we're currently weighing that exact decision (pull vs. motorhome) and we would love to hear your honest thoughts. Thanks for being so real!
If you haven’t already, I think it would be really nice to talk about how you planned the move from the RV for repairs. I’m sure it wasn’t easy but y’all seemed so prepared. Maybe things to consider for people who might have this happen to them. Thank you for such great and transparent videos!
Hi Courtney! That’s a great suggestion! We’ll definitely consider sharing more about how we prepared for the RV repairs and the things we had to think about along the way. Thanks so much for your kind words and for watching our videos ❤️
I feel you when you pulled that grey water handle, My new toy hauler has 2 black tanks , 2 grey tanks and a fresh water tank. One of the grey water handles snapped off when I was trying to close the tank and my heart sank. I went months without being able to close it and once I got it replaced under warranty I got excited that it worked again. When my tire blew out the repair shop put aluminum under my trailer to protect it from water etc. I might have mistaken them for Canadians backing up, that's what most Canadians do when they pull into a parking lot we back in. Having been all over Canada and the USA I notice Americans front in everywhere, when you drive an F350 dually with an 8' box you need to see backing up so fronting in isn't an option.
I am impressed that your RV was repaired, better than when you purchased it. (Checked and replaced lag bolts, checked for hitch area frame bend…. ) Glad there is outstanding *work-person-ship* still available.
Yeah, keep an eye on those lag bolts. 1/2" x 3-1/2" is what I plan to use with a mixture of jb weld or sika flex 1c SL from home depot. Use a wall stud finder and pre-drill the rest of the lag bolts that are missing. Both side of the bedroom. I've measured 4" that I can work with. With the 2" metal beam and about 1-1/2", including washer, should hold the 1/2" x 3-1/2" lag bolts. Search for your lag bolts through the carpet. Keep note of it. We don't have carpet. It's behind our dresser and under our east to west bed. Good luck and safe travels.
Whenever using the levelers and slides, I always left the trailer 7 way plug, plugged into the running truck. Helps keep the voltage up and less strain on the batteries. Looks like GD did a great job on the repairs!!
I had a 42ft solitude, i kept her plugged into the truck only to manually lower the legs and lift her to get her off the hitch. Then if at a rv site with power i would plug her in for the auto level. The truck has to be clear away for auto levelling, cant keep her plugged into the truck for this. Then the slides go out after she's auto levelled. 🍻
If you decide on a new rv look at Brinkley and make sure you get the Gen Y pin box and moride suspension to make the rv ride smoothly. Or you can install those on your fithwheel to improve it
Hey Hanks... Just wanted to follow-up with my last comment on your wheel bearing re-pack. I was worried about that rear seal!!! The way I pack my bearings is after you put the rear seal in, just add a little extra grease to the back bearing to fill the void between the bearing and rear seal. After that, I just leave it alone. Every 12 months, re-pack. Never had an issue. Something my father-in-law taught me! Bearings need some air to stay cool, but that is the best way to keep that happy medium between grease and air! Glad you have your home back!!!
I have found that Crocs give more stability than flip flops while still being easy to remove and put back on - although they do look a lot more clunkier!
Renee one of my favorite cleaners to use in the refrigerator is plain old baking soda. It removes most black marks and odors!! I have not tried it with mold though. Regardless your refrigerator looks wonderful!
Ahhh, the joys of learning from hard knocks! Best teacher ever! Grew up on a farm in the NW. Same teacher. Learned lots. Did a lot of stuff more than once. Still do! Gotta love what you do! Keep it going Hanks! See you out there.
Wow!! We still do not know what it is like to auto level. Gone through the wringer trying to fix it, reset it, etc.! Yes we still do it manual since we got it in 2019. It worked for 6 months… So glad you got everything fixed. It’s gotta feel like a brand new unit. 😎😄
So cool to see Corey and Jessie they are the 1st RV channel I started watching. Have loved watching their family adventures. So nice to see a meet up with them.
We r rv’ers, for over 25 yrs 4 rv,s later, we r still married going on 49ers. We r retired and only weekend travelers staying n Texas. Your videos r great and I relate to your problems. Keep up the entertainment
Would really like to know the cost breakdown. I've had a blowout recently and that same damage will need to be address soon. As far as what they said on too much grease blowing the seal is not totally correct. The axle is designed to allow the grease to flow through a hole in the center of axle and come out near where you are putting it in. If you put the grease in too quickly it then can build up pressure which can force the rear seal to come off. Great job guys keep on the RV life!
My dexter axles are that way. Slowly pump fresh grease in. Then old grease will come out. When you see fresh grease coming out, stop. Wipe grease off. Re install dust cap. Do not use pneumatic or cordless grease guns, or you could blow out seals.
You pronounced Meijer correctly Carl, I am a mitten state guy, good store and common here as well as northern Indiana. Mistakes are learning opportunity and we are all human and make them. 👍🏻👍🏻
Great that you got your camper fixed. And that you learned new Thing's. Best of all ya got to catch up with finding our somewhere. They are just as cool as you are. Someday we will meet. On our bucket list for sure. I do hope that he has a great birthday. My youngest has his Birthday July 5th.it was great too. Have a great time. Whatever you do just smile and wave. It will be okyday. I am glad that they were able to fix it. Whatever happens next it is what it is. Meyers campers or Bish's RV, Camping world. Whatever you.. Do your homework. Look at the specs. How the slides work. Make sure that the camper is accessible to the fridge and the bathroom and bedroom without opening the camper. And that you can access these areas without damaging the slides by walking on them. Good luck God Bless you both. I am glad that your cat is adjusting to all these changes. And approving them at the same time. At least ya did not forget the little furball. Have a great evening and weekend take care ya all
The beautiful thing is that the memories of tv life are recorded! And should you chose to live in a house you get the real experience of both!! Happy memories, love the Hanks!!🇺🇸
Dollar tree has small damp rid containers that you could put in the fridge and freezer the next time you're in the shop. Give the baby lots of pets and love.
I have my Grand Design Reflection rd260 in the shop for solar charger dead and half of my ground control leveling not working. They are fully replacing both on warranty. We just bought it in Feb 2024. I think they are replacing the battery as it won’t charge past 72%, since the solar charger died. We have a 12v compressor fridge, so it drained the 1 wet battery below half when we drove 7 hrs. Only half of my leveling works. Good luck! Great video!
I’m glad your not getting a new Rv. You guys got this. I learn so much from UA-cam for repairs. I’m so glad my Intech OVR Expedition has the sheetmetal above the tires in case of a blow out.
So happy that yall got your home back and it’s all fixed up!! Nothing worse than a big to do list! Sometimes it’s best to let the professionals do it cause you can’t beat a person at their own trade! But I am glad that yall got to take a break and enjoy some you time! So, now yall are back in your rig, Happy Camping and Safe Travels!! 🙏🏻🙏🏻❤️❤️😺😺
Just got back from the north east. Spent 2 mo this on this trip. We are a part time travelers. Reentry is still hard. It takes WEEKS to iron things out and get back to normal. And we’ve only been gone 2 months!
We have a 2021 forest river grand surveyor. When we got it, the breaks were not working. I took it back to my dealer. They checked everything. They said my 7 way plug on truck might not be good. It was fine. I wound up brandishing the breaks. They have worked fine ever since.
Be sure and check the torque of the U-bolts of the new axle from Dexter. They are the four bolts on top of the spring tie plate. They usually require 70-80 ft. lbs. And check them again after towing a few thousand miles. It is common for them to loose the torque specs during use. Once checked 2-3 times they should then be good.
We had a tech once tell us that lowering the front 6-8 pins to be in the sweet spot of the jacks. You have about 36 inches of movement on the electrical jack arms. Of course this is if your on somewhat level ground. If you are pointing up hill you would lower less and more if pointing down hill. We have found that this has worked well for us. Practically no issues since we’ve been doing this. Safe travels.
Yes, you need a new rig. I love the smaller rigs where you can pull in anywhere, do anything, and still have the amazing lifestyle you have come to enjoy. I go home, to a home I own. I yearn to be a fulltimer, but truly 5 weeks is awesome in a small rig, then go home for a while, then go back out... you will never not RV, just try a smaller RV. I prefer a class B for instance. Good luck... Love the videos.
Hey Hanks, I commented awhile back about the auto leveling. I to, had to have the brain replaced. I also make sure I’m connected to shore power when I auto level, we are glampers, “weekend warriors”. I’m curious as to how the fastened the sheet metal over the tires for blow outs? My biggest fear is a blowout cause of all the damage it can do. I’d love to see how they did it so I could do the same. As always, look forward to your video every Thursday!!! And shout out to the FOS crew!!!
The gain is the amount of pressure applied on your trailer brakes when you push on your truck breaks. When you barnish your trailer breaks you need to slide the lever on your trailer breaks so you only apply them.
On our 2nd camping trip in our new to us RV we had a blowout. Thankfully the damage was minimal and we continued on our way. Before heading out on our 3rd trip my husband had that same idea of the sheet metals . I hope manufacturers will consider this installment in all RV's because it's not IF you have a blowout it's WHEN you have a blowout. Look forward to your videos every week. Take care :)
Have you thought about wrapping the front end of your fifth? We are doing that first thing. Last about 5 years, warranted you can also do clear wrapping as well.
Hey, we love your videos! Just letting you know, our 2022 Jayco Eagle came from the factory with the sheet metal over the wheels. You asked, so there it is! Keep up the great work!
Glad they finally did that above the wheels. We put door kick plates above ours for that same reason. I was inspired when you got your blow out in Alaska. Safe travels
We just bought a Grand Design Influence 2903RL, it’s based on the Solitude. Love it so far. No issues during the two night shakedown cruise. I just watched your tour vid and I’m amazed at how many of your upgrades/addons came standard. Maybe they watch you. 😳
Your refreshing honesty and humility are why you are so popular in big part. Thank you for teaching me sooooo much with all your videos. You really inspired me! Hopefully one day I will go camping in my AS! 😂
Know what you mean about not having finances to get new RV. We'd love to get a new 1 that's a little larger than our 25+/- ft TT. But it's not in the cards for us. Hope you guys have safe travels in your newly refurbished RV🙏🏼
Great to see and hear you are back in your camper. I am actually glad you are not getting a new one. Right now you know what you have and honestly even if you buy brand new, these days you just don't know. Congrats on getting it all done and congrats on surviving the stress of it.
Be thankful it works at all. Our new 5ver, Ground Control 3.0 (i think) left rear jack has 'open loop' after 3 trips/uses. Now I lay on the ground and manually retract one or manually level while someone looks at a bubble level and gives me feedback. Thankfully the motor error prevents the slides from extending or retracting without a few 'resets' too. Ahhh, technology.
Glad you guys are back home, sticks and bricks were fine for the interim but nothing beats being back in your RV and everything working like it should. Rest and unpack and get ready for the next adventure
Good luck you two are fun to watch but I hate to see you have problems. We have been RVing for 45 years through three girls and have had a great time, but it is nice to have a mechanical mind.
We've downsized over the years from much larger rigs when we had our kids travel with us down to a class B Travato. I'm sure it's probably too small for you but it's perfect for the two of us with no kids or pets. The big difference other than size is much less moving parts to go awry. No slides, no levelers, super easy to repair and maintain. This is our 2nd class B over ten years, and we love the freedom and lack of repairs.
Cool down your fridge fast: Ask the local supermarket if they sell dry ice. Butchers, ice cream stores, someone sells it. Put a 10# block in the fridge and in two hours it will be frosty. And the compressor won't turn on until the dry ice is all gone.
Fos was my fav for long time, now there kind of hard to fallow video are speratic never knowing when next one is coming. They seem to be more interested in selling there merch.
I’m having so much fun watching this one… did you have your King loose in the back seat? We let ours do that and he found the window button and put the back window down …. Panic and unleashed…well we found one more thing to check before we drive off . Always learning from you two. Love Finding our someday family too
I do like having the push button release on our tanks in our Brinkley RV. They are electric and I no longer have to pull the handle. It has worked great for the past Year and a half of full time rving.
One thing I do is first thing when I arrive to the camp ground I unplug the trailer from truck power and hook up to shore power(if full hook ups) or fire up generator. I’ve always been told it’s best to be connected to power to run jacks and slides.
I just love ya'lls videos. I look forward to them every week. Ya'll are my inspiration to hopefully one day full time RV soon. Cant wait to see where ya'lls next rally will be. Would love to attend one someday soon. Keep the videos coming, ya'll are a hoot!!
I have just the opposite problem. My RV is parked out back, but my truck is sitting in the body shop waiting to be repaired. Meanwhile, I'm stuck with a Toyota Siena hybrid minivan rental. Pretty sure that won't pull a travel trailer...
When you guys thank us, it feels genuine. I know you mean it that way I'm just saying it comes off that way too - unlike some other channels. That said, pretty sneaky of y'all to colab with the FOS crew; double like.
I'm glad they replaced the under fabric with metal. I did the same a couple years ago. I also put high density foam between the flooring and the metal to absorb the energy of a blowout. Welcome home.
Amazing!! I never get that kind of treatment at the only RV dealer in my town. "The tech is too busy to meet with you, we are so slammed". Pay your bill and get outta here is the norm. I wish we had another choice without traveling a long ways.✌☮
I'm afraid to ask how much all those repairs set you back. They did a lot of work. I'm glad you got your camper back. New 5th wheel campers are expensive. We have a 31 foot travel trailer and our next one is going to be a 5th wheel. Safe travels.
Karl and NayNay....I just ❤you both and how you share. We are living the RV life vicariously through you because my husband had a health issue that stopped us from traveling just as we were starting. Glad that you got some things fixed and are learning as you go. You both are so amazing and so transparent. Would still some day love to meet you both and Dexter. If you are ever in La Pine, OR or Central Oregon, we hope to know!
Small world we were at the same rv park in Indiana. We were getting a tankless water heater installed in our RV. Hope your repairs solve your problems.
Thanks Hanks this last few weeks is a total win. Soli is refurbished, Hanks got to compare brick & stick again, Dexter has his castle back and Kyle got trailer tutoring. Thank you for sharing real Rv living.
congrats on being back in your rig. I noticed you filmed the segment on "Not buying a new RV" before you turned your rig in for the tune up at Grand Design (missing fender was the giveaway)! I have a couple of tips regarding brakes that I have learned over the years, one of which definitely saved the wife and I's lives 2 days into owning our first fifth wheel. We moved up from tent camping in 2001 and rapidly went from a pop up, to a Trailmanor, and finally to a Montana 5th wheel in 2007. We had purchased a used 2001 SRW Chevy 2500HD 2 weeks before we drove from Virginia to Michigan to pick up our new rig. We had some minor issues with the truck on the way to Michigan but a trip to a dealership in the Detroit Area where my brother was the head mechanic fixed some "minor" things the truck prep team had screwed up at the dealership in Virginia. One piece of advice I have learned from an owner's forum when we started towing the Trailmanor was if you have a control issue (blowout etc.) ALWAYS gain control of the truck/trailer ONLY by using the trailer brakes. Regain control, pull to a safe spot and then use the truck brakes to come to a complete stop. A change in tow vehicles (up to the HD Truck resulted in a change in location of the manual brake controller. I startled my poor wife a couple of times when without warning or looking down I "practiced" reaching and squeezing the manual controller without looking down for it first. After spending a night on the RV dealer lot (in the snow) we commenced our return journey to Virginia. Plan was to take 2 days, staying the first night at a service center on the Ohio - Pennsylvania border. The next day while traveling on the Pennsylvania turnpike there was a stretch of highway that was grooved/roughed up to reapply asphalt. We noticed a bit of sway and side to side motion while moving down the road at 60MPH but attributed it to the rough surface of the road - it wasn't! At 60MPH, the rear wheel on the driver's side of the truck left us. We heard a loud noise and a violent lateral motion, and I instinctively reached down and applied the trailer brakes. It wasn't until we were safely on the side of the road that I touched the truck brakes and the back end of the truck dropped to the ground. Getting out I found the driver side rear end "sitting" on the disk brake with no wheel or tire in sight. Long story short, the dealer had pulled that wheel to perform the brake inspection required for our state inspection sticker and did not properly torque the lug nuts and I was not experienced enough to check the torque. Over the course of a day and a half travel pulling the 5th wheel ALL EIGHT lug nuts backed off of the studs and became projectiles on the highway. I prayed that no one was injured by these 2-inch chunks of steel bouncing into their vehicle at highway speed. The state trooper really blew my wife's composure when he looked at the truck, looked at the 36-foot 5th wheel, looked back at the truck resting on its disk brake and asked, "Why aren't you dead?" If I had hit the truck brakes and buried the brake disk into the grooved pavement at 60MPH would probably would have been. In one of the very first movies about traveling with a trailer, The Long, Long Trailer Dezi repeats over and over the advice from the salesman......Trailer Brakes First, Trailer Brakes First.....I can tell you that rule of thumb is still valid today!
Congratulations on getting back on the road. I’m really happy that the repairs went well and I can’t wait to see you the next videos of your next adventure. Have a great weekend and a great week.
Kyle/Karl your humility is refreshing. None of us are born knowing how to do everything. You have my utmost respect for trying!! Thank you for your wonderful videos.
That's how i learn to fix stuff, boss said go fix this, watched me fail then said this is what you did wrong try again. Now I'm the guy saying this is what you did wrong on most things.
@@jemarty666ih
@@JustMe-pn6xw hi.
Our 2023 397 has been at GD since 7/8 getting extensive repairs and we are still waiting for it to be done. Thank you both for sharing the good, the bad and the ugly truth of RVing.
I love the sound of rain in the rv
Hold onto your RV. Just because something breaks doesn't mean you should rush out to buy a new one. Doing so could lead to more issues and debt.
Plus the new ones quality isn’t as good as your older rig in most cases!
I've also heard that there have been numerous issues with the newer RVs since 2021.
One of the many things I like about living my Class B van is that, in a sticks and bricks, if you get terrible neighbors, you are stuck. In my van, I simply drive to another place. Same with really bad weather, I have the option of driving to someplace with better weather. I like having choices. Safe travels you guys.
Are you going to tell us what it cost to have all that done?
I'm always impressed by your willingness to show your many mistakes.
Don’t be embarrassed! We all learn together and I appreciate the transparency and humbleness you show. I’ve messed up so many times with our RV’s over the years and still make mistakes. Y’all are awesome!
No joke but I almost started to cry when I really thought y’all were gonna stop RVing 😓 so glad your still traveling and taking us along with you!
Buying the RV is the easy part. The maintenance is the hard part, to keep up with what needs to be done.
Good for you for staying debt free! That Solitude has a LOT of miles left in it. No need to buy a new one. Free advice: Plan your exit strategy (not for a long time yet, I hope) and keep up your nurse's licenses.
Agree that this channel is one of the most warts-and-all RV channels, which we love! QUESTION for Kyle/Renee: have you considered a Class A/B/C instead of a 5th wheel? For the current cost of buying/maintaining both vehicles, you could easily full-time in a decent motorhome, IMHO. I'm just asking b/c we're currently weighing that exact decision (pull vs. motorhome) and we would love to hear your honest thoughts. Thanks for being so real!
I was thinking the same. I have a fifth wheel and one ton but thinking same money sturdier ok maybe more money but not much
If you haven’t already, I think it would be really nice to talk about how you planned the move from the RV for repairs. I’m sure it wasn’t easy but y’all seemed so prepared. Maybe things to consider for people who might have this happen to them. Thank you for such great and transparent videos!
Hi Courtney! That’s a great suggestion! We’ll definitely consider sharing more about how we prepared for the RV repairs and the things we had to think about along the way. Thanks so much for your kind words and for watching our videos ❤️
I feel you when you pulled that grey water handle, My new toy hauler has 2 black tanks , 2 grey tanks and a fresh water tank. One of the grey water handles snapped off when I was trying to close the tank and my heart sank. I went months without being able to close it and once I got it replaced under warranty I got excited that it worked again. When my tire blew out the repair shop put aluminum under my trailer to protect it from water etc. I might have mistaken them for Canadians backing up, that's what most Canadians do when they pull into a parking lot we back in. Having been all over Canada and the USA I notice Americans front in everywhere, when you drive an F350 dually with an 8' box you need to see backing up so fronting in isn't an option.
Love the humility and self deprecating humor.
I am impressed that your RV was repaired, better than when you purchased it. (Checked and replaced lag bolts, checked for hitch area frame bend…. ) Glad there is outstanding *work-person-ship* still available.
Large youtube audience has to help big-time
Yeah, keep an eye on those lag bolts. 1/2" x 3-1/2" is what I plan to use with a mixture of jb weld or sika flex 1c SL from home depot. Use a wall stud finder and pre-drill the rest of the lag bolts that are missing. Both side of the bedroom. I've measured 4" that I can work with. With the 2" metal beam and about 1-1/2", including washer, should hold the 1/2" x 3-1/2" lag bolts. Search for your lag bolts through the carpet. Keep note of it. We don't have carpet. It's behind our dresser and under our east to west bed. Good luck and safe travels.
Glad you got the rig repaired! Now come on up to Maine for a visit.
I’ll stick with the Cape, bigger strippers.
Whenever using the levelers and slides, I always left the trailer 7 way plug, plugged into the running truck. Helps keep the voltage up and less strain on the batteries. Looks like GD did a great job on the repairs!!
I had a 42ft solitude, i kept her plugged into the truck only to manually lower the legs and lift her to get her off the hitch. Then if at a rv site with power i would plug her in for the auto level. The truck has to be clear away for auto levelling, cant keep her plugged into the truck for this. Then the slides go out after she's auto levelled. 🍻
If you decide on a new rv look at Brinkley and make sure you get the Gen Y pin box and moride suspension to make the rv ride smoothly. Or you can install those on your fithwheel to improve it
Absolutely agree!
Brinkleys aren’t that good
Hey Hanks... Just wanted to follow-up with my last comment on your wheel bearing re-pack. I was worried about that rear seal!!! The way I pack my bearings is after you put the rear seal in, just add a little extra grease to the back bearing to fill the void between the bearing and rear seal. After that, I just leave it alone. Every 12 months, re-pack. Never had an issue. Something my father-in-law taught me! Bearings need some air to stay cool, but that is the best way to keep that happy medium between grease and air! Glad you have your home back!!!
Don’t know why you disappeared from my timeline months ago, but glad you’re back. Missed you! (And Dexter)
Sometimes weird things can happen with UA-cam unsubscribing you. Thank you for your amazing support ❤️ Dexter sends his love, as do we!
@@HappilyEverHanks my dad was a veterinarian, and I was his tech. Dexter is the dude for me. Glad he’s happy.
That's amazing :)
I’m so happy you guys are keeping your RV and that you are staying in the road! 🙂
I have found that Crocs give more stability than flip flops while still being easy to remove and put back on - although they do look a lot more clunkier!
Renee one of my favorite cleaners to use in the refrigerator is plain old baking soda. It removes most black marks and odors!! I have not tried it with mold though. Regardless your refrigerator looks wonderful!
Yes, with vinegar.
Ahhh, the joys of learning from hard knocks! Best teacher ever! Grew up on a farm in the NW. Same teacher. Learned lots. Did a lot of stuff more than once. Still do! Gotta love what you do! Keep it going Hanks! See you out there.
Welcome home! I'm glad that all the repairs were done well and hopefully you will have several more years of bringing us great RV/camping content! ♥
Wow!! We still do not know what it is like to auto level. Gone through the wringer trying to fix it, reset it, etc.! Yes we still do it manual since we got it in 2019. It worked for 6 months…
So glad you got everything fixed. It’s gotta feel like a brand new unit. 😎😄
So cool to see Corey and Jessie they are the 1st RV channel I started watching. Have loved watching their family adventures. So nice to see a meet up with them.
We r rv’ers, for over 25 yrs 4 rv,s later, we r still married going on 49ers. We r retired and only weekend travelers staying n Texas. Your videos r great and I relate to your problems. Keep up the entertainment
Would really like to know the cost breakdown. I've had a blowout recently and that same damage will need to be address soon. As far as what they said on too much grease blowing the seal is not totally correct. The axle is designed to allow the grease to flow through a hole in the center of axle and come out near where you are putting it in. If you put the grease in too quickly it then can build up pressure which can force the rear seal to come off. Great job guys keep on the RV life!
My dexter axles are that way. Slowly pump fresh grease in. Then old grease will come out. When you see fresh grease coming out, stop. Wipe grease off. Re install dust cap.
Do not use pneumatic or cordless grease guns, or you could blow out seals.
You pronounced Meijer correctly Carl, I am a mitten state guy, good store and common here as well as northern Indiana. Mistakes are learning opportunity and we are all human and make them. 👍🏻👍🏻
We have 'em on the Western side of the lake too. Ours usually has amazing deals on meat.
We love following Finding Our Someday! They’re Mainiacs!!! So glad you all got to hook up! He is so right for the Dude card
Great that you got your camper fixed. And that you learned new Thing's. Best of all ya got to catch up with finding our somewhere. They are just as cool as you are. Someday we will meet. On our bucket list for sure. I do hope that he has a great birthday. My youngest has his Birthday July 5th.it was great too. Have a great time. Whatever you do just smile and wave. It will be okyday. I am glad that they were able to fix it. Whatever happens next it is what it is. Meyers campers or Bish's RV, Camping world. Whatever you.. Do your homework. Look at the specs. How the slides work. Make sure that the camper is accessible to the fridge and the bathroom and bedroom without opening the camper. And that you can access these areas without damaging the slides by walking on them. Good luck God Bless you both. I am glad that your cat is adjusting to all these changes. And approving them at the same time. At least ya did not forget the little furball. Have a great evening and weekend take care ya all
Had same problem on leveling system. Changed control panel. Got it off of Amazon for much cheaper. Happy Travels!
Glad you aren't quitting full time! I was a little depressed
I suspect you had the original 50 amp fuse for your leveling system,GD replaced it with an 80 amp fuse(that’s what I did myself)GD now uses 80 amp.
I just love videos of all RV upgrades and repairs. And then for the finale of total cost..................
The beautiful thing is that the memories of tv life are recorded! And should you chose to live in a house you get the real experience of both!! Happy memories, love the Hanks!!🇺🇸
Dollar tree has small damp rid containers that you could put in the fridge and freezer the next time you're in the shop.
Give the baby lots of pets and love.
Two of my three favorite RV families!!
I have my Grand Design Reflection rd260 in the shop for solar charger dead and half of my ground control leveling not working. They are fully replacing both on warranty. We just bought it in Feb 2024. I think they are replacing the battery as it won’t charge past 72%, since the solar charger died. We have a 12v compressor fridge, so it drained the 1 wet battery below half when we drove 7 hrs. Only half of my leveling works. Good luck! Great video!
I’m glad your not getting a new Rv. You guys got this. I learn so much from UA-cam for repairs. I’m so glad my Intech OVR Expedition has the sheetmetal above the tires in case of a blow out.
So happy that yall got your home back and it’s all fixed up!! Nothing worse than a big to do list! Sometimes it’s best to let the professionals do it cause you can’t beat a person at their own trade! But I am glad that yall got to take a break and enjoy some you time! So, now yall are back in your rig, Happy Camping and Safe Travels!! 🙏🏻🙏🏻❤️❤️😺😺
Glad You got the RV Back and it's Healthy. Love Finding Our Someday. Cool seeing You all Together Again. God Bless You both.
Just got back from the north east. Spent 2 mo this on this trip. We are a part time travelers. Reentry is still hard. It takes WEEKS to iron things out and get back to normal. And we’ve only been gone 2 months!
Hanks!!! You’re guys videos relax me for some reason and your good attitudes just put me in a good mood
We have a 2021 forest river grand surveyor. When we got it, the breaks were not working. I took it back to my dealer. They checked everything. They said my 7 way plug on truck might not be good. It was fine. I wound up brandishing the breaks. They have worked fine ever since.
Be sure and check the torque of the U-bolts of the new axle from Dexter. They are the four bolts on top of the spring tie plate. They usually require 70-80 ft. lbs. And check them again after towing a few thousand miles. It is common for them to loose the torque specs during use. Once checked 2-3 times they should then be good.
We have a no shoe policy in the rv so we have crocs/house shoes for quick trips outside.... helps alot
We had a tech once tell us that lowering the front 6-8 pins to be in the sweet spot of the jacks. You have about 36 inches of movement on the electrical jack arms. Of course this is if your on somewhat level ground. If you are pointing up hill you would lower less and more if pointing down hill. We have found that this has worked well for us. Practically no issues since we’ve been doing this. Safe travels.
Can u do a video
I can try in the next couple of days.
Yes, you need a new rig. I love the smaller rigs where you can pull in anywhere, do anything, and still have the amazing lifestyle you have come to enjoy. I go home, to a home I own. I yearn to be a fulltimer, but truly 5 weeks is awesome in a small rig, then go home for a while, then go back out... you will never not RV, just try a smaller RV. I prefer a class B for instance. Good luck... Love the videos.
Hey Hanks, I commented awhile back about the auto leveling. I to, had to have the brain replaced. I also make sure I’m connected to shore power when I auto level, we are glampers, “weekend warriors”. I’m curious as to how the fastened the sheet metal over the tires for blow outs? My biggest fear is a blowout cause of all the damage it can do. I’d love to see how they did it so I could do the same. As always, look forward to your video every Thursday!!! And shout out to the FOS crew!!!
So great to have you back and see Smiley Dexter be happy camper!! So happy for you and thanks for this week video!🎉👍
Firefighters back in too!
The gain is the amount of pressure applied on your trailer brakes when you push on your truck breaks. When you barnish your trailer breaks you need to slide the lever on your trailer breaks so you only apply them.
Love you guys, glad the repairs worked out... didn't hear what the cost for all those repairs was.
On our 2nd camping trip in our new to us RV we had a blowout. Thankfully the damage was minimal and we continued on our way. Before heading out on our 3rd trip my husband had that same idea of the sheet metals . I hope manufacturers will consider this installment in all RV's because it's not IF you have a blowout it's WHEN you have a blowout. Look forward to your videos every week. Take care :)
my favorite type of fifth wheel was always the front living layout. If you do look at new ones, i would just give it a look!
Have you thought about wrapping the front end of your fifth? We are doing that first thing. Last about 5 years, warranted you can also do clear wrapping as well.
Hey, we love your videos! Just letting you know, our 2022 Jayco Eagle came from the factory with the sheet metal over the wheels. You asked, so there it is! Keep up the great work!
Glad they finally did that above the wheels. We put door kick plates above ours for that same reason. I was inspired when you got your blow out in Alaska. Safe travels
Glad yall got your home back and all is good. Carl you squalling tires headed to outback brother . Yall Stay safe.
We just bought a Grand Design Influence 2903RL, it’s based on the Solitude. Love it so far. No issues during the two night shakedown cruise.
I just watched your tour vid and I’m amazed at how many of your upgrades/addons came standard. Maybe they watch you. 😳
Your refreshing honesty and humility are why you are so popular in big part. Thank you for teaching me sooooo much with all your videos. You really inspired me! Hopefully one day I will go camping in my AS! 😂
Know what you mean about not having finances to get new RV. We'd love to get a new 1 that's a little larger than our 25+/- ft TT. But it's not in the cards for us. Hope you guys have safe travels in your newly refurbished RV🙏🏼
Great to see and hear you are back in your camper. I am actually glad you are not getting a new one. Right now you know what you have and honestly even if you buy brand new, these days you just don't know. Congrats on getting it all done and congrats on surviving the stress of it.
Be thankful it works at all. Our new 5ver, Ground Control 3.0 (i think) left rear jack has 'open loop' after 3 trips/uses. Now I lay on the ground and manually retract one or manually level while someone looks at a bubble level and gives me feedback. Thankfully the motor error prevents the slides from extending or retracting without a few 'resets' too. Ahhh, technology.
We have had an Airstream for 2 years. We feel your pain and send warm hugs and much love. Keep it real. ❤
Welcome home🎉 ❤ The Hanks Trio😎🇺🇸
Dude you are great! I shared this video with all my friends.
Thank you so much! We appreciate your support in watching 😃 Cheers!
Welcome home, Hanks! So glad you're back in, safe and sound. It was humid as heck in S Ohio too. A nice, dry cool down now!
I'm very happy for all of you. Happy Trails!😊😊🐈
Is it just me or does Karl remind anyone else of French Stewart from 3rd Rock from the Sun?
Always has....😂😂😂
Glad you guys are back home, sticks and bricks were fine for the interim but nothing beats being back in your RV and everything working like it should. Rest and unpack and get ready for the next adventure
So happy yall got everything fixed like you wanted. It’s a great new start to more fun adventures. Enjoy!
Good luck you two are fun to watch but I hate to see you have problems. We have been RVing for 45 years through three girls and have had a great time, but it is nice to have a mechanical mind.
We've downsized over the years from much larger rigs when we had our kids travel with us down to a class B Travato. I'm sure it's probably too small for you but it's perfect for the two of us with no kids or pets. The big difference other than size is much less moving parts to go awry. No slides, no levelers, super easy to repair and maintain. This is our 2nd class B over ten years, and we love the freedom and lack of repairs.
Cool down your fridge fast: Ask the local supermarket if they sell dry ice. Butchers, ice cream stores, someone sells it. Put a 10# block in the fridge and in two hours it will be frosty. And the compressor won't turn on until the dry ice is all gone.
Fos was my fav for long time, now there kind of hard to fallow video are speratic never knowing when next one is coming. They seem to be more interested in selling there merch.
I’m having so much fun watching this one… did you have your King loose in the back seat? We let ours do that and he found the window button and put the back window down …. Panic and unleashed…well we found one more thing to check before we drive off . Always learning from you two. Love Finding our someday family too
I do like having the push button release on our tanks in our Brinkley RV. They are electric and I no longer have to pull the handle. It has worked great for the past Year and a half of full time rving.
One thing I do is first thing when I arrive to the camp ground I unplug the trailer from truck power and hook up to shore power(if full hook ups) or fire up generator. I’ve always been told it’s best to be connected to power to run jacks and slides.
I just love ya'lls videos. I look forward to them every week. Ya'll are my inspiration to hopefully one day full time RV soon. Cant wait to see where ya'lls next rally will be. Would love to attend one someday soon. Keep the videos coming, ya'll are a hoot!!
I have just the opposite problem. My RV is parked out back, but my truck is sitting in the body shop waiting to be repaired. Meanwhile, I'm stuck with a Toyota Siena hybrid minivan rental. Pretty sure that won't pull a travel trailer...
When you guys thank us, it feels genuine. I know you mean it that way I'm just saying it comes off that way too - unlike some other channels. That said, pretty sneaky of y'all to colab with the FOS crew; double like.
Thanks for another great segment. I learn something every week. Over 23k miles in 16 months and going strong. Grandpa Jack
I'm glad they replaced the under fabric with metal. I did the same a couple years ago. I also put high density foam between the flooring and the metal to absorb the energy of a blowout. Welcome home.
Love your videos!! I can only hope that Grand Design will treat everyone the same as they treated you guys.
Thanks again for your being able to share in an entertaining way.
Amazing!! I never get that kind of treatment at the only RV dealer in my town. "The tech is too busy to meet with you, we are so slammed". Pay your bill and get outta here is the norm. I wish we had another choice without traveling a long ways.✌☮
My answer is: Okay! I’ll wait and not pay the bill until they come out.
I'm afraid to ask how much all those repairs set you back. They did a lot of work. I'm glad you got your camper back. New 5th wheel campers are expensive. We have a 31 foot travel trailer and our next one is going to be a 5th wheel. Safe travels.
Karl and NayNay....I just ❤you both and how you share. We are living the RV life vicariously through you because my husband had a health issue that stopped us from traveling just as we were starting. Glad that you got some things fixed and are learning as you go. You both are so amazing and so transparent. Would still some day love to meet you both and Dexter. If you are ever in La Pine, OR or Central Oregon, we hope to know!
Because you guys I'm loving the DOTS pretzels honey mustard.
My two MOST favorite RV families !! Great to see you all together.
Small world we were at the same rv park in Indiana. We were getting a tankless water heater installed in our RV. Hope your repairs solve your problems.
Thanks Hanks this last few weeks is a total win. Soli is refurbished, Hanks got to compare brick & stick again, Dexter has his castle back and Kyle got trailer tutoring. Thank you for sharing real Rv living.
Great video. I actually learned a lot, found it interesting, and I'm not even into RVs.
congrats on being back in your rig. I noticed you filmed the segment on "Not buying a new RV" before you turned your rig in for the tune up at Grand Design (missing fender was the giveaway)! I have a couple of tips regarding brakes that I have learned over the years, one of which definitely saved the wife and I's lives 2 days into owning our first fifth wheel. We moved up from tent camping in 2001 and rapidly went from a pop up, to a Trailmanor, and finally to a Montana 5th wheel in 2007. We had purchased a used 2001 SRW Chevy 2500HD 2 weeks before we drove from Virginia to Michigan to pick up our new rig. We had some minor issues with the truck on the way to Michigan but a trip to a dealership in the Detroit Area where my brother was the head mechanic fixed some "minor" things the truck prep team had screwed up at the dealership in Virginia. One piece of advice I have learned from an owner's forum when we started towing the Trailmanor was if you have a control issue (blowout etc.) ALWAYS gain control of the truck/trailer ONLY by using the trailer brakes. Regain control, pull to a safe spot and then use the truck brakes to come to a complete stop. A change in tow vehicles (up to the HD Truck resulted in a change in location of the manual brake controller. I startled my poor wife a couple of times when without warning or looking down I "practiced" reaching and squeezing the manual controller without looking down for it first. After spending a night on the RV dealer lot (in the snow) we commenced our return journey to Virginia. Plan was to take 2 days, staying the first night at a service center on the Ohio - Pennsylvania border. The next day while traveling on the Pennsylvania turnpike there was a stretch of highway that was grooved/roughed up to reapply asphalt. We noticed a bit of sway and side to side motion while moving down the road at 60MPH but attributed it to the rough surface of the road - it wasn't! At 60MPH, the rear wheel on the driver's side of the truck left us. We heard a loud noise and a violent lateral motion, and I instinctively reached down and applied the trailer brakes. It wasn't until we were safely on the side of the road that I touched the truck brakes and the back end of the truck dropped to the ground. Getting out I found the driver side rear end "sitting" on the disk brake with no wheel or tire in sight. Long story short, the dealer had pulled that wheel to perform the brake inspection required for our state inspection sticker and did not properly torque the lug nuts and I was not experienced enough to check the torque. Over the course of a day and a half travel pulling the 5th wheel ALL EIGHT lug nuts backed off of the studs and became projectiles on the highway. I prayed that no one was injured by these 2-inch chunks of steel bouncing into their vehicle at highway speed. The state trooper really blew my wife's composure when he looked at the truck, looked at the 36-foot 5th wheel, looked back at the truck resting on its disk brake and asked, "Why aren't you dead?" If I had hit the truck brakes and buried the brake disk into the grooved pavement at 60MPH would probably would have been. In one of the very first movies about traveling with a trailer, The Long, Long Trailer Dezi repeats over and over the advice from the salesman......Trailer Brakes First, Trailer Brakes First.....I can tell you that rule of thumb is still valid today!
Congratulations on getting back on the road. I’m really happy that the repairs went well and I can’t wait to see you the next videos of your next adventure. Have a great weekend and a great week.
But were all wondering how much did all those repairs cost.
Love the Collaboration with the other guys, it made the whole video for me