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Old 04-12-2015, 06:02 PM   #1
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2023 25' Globetrotter
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First impressions

We brought our New Airstream home on Friday and slept in it the last two night (driveway camping). I have some first impressions I thought I would share. We have a 25' FC RB twin. The Refrigerator fan is noisy and the water pump is loud. The gas furnace works well.

The twin mattresses are comfy and just roomy enough. We did hit our heads a couple of times on the overhead cabinets above the twin beads. The subwoofer hums when the LED lights are on. We have to slam the door to get it to shut, we sprayed the latch with silicone and it seems some better.

The stereo sounds pretty good. The Antenna is okay, we only get about 4 channels OTA where we live. Backing in to park it is very hard, but i'll just keep doing it anyway.

Towing it is interesting, the equalizer hitch is a pita. The cushions are very comfortable in the dinette and lounge.The interior aluminum walls get cold to the touch at night by the bed.

Actually we love it so far. Next week we are taking it out to southern Indiana to visit my dad. For now it waits for us patiently in this lineup of other not as glamorous campers.


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Old 04-12-2015, 06:15 PM   #2
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Congratulations on your new acquisition

Our fridge fan never stops. I've replaced the thermistor once and it worked for a while but it's back to being constantly on. The vanes are slightly above room temperature. Even when it's close to freezing the fan runs. I just go outside and turn it off by unplugging it.

Our water pump is noisy too. Someone here in the forum said they put a section of hard rubber underneath the mounting bolts and that helped. I may try that this year.

What's wrong with the Equalizer? Other than being noisy we've not had any problems with ours. I grease the ball and the spring arm sockets to keep the noise down, otherwise, it's fine.

We're happy with ours, warts and all. I think all trailers have issue.
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Old 04-12-2015, 06:19 PM   #3
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I have read on AF that others have had issues with the sub as well. I believe the solution is a filter you can plug into the sub. Anyhow.......do a search and you should find the solution.


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Old 04-12-2015, 06:23 PM   #4
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If you put too much pressure on the stabilizer bars it will cause the frame to twist just enough to make the door not shut easily. I only say that because our first weekend we used the stabilizer bars to level because that's what our salesman told us to do. Thank God we didn't do Long term damage. Also, our water pump is extremely loud. Would be interested to know if that's normal and what all other things people have done. Enjoy the new stream.
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Old 04-12-2015, 06:25 PM   #5
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The subwoofer is a POS. You can try an inline filter (there is already one on the RCA cable at the back of the stereo), but replacing it is a better idea.

Actually, I think it is so bad, the stereo will probably sound better with out it!
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Old 04-12-2015, 07:09 PM   #6
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I have no problems with my sub - no interference and it sounds great to me. The water pump is loud - I don't know why but I like it :-)

Wait til you try the heat pump! :-)

It's quirky. You can do tons to it to really make it yours. Have fun!
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Old 04-13-2015, 03:14 PM   #7
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What brand of WD hitch did they sell you? And why is it a PITA?

It looks lonely in the lineup. It wants to go!
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Old 04-13-2015, 03:41 PM   #8
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I likeyour photo. It makes me understand why a campground manager last year said "Are you in the little Airstream?" This after we moved up to this HUGE 25' from or 20'!! It does look small in that lineup.
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Old 04-13-2015, 03:56 PM   #9
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I've never felt that water pumps are quiet, although the pump in my Classic is the least noisy of all the pumps that have been in my previous trailers. As noted earlier if you have too much pressure on a stabilizer jack(s) you can torque the frame which will make the door hard to close. I remember my twin beds on my Safari and remember my legs hitting the hang down closet that was near the end of the bed. Also remember hitting my head while attempting to make the bed. Bare walls are cold in cool weather. That's a real turn off for me in the newer trailers. I still have the carpeted walls which are much more comfortable in the early and late camping season. I'm not sure if you have an Equal-i-zer branded hitch or an "equalizer" hitch. I have the Equal-i-zer brand, and while it has a few parts, it becomes pretty automatic once you've worked with it a while. If it is this hitch, you might consider purchasing a spares kit that contains the small components, just in case you lose one.

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Old 04-13-2015, 04:38 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hans627 View Post
What brand of WD hitch did they sell you? And why is it a PITA?

It looks lonely in the lineup. It wants to go!
It's an Equal-i-zer brand. It's just hard to get the sway bars on and off the L brackets without almost lifting the rear end of the truck off the ground. But that's how they instructed us to do it. It looks like this one.

If you ever get over this way, Come check out the rig. PM for my number.



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Old 04-13-2015, 06:01 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SteveSueMac View Post
The water pump is loud - I don't know why but I like it :-)

Wait til you try the heat pump! :-)
The only issue I have with the water pump is the noise for tent campers next door, if we have any. It used to bother me, but now I've grown accustomed to its noise music.

Oh yes! The heat pump! How could I forget THAT noise We have the 15K btu model and does that thing ever heat/cool/deafen you. We have to turn it off to hear the TV but we can sleep through it; offsets the water pump sound
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Old 04-13-2015, 07:14 PM   #12
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First impressions

It is typical that you may have to raise the hitch jack to help get those bars on and off the brackets. The amount of lift on the rear end of your tow vehicle varies on the ground level that the tow vehicle sits on vs. the level of the trailer. When you are on a site that slants downhill towards the rear of the trailer, you normally have to lift that rear end of the tow vehicle higher. I've been in sites that sometimes require a block of wood under the hitch jack post in order to get that rear end up enough due to the fact that the hitch jack post reached its travel limit. It's just not the Equal-I-zer brand either. My Reese hitch had snap up brackets that wee impossible or unsafe to move unless you raised the rear end of the tow vehicle up to take the pressure off the bars. With time you will learn how high is high enough based on site conditions. I've never taken the tires off the ground but I have raised my van almost to the limits of the suspension's travel. Thank goodness for power hitches.
I know my Equal-i-zer came with a hooked small bar to help muscle the big bar onto the bracket. I used it at first but found using the power hitch was easier on the arms.

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Old 04-13-2015, 07:30 PM   #13
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First impressions

Quote:
Originally Posted by richw46 View Post
Our water pump is noisy too. Someone here in the forum said they put a section of hard rubber underneath the mounting bolts and that helped. I may try that this year.
The pump should make little or no noise. Ensure that the intake fitting at the pump is on straight and strong finger tight. If that fitting is loose, air finds its way into the pump and helps to set up a vibration. Jim




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Old 04-13-2015, 08:24 PM   #14
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You may be using too much weight distribution. What model hitch did you get? Did you watch the dealer set up the hitch? Did they follow the procedure in the manual? If you don't know what they did you should check the setup.

To check it, measure the height of the front wheel well opening at its highest point in line with the center of the wheel under three conditions. First, with the trailer disconnected take a measurement and write it down. Then hook up the trailer, and raise the tongue jack so the weight of the tongue is on the hitch but do not use the weight distribution bars. Take another measurement and write it down. On my F-150 the front end lifted about an inch and a half; on my Ram 2500 it only went up 1/4 inch. Then hook up the weight distribution and measure it again. The goal is to return the front end at least halfway, back from the second measurement to the first. I go all the way back. You should not have the front end lower with WD hooked up than it was with no trailer. If you do, the hitch is not set up properly.

Ideally this setup would be done with the tow vehicle and trailer loaded as you plan to use it, but for now you just want to be sure yours isn't set up with too much WD applied.



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Old 04-21-2015, 08:29 PM   #15
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Our 2016 Flying Cloud (25 rear twin bed) is ordered & we're anxiously waiting. This will be my 6th RV, first was a 19ft Minnie Winnie MH back in the 70's to an eventual 40ft diesel pusher with a few others in between. They ALL have noisy components like water pumps, refers etc, it's just part of the experience & you get use to it. We learned early on that our homes on wheels are just different. Enjoy the life style, as some strange noises are part of it!
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Old 04-21-2015, 09:40 PM   #16
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The pump should make little or no noise. Ensure that the intake fitting at the pump is on straight and strong finger tight. If that fitting is loose, air finds its way into the pump and helps to set up a vibration. Jim
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Thanks, but it's not air in the lines, it's the vibration of the pump against the floor. It's not terribly loud outside. Mostly it's an issue at night when one of us flushes and wakes the other. We don't dry camp much so not a major issue. When I get all the other stuff done I'll put some thick rubber between it and the floor, that should do it.
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Old 04-23-2015, 09:11 AM   #17
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First impressions

We have a 23' FC, with a smaller bed than you have, and it does get cozy for the two of us at night. The first few times, my wife, who was sleeping next to the wall, froze her butt off! She got one of those ensolite pads from an outdoor store that backpackers use under their sleeping bags at night, and wedged it between the bed and the aluminum wall. Problem solved; butt now warm at night.

I have the same equalizer system you have, and it was installed a notch too low by the dealer. Basically, if you're parked on level ground, the system should keep your fully loaded trailer level, and not slanted up or down. You can check this with a carpenter's level held on the side moulding or some other spot on the trailer that should be level. Once I got it leveled out, the trailer towed more smoothly, didn't bounce around as much, and was easier to put those bars on and take them off. It's a little hard to tell from the picture but you might have the opposite problem: it's possible your's could be too high. It's not hard to change the position yourself, if you have the correct sized wrench or socket.


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Old 04-27-2015, 08:39 AM   #18
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We just bought the 16 and I thought the same thing about the cold metal wall. I was planning on lining it with a this yoga type Matt. My question is do the walls sweat? Or are they insulated enough? I'm deff going to be cold up against that back wall. Brr
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Old 04-27-2015, 10:00 AM   #19
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oh the can sweat definitely....mostly though you can manage moisture by using the furnace I believe...that thing dries out the inside of the trailer quite well...although my experience camping in very cold conditions is limited at this point to a few nights at or near freezing and more than that in the 40's. I am not sure of this, but assume that if you run the heat pumps (mine are loud as all get out), and you do not exhaust off air over-night, you could see condensation inside...I recall seeing just that very early on when we bought the airstream...we bought it in November..and I recall seeing some condensation when I ran heat pumps only...

Never yet have I seen it with the furnace....

In summer heat, the AC keeps things pretty bone dry it seems based on my experience.
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Old 04-27-2015, 10:51 AM   #20
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Buy some bracket jackets for the Equalizer. Helps with the noise. Lube the arm sockets on the Equalizer head.

Replace the TV antenna with a Jack TV antenna.

Replace the fridge fan with a quiet fan, install an on/off switch.

I put pipe insulation around the output pipes near the pipe. Some of the noise are the pipe vibrating against each other or other items. Seems to have helped with some of the noise in my Airstream.

You can make or purchase "baby" bumpers to put on the twin bed walls. Unfortunately the bedroom has a lot of windows which are single pane and cold air comes with that. Wear a pullover cap on cold nights. I have to since I'm bald on the top of my head.

I have the mouse fur on my walls and the padded vinyl ceiling which helps a bit.

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