Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Blue Ox Base Plate Issues Resolved

 

Wesley Chapel, Florida (high 93, low 72)

 

Blue Box Base Plate

When we had the Blue Ox Base Plate re-installed back on our truck, we paid the $400+ bill, not really expecting to get our money refunded from the company that originally  did the installation.

The bracket that was attached to our Nissan truck was coming loose, which could have caused us to lose the truck while towing it behind the motor home.  Thank God that Al found the problem.   In case you missed it, you can read about it here.

After we had the bracket properly installed at Rv Medic here in Tampa, Al called Rentz Trailers to tell them of the  problem.  They told us to bring the truck and receipt and they would take a look.  It’s about a 45 minute trip over there and we had a lot of other things on our plate.  We really didn’t have the time for a wasted trip (like we thought it would be), but we drove over there first thing Monday morning.

We spoke to Joe, who is the owner.  He is the one we had problems with before.  We had some problems with bad work and when we complained, he was rude.  We were not looking forward to dealing with him again.

Rv Medic gave us a receipt detailing the problems they found, along with the bolts that had no sign of having any of the required RED Lock tight on them.

Joe took a few minutes to read the receipt.  We reminded him of the other problems we had  last year, and that there was a trainee working on our truck.  The trainer was supposed to have been checking the trainee’s work.  Obviously, he didn’t.

Joe looked kind of sheepish, apologized and without question, proceeded to write us a check for the entire mount of the repair at Rv Medic.  He kept the bolts so that he could show to the guy who was doing the training last year.  I suggested they go back in their records and see who else had base plates installed, as they should probably be notified.

Score one for the good guys!

We asked Joe if they could do an inspection on the driveshaft disconnect that they also installed. He said sure, but he couldn’t get to it right now.  They were short two mechanics and already had cars on the two lifts they had.

Now, if it had of been my business, I would probably have taken one of those other vehicles off the lift and checked ours out.  He said we could bring it back another day and they would schedule an appointment.  No thanks.

So….would we use them again.  Probably not.   Now that we have used Rv Medic, we trust them and like the way they do business.

 

Washing Machine Repair

Tim  of Stratton Rv Service  called Monday afternoon to say he could come to fix our leaking washing machine in about 20 minutes. We had to rush to get the kitties in their cages, and empty the closet so he would have room to work. 

He ran an empty wash cycle to see where the leak was coming from, and don’t you know it, the machine didn’t leak a drop!  We told him where we thought the leak was coming from and he found a loose hose. He tightened that, thinking that would solve the problem.  Of course even that little job was very difficult given the small working area you have.

After he left, I put some clothes in to wash and guess what?  Yep….it leaked.

Tim came back again Tuesday afternoon.  Again, the kitties had to go in their cages and I had to take everything out of the closet so that he could work.  You Rv people know how much stuff we have in our closets, don’t you?  Yikes!

This time we put some clothes in the machine and that seemed to do the trick and we again had a leak.  He decided to change out the water pump.   You have to be a contortionist to do that job.

He left without payment again, because he’s waiting for the extended warranty company to authorize how much they will pay.

I think it still might have a small leak though.  I saw some water last night.  I’m hoping it is some leftover water that didn’t all drain out, but I suspect we still have a problem.

I will probably be seeing Tim again today….and emptying the closet out again!

When Tim removed the washer, and disconnected the dryer vent. It was full of lint.  I try to stick my hand in the outside vent to clean out the lint, but I could never my hand in far enough.  I guess we will need to do a better job of cleaning the dryer vent because that could sure be a fire hazard.   Either we will purchase a little hose that I can attach to the vacuum that will fit inside the vent, or Al will have to disconnect the vent occasionally to clean it out. 

 

More on our other news later, as this blog is already too wordy.

19 comments:

  1. That was a great that you had the reinstallation of the base plate reimbursed. Like you said he should have put you truck on the hoist and inspected it. Our even just crawl under it to check it out.
    Good luck with your washing machine, we don't have one.

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  2. so very, very glad you got your well deserved refund. I do hope you will still contact Blue Ox as to your issues considering this is one of their referrals. . .

    Good job!

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    1. You're right Janice. We will do that since it is a safety issue.

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  3. Glad to hear that they paid that bill for you since they were the ones who screwed up. We don't have a washing machine so at least I don't have to clean out a closet for that one. Good luck and I sure hope it's fixed for you.

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  4. One problem down and another one surfaces - it never ends, does it?

    Glad you got your money back, I was surprised to hear that.

    I hate trying to find water leaks - good luck!

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  5. Wow! Glad the installer stepped up and did the right thing. I'm sure the bolts you saved (which was a very smart idea) showed evidence of the faulty work.

    I use a small drain cleaning brush and a mechanical fingers pick up tool to take the lint out of my dryer hose. I can get into the vent hose from the outside.

    I hope your leak is resolved, no fun not having the w/d working in tip top form.

    Hope you are far away from the incoming tropical storm.

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  6. It is good that they reimbursed you. Hope the guy is able to get your leak stopped.

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  7. We had a problem with lint build-up in our Splendide combo washer/dryer and learned from the company that they recommend running a special cycle that you run three times once a month to clear out the lint. Nowhere in the manuals is this process explained. The service tech at Splendide e-mailed us the process. We have had good luck going back to the manufacturer for troubleshooting these issues.

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  8. Glad to hear the business did the right thing and refunded your money though I still would never use them again. I've had those weeks when one after another things went wrong. Hope you get that leak straightened out. Emptying out the closet now that would be a real nightmare here.

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  9. So glad that Rentz Trailers did the right thing by refunding your money. Maybe the owner is aware of the "power of the bloggers". Becki

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  10. At least you got one job completed to your satisfaction. Hopefully you are correct that it is just leftover water.

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  11. Love your blog. Reading this particular post makes me all the happier I sold our washer/dryer combo that was in our fifth wheel when we bought it. I just had the feeling it would be more trouble than not. We have not gone full time yet, but are seriously considering doing so. I am looking forward to exploring more of your blog!

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  12. July 10, 2013

    The base plates we got for our Buick Enclave are Blue Ox and the ends of my Demco Tow Bar were replaced with Blue Ox ends. Texas RV Supply San Antonio did a great job
    in making us ready to roll today.
    George

    busterstravelsgeo-bon.blogspot.com

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  13. Karen,

    Wow, the wife and I have been giving a lot of thought to installing a washer dryer, not sure about that now unless we can install it on top of a rubber mat similar to what I have under our hot water tank at home.

    If it leaks it will all go onto the rubber mat that has about a 2inch edge and there is a drain line to the drain. If I can get something similar installed under the washer in our rig when we do it then I'll feel confident.

    Until then we hear about too many leaks and I have had my fill already! Knocking on wood on this new rig, we'll keep an eye out.

    Good luck with everything holding up, I'm crossing my fingers. :)

    Erik

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  14. "Now, if it had of been my business, I would probably have taken one of those other vehicles off the lift and checked ours out." You are kidding, right?

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  15. It is always something isn't it? Hope the washer leak is a false alarm.

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  16. I'm glad we never got a washer and dryer in our Tiffin. We've heard so many stories about them leaking across all makes and models of RV's. Thanks for sharing the repair issues on the baseplate, how you feel you've been treated and how the repairs have gone. So helpful!

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