Floor deflecting

I have an RPod 179 model year 2019 that we purchased new from a dealer in Muskegon, MI.  For the 2 years we have owned it we have been able to get in quite bit of camping with the trailer.  Both years my wife and I have spent more than 110 nights camping and traveling 10,500 miles the first year and 7,800 miles this year.  Not bragging just establishing the trailer has been used.  We have made some modification to the trailer to fit our needs which is not pertinent to this post. 

We have also needed some warranty work performed by our dealer and approved by Forest River.  We did encounter some issues getting this work accomplished but in the end it did get done correctly the first time.  The warranty work was replacing the forward wall in the slide out because the outer skin was delaminating due to a manufacturing flaw, getting a replacement fender so that they would match (be the same size), and having the seal in the rear window installed correctly to stop the window leaking during rain storms.

After we had the trailer for over 2 years and becoming familiar with the problem John Marucci had experienced and had documented on the forum and his YouTube channel about the “kitchen” floor deflecting when you were walking on it, I was thinking our trailer was experiencing the same thing.  With my history of warranty work I was very apprehensive about a requesting warranty claim outside of the 2 year factory warranty period of an RPod.  I did not have an extended warranty as John Marucci had invested in.

I did contact my dealer and told them my whole story along with a summary of John Marucci’s story.  My dealer was not deterred about the trailer being out of the warranty period.  My dealer requested several pictures showing the deflection in the floor, which I provided.  There was also an important concern of possible prior water intrusion, which would have compromised the floor and voided any claim.  There has been no water damage to the trailer.  After my dealer had worked on my claim with Forest River for the better part of a month and half, the dealer asked me to call Forest River direct, to supply any additional information they might need in making their decision.  I did contact Forest River Warranty Department and I was informed later that day that Forest River had approved my claim for the dealer to make the needed repairs to the flooring (underside) in the kitchen area.

The trailer will be going in this Friday for the needed repairs.  I am impressed at the customer service that I have received thus far on this claim from my dealer All Seasons RV Supercenter in Muskegon, Michigan and Forest River.  Most importantly the guidance that John Marucci’s provides on this problem in his tread on this forum and on his You Tube channel has proven invaluable in receiving approval of my claim.  Thank you very much John.

Forest River does make it clear that all claims are handled on an individual basis.  All claims have different circumstances and are process with those in mind.

I will post the conclusions of this repair work when it is completed. 

The conclusions of the warranty work to correct the deflecting flooring in the kitchen area of a 2019 R-Pod 179.  I dropped off my 179 at All Seasons RV Super Center in Muskegon, Michigan, the dealer that I had purchased the trailer from, with the knowledge that they were not going to get right on the repair because their schedule was very booked up at the time.  The warranty work was a rather small repair job everything considered and the dealership thought that they could “work it in between” some other larger jobs.  The beginning the time estimate was about 2 weeks which turned out to be 5 weeks.  This time delay was just a minor inconvenience.  I had no plans on using the trailer the rest of the year.  My only project left to accomplish was to check the trailer’s brakes and repack the wheel bearings before putting the trailer into storage.

I was able to forward to the service manager the link to John Marucci’s YouTube video on Forest River’s repair of his “deflecting flooring”.  The service manager found the video to be very helpful along with the service tech, who completed the work.

The work consisted of installing a piece of ¾” plywood fully wrapped in “black weather protector” cut to fit between the frame rails approximately 58” by 48”, that had been notched out to allow the electric and gas lines access to the cabinet area below the stove.  The front of the plywood butted up to the steel rail supporting the gray water and continued back just short of the end of the trailer.  This plywood was screwed around it’s parameter with screws that did not penetrate the inside floor surface.  There were screws installed from inside the trailer on the inside of the cabinets so there are no screws visible from the inside of the trailer.

Once the plywood support had been screwed into place 2 support cross members were installed between the frame rails.  These supporting cross members (running between the frame rails) are 1” tubular steel painted black and a piece of flat stock welded to each end to facilitate screwing into the frame rails. There was a slight camber introduced into each support cross member.  The camber is to allow more support in the middle of the span between the frame rails.

I had installed a BAL Hide-a-Spare tire carrier which had to be removed and adapted to fit after the installation of the flooring improvements.  Because of the Hide-a-Spare the first support cross member was located 4” behind the rear metal support for the gray water tank.  The second support cross member was located 15” further back from the first support cross member.  This allowed the plywood to extended another 28” to near the rear of the trailer.

I just picked up our 179 from the dealer on December 11^th and there is no deflection in the floor anywhere in the trailer.  I am very pleased with the manner in which this problem has been resolved.

My dealer, All Season RV Super Center of Muskegon, Michigan and the manufacture Forest River have certainly stood behind their product and properly resolved the issue that I feel was not caused by me abusing the trailer.  The warranty work was handled by Forest River and All Seasons on a “customer good will” basis.  Forest River does make it clear that all claims are handled on an individual basis.  All claims have different circumstances and are process with those in mind.

The only issue left to be resolved is the financial responsibility of the removal, modifications and the re-installation of the Hide-a-Spare which is an aftermarket addition installed by myself and “StephenH”.

Things that were important to the success of this repair was first John Marucci’s (who is a forum member) sharing his experience with the forum in his You Tube video which allowed me, the service manager, and the tech to fully understand Forest River’s plans in resolving this issue.  Secondly, and very importantly, dealing with a reputable RV dealer representing your interests with the manufacture.   Without a reputable dealer in your corner it would be at best very difficult dealing with any manufacture.  Thirdly, dealing with Forest River that took the responsibility for the issue and stood behind their product which demonstrates they are obviously interested in maintaining its customer’s “good will” with its present and future customers.