# First Camper/rv -- 2016 298Re



## Road Trip (Aug 30, 2016)

After 3 years of research and saving we pulled the trigger -- very excited! It's a 2016 model, last on the lot but it was manufactured in Feb of 2016.

It has In Command which is nice -- we can use the iPhone to operate the jacks and slides so we can stand outside and make sure we're not going to hit anything or over extend the jacks. I can also use it to turn on the night lights while laying in bed if we need to get up in the middle of the night so we're not stumbling around in the pitch black. The lights are pretty efficient. We left them on in the driveway all night by accident and still had plenty of juice in our one battery. I'm not small (6 ft 3). I fit in the chairs, couch, and dinette pretty comfortably but when it's nap time I hit the floor or get in bed (picture).

The window in the back is what sold it for us (picture) -- we loved the idea of backing into a spot on the water or a hill and leaving the shade up. The two AC's we used in Arkansas parked in the direct sun at 95 degrees. They kept us very comfortable. On the lake the following weekend the temp dropped to 48 over night so we got to test out the furnace. The first time we turned on the heat the smell was horrible and it set off the smoke alarm at 2 am. I'm sure our neighbors were thrilled... but it quickly got better, then it was hardly noticeable, and I'm hoping next time we won't notice at all.

The Tundra has no issues hauling it but we're approaching our GVRW when fully loaded (60 lbs under). We'll take it to the scales every now and then, travel on empty tanks, unload the truck bed, keep the load in the front compartment to a minimum, and apply common sense.

We've taken it out twice back to back. 1st to Catherine's Landing near Hot Springs, Arkansas and then to nearby Louisiana state park on a small lake. Both trips were amazing -- we had a blast. Catherine's Landing was an RV resort, something we didn't even know existed -- impressive to say the least. The state park was less developed and felt more like camping which we enjoyed.

So far, the only issue we've had is with leaky kitchen sink fittings. We posted a thread in the problems and solutions forum but long story short -- almost every fitting under the kitchen sink leaks including the wand itself. I think I can tighten the fittings but the wand bothers me. Water dribbles out of the handle, down the hose, and drops onto the floor. We caught it early but we don't know what to do. I've reached out to Keystone -- I'll post updates on the troubleshooting thread... this is a happy place.

Anybody have any tips for treating the TPO roof? Is it required? Recommended? We store it outside in direct sunlight right now.

We're thinking about getting a cover. Any tips / do's / dont's for covering the RV? Is it necessary? I put on Maxx Air covers so we can leave the vents cracked while it's stored.

What do you guys do with your sewer hoses and water hoses when in storage? We put our sewer hose (rhino flex) in a bin an leave it sitting under the RV with the lid off so it can breathe. We dry out the drinking water hose and leave it laying on the floor in the shower.


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## dennishoddy (Dec 4, 2016)

We just bought a 2014 298RE that was unused. Will be towing with a Tundra as well. Have you experienced any issues while towing? So far ours has only been towed 100 miles and it did great.


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## KTMRacer (Jun 28, 2010)

sewer hose should fit in the rear bumper. that's why they are a 4" square tube.

BTW we have a 295RE (precursor to the 298, no bedroom wardrobe slide). use it 3-4 months/year, over 30K miles on it, love it. Only drawback is some limitations on campsites we can get into.

Enough grey/black capacity for 2 weeks of dry camping for DW and I, enough for a week with grandkids.

To things we've noticed. Its a BIG trailer for only 1 AC unit. If it's going to be hot, start the AC early because it will have trouble keeping up, let alone dropping the temperature. And in temps below freezing, the furnace also struggles. It can do the job, but goes through lots of propane. We installed a setback thermostat, set the temp to 45 at night and for the inside temp to be 70F at 8am. furnace will come on about 6am on very cold nights and run for almost 2 hrs to get it warmed up.


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