# From Tent To Outback 21rs



## TheMillers (Aug 8, 2005)

I've been doing a lot of research on travel trailers over the last few months, and we finally decided on the 21rs. I've got a v8 4Runner and needed something short and light. My wife didn't want to have anything to do with canvas. She also didn't want to give up a sofa, dinette, and had to have fulltime sleeping for 4. We heard about the Outbacks and I found this site. After reading through the posts on this forum and seeing one for ourselves we were sold!

We just got back from our maiden voyage. We went to Sequoia, Yosemite, and June Lake on 1 week trip. We only had our trailer for a week before our big trip so we didn't have time to camp in our driveway even. Everything went pretty well with the trailer with the following exceptions:

1. Water Heater would not work on electric. When I turn on the wall switch, it still tries to light the gas. I suspect something is wired wrong.

2. Refrigerator doesn't work on electric. I checked the breakers and the fuses behind the refrigerator. Works fine on propane.

3. The drawer under the pantry opened during travel and the it doesn't open all the way. I think it's off the track or the track broke.

4. The pantry drawers opened the pantry door during travel. My wife had to shove towels under them to keep them from sliding. Are they suppose to lock?

5. The screws for the popup table next to the door all came out. It seems like the model we looked at also had a broken table. Is this common?

Well none of these are really major, I'll be taking her in to the dealer to get these fixed. We really love the trailer and can't wait to go out again! Everyone kept asked us how we liked it at the campgrounds. We look forward chatting with everyone and maybe we can all camp together sometime!!!

Bruce


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## mswalt (Sep 14, 2004)

Bruce,

Congrats on your new Outback. Sorry everything didn't work out like they were supposed to, but nuisance items seem to be common. Get'em fixed and happy camping.

Welcome to the forum.

Mark


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## Highlander96 (Mar 1, 2005)

Bruce,

Weclome to the fray!!!!

I am sure you will really enjoy your unit.

Regarding point #3. We had the same problem with the drawer under the pantry. It is only held in place with 1/8" ply. I replaced the drawer slides and used shims and my brad nailer to secure it.

Also, remember the water heater on electric takes a long time to heat up. I also think the gas ignition is the default.

Happy outbacking,

Tim


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## Ghosty (Jan 17, 2005)

4. The pantry drawers opened the pantry door during travel. My wife had to shove towels under them to keep them from sliding. Are they suppose to lock?

No -- thats why allot of folks will cut a peice of wood to brace betwen the door and the drawer so it does not open duing travel...


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## mscott (Jul 8, 2005)

I have found that if you bend the bracket back that the drawer plug slides into it helps this drastically. It doesn't take much, you just need to decrease the angle of the hasp, in essecnece making the hole a little bit smaller. Good luck, and welcome to the club.

Matt


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

Welcome and glad you feel that the problems are minor. There are plenty of people that feel that they got ripped off and want a new trailer for less.

For the fridge - How long did you operate it in electric to determine if it was dead? There have been a few that had failed heating coils right out of the box so that is most likely the problem but just wanted to make sure you gave it enough time (12 to 24 hours) to cool.

Are you handy and want trouble shooting tips? Depending on how you pose the question you can get everything from, have a nice drive to the dealer, to explanation of the black art of tank cleaning and the theory of electricity (you let the smoke out it stops working).

Welcome, Happy Camping and post often.


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## glennsteers (Apr 25, 2005)

Hey Bruce,

Here's the perfect solution for your pantry!

RV Cabinet Bars

Order one double for the top shelf (the one w/o sliding drawer) and get 3 singles for the bottom sliding drawers. It work's perfectly! I also use them in over the sink cabs and wardrobes!! Pops in and out in seconds and it's cheap...


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## 7heaven (Jun 4, 2005)

BruceRiv68,

Welcome to the OB'ers world! action

You sure tackled a big trip for your first! When we lived in SoCal, we did a week at Yosemite or Sequoia every year. Loved it.

I've also found it takes quite a while for the fridge to cool down on electric. I try to plug it in a full day before we leave.

Good luck!


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## GenesRUs (Oct 11, 2004)

Welcome to the Outback world. From what I can tell, a few problems with a new trailer are the norm. Like CamperAndy said, its good that you feel the problems are minor. The H2O heater and fridge problems should be handled by your dealer under warranty. We had a fault circuit board on our furnace/AC unit which we didn't discover until our first trip in our 21RS. Dealer took care of it.

Right now we have a fridge that won't run on electric either. I've found a blown 5 amp fuse on the circuit board on the rear of the unit. It contiunes to blow the fuse, so back for warranty service I go.

As for the drawers and cabinets, I'm switching the catches to those positive-catch, dual roller types that were recently mentioned on another forum.

All in all, we love our 21RS, and think it is put together pretty well.

Welcome again, and I hope all your problems are resolved.


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## TheMillers (Aug 8, 2005)

Thanks for all the tips and information. I only tried the refrig on electric for about 4 hours before we hit the road. While we were camping we put it on Auto and it started to warm up. When I get home I'll leave it in Auto for a day or so and see if it cools. I'll do the same with the water heater. I know there's a wealth of knowledge on this board. It's gonna take awhile to read it all!

Thanks again!

Bruce


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## NDJollyMon (Aug 22, 2003)

Once you get all the bugs worked out...you'll be fine. Little things happen. Big things...head to the dealer.

A good PDI and maybe a driveway campout may help when purchasing.

Welcome!


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## huntr70 (Jul 8, 2005)

GenesRUs said:


> As for the drawers and cabinets, I'm switching the catches to those positive-catch, dual roller types that were recently mentioned on another forum.
> 
> [snapback]52303[/snapback]​


 I just finished replacing all of my door and drawer catches with the dual roller catches also....they were $.61 each at Lowe's......

Steve


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## cookie9933 (Feb 26, 2005)

action Welcome to OBer's your going to love this site. Many of us are Addicted








Nice pic of your OB and TV.Enjoy the Gallery too; Mods pictures of camp sites. Have a great time.
Jan


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## drobe5150 (Jan 21, 2005)

i used the rv cabinet bars for the pantry also, bought them at wally world, i even modded them too. i broke the plastic clips off, making them into singles, next i removed the spring, shortened the bar by an inch or so, placed the spring back in and presto no more drawer coming out during travel, dw was very happy with this one









darrel


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## Howie (Jun 19, 2005)

_*The fridge will take quite a while to cool down on electric I found that out with help from the group. I usually plug the rig in and turn it on overnight and everything is frozen in the freezer come morning and it stays cold the whole way to campground, provided it's not a real long trip.

everyone here helps with info, for the pantry I just use those small rubber door stops that are shaped like a V. They work great also. Just choose whichever one you want to try. Everyone here has their own ideas and THEY ARE ALL GOOD ONES.

oh, and you might want to get some of those spring loaded bars for the fridge too. They help keep stuff(my beer lol) from moving around on the shelves.

camp and learn is what I'm finding out...........and of course visiting Outbackers.com

Welcome and congrats..........*_


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