New member Ohio

KitKat24 · 10-01-2024, 08:35 PM

I have a 2014 Keystone Outback 298RE that I moved into 2 weeks ago to live in full time. I've mostly tent camped all of my life except for having a pop-up camper at one point. I bought this trailer to live in full time so that I could have my own place. I'm trying to learn as much as I can about it by reading and talking to people but there's always something new to learn.

I'm in Ohio but I've lived in Chicago, Arizona and Mississippi also.

I don't have a tow vehicle yet. That will have to wait on funds

Camping family · 10-02-2024, 08:13 AM

While enjoy the adventure. Living in a northern state it’s going to start getting cold. So start now doing some winter prep since you are going to be in it full time. Don’t want to be doing it when it is already cold out. Few suggestions get a heated water hose, put up some kind of underpinning around it. Do you have heated tanks or a heated underbelly? If you do make sure they are on when it gets cold n freezing temps out. If you don’t make sure you keep your heat on and maybe even but a small heater underneath it. After you do some sort of underpinning. Campers are nothing like a house. The insulation is not real thick and pipes freeze easily.

KitKat24 · 10-02-2024, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Camping family

While enjoy the adventure. Living in a northern state it’s going to start getting cold. So start now doing some winter prep since you are going to be in it full time. Don’t want to be doing it when it is already cold out. Few suggestions get a heated water hose, put up some kind of underpinning around it. Do you have heated tanks or a heated underbelly? If you do make sure they are on when it gets cold n freezing temps out. If you don’t make sure you keep your heat on and maybe even but a small heater underneath it. After you do some sort of underpinning. Campers are nothing like a house. The insulation is not real thick and pipes freeze easily.

I have been reading the manual that came with it and there are a lot of things that are not answered and the heated underbelly is one of them. So depending on Google, great people like you and hopefully one of my friends that can crawl underneath and take a look at it

jxnbbl · 10-02-2024, 10:56 AM

Welcome from NH!

KitKat24 · 10-02-2024, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KitKat24

I have been reading the manual that came with it and there are a lot of things that are not answered and the heated underbelly is one of them. So depending on Google, great people like you and hopefully one of my friends that can crawl underneath and take a look at it

I panicked a little worrying that I wasn't going to be ready for winter and put straw around it for the winter but I wish I had waited and got something else.

When you say a heated hose are you talking about the water hose where the water comes in or a heated hose to drain it with or both?

I lived in a single wide trailer through several Winters in Ohio back and we had a real Winters and managed not to freeze to death although I realize that a travel trailer is very different. The idea of putting a heater underneath there and just leaving it scares me to death. I wouldn't be able to sleep. Having been through a house fire once I am really paranoid about that. I am definitely open to any and all suggestions though.

Camping family · 10-02-2024, 11:20 AM

Talking about a heated water hose. You can find them on Amazon or from most Rv sales places.

**flybouy** · 10-02-2024, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KitKat24

I panicked a little worrying that I wasn't going to be ready for winter and put straw around it for the winter but I wish I had waited and got something else.

When you say a heated hose are you talking about the water hose where the water comes in or a heated hose to drain it with or both?

I lived in a single wide trailer through several Winters in Ohio back and we had a real Winters and managed not to freeze to death although I realize that a travel trailer is very different. The idea of putting a heater underneath there and just leaving it scares me to death. I wouldn't be able to sleep. Having been through a house fire once I am really paranoid about that. I am definitely open to any and all suggestions though.

A major difference between mobile home and a camper is furnace type and insulation. Mobile homes typically use oil fired furnaces while campers use lp gas furnaces with a much lower btu output. This means the camper will use a LOT of propane in cold weather. My first suggestion would be to set up an account with propane company. Have them deliver large lp gas tanks and set up an auto delivery schedule.

dutchmensport · 10-02-2024, 01:19 PM

My previous camper was an Outback 298RE. We had it for 5 years. If they would not have discontinued that model in 2018, we would have purchased another one (new) again. But they quit making that floor plan. We ended up going to a fifth wheel then, instead.

The 298RE was a great trailer. I got to know ever inch of it, had minimal repairs, and enjoyed it tremendously. The reason we traded, well ... was many. Things were just beginning to fail, and I did not want to tackle doing necessary fixes that were going to be problematic in the near future. The real clincher came when we happened to look at a Keystone Alpine front living room and that changed our entire world.

We removed all the stand alone furniture (table, chairs, and original rocker chairs) and replaced the entire slide with a house hold recliner couch. I put wheels on it so it could be moved into this position:

Canonman · 10-02-2024, 02:29 PM

Welcome from Utah!!
Long term living in an RV during the winter will take some special preparation.
To better help with suggestions, can you describe the site your are using? Do you have permanent electrical, water and sewer facilities?
Is the site covered? You'll use a lot of propane even with electric heaters to supplement your furnace. Can you arrange to lease a large tank from the local propane company?
Folks here will have lots of suggestions and the more information you can share about your set up the better those suggestions will be.

spicercars · 10-03-2024, 03:22 AM

Welcome from northern MN.

KitKat24 · 10-06-2024, 03:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Canonman

Welcome from Utah!!
Long term living in an RV during the winter will take some special preparation.
To better help with suggestions, can you describe the site your are using? Do you have permanent electrical, water and sewer facilities?
Is the site covered? You'll use a lot of propane even with electric heaters to supplement your furnace. Can you arrange to lease a large tank from the local propane company?
Folks here will have lots of suggestions and the more information you can share about your set up the better those suggestions will be.

Thanks everyone for the welcomes! I had a 500 lb propane delivered and set up. My electric pole is in and electricity is run to the trailer. Getting septic taken care of this week.

I still have to wrap pipes. I've been working on my to do list but I welcome any advice and suggestions. Checking into metal vs wood awnings/coverings.

My biggest concern now is getting the furnace figured out. When I turn it on I hear the click but cold air blows out. I'm hoping it just needs cleaned. If I understand correctly I need to pop off the vent under my refrigerator so I'm going to try that now. Wish me luck :-)

Canonman · 10-06-2024, 07:28 PM

Sounds like you're really making progress.
Remember to add some skirting to the bottom of the trailer.
As for the furnace, if the stove and water heater are working on propane it's possible the propane inlet could be blocked. Spiders seem to love clogging up that small orifice.
This is one thing you may want to enlist some help with. If you can't clear the problem with a little Youtube help and compressed air then bring in an experienced tech. Gas, Fire, and the wooden interior say "don't take chances"!

**flybouy** · 10-06-2024, 08:43 PM

If you had a 500 lb tank installed then I'm guessing it's a few feet away from the camper. Installing the tank would empty the lp line as I assume they replaced the dual regulator set up with a single regulator. It may take some time for the gas to "chase" the air out of the line. Before tearing the furnace apart, I would suggest turning on all the stovetop burners and let then burn on high until they burn with a solid blue flame. Then try the furnace which still may take several attempts to purge the line connecting the furnace to the main gas line.

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