Manual

[kecunni]

Hello all

Just purchased our first Cardinal 2007 37RL. We purchased it used and it did not come with instructions. I have tons of Questions but will keep it short for know.

1 Does any one have a owners manual that we could get a copy of? I have the information on the furnace, air conditioners, Red devil, TV, microwave, stove, refregiraters.
2 It has 2 air conditioners but it only has a 30 amp cord. I'm assuming this is aftermarket to work at certain campgrounds. What does the original 50 amp cord look like?
3 Is there a way to shut the power off to the front jacks after you get them lowered? I don't want some one to bump the switch and lower the camper onto themselves.
4 Is any one else having a problem with the concertone? It does not work, when I replaced the fuse it blew right away. I pulled the unit and disconnected the power to it. It did not blow the fuse this time. I assume the problem is in the Concertone.

Thanks for any input.

Mark Cunningham
F350, 37rl,

[Chief409]

Mark,

I've never seen a Cardinal "Owners Manual". At the beginning of the Discussion Board there is a topic "Cardinal, schematics, etc..." and links to the various vendors which Forest River uses in building units.

I believe all the Cardinals came from the factory with 50 Amp. 2 phase service with four connectors (2 hot, 1 neutral, 1 ground). There should be a sticker next to the receptacle on the trailer stating this. Some owners have replaced the 50 Amp cord with a 30 Amp after market cord as you've mentioned, because the 50 Amp cord is heavy and hard to manage, especially when cold. Most of the larger RV accessory stores have replacement 50 Amp cords.

There should be a fuse or circuit breaker for the landing gear. I believe it's in the front compartment near the battery. Olbird has posted pictures of all this. At first I had the same concerns about the switch being bumped, but the landing gear is slow, and it's a momentary ON switch, so I quit worrying about it.

If your Concertone is indeed blowing the fuse, well Concertone is the only player in the RV entertainment center market. They are selling retail now. Their website is concertone.com.

One thing to look for, and pay attention to is the sticker listing all the allowable weights, it's usually inside a cabinet (one above the kitchen sink in mine).


Enjoy your new Cardinal, and Welcome to the Club.

[Future Fulltimers]

I installed a secondary switch to the landing gear which is mounted inside the compartment. This allows me to shut off all power to the landing gear preventing anyone from playing with the raise/lower switch also makes a great anti-theft device.
Many people have had problems with the Concertone unit even after purchasing a new one from the company but as Chief said; it’s the only one currently available.

[Mike Clay]

That was one of the first things I did to my trailer put in a switch to cut power to the landing gear

[Rob & Cathy]

I disconnected my landing gear switch all to together and installed a new switch on the street side propane compartment wall. It's completely hidden and no more bending over. Shhhhh....don't tell anybody.

Rob

[Don Wilson]

We bought our 2004 Cardinal used as well and there were no manuals. We contacted Forest River and they copied all of the manuals and sent them to us. They charged $25 to copy them but it was manuals on everything. I looked at them all once and have only gone back to one manual since!

Don

[Future Fulltimers]

I disconnected my landing gear switch all to together and installed a new switch on the street side propane compartment wall.

Did you remove the old switch?

It's completely hidden and no more bending over. Shhhhh....don't tell anybody.

Rob

Not us

[Rob & Cathy]

Did you remove the old switch?

Hi Wayne

Nope, left it in place (it's now a faux switch), I didn't want to advertise that the switch has been moved.

Rob

[Mike Clay]

Rob didnt anybody tell you that you can reach the switch from the side of your trailer without bending over. Oh I just put your post and some pics on you tube

[Rob & Cathy]

NOW you tell me!

Rob

[The-Bear]

The closest thing to an official manual I received was a fairly generic 67 page booklet titled "Forest River Recreational Vehicle Owner's Manual -- Travel Trailers & Fifth Wheels." My trailer is a 2005 model, the manual is dated 2003.

There is useful information in the manual, but it's mostly non-specific since there are so many options available and variations in brands and models actually installed. You're better off getting the manuals for your specific makes and models of equipment actually installed. Most of them are available free online in pdf format.