kevininthegorge
New Member
Unfortunately, we've had more propane hose issues on our less than 3 year old 2022 5.0 this summer than we've had with our previous two trailers over 15 years.
First, we had a leak on our refrigerator that drained both propane tanks on a trip. This cut our trip short since we were boondocking. The hose from the manifold to the refrigerator was leaking and the connector was cracked - probably due to over tightening. Escape didn't reply to my messages until I contacted them for a second time 2 weeks after the first contact. Basically, I got a "We're sorry" email and a promise to do better. No offer of compensation for the repair I did myself. I had a digital manometer and bought numerous brass fittings to isolate the leak. I highly recommend having caps and plugs of various sizes to isolate the leak and a manometer to do a time pressure drop test. I built a jig similar to this to use the quick disconnect: RVTI
An added issue on the refrigerator hose was that when the trailer was built, a wooden cleat partially blocked the hole going up to the refrigerator so I could't easily pull the hose.
The next trip, I noticed a propane smell and this time I was able to isolate it quickly since I had the caps to install on the manifold. This time it was the propane hose to the stove. We generally cook outside so no big deal other than troubleshooting it during a thunderstorm.
I got home and found the stove hose was cracked. I checked the hose going to the furnace and it was also cracked although not leaking yet. I replaced these two hoses being careful not to exceed the recommended bend radius. If I have problems in the future, I will consider bulkhead feedthroughs. I also found cracks in the propane tank pigtails and they've been replaced. I still need to replace the hot water heater hose but it didn't appear to be cracked yet and the bend radius wasn't as bad as the other hoses. Hoses that had no bends showed no issues.
I submitted an online trouble ticket to ETI and after 10 days, I've heard absolutely nothing.
We love our 5.0 and hopefully after getting these manufacturing deficiencies fixed, we'll have many years of trouble-free camping
. I have to say I've been very disappointed with ETI's lack of response. Due to these issues, I'm sure glad we opted out of having the spray foam underneath the trailer!!!
First, we had a leak on our refrigerator that drained both propane tanks on a trip. This cut our trip short since we were boondocking. The hose from the manifold to the refrigerator was leaking and the connector was cracked - probably due to over tightening. Escape didn't reply to my messages until I contacted them for a second time 2 weeks after the first contact. Basically, I got a "We're sorry" email and a promise to do better. No offer of compensation for the repair I did myself. I had a digital manometer and bought numerous brass fittings to isolate the leak. I highly recommend having caps and plugs of various sizes to isolate the leak and a manometer to do a time pressure drop test. I built a jig similar to this to use the quick disconnect: RVTI
An added issue on the refrigerator hose was that when the trailer was built, a wooden cleat partially blocked the hole going up to the refrigerator so I could't easily pull the hose.
The next trip, I noticed a propane smell and this time I was able to isolate it quickly since I had the caps to install on the manifold. This time it was the propane hose to the stove. We generally cook outside so no big deal other than troubleshooting it during a thunderstorm.
I got home and found the stove hose was cracked. I checked the hose going to the furnace and it was also cracked although not leaking yet. I replaced these two hoses being careful not to exceed the recommended bend radius. If I have problems in the future, I will consider bulkhead feedthroughs. I also found cracks in the propane tank pigtails and they've been replaced. I still need to replace the hot water heater hose but it didn't appear to be cracked yet and the bend radius wasn't as bad as the other hoses. Hoses that had no bends showed no issues.
I submitted an online trouble ticket to ETI and after 10 days, I've heard absolutely nothing.
We love our 5.0 and hopefully after getting these manufacturing deficiencies fixed, we'll have many years of trouble-free camping
. I have to say I've been very disappointed with ETI's lack of response. Due to these issues, I'm sure glad we opted out of having the spray foam underneath the trailer!!!
