Low flying fan.

sunflower

Active Member
We have a Trail Runner Mdl.40FKDS being prepped at the dealer and upon our last visit yesterday to measure the TV compartment we discover the over head fan in the living room area has a blade broken off.The reason is that the slide hits the fan when pulled in,resulting in a broken fan.The dealer manager was aware of it and said Heartland said all extended stay units were like that and due to the fact the slides were used very seldom it shouldn't be a problem!!!We checked the other extended units on the lot and guess what they are all defective in my mind.This our second Heartland,some how I cannot believe that is Heartlands attitude.Not sure what the next course of action is as I think that is up to Heartland.This applies to all the extended stay units not just the Trail Runners.
 

TedS

Well-known member
Call Heartland directly. That response is not to be accepted from a first-line manufacturer.
 

Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
I agree with Ted although I have not noticed anything like you have mentioned when we toured a couple Country Ridge models. I didn't pay much attention to the ceiling fan height. I wonder if the fan blade may have been loose and broke during transport???
 

traveler44

Well-known member
The screws to the fan blade might have come loose and allowed the blade to hang down. I have to tighten the screws on ours every once in awhile or I will find a screw on the carpet. When I do I know where it came from. Tom M.
 

sunflower

Active Member
Reread my post,nothing was loose or hanging down,there is no clearance.The ceiling is so high that you need a stool to hold the blades up so the slide will not catch going in or out.We are not in the habit of leaving our slides out when we are not in attendance so it is a poor design and should be rectified,no matter how often it is used.I would not be surprised if the fan itself is not out of whack with enough jam up to break blades.The dealer will replace the blades no problem with that,but that does not solve the situation.Heartland needs to change the design if they haven't already.
 

sunflower

Active Member
Just spoke to Heartland and they acknowledge that is the way things are.My choice is to live with it and remember to some how lift the blades during the slide being closed or get smaller blades which they say won't look as good or be as effective in air movement.Lifting the blades now makes it a two person job,so that makes it awkward if I want to go up and stay at the lake fishing without the wife to help,or leave the slides open all the time we are not there,which is harder on the seals.Think I will go looking for a different fan at my own cost.
 

Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
Sunflower, I just looked at your floorplan and some of the pics on the Heartland site. I see you only have slide outs on one side of the rig. What if, and this is just a thought, just before closing the slide and the fan is off, you went and hung a slight weight (Something on a bungee?) on the fan blade opposite the slide out. This would raise the other blade a bit and maybe enough to clear the slide. After the slide is in, remove the weight.
I agree it's not a great situation but sometimes we have to make "adjustments". Good luck though.
 

Bob&Patty

Founders of SoCal Chapter
Does the fan have an extension on it from the ceiling mount?? You can get shorter extensions at any home center. Just a thought.
 

JohnDar

Prolifically Gabby Member
Not sure of the difference between your rig and ours, but how is leaving the slides out for extended periods harmful to the seals? I park ours on site in May and pull it off in September, and the slides are left out the whole time. No seal problems observed.
 

sunflower

Active Member
The fan is mounted with no shaft length and as such is pretty much solid and unmoveable as far as tipping to the side or shortening.The fan is mounted into a cavity on the ceiling which looks like a vent would have been installed on a ordinary ceiling.The ceilings are so high that putting a manual vent in would have required a step stool to reach to operate.The blades themselves need to be bent to get clearance and then they still rub.I believe that the seals are much better protected away from as much ozone as possible,just like a tire,each to his own just my preference in looking after things.There are hundreds of fans out there and I am sure I will find one that will even have remote control.Looks like it will be my dollar to remedy and I will do that,just can't believe Heartland put such a desgn out there and is good with it,that just is not their way.Thanks for the help all and other extended users beware.
 

Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
To be quite frank, I think you may have trouble finding a fan that mounts closer to the flange. I'm not trying to be negative just realistic. I hope all works out well for you.
 

Cimriver

Well-known member
I can't believe that Heartland would continue to manufacture RV's with a known problem like this. Are they? If so can someone from Heartland explain this?
 

sunflower

Active Member
Ray you maybe right,I went and looked again yesterday and the short blades Heartland talks about would need to be only 8" long in order not to hit the slide.By pushing the blades up enough to slide on the slide molding is going to do 2 things,rub the long fans blades and the slide moldings,I don't care how many times you do it,there is more damage to both every time.There is only about an inch clearance above the blades to the ceiling,so finding some thing short enough that doesn't hit the ceiling will be a real challenge,I even wonder how effective the existing fan is with the blades that close to the ceiling.
 

SouthernNights

Past South Carolina Chapter Leader
I am not familiar with TrailRunner line but you might want to look at a 1 or 2 bladed ceiling hugger fan that can be lined up between the slides and no blade would have to be pushed up as you bring the slides in. One bladed fans are just that, one blade with a short counterweight opposite of the blade.

e.g.

 
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