What if the RV owner's manual didn't suck?

What do you think of the owner’s manual in your own RV? Likely you’re not impressed. I know I haven’t been in the past. So looking at new RVs at the FROG rally in Indiana this past year something I noticed was that the owner’s manuals in Rockwood and Flagstaff trailers were not the usual lousy collection of unusable information.

So I asked Alyssa Price about the manual. Apparently Rockwood and Flagstaff invested quite a bit into making their manuals actually valuable. Then we got our own new Rockwood Mini Lite (review forthcoming!) and the manual is actually useful! So I went to see how all this is done and realized it’s quite an effort to put these manuals together.

What’s in the new Rockwood and Flagstaff owner’s manuals

Typically the manuals in your RV are basically what is included in the box from the component manufacturer. While some of the pieces that come in the packet can be relevant, few ever are. Further, the manual you get for something like your water heater or refrigerator can be so generic that they’re really not worth the paper they’re printed on.

That’s not true here at all. There are a lot of pages of information that are very specific to our RV. If we have a specific refrigerator, the only manual in our binder is specifically for that refrigerator. The same is true of all the rest of the appliances.

There are pretty extensive, albeit general, details about a lot of our trailer but then there are QR codes to take you deeper into the information.

I was also happy to see specific contact information for Rockwood and Flagstaff service and parts and, even more so, pages of specific part numbers. Want to know the part number for the awning we have? It’s in there. Want to know how to get a replacement baggage door? That’s in there too.

This manual is so very helpful and so different from anything I have ever seen in any RV that it’s’ a true breath of fresh air.

But the biggest and best thing in the manual is the collection of serial and part numbers for our very specific trailer. It also includes who the manufacturer is.

Rockwood and Flagstaff have changed to where the doors and baggage compartments are all keyed alike so that you only need one key to get into and lock up the trailer. You know what else is in the manual? The key code for our specific RV.

How is it done?

Alyssa Price took me on a tour of the facility where the manuals are compiled and, indeed, there are hundreds and hundreds of cubbies where the various specific manuals for all the trailers the company makes are stored.

It takes two team members to put these manuals together where they go through and compile what’s in the manual so that it’s what’s in your trailer.

This includes the information on the serial and part numbers in the manual and those are specific to your trailer.

I have long advocated that, when you get a new RV, you go around and take photos of the stickers on every component so that, over time, if you need to repair or replace something you’ll have the part and serial numbers to be able to accomplish that.

Now, that’s no longer really necessary. Instead, you just turn to the back of the manual and there are all the serial numbers in one place. Want to order a replacement? You’ve also got the phone number and e-mail address of the right people to do so.

Other information in here includes details about the included roadside assistance from Forest River as well as information about the Forest River Owners’ Group (FROG).

We have enjoyed several of FROG’s rallies, both regional and national, and I can tell you that owners of Forest River RVs should consider joining this group (it’s included with your RV) and then attending these rallies.

Unless you want to have the same experience as I did, where you attend one of the rallies, see that shiny new trailer, and you’re headed to Indiana to get it. But I have no complaints.

I don’t know what this investment in time and materials is costing the team at Rockwood/Flagstaff but I can tell you I’ve showed this manual to several people. Of course this is our fourth Rockwood trailer and we truly think they make a very good product, but this is just another thing that sets the company apart.