Why the Nautilus system?

[Rapid1]

Well, we'll just have to agree to disagree about actual convenience, and just the appearance of convenience.

Fair enough sir!

[Steven@147]

Before it morphed into something else, I remember reading an article in Trailer Life mag when they were complaining that the new RVs lacked innovation and the latest electronic or push button gadgets. I thought at the time, be careful what you wish for. Maybe those that are RV influencers pushed manufacturers harder to incorporate the latest gadgets.

Yes, in the push button, WiFi connected cell phone world we live in now, newbie's to the RV world, would think there self cheated if a new rig didn't have all the latest gadgets, bells and whistles, they wouldn't have anything to complain about on facebook.
Then again maybe its the cheapness and lousy installation of these new gadgets that give us seasoned RV veterans the most heartburn.

For us, some new things are nice to have, others I can do without and don't want them. To the point of this thread, the Nautilus panel is nice and easy to understand, works good and hasn't leaked so far, but we keep the pressure turned down. Yup the auto leveling system we have (electric) is really nice and has never had a problem,,, so far.
The light weight electric awnings, well they are almost worthless as they can not be used in even a modest breeze. The old fashioned manual pull out awnings were/are much heavier made, wish we had them.

Oh well if we lived in a perfect world none of us would have anything to complain about,,,, LOLs

[Soundsailor]

The light weight electric awnings, well they are almost worthless as they can not be used in even a modest breeze. The old fashioned manual pull out awnings were/are much heavier made, wish we had them.s

Totally agree about the awnings. Like you everything else is working so far.

[Butcher]

Just saying, you guys/gals are starting to sound real old.

I'm old too but I like technology. For those that have no clue about RV's, you can just look at the Nautilus panel and move the valves to the right position to get what you want. Is it reliable? Leak? Name one component on an RV that is reliable. As we all know, most of it is junk and it's a constant struggle to keep things working.

My wife is clueless about most things mechanical/electrical. She wants to operate a switch and see it work. Slides, awnings, heaters, A/C are all so convenient to use. Reliable? Probably not but my experience is that nothing has been reliable in any RV that I have ever owned.

[NB Canada]

Just saying, you guys/gals are starting to sound real old.

I'm old too but I like technology. For those that have no clue about RV's, you can just look at the Nautilus panel and move the valves to the right position to get what you want. Is it reliable? Leak? Name one component on an RV that is reliable. As we all know, most of it is junk and it's a constant struggle to keep things working.

My wife is clueless about most things mechanical/electrical. She wants to operate a switch and see it work. Slides, awnings, heaters, A/C are all so convenient to use. Reliable? Probably not but my experience is that nothing has been reliable in any RV that I have ever owned.

My last trailer had a simple exterior water connection. I didn’t have to worry about it being perfectly tight because if it dripped it dripped onto the ground
Have I had leaks with my Imagine water panel?
No but I will take 1 connection vs the mess of hoses and clamps in behind that panel any day

[Hoopy Frood]

Just saying, you guys/gals are starting to sound real old.

I'm old too but I like technology. For those that have no clue about RV's, you can just look at the Nautilus panel and move the valves to the right position to get what you want. Is it reliable? Leak? Name one component on an RV that is reliable. As we all know, most of it is junk and it's a constant struggle to keep things working.

My wife is clueless about most things mechanical/electrical. She wants to operate a switch and see it work. Slides, awnings, heaters, A/C are all so convenient to use. Reliable? Probably not but my experience is that nothing has been reliable in any RV that I have ever owned.

Just curious if you'll remember the proper orientation of all those valves if/when the decals degrade enough to be non readable?

I love improvements that make life easier. I like the ease-of-use of the electric awnings, but have misgivings about the fragility of them. The auto-level system is one of those things I like, but I still don't see exactly what the Nautilus system brings to the game. It is conveniently located...

[Butcher]

No but I probably would not know which valve orientation would be correct if I am blind either.

Not certain where you are going with this. I have a picture on my phone and if the decals were that messed up.......well that would never be the case, I would replace them before they got that bad.

I honestly do not feel that any engineer or company starts off any meeting with "How can we make this even more difficult for a new client"? I do believe companies come up with bad ideas, but that is not their main purpose. I do believe most people and companies are better than that.

I do believe companies come up with ideas that miss the mark. Some engineer designs the system that they feel it makes sense but for the average Joe that does not think that way, it does not. My biggest issue with the system is that I do not know what I am doing. Just turn a valve and expect it to work? I'm a mechanic by trade and I want to know how this valve works and what is effected when I do that. I do not believe most people think the same way I do. My wife, for certain does not and she could figure out the system fairly quick. As long as she could see the decals

There is nothing wrong with saving a buck. We do it in our personal lives, why should a company not want to do the same thing? Remember when you could option out a car? You added all the options you wanted, looked at the price, then adjusted the option list to meet the cost expectations. Same things companies do.

Sometimes, the money demands override the right decision, but I think we have all done that too. Remember pulling into the gas stations and filling up because it was the cheapest in town? A few miles down the road when the car was not driving so well, sure turned that smile upside down.

[Hoopy Frood]

No but I probably would not know which valve orientation would be correct if I am blind either.

Not certain where you are going with this. I have a picture on my phone and if the decals were that messed up.......well that would never be the case, I would replace them before they got that bad.

I honestly do not feel that any engineer or company starts off any meeting with "How can we make this even more difficult for a new client"? I do believe companies come up with bad ideas, but that is not their main purpose. I do believe most people and companies are better than that.

There is nothing wrong with saving a buck. We do it in our personal lives, why should a company not want to do the same thing?

My point was that it is complicated enough that you can't use it without the directions being in front of you. To me if a simple task is made that complicated, it's done poorly. That's where I was going with it.

[Butcher]

I get it. I am one that usually reads the instructions first. I told many Mercedes owners, have you read the owners manual? Most said no. I only had 1 out of thousands that looked at me sternly and said, yes I did, I always do. She had a very valuable question. Something the manual was not clear about. Most if not all the other questions were because they did not read the manual.

I suspect if you operate a system enough, you will no longer need the owners manual and therefore the decal. If it is your first time, it is really overwhelming. It's not the system, it's your ignorance. Once you educate yourself, then it becomes easier.

There are some things in life, all you got to do is look at it and you figure it out. No instructions needed. Sadly, the Nautilus system is not that way but it's really not that difficult to use. Could you imagine if they did not have pictures of the valve placement or even colors of the valve?

Ask yourself what you want to do. I want to dry camp. Look at the valves. I see, this valve goes here, that one goes there. The picture matches up to what I want. Pretty simple. Those that want to know what is going on behind the curtain get frustrated because they have non clue what is behind that panel. Those that do not care, they are at the camp fire with a beer already.

Usually when I get frustrated with a system [and I have diagnosed a lot of systems], I blame myself for not knowing the system. I learn how it works, wrap my head around it, then reaccess that the system sucks or not.

That is why I push everyone to take the free online Lippert classes. It explains so much of what we don't know and then it becomes so much easier to grasp. Yes, I know Lippert does not make this system [or maybe it does, I have not taken the class].

[Hoopy Frood]

Ask yourself what you want to do. I want to dry camp. Look at the valves. I see, this valve goes here, that one goes there. The picture matches up to what I want. Pretty simple. Those that want to know what is going on behind the curtain get frustrated because they have non clue what is behind that panel. Those that do not care, they are at the camp fire with a beer already.

Very good example. Before the Nautilus system, the above process would have been: I want to dry camp. I fill the fresh water tank, and I turn on the pump. Job done. No valves to turn, no instructions to follow. Simple and pretty intuitive. My question remains: What does Nautilus offer that is superior to the process? It certainly is more complicated with more points of failure, but what does it offer in return? And that is actually a serious question. I simply don't understand the need for more complication when the original process is so simple.

I remember when the touch screens were the hot ticket in vehicles. Cool, cool, cool. But they, discovered, after a relatively long while, that the process of tuning the radio, or adjusting the fan speed meant you had to scroll through menus, and submenus, all with your eyes off the road. Now many radios, and A/C controls come with simple knobs, and dials because tactile information means you can adjust things while keeping ones eyes on the road. Not as cool by orders of magnitude, but smarter in the long run.