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RE: Battery On? Battery Off?
This will be my first winter with the trailer, and I plan on removing the battery, put it in the basement of my house, and connect a good smart-charger. If we decided to do some early Spring RVing, it takes very little time to reinstall and hook up.
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ArnieJ-NH
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09/13/08 05:57pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: MSRP (list price) Vs What you Paid
I bought my TT from RV Direct in Albany and received a 34% discount from MSRP.
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ArnieJ-NH
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09/13/08 01:25pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Dump Station Story
I have never timed myself, but I think the following approximates my time so far when I've needed to dump away from my site.
1. Hook up Flush King & sewer hose into dump hole (1)
2. Open Flush King dump valve then Black Water Tank valve
3. Attach water hose between Flush King & water hydrant
4. When Black Water Tank is pretty empty, close Flush King dump valve (2)
5. Turn water on back into Black Water Tank (2)
6. Stop water, open Flush King dump valve
7. When Black Water Tank drained, close Flush King dump valve (2)
8. Turn water back on for about 15 seconds to have water in the Black Water Tank to slosh around while driving. (.25)
9. Close Black Water Tank valve
10. Open Flush King dump valve, open both Gray Water Tank Valves
11. While Gray Water is draining, shut off water hydrant, disconnect my water hose and stow. Reconnect site water hose if it had been hooked up before I connected mine (some campground hoses I've seen do not have a connector on the end of their hose so I use my designated dump water hose)
12. When Gray Water drained, close both Gray Water Tank valves (2)
13. Close Flush King dump valve, disconnect Flush King from trailer, re-cover TT dump pipe (.25)
14. Raise Flush King and sewer hose to dump any residual water (.25)
15. Remove hose from dump hole (.25)
16. Disconnect sewer hose from Flush King and stow both (1)
17. Wash down dump area if necessary, replace cover (1)
18. Drive away
If I added correctly, it takes approximately 12 minutes. I can cut it to about 10 minutes or less if I don't back-flush with the Flush King. Or, I'll increase that to 15 minutes for that day that I didn't get my second cuppa tea before we head out to our next adventure.
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ArnieJ-NH
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09/07/08 04:49pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: New and Confused
As can be seen by my Signature, DW & I opted for the 2008 Jayco JayFeather 25F which appears to be the same floorplan as the 2009 Jayco 256RKS that "ksd" suggested. I have had no problem pulling it with the Durango and feel very comfortable with the WDH & sway control that I am using at speeds from 55 to 65mph. With the slide out, there is a lot of living space. Good sized wardrobe!
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ArnieJ-NH
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09/07/08 03:59am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Tor vehicles for small TT's, and MPG's
Just returned from a trip to WV from NH and averaged just a hair less than 10 mpg. It would have been a bit better, but DW "pushed" me into coming home at 65mph rather than the 55mph going down. The worst part were the hills/mountains in WV. To hold 55 on some of them (I-64), the Durango Hemi dropped into 2nd gear at 4K rpm (cruise control). That burns the gas real fast!
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ArnieJ-NH
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08/24/08 05:59am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Info wanted on Rear Kitchen in TT
Our Jayco 25F has a rear kitchen, and we are very happy with it. The only drawback is that the cups & glasses in the overhead cupboards always get "rearranged" if traveling on a bumpy road. That goes for "stuff" in the pantry as well.
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ArnieJ-NH
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08/24/08 04:57am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: home, safe and sound
DW & I have been marveling at the scenery on our trip. Something new and beautiful to see over each hill and even between the hills. We are so lucky to live where we do and have a chance to see all we see. That does not at all put down the rest of the US, just my comments at this moment in time. I also love Colorado with its mountains and scenery (my family has owned cabins on the Gunnison River in Gunnison since the early 1920s). One place out there I want to take my trailer to is Lake Irwin near Crested Butte and also to drive the Santa Fe Trail in my "covered wagon." Lots of places to travel to and see, so little time and money to do it!
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ArnieJ-NH
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08/21/08 05:48am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: home, safe and sound
Congratulations!
DW & I are presently on the return trip back to NH after a family reunion in Beckley, WV. We're at the Western RV Campground in Carlisle, PA (your home State). Stayed here on the way down, liked it, so reupped for another stay on the way back. As for gas - YUCK on gas mileage in WV. Those hills never seem to end! I've seen 4K rpm in 2nd gear quite a bit holding 55mph. At least the gas is a lot cheaper ($0.30-.40/gallon) than in NH! Averaging 9.1 mpg. Should get better the rest of the way. Was averaging 10.4 at 55mph until I hit WV.
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ArnieJ-NH
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08/20/08 07:30pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Picked up the new Jayco!
overniter - Looks like you are getting about a 34% discount from MSRP. Since I received a 34% discount from RV Direct in Albany on my 25F, I would think that your deal is a good one with your local dealer. When I was looking for mine, my local dealers would not do more than about 25%, so I went with RV Direct.
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ArnieJ-NH
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08/13/08 04:43am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Picked up the new Jayco!
Congratulations on your new TT! RV Direct's area for doing work & the PDI is pretty small, but it seems that they get the job done. I must give them high marks for working in the rain to install a vent cover and converting the friction sway system that they had mistakenly installed to the dual cam that I had ordered. The only thing I find that needs to be worked on is my water pump can't access about 10 gallons of water in the fresh water tank (factory install). I have the under belly cover so can't easily access the area to see what the problem is. That will wait until I get to a dealer. I will also probably need to get new axles since another thread on this Forum says that there should be about 4" of space between the top of the tires and the top of the wheelwell (factory install). I only have 1 3/4".
Now, it's time for you to go have lots of fun! I'm off to WV in a few days for a family reunion, RVing the whole time!!!
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ArnieJ-NH
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08/09/08 04:53am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: airing up tires?
I use a small 12v air pump plugged into a 12v emergency battery used for jump-starting. Takes time, but works! I think it's rated for 80psi, eventually ;-)
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ArnieJ-NH
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08/07/08 10:18am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: RV Stability
I have found to fully stabilize my 25F, I use the cordless drill to run them down to where the drill starts to "grunt", and then give each one to two full turns with the hand crank. It appears that my two stabilizers in the front handle the forward/aft movement and the rear two manage the side-to-side just from the way they are mounted. I also chock the wheels front & back. I leave the hitch jack down at the point that made it level front-to-back.
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ArnieJ-NH
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08/07/08 10:13am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Towing efficiency as a ratio of tow rating to actual load
Efficiency vs. cost - Interesting question. Yes, the DP towing a Jeep becomes more efficient ton-miles, but at what cost with the difference between the prices of gasoline and diesel and MPG. That's what I would be looking at, the bottom line of my wallet!
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ArnieJ-NH
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08/05/08 06:05am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Gulfstream or Jayco
Love our Jayco!!!
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ArnieJ-NH
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08/02/08 04:59am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Length of TT compared to TV
bluwtr49 -
You can add another statistic to your database. My 2004 Dodge Durango is 119.2" WB and my 2008 JayFeather 25F is probably the same as your 25Z. My ratio is 2.88. I am using the Reese WDH w/Dual Cam and Prodigy brake controller. I've only traveled about 1,000 miles with this combination so far, but am very pleased with the results. I have driven on the Interstate at 55 mph with gusty side-winds of 20-30 mph. I could feel the winds hitting, but the TV/TT did not move from its appointed direction, and I did not have to make any corrections. I was very pleasantly surprised, because I was expecting some movement!
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ArnieJ-NH
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07/31/08 07:54am |
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RE: Does TT size matter?
Size matters only to those who are going to be using the RV. If they are comfortable & happy, that's what matters. I know now that I wouldn't have been comfortable towing and maneuvering anything larger. We did purchase ours with the thought of possibly four people (DW, DH, DS, & DS's girlfriend) staying in it for a few days. DW & I haven't done that yet, but a niece, husband, & two children (12 & 6) stayed in it for three days/nights in our backyard and said that they were very comfortable. I did notice that the black water tank was full, one of the gray's was 2/3s full (bathroom), and the other gray water tank (kitchen) was 1/3 full. Nice to know information if we're without hookups for a few days.
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ArnieJ-NH
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07/26/08 01:16pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: rear kitchen
We chose our JayFeather 25F with rear kitchen because of the spaciousness in the "living room/kitchen" area. The slide also helps with the spaciousness. I have noticed that a few coffee cups in the upper rear cabinet over the sink do move around. This has been caused by rough city roads, not normal travel down the highway. If we were to do it again, we would probably do the same thing.
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ArnieJ-NH
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07/26/08 05:31am |
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RE: Eyes burning
DW is also very chemically sensitive. The only new RV she has been able to enter and stay for a while has been the Jayco line. I can not say that all the Jaycos are good, but at least the ones we looked at had no chemical smell or caused any problems for her. We ordered the 2008 JayFeather 25F from the factory, and she could enter it and use it immediately upon arrival. Other RV brands may also be good. Take your time and make the appropriate decision.
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ArnieJ-NH
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07/23/08 05:13am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Maxxair vent covers - have you used them?
My TT has three vents and three different style MaxxAir covers. All work very well! The only time the vents are closed is when the A/C is running. No rain has ever come in. We even had a downpour yesterday that my Weather program said that rain was coming down at a rate of 18" per hour! No water in the TT with all three vents open!
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ArnieJ-NH
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07/22/08 10:27am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Cross country trip with Kids - TT vs. Class C
There are pluses and minuses to both, but my choice would be a TT. DW & I went through the whole questioning/looking process for over five years.
Class A, B, or C - your "home" is always with you whether traveling on the highway from Point A to B, stopping for the night, or sightseeing. My take - Class A, too large; Class B, too small, Class C, not too bad but several negatives in my mind - lack of foot-room for the passenger in the right seat, possibly difficult to travel around to different sightseeing locations, and having to connect/disconnect all utilities every time you are sightseeing from one camping spot. Pulling another vehicle (a toad) would solve that problem, but would mean maintaining two motorized vehicles.
Travel Trailer - One motorized vehicle, living space could possibly be larger than a Class C when stopped, don't have to connect/disconnect when sightseeing from a fixed camping location. Motorized vehicle will get better gas mileage than Class C when sightseeing; about the same as Class C when towing. TT might possibly be harder to find a parking location when sightseeing along the way and possibly harder to maneuver in tight locations.
Those are a few of my observations. I'm sure there are many more that others will highlight. Do what is best for your situation and have fun doing it!
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ArnieJ-NH
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07/22/08 08:00am |
Travel Trailers
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