Jayco 228 or X213, Lance 2185

James_A wrote:


On a separate note, it looks like the Jay Feather line is now discontinued :(

Jayco has the 2015 Jay Feathers up on their site now. Here's the 2015 X213 http://www.jayco.com/products/travel-trailers/2015-jay-feather/x213/

We just bought one last weekend and are loving it so far!

kincade wrote:
I might add - we looked at all 3 of these trailers when searching. I really liked the X213 but the Lance seemed better built and had features we couldn't get on the Jayco. I liked being able to get out of bed without rolling over someone too.

The X213 has had a king bed for a few models years now and you sleep foot to head, so no need to rollover anyone like when they had the sideways queen.

The Lance looks cool as well though. So it says the floor length is 21' 2" but the total length is 25' 8", does it just have a super long hitch? Because most of the 21 foot boxes I've seen are right around 24' total length.

Much prefer the ducted over the non. Our friends had a ROO 19, which came with non-ducted....if you were right by the vent, you were fine, but they had trouble getting it evenly distributed even in that size HTT. We had the 23SS with ducted and were always comfortable regardless of where we were. If you come in from a real scorcher of a day and want "instant" cool-down, just close the slide in the main vent to divert from the ducts to center blast....stand there for a couple minutes and you'll be darned near cold. Our TT has the ducted and we're very happy with it. You can close off vents, turn them, partially close, put it on center blast, whatever you want. You don't have that option with the non ducted.

I might add - we looked at all 3 of these trailers when searching. I really liked the X213 but the Lance seemed better built and had features we couldn't get on the Jayco. I liked being able to get out of bed without rolling over someone too.

I'd look at all 3 and make your decision then. I wouldn't decide on only ducted AC, as insulation and other factors can make much more difference than that.

We have a Lance 2185 and have found the AC to be more than adequate, even non ducted.

Our last trailer had ducted AC, and it was slightly quieter - but the insulation on the 2185 (double paned windows, enclosed underbelly, etc - a certified 4 season trailer) has made much more difference than the ducting.

James_A wrote:

On a separate note, it looks like the Jay Feather line is now discontinued :(

Jayco still has the Jay Feather line for 2014 and 2015. They have changed the line over to the Jay Feathers now have tent ends on them for the most part. There are a couple trailers that don't like the X213 and a couple others.

James_A wrote:


On a separate note, it looks like the Jay Feather line is now discontinued :(

Where did you get this info? And do you mean both the SLX and the Ultra Lite? And when is this happening? They're still doing it for 2015 I know as their brochure is online and models are in the stores.

Heh, we're all different for sure.

For sure... My wife likes it hot and in the winter she keeps us baking with the wood stove...

When an RV gets hot, it's like an oven inside and a real chore to cool down. To me anyway, direct vents out of the air conditioner to a better job than ducked running the cold air through the already heated up roof ducting and the cool air movement over the trickle the ceiling ducts dish out.....

Coming home after a hard day working in the heat and popping the door on a closed up tin can, even with the windows open, is a blast from the devil.:B

The wife used to water down the tin sides to keep it cooler, it works. I just couldn't live in a place like Florida

Any way, if I ever get another trailer it won't have ducted air. The wife can go sit outside..:B

Thanks to you all so far. It's just insanely hot here in Florida during the summer that I would be worried about sweating all night.

On a separate note, it looks like the Jay Feather line is now discontinued :(

jaycocreek wrote:

...
If I had a choice, which you don't usually these days, I would get non ducted air.

Heh, we're all different for sure. The wife and I will only have ducted air from now on. Our new trailer is so much quieter with it, and the cool air is more evenly distributed. You are not just blasted with cold air in 1 or 2 locations. Our old trailer had non-ducted A/C, and we avoided using it whenever possible.

But good roof insulation is probably as important. As is the implementation of the ducts. They need to be big enough with no obstructions. There are dealers in Florida (a Lance dealer near Tampa IIRC) that have all their trailers plugged in so you can compare them for yourself.