B+ motorhomes

[Daniel_C_]

I just bought a Trail Lite B+ 211s with 8.1 Chevy
engine. This is my fifth motorhome (others range
from an old 20' Vagabond, and three Winnegagos, from 19 to 32'. This vehicle is fantastic. I am
using it as a mobile office (and sneaking in a fun
journey from time to time). It gets about 9.5mpg
and I believe I could pull a bus behind it if I wanted! I paid low $40's which is about what I had expected to pay for a five or six year old Chinook with a nicer interior, but fewer features
(slide). I am delighted thus far.

[happyjack2]

Cheeze 1, We're sleeping fore and aft now but being 6'tall, I run out of room. That's why I want to sleep cross ways which is 84" I think. I just need to make sure the topper fits under the sofa. The sofa has a heat duct attached to the removable front board but I disconnected the dryer type vent pipe going to it for now.

Ron, I also like your garage and your RV. I've seen a couple on the road and they are sharp.

My 211 will not fit in my 84 Lumber type 24 x 24 detached garage with 8' doors behind my house but I'm thinking of getting a metal car port with the taller legs before this winter. Not enclosed but at least under roof.

[cheeze1]

Welcome Ron. I was very interested in a Phoenix myself, but decided, since it was our first rv, to go for the least $$$.
Love your garage!!

[ron_dittmer]

My B+ 2007 Phoenix Cruiser still has under 200 miles, waiting for me to finish my towed car wiring and installation of my 26" widescreen LCD-TV in the over-driver area. My wife is doing some girly touches too. Maybe by 8/5, we'll do our first weekend get-away.

With all the "NEW" motor home issues here, I am better emotionally prepared if issues surface.

As this is our first self contained RV, I keep running into more and more things I need before my first trip anywhere. Much related to dingy towing, and hook-ups.....stuff. Oh yes, those Lynx Levelers too.

[cheeze1]

I guess you 2 have the 211? I dont have that kind of room under my sofa,since the heat ducting is there. However, I am more interested in the fact that you sleep crossways rather than longway, facing the tv.

[gkreutzer]

happyjack2 - Yes, I roll it up like a giant burrito with sheets on and put bungee cords around each end. Then I roll it under the sofa and add comforter and pillows on top. At night my wife does help pull the big roll back out, we just yank on the bungees, and roll it out onto the dinette side, undo the bungees, put down the sofa and spread it all back out. Takes about 2 minutes. The memory foam really helps even out the bumps from the different cushions that make up the bed. We sleep with our heads on the sofa side since there is a bit of spring in the sofa for upper body. Sometimes when not using the dinette we just put he roll on the dinette side and throw the comforter over it and just use it as another sofa, that really makes set up quick. It's probably a bit of a hassle, but as you say, once you sleep on memory foam there's no going back.:Z

[happyjack2]

gkreutzer, I guess I'm confused. We have the queen sized costco topper on our bed at home and it would be a bear to fold it up to fit under the jack knife sofa. I've moved it a few times when DW gets into house cleaning frenzy and folded twice to 1/4 area its still difficult to move. Seems a CA king even more so. I think I'll try getting our topper under the sofa in the 211 and if I can make it fit that's the way to go. ( all I need is 72" and the queen is 80 x 60) Do you roll it up like a sleeping bag and tie it? Do you need help when you get it out from under the sofa?

markopolo, I've used regular foam before and even 80" long twins should fit folded between the backs of the seat and the sofa/dinette. Unfortunately, memory foam is habit forming ( makes any mattress feel like a million $) and if I can make it work thats what the DW wants.

[gkreutzer]

I've noticed this slight difference in the height of the jack-knife sofa and the dinette when folded down to make one large bed. I put a folded quilt on the seat cushions of the sofa to raise it up to the same level but was thinking of adding a few washers under the sofa supports to bring it up a half inch or so. We use a Novaform from Costco topper, California King size- which I roll up under the sofa with pillows and down comforter. It only takes about 2 minutes to set up the bed each nite. We spent 7 weeks sleeping on it last summer and it is very comfortable. When I'm bacheloring it, not using the dinette, I just roll up the whole thing on the dinette side and use that as a second couch.

[markopolo]

We use two foam toppers. We used to use them in our Roadtrek, one each on the 'twin' beds. They're now approx 25" x 70" (used to be 27") and might be 3" or 4" foam. I fold them in half for storing in our Trail-lite. One goes behind the drivers seat and the other goes behind the passenger seat. They have a fleece covering. I trimmed them down to 25" to make it easier pass by them coming from the cab.

We used sleeping bags in the RT and continue to use them in our B+.

I've been wondering if I'd be able to store two rolled up pieces of memory foam in the space now taken up by the large Television.

The sofa and dinette seem to be the same level when made up as one large bed in our 213. No gaps that I can recall.

[happyjack2]

Gene I was thinking of putting a topper over the both beds since they touch when they are down. The total sleep area is about 72 x 84 with both beds down. I am 6' and when sleeping fore and aft on either the sofa or table I run out of room. When we tried to sleep cross ways the front edge of the sofa does not exactly match the height of the table bed and is right in the middle of your back. A queen topper is 60 x 80 and a king is 76 x 80. I found a nice memory foam one at costco but it's 4" thick and would never fit under the sofa while made up for travel. I have an air bed and I'll try sleeping on it in the 211 here in the back yard before I try a topper. Just wondered if anybody else had dealt with this. On these short trips I'm okay but next year we're thinking OK, FL, and maybe MT to visit family and friends.

[Gene_in_NE]

happyjack2 - Even though our units are similar, they are different. Our 211, with slide, couch does not meet the dinette when jack knifed down. A negative as you have two single beds instead of one large one. A positive as you have a narrow aisle between the two when down. We can use a fitted sheet over each - a tight fit. We bought two single bed foam mattress from Wal-Mart. We then sewed a pillowcase from inexpensive queen sheets. These fold over and rollup easily and then get a strap around them and placed back in the zippered plastic baggie they were bought in. They are very comfy and do not take much time to unroll on the bed and get covered with the fitted sheet and feather quilt.

[cheeze1]

Sounds like a nice trip Happyjack. We enjoy the same driving/napping experiences, especially since my wife can snuggle up with the pups as well.
Nice to see that the cb is still a viable source of info!
I am also curious about the mattress topper.

[happyjack2]

Hello All. Enjoyed a trip to WV then on to SC to visit kids/grandkids. Driving the B+ is more relaxing than the SUV for me plus the DW can nap in comfort. Used my CB to detour arround a five mile backup near Salem VA. Mounted the antenna on the ladder and ran the coax up the frame one evening prior to the trip. Saw a T/L B+ at mile marker 88 going southbound on I-81 in VA on tuesday 7/17.

Does anybody use a foam mattress topper to bridge the hump/dip between the sofa and the bed on the table?

[cheeze1]

Plus X, welcome, hope we can help. My opinion of Forest River Products is not good. When we were looking, the Lexington at the Hershey Show had the worst quality, uncomfortable aftermarket seats I have ever seen. Made it worse since we did not want the Ford cab as well. The Chevy is much more roomy and comfortable.

[cheeze1]

Gene, that docking station is a nice idea. My new tv has a outlet for the 'blue plug" from a computer. I will have to think about that...
Burl, I like keeping the tv hidden, and this way I don't have to stress the door. As for your cement block, yes, there is some foam and other stuff up there. I did 2 things, I used 'Great Stuff' and silicone sealer-first I removed the headliner. Fed in as much silicone and in other places 'stuff' as I could get between the metal roof and the coach deck above, and then sent drywall screws right through the roof. Great deal less squeeks and rattles. I also have a 213 and love it despite the 'growing pains'. I like your idea about the shelving in the rear outdoor compartment. I find a small bit of water in mine at times, still can't figure out where from. I have an 05 also and haven't bothered to try and do 2 batteries because there just doesn't seem to be the room. Lemme know if you have success.
Marco...polo...marc...(sorry) anyway, welcome. We were in Italy for the last couple of weeks. Lots of B+'s there.

[Goldencrazy]

When you remove the big TV you will find a hot open space. It will provide access to the areas behind your other cabinets. I stuffed the area with fiberglass insulation then took a piece of masonite that I cut to slightly over size and installed it using the pressure of insulation to push back and hold it slightly in place. Then took brown duck tapes and taped the seams. Works great. Less heat, no rattles and lovely storage. See my other post in this thread on TV installation. A nice swing arm really provides flexibility for a 15-26 inch lcd tv. I find the 15 inch is plenty.