Hello all -I'm thinking of getting a 2017 Northern Lite 10'2" Special Edition model, and have a couple questions that the dealer didn't have much to say about one way or the other. Hoping any of you that own one of these can give me some feedback.The first question involves the entrance door, and ventilation. I noticed that the outside door is held open, apparently, with just a strut at the bottom of the door. How do you hold the outside door in place if you want to keep it open, with just the inside screen door being closed? I would be using the camper in pretty windy conditions a lot of the time. My other RVs (travel trailers and a 5th wheel) always had/have a latch to secure the entrance door to the side of the RV.The second question involves the location of the battery cutoff switch near the floor in the hallway just as you enter the camper. Do you sometimes accidentally kick this switch as you walk by? This seems to be a less than ideal location to put this cutoff switch, and I am concerned about kicking it as I enter and leave the camper.Lastly, the dealer has quoted me this camper with a factory installed Onan LP generator. I will be using this in below freezing conditions some of the time, so I thought that would be nice to have. However, a friend of mine who has a Lance camper with an Onan generator said if he had to do it again he wouldn't get the Onan and would use two small portable generators instead, which are quieter in his opinion, and used less fuel.What are your thoughts on this? Appreciate your thoughts and input.John

We use a bungee to keep our door open. The little plastic gadget is a PIA.In 4 years of usage we have never come close to hitting/kicking the battery disconnect.When we need power, the Honda 2000 does the job quietly and inexpensively.We use our 811 around 30 days a year and it has held up very well both inside and out.

EfonFred wrote:We use a bungee to keep our door open. The little plastic gadget is a PIA.In 4 years of usage we have never come close to hitting/kicking the battery disconnect.When we need power, the Honda 2000 does the job quietly and inexpensively.We use our 811 around 30 days a year and it has held up very well both inside and out.I apprciate your response.I hadn't thought of using a bungee on the door, but that just might work. I would want it to be one of the heavy duty ones though, because the winds where I am in SW Montana can sometimes be sustained ones over 35mph, and with gusts over 50mph, and that's not on a windy day!I already have one Honda 2000i, so it would be lots cheaper to just get a second one, if needed to run a couple things simultaneously.John

We have never hit the battery disconnect switch going in or out. As for the door, that thing on the outside that holds the door open is plastic and not very good. Ours broke on our recent trip and will have to be replaced. The bungee cord in really windy conditions would be a good idea. In talking to Keith at the NL factory, he says the Onan built-in generator is very noisy and didn't recommend it. He recommended the Honda 2000 as it will power the AC they use. It costs about $1000 vs $4000 for the other. I think there are pros and cons to both. With it built in you don't have to worry most likely about it being stolen never mind being able to start it from the inside which is a plus. We love our NL and it is a great camper.

If you have problems with those parts of the camper, give Northern Lite a call at the factory. They seem to be responsive and want to do what customers want based on what others have posted here.

The new door NL started using for the 2017 model stays open just fine without the use of anything more than the strut you mentioned. I am actually surprised by how strong it is. With respect to the battery disconnect, we have never had an issue with it. The new NL units come with the Coleman Mach 8 AC, so it can be ran with one of the Honda EU2000 suitcase generators. In fact, we could run ours with the generator in ECO mode without any issues.

Questions for Newer Model Northern Lite Owners | Good Sam Community

a_flyfisher
Explorer
Oct 12, 2016
I hadn't given much thought to the windows since I had no prior experience with them. Thanks for all of your comments, and providing that link to those comments on them.
Mattyd
Explorer
Oct 12, 2016
Dewclaw wrote:

The NL is a good camper but if I were doing it all over again I would be more concerned about the Dometic (Heki) windows and skylight over the bunk than anything else. Especially the skylight.

I agree completely with Dewclaw. My NL was a 2012. It was stored outside for the two years prior to my purchasing it. I stored the unit inside from there on. One day when it was about 3 years old I go out to mess around in the camper and low and behold laying on the bed is part of the skylight latching mechanism. It had deteriorated due to exposure to the sun. I ended up and replaced both side latching systems. It caused me about a week of down time to get parts. I am so glad I was not on vaca or driving down the road when this part gave way. This is one of the primary objectives of mine when selecting a new camper. No Heki!

The power on/off switch caused me no bother and in fact I kind of like it where NL placed it. I just used a bungee cord to hold my door open. We really liked the NL. Ultimately we wanted a slide and did not want a unit with a Heki or the kind of windows NL uses.
Dewclaw
Explorer II
Oct 10, 2016
a_flyfisher wrote:
Dewclaw wrote:

The NL is a good camper but if I were doing it all over again I would be more concerned about the Dometic (Heki) windows and skylight over the bunk than anything else. Especially the skylight.

What are you concerns about these windows and skylight? Leaking? Scratching? Have there been problems with them?

The concern is that the latches can be fragile and replacements hard to find. You can see some posts here: https://forums.woodalls.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/29037626.cfm
run100
Explorer
Oct 10, 2016
gregchambers wrote:
The pushbutton start was attractive until I read about if your batteries are low (one of the reasons to have a generator is to recharge them) the generator will not start and there is no manual way to do so.

In this situation, I just start the truck which allows me to fire-up the generator. Once the gen is running, I turn off the truck.
a_flyfisher
Explorer
Oct 10, 2016
Dewclaw wrote:

The NL is a good camper but if I were doing it all over again I would be more concerned about the Dometic (Heki) windows and skylight over the bunk than anything else. Especially the skylight.

What are you concerns about these windows and skylight? Leaking? Scratching? Have there been problems with them?
Dewclaw
Explorer II
Oct 10, 2016
As others have said, the battery cutoff switch is a non-issue. Since it must be turned to disconnect the battery it would be a rare circumstance to do it by bumping it with one's foot. I've never tripped on it.

The door hold-open is like those on my previous campers and can allow the door to slam shut hard if a good wind comes up. Both my previous campers had metal rather than plastic hold-open latches and both would somehow come loose and allow the door to slam shut in the wind. The plastic latch on my NL broke the little "ears" off in a wind gust but I fixed it by drilling and substituting a short piece of sturdy air hose left over from my air bag installation. When camping where it is windy I just loop a piece of nylon cord around the inside door handle and then tie it to the jack. That won't fail.

The NL is a good camper but if I were doing it all over again I would be more concerned about the Dometic (Heki) windows and skylight over the bunk than anything else. Especially the skylight.
AidenJ
Explorer
Oct 07, 2016
We tend to avoid camping near noisy generators, so I guess that would be a plus. We seldom have a need for our Honda but when we do it powers everything we need.
K_Mac
Explorer
Oct 07, 2016
I've never had issues with battery switch, Honda : without a doubt, Door latch gets soft in the sun and allows door to move, works fine at this time of year. N L's are pricey but a good investment, look at the prices of used ones, if you can find one. Worth the $.
jimh406
Explorer III
Oct 06, 2016
Built ins have advantages as well. All built ins will run the AC. See this fairly recent thread for more info. http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/29000612.cfm

Small Yamahas are also known to have issues starting most ACs. Hondas seem to be much better.
Ski_Pro_3
Explorer
Oct 06, 2016
Built in generators have a few main issues;
1. They are not the quiet generators Honda and Yamaha are known for.
2. They take up space. Even when you don't need it, you gotta take it.
3. They are way over priced. Much cheaper to get the Honda portables.
4. Can't use it for anything but the camper. A portable can be used for other applications. More versatile that way.