Slide topper awning Arctic Fox 811??

I have them and am glad I do. don't have to get on the roof to sweep off the slides when I bring them in. saves the seal as there is little sun gets to them and drys them out or cracks them

can't you just add a topper? the bunk seems like a more insurmountable task to me.
bumpy

If you do get them installed, get the longest you can. Most manufacturers will only put a slide on that matches the width of the slide. If I put another on mine I will put one six to nine inches longer so that the overhang really protects the slide as much as possible in windy conditions.

I have one on mine. Really worth it to keep stuff out while slide is out. I removed my fold down bunk when I removed my dinette to install a lazy boy reclining love seat.

I have different take on this. While researching what options to get for our 2013 AF, I spoke to many owners and a few industry experts. The general consensus was not to get a slide topper, which surprised me as I pretty much had my mind made up to get them. I was told that the most often times when a camper is damaged it is from passing by a park kiosk or roadside sign where the extra width of a slide topper catches, usually on the passenger side. Another problem is that wind still blows junk/water under the topper and you still end up needing to get up on the roof to sweep out between the slide and topper which is more difficult than without it. Lastly with strong winds, many put a beach ball or other shim device to help minimize the flapping that can keep you awake which necessitates yet another trip up the ladder. Having said all that, I've not really enjoyed sweeping off my slides when breaking camp, but it isn't an every time experience. Only once in awhile do I have enough "junk" on the slide that warrants climbing up there with a broom. In all the times we've used it so far, I've only wished we had the toppers once, so looks like I got some good advise. So far, I don't miss them. YMMV.

if a driver is so clumsy that a 6 inch projection at the roof line keeps hitting something, he shouldn't be on the road in the first place. the only one of those issues that I ever had was when I was parked on the beach in galveston and had to pull in my bedroom slide to quiet down the flapping. the other 99.99999 % of the time, no issue.
bumpy

CAJW wrote:
I have different take on this. While researching what options to get for our 2013 AF, I spoke to many owners and a few industry experts. The general consensus was not to get a slide topper, which surprised me as I pretty much had my mind made up to get them. I was told that the most often times when a camper is damaged it is from passing by a park kiosk or roadside sign where the extra width of a slide topper catches, usually on the passenger side. Another problem is that wind still blows junk/water under the topper and you still end up needing to get up on the roof to sweep out between the slide and topper which is more difficult than without it. Lastly with strong winds, many put a beach ball or other shim device to help minimize the flapping that can keep you awake which necessitates yet another trip up the ladder. Having said all that, I've not really enjoyed sweeping off my slides when breaking camp, but it isn't an every time experience. Only once in awhile do I have enough "junk" on the slide that warrants climbing up there with a broom. In all the times we've used it so far, I've only wished we had the toppers once, so looks like I got some good advise. So far, I don't miss them. YMMV.

Our experience too. We went back and forth on this. I too read rv.net for recommendations. When we ordered our AF the dealer didn't recommend ordering them. They don't order them on their stock AF units thought they do on other manufactures TC's. Their claim was the AF "wipers" do a good job.

I asked insp1505 who was done a lot of winter camping about them. He sent back:

"My thought's. . . . . . first I've heard they are noisy in the wind. It is windy here a lot and I don't want to listen to that thing all night. If I could find one that was guaranteed noiseless I might be inclined to give it a try if I felt I needed one. However in the 2.5 years I have owned my camper I never saw the need for it. The roof material on the slide seems to be holding up well in all the conditions I've encountered. I just give mine a quick sweep before leaving if I've been camping under trees so I don't drag a limb or pine cone through the seal and damage the roof. I also don't like having any extra holes drilled into the side of the camper that don't need to be there. The less holes to maintain and also for possible water intrusion the better for me.

At first thought, when winter camping, having one may be nice to shed off the snow from the slide roof so I didn't have to climb up and sweep it before closing the slide to leave. After camping a few winters and noticing how the blowing snow gets into everything I think I would still have to clear snow from the slide roof but if I had a slide topper it would be much more challenging to get the snow out from under it than to just stand on the roof with a broom and do a quick sweep."

We ordered without them. So far so good. We rarely have to climb up and sweep. if the wind is strong enough to bring down lots of stuff, it probably can blow it under the topper. Water doesn't seem to be an issue either.

It depends on several things.

Wind:
High wind can be a problem but if the slide can be retracted and still leave room to move about the camper, then wind is not a problem.

Wind is usually directional.
Often times it is not a problem.

"Scary wind" will make you retract the slide and put the jacks down.

Moderate wind is not a concern.


Protrusion:
The awning topper, while rolled up, does protrude from the camper side and can be a problem.
We hit a Joshua tree with the awning frame holder while barreling down a dirt road.
The dirt road was rutted into the earth (no where to go) and the Joshua tree was leaning over the passenger side.
Joshua trees are actually quite hard.

Debri:
Dust, pollen, seedlings, pine cones, snow, dead stuff from tree branches - all that stuff just rolls off when the awning is retracted.
If you rarely camp in forested areas then you probably won't want/need a topper.

Artum Snowbird wrote:
If you do get them installed, get the longest you can. Most manufacturers will only put a slide on that matches the width of the slide. If I put another on mine I will put one six to nine inches longer so that the overhang really protects the slide as much as possible in windy conditions.

How are you going to put a longer one on the slide. The topper has to attach to the slide out so the brackets has to be fastened onto the slide out. This limits the width that you can use. Years ago Carefree had one that I thought was the best idea but they stopped making it. It was over the slide but was not attached to the slide. When you wanted to use it you cranked it out and it would extend over the slide out and became a window shade also. It was wider than the slide out.

To the OP: I have had both and it is true that wind can blow them and water can also pool on top of them and they don't roll up when you retract the slide out with water on them they just try to go under the slide wipers. You have to get the water off before closing up. I would have to use a broom under it to push up and get the water off before closing. Now maybe nobody else has experienced this but I have. This is when we were full timing in our 5er and working on a project in OR that has a lot of rain. This is why I got a NL without a slide this way I don't have to worry about it. :B They do keep debris off the roof and I think they might help a little with AC in the hot summer time as the sun is not beating right on the roof of the slide out where there is very little insulation.

Thanks for all the input. It seems that it is not that big of a deal to not have the toppers. I'm relatively young and don't mind climbing the ladder to knock debris off before heading out. I was mostly worried about water running in under the seal during a rain storm. Doesn't sound like that is much of an issue.

Bart