piconroy
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Advice gray/black water tank cleaners
Just finished a 90 day 11,700 mile jaunt across USA in our Micro Minnie 2106FBS which performed magnificently. I am so pleased with it. She, is a perfect match for our travels. (OOPS! was that sexist?) There is one thing I am trying to figure out. Why do my gray & black sensors never seem to indicate E when drained or hooked up to the camp sewer. Called my dealer and didn't get much help. Was told to get some Level Gauge Cleaner when I got home. I looked it up on Amazon and of course it's not cheap but more importantly the reviews are mediocre at best. Some suggested they had better luck with, as usual, Dawn or PineSol. Can any one shed some light on this "problem" The only thing that goes into the Black are #1's and any paper associated with #1's goes into a bag NOT the tank. The only thing that goes into the Gray is water with either Dawn in it or toothpaste residual. Over the 90 days we probably took no more than 2-3 showers each in the unit.The unit is always leveled. So what gives. Thanks, PIC3.1KViews0likes21CommentsRe: T T Decision Time
2012coleman thanks for hanging in there with me on the towing. I'm not really interested in swapping out trucks just to improve towability. So, I guess I'll narrow my TT search to shorter and lighter units. If I can't find something that works then I reconsider other options533Views0likes0CommentsRe: National Parks
Not sure how much time you are spending on this trip Based on my experience I would focus on what is called the 4 Corners UT-AZ-CO-NM & save the Yellowstone & Glacier for another trip to include Rocky Mountain National Park & much more. In the 4 corners there is plenty to see and includes most of what you have expressed an interest in seeing and in the Corners a must see is Mesa Verde Ntl Park. M.V. will blow you away and it completely negates anything about Columbus "discovering" America. You can do the Grand Canyon on your way out or on your way back. For Grand Canyon camping I recommend the the North Rim all though the views are more dramatic from the South Rim. Be sure to get off the interstate as much as possible. A must do is the old RT 66 from Kingman AZ to Seligman AZ. It's an earlier America frozen in time. In Seligman you have to stop in and see Angel Delgadillo. Incredible man & incredible story of him and RT 66. I see that N. AZ University is excepting his archives which is great news. I was totally fascinated with his place and himself. Check out his Facebook. You might be surprised at how much driving & trailering you will be doing. So, keep that in mind in your planning. If your going in true high season Natl Park camping sites could be difficult but not impossible. I would not lock myself into too many reservations. You could be looking at a use it or lose it $$ if you do. Keep it flexible so that if you want to hang around longer at a certain place your not pressured to move on. There are usually private camp grounds just outside the Parks that you can default to. Some are good, some are not but they are a place to hang your hat. Also, on a long trip I would plan to take an occasional break from the camper and check into a hotel/motel if just for a hot shower, a better night's sleep, and maybe even a swim. Be sure your okay with trailering this far on a maiden voyage. Just take it slow and easy. Make sure you have the right tow vehicle for the TT. I would do a practice camp set up before you head out. This way when you inevitably get to a camp after dark it may not be such a frustrating experience. AND lastly, someone mentioned to take a nice TV ?? FORGET TV! Your 24/7 entertainment is outside your TT not inside. You can watch TV when you get back. Sounds like a great trip an a memorable experience. Focus on this and not seeing more than you should take on in one trip. Trust me it's a fun trip but it's also a tiring one too. Oh Yeah speaking of TV, if you get the Smithsonian Channel check out their Aerial America series. If you catch the shows right or can DVR them they're great previews on what you will see. Sorry to go on and on but this was one of my most favorite trips I ever took.I hope it's the same for you guys557Views0likes0CommentsRe: T T Decision Time
Hey all, Some very good advice and experience sharing. Still a bit confused on some of the emphatic trailer-ing advice. This will not be my first trailer-ing rodeo. With this Tundra and other 150s/1500s I have towed 7-8,000 lb loads for (all be it flat and eastern mtn.) thousands of miles without incident. So, this is for the guys who have said I'm missing the trailer-ability of my Tundra......In looking at a TT I realized the trailer has a different profile but weight is weight. Adding distribution and sway should only help. So if my package is in the 7,000 +/- range and yes I'm not stupidly loading up the truck then I don't understand why some think I'm overdoing it. My GVWR is 6,900 lbs. My GAWR FRTis 3,900 lbs / RR is 4,100 lbs / my combined weight rating is 1,520 lbs. So, lets assume that me and the wife total 300 lbs, the dog in the back 70 lbs, camper shell @ 250 +/- msc gear 100 lbs and I think we add in gas too at full tank at 115 lbs all totaling 835 lbs leaving me 685 lbs of tongue weight. If my trailer dry weight is 5,500 lbs and we add 1,500 pounds of supplies travel (including propane) with drained tanks save of bit of fresh water then my tongue weight should come in around 700 lbs which is below the 15 lbs over the above. Add to this that properly equipped the Tundra is rated at towing up to 10,100 lbs and I'm at 7,0000 lbs / 69% of the total towing capacity and I'm at 87% of the GCWR of 16,000 lbs the then what am I missing ? Now I don't want to push any limits, mechanical, safety, comfort. SO, I can see I might want to drop down a bit to a 22-24' where I can start off with a 4,500-5,000 lb dry weight but I really think I'm in the ball park, don't you? Off course before I buy anything we will hook it up and go off to the scales to be certain. PAT PS: I take all advice seriously so please keep it coming533Views0likes0CommentsT T Decision Time
Hello to all. I'm still a relative newbie. I have been researching TTs as the wife has won the debate over going with; drive it or tow it! We are looking at 24-26' possibly 28' max TT. Of course there are many manufactures to choose from and each has floor plans that are similar and would fit our needs. Electronics & appliances are more or less the same in each. So now I'm down to who are the better TT manufactures. Researching this on the Web is quite frankly a waste of time. The best you will get is a top 5 or top 10 list and without much justification for the rankings. Searching the Web for quality info leave much to be desired So, given we have narrowed down to a size, a floor plan or 2, I need some experienced help on the not so visible considerations. Recommendations on framing, roofing, Siding, flooring, springs vs shocks, Slide mechanical parts (tracks), In general what should I look to upgrade vs taking the std stuff. I have seen many complaints about Forest River & Bullet leaks, multiple brand stories about slides not fully retracting etc. Why are there so many late model Forest River for sale at rvtrader? I have seen multiple brand complaints about abnormal tire wear and that many are probably related to axles bending. In this case I like the Minnie as they come with dual 3,500 lb axles vs what looks like std 3,000,lb on the others. There are tons of Coachmen out there but many people rip them on quality, why? We are based in FL but will be traveling much of N America 6-8 weeks at a time over the next 7-10 years. The unit will definitely get some cold weather exposure too. For the foreseeable future we will tow with a 2014 2x2 5.7 Tundra extended cab. I will beef up my tires on the next replacement. I will add a distribution & sway system. This should take me to 10,200 Tundra tow limit but I plan to keep my weight to a total not to exceed 7,000-8,000 lbs max. My research and conversations with owners and sellers has clearly led me to believe that IF we buy new or used and IF we buy from a dealer we need to be extremely careful in choosing which dealer. It's unbelievable that in this day & age that some of these guys can get away with lousy service and a I don't care about you attitude. I was actually told by one dealer in Southern MD "if you don't but it here then don't bring it here" Remember the days before Honda, Toyota, and Datsun, arrived on our shores how the auto dealers were? Well, it's apparently much the same today in the RV industry. Seriously, I would take 500 miles if need be if the Dealer was worth it. So, in the end it only make sense to find the best built and hopefully eliminate ans many trips back to the dealer as possible. So, what ever advice you can provide it would be greatly appreciated. Also if you have a dealer or service shop you have full faith in then that would be good info too. We will probably purchase a unit in the next 30 days. So, if you love your unit & your dealer let me know about it I'm going to try and copy to this to another Forum. So you may see this twice. PAT6.1KViews0likes24CommentsTowing TT
Hope this gets some responses from seasoned tow-ers. Anyway we are looking at 21-26' Winne TTs with GVWR of 7000/7500 lbs. Would be towing with a 2014 5.8ltr 4dr 2wd Tundra SR with tow pkg and aftermarket break controller. It's rated to tow up to 11,200 lbs. BUT eventually someone correctly pointed out that the hitch is only rated up to 5,000 lbs and that I would need a WD system. Okay, fine no problem but even with the WD is that hitch adequate? I have to double check but I think the Tundra payload is 1500 lbs but does have a Leer Cap on it. Over the next 5-6 years we plan to cover some serious ground with our package. Based in FL we would make several trips out west, upper midwest, and northeast. Additional info; I have towed this kind of weight before with the Tundra. 21' Grady White back and forth to the Chesapeake annually and a fully loaded and probably overloaded 16' box trailer. While they were never a problem (just like they were not even back there) the more I research the more I question my past judgement. So, if anyone has advice it would surely be appreciated. ALSO ANY ADVICE ON TRAVEL TRAILER BRANDS (choices) would be great too, especially the Winne. This industry's reputation can be very dubious and I would really like to avoid mistakes and just not step into more problems than I need. to PAT2.5KViews0likes8CommentsRe: is there a warm route from ohio to arizona
I-10 can be a no "picnic route" too. Certainly a longer drive from Central OH and facing the same weather concerns getting to warmer weather asap. Give some consideration to I-70 to St Louis. I-44 to Oklahoma City and I-40 on into AZ. Just watch the weather and you'll be fine.It's all good Interstate except for through Indy which can be offset by using I-465.269Views0likes0Comments
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