Also working on a build sheet

[mnewman]

My husband and I recently ordered a 19 foot trailer and are working on our build sheet. We have lots of questions. This is our first travel trailer.
1. Can anyone tell us some advantages and disadvantages of a high lift axle? We plan to boon dock off dirt roads but not off deeply rutted dirt roads.
2. Can anyone tell us some advantages and disadvantages of the U-shaped dinette? It looks like the table space might be smaller with the U-shaped dinette. However, it also looks like the table could be taken out and you would have a nice couch/lounge area with the U-shaped dinette.
3. Any advice about the roof mounted solar panel would be greatly appreciated.
4. Any advice concerning the usefulness of the (1) surge protector, (2) removable power cord and (2) inverter with a transfer switch and all outlets would be greatly appreciated,
Thank you,
Dave and Meredith

[gbaglo]

You will get answers here, but you can also use the search function to look up previous discussions on all of those issues. Use the Google / search site box at the bottom.

[Eggscape]

The u shape dinette looks good and is great to lounge against. If there are just two of you then I would highly recommend it.
I always inform people to concider the raised floor in the dinette area. This raises you up so that you are looking out of the center of the windows and not the lower 1/3. If you are short, then this is a must in my opinion.

[NCopp]

We have a 2017 19' and love it. We're getting close to 20k miles...

1. We've taken our trailer on some dirt roads and have no issue with the regular axle. But probably would not try really rough roads with any trailer. Center of gravity is a little lower with the regular axle I would think. Ours tracks really well.
2. We prefer having a larger table. There are only 2 of us and 2 cats.
3. I highly recommend the solar panel if you will do any camping other than hooked up to electric. I work at a music festival twice a year and leave the trailer there for a couple weeks with no hookups. The solar keeps my two 6 volt batteries charged all the time and that's with some trees blocking some of the sun. Without solar you might last a few days without running down the batteries. With it you never have to think about the batteries running down.

4. Surge protector is a safe bet. Some use portable ones but if it's raining and you're in a hurry you might skip using it and fry something.
Removable power cord in my estimation is asking for trouble. If you forget to bring it you're without power. I have a 25' 30 AMP extension I plug in with so only have to pull the trailer plug out a few feet and never worry about cord tangle in the trailer.

We didn't get the inverter, thought it was too expensive. If you have a laptop or something you can buy a simple inverter to plug into the 12v plug. We use our stove top coffee pot when not hooked up and skip the microwave.

[Lisa M.]

I have a 17' Casita without a high-rise axel and plan to be ordering an Escape down the road a bit. Unless people can give me good reasons for NOT going with a high-rise axel, it will definitely be on my list for the Escape. We like those little out-of-the-way campsites too, and some of the roads in the Sierras are hilly and badly rutted. The last time I went up to a favorite place, it was downright scary! I'm really looking forward to the high-rise axel!

[gbaglo]

There is the issue of fuel mileage with the trailer standing taller. I have the high lift axle. Raises the trailer 2 1/2 inches. The axle remains the same distance from the ground.

I ordered it because I planned to get a Tacoma. Wife nixed that and I got a RAV4. If the tow vehicle can get over the humps, so can the trailer ( even without the lift ). If it can't then then the high lift won't help.

[kstock11]

I agree with the advice concerning the roof mounted solar option. I also bought my 19’ as a first (and most likely a last) trailer. I agonized over the question of ordering the inverter. I finally ordered it. Up until last summer, I rarely used it. Last summer, I purchased a ro polisher to take care of removing black streaks and polishing the trailer. My trailer is stored off site with no power. I turned on the inverter, plugged in and was able to take care of business! So my thoughts, sometimes you add something “just in case - it’s only money.” Better to have and not need, than need and not have.

[mnewman]

Thank you all for your advise. I guess we've already started out adventure.

[stephen99]

Definitely get the solar with the 6V batteries. Consider adding a Zamp port to add a portable panel so you can have the trailer in shade while still charging the batteries. We went 60 days straight without plugging in thanks to solar. Definitely get the EMS. Add extra 12v outlets and USB ports in the trailer.

[Perry Butler]

Originally Posted by mnewman

My husband and I recently ordered a 19 foot trailer and are working on our build sheet. We have lots of questions. This is our first travel trailer.
1. Can anyone tell us some advantages and disadvantages of a high lift axle? We plan to boon dock off dirt roads but not off deeply rutted dirt roads.
2. Can anyone tell us some advantages and disadvantages of the U-shaped dinette? It looks like the table space might be smaller with the U-shaped dinette. However, it also looks like the table could be taken out and you would have a nice couch/lounge area with the U-shaped dinette.
3. Any advice about the roof mounted solar panel would be greatly appreciated.
4. Any advice concerning the usefulness of the (1) surge protector, (2) removable power cord and (2) inverter with a transfer switch and all outlets would be greatly appreciated

1. The high lift package will not help with deeply rutted roads. We wanted a high lift on the camper, not the axles (they stay the same distance from the ground) so our trikes would not hit the hitch on the 5th wheel. This would not apply to you. If you go into places with flash flood gullies you might benefit from the high lift. If not, I'd save my money.

2. We have a u-shaped dinette with a 22" deep rear bench, 4" thick rear back pad, and both the seat and the back pads were split to make it easy to get into the storage under the bench (I split the plywood hatch). We also do NOT have a table, but use a smaller portable when needed. I'm sitting in the lounge area right now while I'm writing this post. We would definitely do all these again.

3. Don't know where you are going to get a solar panel, wiring, and solar controller installed for $850 (Canadian, $640 US). This is a no-brainer!

4. We have a surge protector. Had our power converter killed in our Casita because of bad power. If you ever have this happen you'll always filter power.
After having mice gain entry to a couple of campers by way of the power cord hole we will always have a removable power cord that eliminates critter entry.
We don't need an inverter, but others feel they do. That's dependent on what you need to camp.

Enjoy,

Perry

[AKCamper]

I don’t think I would want a high lift axle, but hey what ever floats your boat. I would get as many options as I thought I might want. We spent $10,000 on options on our 2016 Escape 19 and I don’t regret a single one. We didn’t get solar so I use a portable 100 watt panel. I see that the factory solar as real good option for most people. I just wanted to do my own thing with solar and for me it’s a work in progress. The point I wanted to make is that you will love your trailer so get everything you think you might want.

[GeorgiaBill]

Originally Posted by NCopp

We have a 2017 19' and love it. We're getting close to 20k miles...

1. We've taken our trailer on some dirt roads and have no issue with the regular axle. But probably would not try really rough roads with any trailer. Center of gravity is a little lower with the regular axle I would think. Ours tracks really well.

Thanks for commenting on your experiences. I'm struggling with the axle option.

-Bill

[Farther]

I don't know if it has been mentioned but one negative factor with the high lift axle could be its effect on fuel economy. Since the Escape is relatively aerodynamic it may have a negligible effect dependant on the profile of your tow vehicle. I have seen too many travel trailers bottoming out on the approaches to gas stations which make me think the hight lift would be a good thing.

[Bea]

Hi Dave and Meredith, Congrats on your new 19 Escape!

We ordered the high axle lift for several reasons. 1. Clearance. Escape's high axle lift basically lifts the trailer 2 1/2 inches above the axle so even though the axle remains at the same height, its the under-side of the trailer that we want to protect from a) our very annoying street deep storm drain area that just happens to be right in front of our driveway (Murphy's Law) b) gas station entrance dips c) unpaved forest roads - rocks, dips, etc d) unexpected large urban speed bumps. My sister's trailer (not an Escape) went over an unexpected very large (freshly paved) speed bump and it scraped the back underside of her trailer and cracked her sewer hose tube. She plans to get a high axle lift installed soon. However, IMHO Escape trailers are built with quite a bit of clearance under the carriage so I doubt an Escape without a high axle lift would've had a problem with this (our previous trailer did fine on that speed bump). Nonetheless, call us paranoid - we just want the extra protection.

The 2nd reason is for - Dumping the black and grey tanks. Gravity is our best friend - should help with drainage....hopefully. I give credit to others on this forum for this one.

Another reason is - an Escape owner that we were referred to by ETI before we decided to purchase had a high axle lift and he was very glad he had it. Lived on a farm with lots of dirt roads. He didn't know he was preaching to the choir!

Others on this forum have commented on how little it affected their gas mileage - one owner here started without a high axle lift and then had one installed and did not notice a difference in gas mileage - or much of one. Works for us!

BTW since we ordered a high axle lift, we had to add 2 1/2" to our ball height. FYI

Congrats again! Do what you think is right for you and good luck on your build sheet!

[steve dunham]

We have the high lift axle on our Casita . We don’t have the high lift axle on our 21 but wish we did , not for off roading but for working space .

[fgunderson]

We opted for the high lift axle option as the driveway to our storage building is steep and back in only...also we travel on Alaska state ferries...with low tides the ramps can have an extreme angle at the top. if not for these we may have not gone for the high lift as it raises the first step...thinking of changing out to three step set up as some have done in their mods.fgunderson

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

We don’t have the high lift axle on our 21 but wish we did , not for off roading but for working space .

You're a couple hundred dollars and a couple hours of work away from having the lift.
Torflex Lift Kit - Tandem Axle - 2-5/8" Lift, Item # K71-707-02

Or you can build a couple of ramps long enough for both wheels, and run the trailer up on them to work underneath.

As various people have mentioned, the most important things to have on the build sheet are those that are impractical to add later. The axle spacers are easier to include at build time, but are practical to add (or remove) at any time and for people who are handy with tools there isn't a cost difference.

[Fox hunt]

i did not get high lift because it looked like it made the stairs higher and harder to get into the trailer when i saw one at the rally. Probably some kind of mod would help.

[Bobbito]

We added the high lift axle a year after we got our 2015 Escape 21, as it wasn’t an option earlier. It was a couple of hundred dollars more than if done during manufacturing. We lost a couple of inches of clearance with the spray on foam insulation. If you look at an old thread on this forum you can see how little clearance there is on my trailer at low points, like where plumbing hangs down. The high lift kit compensates for the loss of clearance.

I didn’t notice any change in fuel economy after getting the lift kit.

The 2 5/8 inch additional height isn’t a problem for either of us on using the entry steps.

I feel safer traveling both potted and rutted roads. We do go on roads occasionally.

Bob K

[Bobbito]

Oops. We do go on pretty rough roads occasionally.