Some questions about outfitting my 19'

[gharper]

I am not a fan of deep cycle batteries being constantly charged and discharged and off-gasing in an enclosed space particularly inside a living area. I would want to ensure they vent outside. We have our dual 6V in the front box, and while they take up space, for us we would rather them be in the box than in the trailer.

[jamie beers]

Again, I'm a novice here. If Escape puts the batteries on the tongue for weight distribution, and if one doesn't have the storage box, then I suppose the batteries go on the tongue in some kind of marine box? So, my question is, is there room on the tongue for propane, batteries and a storage box (without the batteries in the storage box, I mean)? j

[cpaharley2008]

If the batteries or battery is on the tongue, it will be between the propane tanks and the trailer, either in the optional tool box or in a battery box on the 19' from the factory. There is no room for anything else up there.

[jamie beers]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

If the batteries or battery is on the tongue, it will be between the propane tanks and the trailer, either in the optional tool box or in a battery box on the 19' from the factory. There is no room for anything else up there.

Thanks for the info! j

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by thoer

Our 17B has the dual 6V on the rear bumper, must be a weight distribution consideration involved in that too.

Even the single battery was on the rear bumper in the original Escape 17'. As someone in another forum pointed out recently, the 17' has the axle relatively far back in body, so it will tend to be nose-heavy if stuff is piled on the tongue as is common practice. With that in mind, the rear location of the battery (or batteries) is not surprising.

[Dave Walter]

My batteries are in front dinette. My rough calculations with estimated dimensions (don't have access to my 19' at the moment to make real measurements) suggests that reduction in tongue weight due to placement of two 6V batteries in the front dinette rather than in front storage box would be about 20-40 lbs. That is hardly enough to cause me any concern, particularly since the loss in tongue weight due to battery placement is more than offset by the weight of items carried in the front box. Any side to side weight impacts can easily be accommodated by thoughtful packing of the trailer. I have not yet weighed my tongue or my wheel loads, however I am confident that they are acceptable for my tow vehicle/trailer combo. To date I have mostly travelled with fresh water tank filled and black/grey tanks empty. I use a WDH when towing. To date I have had no handling issues suggesting poorly balanced loading.

[Jim Bennett]

As there was no storage box available when I bought my 19, the dual 6v batteries are in the passenger dinette seat towards the front. The is still a lot of room. I carry our Coleman stove and hose, along with a couple small bottles should they be needed, and we still have lots of room for shoes accessed from the door on the side of the seat.

The batteries are in a good tough plastic container which is vented outside. We have never had any issue with this setup at all. As the dinette seats are a pain to access anyway, I really like having them in there, even if I had a storage box. Leave that storage box for more often needed items.

I really don't see much difference moving them to the hitch for weight distribution, though of course there would be a few pounds added to the hitch. Having them on the passenger side would help balance out the side-to-side effect too, as I would think the fridge side would be a bit heavier.

[Ruthe]

Hi Jim, I was hoping you would weigh in on this one because I remembered that you have the batteries under the dinette. I was starting to rethink this whole issue after I thought it was settled in my mind.

[Ruthe]

So I just spoke to Reese and now I understand -- He said that they no longer put the batteries inside the trailer (although I guess some have recently requested it and he's done it judging from recent posts) because of the weight issue. So now we have a choice between having them mounted on the hitch or getting a storage box and putting them in the storage box. Kim is going to send me a picture of what the storage box looks like with the batteries inside so I can get a clear idea of how much room there is in the storage box when the batteries are inside. He says the two 6 volt batteries are about 10"by 14" by 1' but without seeing them in the box it's hard for me to picture.

[fudge_brownie]

Maybe someone with a 21 can weigh in here but I thought they were under the rear dinette curb side? Has that location changed?

[Dave Walter]

Originally Posted by Ruthe

So I just spoke to Reese and now I understand -- He said that they no longer put the batteries inside the trailer (although I guess some have recently requested it and he's done it judging from recent posts) because of the weight issue. So now we have a choice between having them mounted on the hitch or getting a storage box and putting them in the storage box. Kim is going to send me a picture of what the storage box looks like with the batteries inside so I can get a clear idea of how much room there is in the storage box when the batteries are inside. He says the two 6 volt batteries are about 10"by 14" by 1' but without seeing them in the box it's hard for me to picture.

Wow! That is really interesting. If I was faced with this limitation when purchasing my 19', I would have seriously questioned the benefits of adding the front storage box at all. With the batteries present in the front box, the remaining space is really quite limited, and it may not be worthwhile for many to spend the extra $ for the storage box for this limited increase in space.

Maybe there are some custom configurations that would allow batteries on the front, with a storage box above them? Would not work with existing storage box, but some creative soul could probably come up with something that would work.

[jamie beers]

Originally Posted by Ruthe

So I just spoke to Reese and now I understand -- He said that they no longer put the batteries inside the trailer (although I guess some have recently requested it and he's done it judging from recent posts) because of the weight issue. So now we have a choice between having them mounted on the hitch or getting a storage box and putting them in the storage box. Kim is going to send me a picture of what the storage box looks like with the batteries inside so I can get a clear idea of how much room there is in the storage box when the batteries are inside. He says the two 6 volt batteries are about 10"by 14" by 1' but without seeing them in the box it's hard for me to picture.

Hi Ruthe, when you get the picture of the storage box with the batteries, could you please post it? Thanks . j

[Ruthe]

People with the batteries in the front storage box have said that there is still a fair amount of room. That's what I'm trying to figure out -- how much room and for what?

[jamie beers]

Originally Posted by Ruthe

People with the batteries in the front storage box have said that there is still a fair amount of room. That's what I'm trying to figure out -- how much room and for what?

Agreed. j

[thoer]

Originally Posted by Ruthe

People with the batteries in the front storage box have said that there is still a fair amount of room. That's what I'm trying to figure out -- how much room and for what?

Ruthe - what you use as a tow vehicle might help determine if you need the space. Towing our 17 with a Tacoma we have way more space than we ever use in the truck so the front storage box would not be worth it for us. But we have friends who tow the same 17 with a Subaru station wagon and the storage box is essential for them.

[techfan]

There is still a great amount of storage with two batteries in the front box, in fact, we couldn't function in the 15B without the front box to hold all of the stuff. On our website is a series of great pictures from JohnB's 15A. We add a table, our chocks, water hoses, extra lengths of "stinky slinky", support pads for the levelers, doormat, poles for our home made awnings, surge suppressor, gloves, leveler crank, and awning rod and there is still some room left. See pictures here: https://sites.google.com/site/ouresc...owner-pictures

(when you get to the picture you want to look at more closely, mouse over the bottom and click the pause) Tim and Julie

[Ruthe]

Thanks Tim and Julie -- those pictures help -- but you add a table? That is impressive

[nealmccarter]

Originally Posted by jamie beers

Like the idea of the opening kitchen window, but I wonder if this large non-thermal window negates some of the benefit of the extra insulation and thermal window package?
j

Okay, I'm a little confused about the thermal windows. Are they all non-opening?

[cpaharley2008]

On the Escape 19 with the option all the side windows are thermal and opening, the rear is thermal, non opening, the front is not thermal nor opening. There is no kitchen window.
I would put reflectix in the winter between the front awning and window to add some thermal. If you get the optional opening kitchen, it adds light and air circulation. I cut a small piece of reflectix for the bath window for winter time, the kitchen was used too much.

[nealmccarter]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

On the Escape 19 with the option all the side windows are thermal and opening, the rear is thermal, non opening, the front is not thermal nor opening. There is no kitchen window.
I would put reflectix in the winter between the front awning and window to add some thermal. If you get the optional opening kitchen, it adds light and air circulation. I cut a small piece of reflectix for the bath window for winter time, the kitchen was used too much.

Thanks, that answers my question.