Advice for a newbie?

[Maury&Julie]

We just put down a deposit on a 21. Now comes the build sheet. We would love advice from any who wants to pass some out. Here are my two questions.

1. What is the #1 thing you got that you found you did not need?

2. What is the #1 thing you didn't get that you wish you had?

Thanks!

[GRINGOandTICA]

I'm just gonna drop this thread right here.

http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f7...rent-4975.html

I can't answer your questions till August

[Loren & Cathy]

Welcome Maury & Julie. Read everything you can here on this forum and you probably will still be confused. We just turned in our build sheet on a 21 two weeks ago. We have on it things others say we don't need such as heat pads but I will be living in this trailer in northern Iowa for three weeks in the fall up till November and didn't want to take a chance on a freeze up. A lot of things depend on where and how you are going to use your trailer. Good luck with the build sheet. I thought it was a lot of work but am anxiously waiting for the results. Loren

[Maury&Julie]

Thanks for the link and the thought, Loren. Makes sense. It's not a one-size-fits-all question.

[tractors1]

Build it the way you intend to use it, where you want to use it, and how you want to use it. I'm not camping below freezing for many days at a time anymore, so no need for foam insulation and tank heaters anymore...

[alanmalk]

Originally Posted by tractors1

Build it the way you intend to use it, where you want to use it, and how you want to use it.

Another "for example".

We plan on doing lots of cold weather camping and to camp in the high country during the summer. So - skipped the A/C and went with with all the warm options like foam, extra insulation, thermal windows, etc. Did skip the heat pads because they draw too much to be used on batteries alone - probably just fine if you are plugged into 110.

Since ours is only 1 month old at this point, we really don't have anything on either of the "should-have" or "should-not-have" lists at this point. 100% satisfied - but it took 6 months of watching this forum to make our final decisions.

--
Alan

[tractors1]

Escape doesn't profess to build a "4-season" trailer like Oliver does on their website. Costs less and works for me!

[batcat]

We took possession of our 21 last Tuesday and went the rally in Osoyuss. The one option I am so glad I ordered was the storage box. It is indispensable in my opinion. Anyone who orders an Escape and doesn't order the storage option is making a huge mistake. Even though we have only had our 21 for a week, we are 110% satisfied. I'll let you know in a month or two about our favorite and least favorite, but it will be hard to beat the storage box!

[tractors1]

Ditto - our 21 has a bunch of good stuff, but the box up front holds most everything messy we don't want inside. PLUS it bounces rocks nicely.

[Maury&Julie]

How important is an opening window in the bathroom? Seems like the roof fan would do the job. Thoughts?

Thanks for all the helpful info!

[tractors1]

Open the window and the roof vent in the bath - airflow without using power and no noise..........

[float5]

Originally Posted by Maury&Julie

How important is an opening window in the bathroom? Seems like the roof fan would do the job. Thoughts?

Thanks for all the helpful info!

Bath window can be used to put a hose through and use wand in the black tank. Otherwise you are coming through the door with it. Or the roof.

[Bobbito]

Originally Posted by Maury&Julie

How important is an opening window in the bathroom? Seems like the roof fan would do the job. Thoughts?

Thanks for all the helpful info!

I commented to my wife how nice and bright the bathroom was in daytime thanks to this optional window. No regrets here.

Bob K

[Zardoz]

Originally Posted by Floating Cloud

Bath window can be used to put a hose through and use wand in the black tank. Otherwise you are coming through the door with it. Or the roof.

So true! And makes cleaning the sensors an easy task at campgrounds before heading home since water hookup is on that side of the trailer.

[GRINGOandTICA]

Originally Posted by Maury&Julie

How important is an opening window in the bathroom? Seems like the roof fan would do the job. Thoughts?

Thanks for all the helpful info!

Two things about this window that sold me on it. One it provides more light, and you can run a hose through to help clean out your black tank.

[Maury&Julie]

Great insider info. Thanks to all!

[Mob2014]

We have a 17B that we picked up Sept 30, 2014. We ordered the screen room and have yet to use it. But we are just entering our first buggy season so we may use it soon. However, when we do use the awning, we usually roll it up before leaving the campsite or going to bed which I didn't really consider before ordering the screen room.
I wish we had ordered a light directly over the center of the rear table. When we ordered the trailer we were sure we would use the front dinette as our main table but it turns out the rear dinette is our main table and the front dinette provides a storage space for the Costco topper we use on the rear dinette. The view out the back is much better and the table is more solid than the front.

[tractors1]

Hang in there; somewhere on this forum someone posted a thread (this year) about adding on overhead light where they wanted it. They ordered the light and had a wooden mounting block made they used as a template to cut away the overhead liner, then epoxied the block to the fiberglass after running the power wires to the location, and installed the light. ETI runs the wiring up the rear corners underneath the vertical corner pads to the overhead cabinets, so you could tap into those lines.

[gbaglo]

Originally Posted by Mob2014

However, when we do use the awning, we usually roll it up before leaving the campsite or going to bed which I didn't really consider before ordering the screen room.

My understanding is that the screen room prevents wind from getting under the awning and causing it to act like wing. I've not worried about it, but I've only used the room a couple of times.

[Maury&Julie]

This is fun! Okay, here's an easy one. What is the 1500W inverter and is it worth $550? I assume it's about DC to AC or something but I can't figure it out.