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Old 06-02-2013, 10:12 PM   #1
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2109 S...a year later

I said I would post my thoughts and experiences with our "new" 2109 S after we got a few camping trips logged.
It all started here: http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ner-25661.html

Now, a year later, I am happy to report that after a dozen or so camping trips, we are very satisfied with this trailer. The only serious issue we have had this year is a leak in the cold water supply to the bathroom lav. I think it was just a loose connection at the faucet. Tightened it today; we'll see how it holds up next weekend.
LIKES
We have found this little trailer to be ideal for the two of us, even three if the guest doesn't mind sleeping on the fold out couch. Interestingly I find the couch is quite comfortable for sitting. I have spent many relaxing hours sitting there reading a book on a cool rainy day. The heater does a stellar job on such days as well. The one day of really hot (90+) temps we had last year was tamed quite nicely by the AC, albeit a bit noisely. Another big plus for this trailer is the storage space. We find it to be more than adequate and very well thought out. Being the "Head Chef", I especially like the galley layout. Unlike several other models we looked at of comparable size, the MiniLite 2109 S has plenty of counter space, good lighting, and well placed appliances that make food prep/cleanup fast and easy.
The exceptional storage isn't limited to the inside either. The outside access storage area up front is cavernous, but still easy to use if you keep everything in plastic totes. You can easily get 4 or 5 in there. I have a 4' pole with a hook on the end to pull out the ones that end up out of reach. Works great for me.
Alas, the 2109 S is not perfect however. "Fit and finish" is subpar in some areas, but the only thing we couldn't live with was the standard mattress. Our solution was to top it with a 2" closed cell "memory" foam mattress pad which made things much better.
SURPRISES
Probably the biggest welcome surprise for me was how nicely this trailer tows compared to our old 20' Coachmen. Our Kia Sorento (5000 lbs tow cap.) pulls it along at 60 mph on the freeway with no problem at all. Hills cause an expected speed reduction, while crosswinds and passing semi trucks cause only a little wiggle now and then.
CONCERNS
I still wonder about the long term structural integrity of the composite sandwich construction. The floor is a little on the spongy side. I am hoping the constant flexing will not cause degradation of the foam core. Another concern is the potential for delamination of the roof and walls due to water leakage. Vigilant inspection for evidence of leaks from all potential sources is an absolute must to guard against the possibility of delamination which is very difficult and expensive to repair.

All things considered we find this little trailer to be the best available to suit our needs. I would not hesitate to recommend it as an ideal camper for a couple with the caveat concerning the unknown long term reliability of the composite construction.
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Old 06-03-2013, 02:23 PM   #2
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Thanks for the review! We have camped in our unit a total of 7 nights already. So far I have to agree with you on all your points. After our first camping trip in our 2013 model we added a mattress topper as well. Just quickly laying on it at the dealer it seemed fine but half way through a nights sleep it got pretty uncomfortable. It's much better now with the topper. We also find the storage space is great. We're nowhere near being at capacity and we've got everything in it we'd ever need.

Problems we've had so far:
-There wasn't enough caulking in the left side fender well so rain water would have been allowed to blow in there while going down the road. I fixed that myself with some silicone caulk.

-Front window had a pretty good water leak when raining, even a light rain leaked in. That is currently at the dealer for repair.

-I noticed prior to our last trip that the fresh water tank supports had bent. I believe they bent due to the vent line not being routed properly and adding water to the tank caused the tank to try and balloon. Again, it's currently at the dealer for repair.
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Old 06-04-2013, 08:49 PM   #3
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Sorry to hear about the problems GearHd6. Dont sound too bad though. I was concerned about leaks (still am) after inspecting the roof right after taking delivery last year. I found a few suspect places where the sealant wasnt adhered well. I touched them up and did the same again this spring. So far no detected leaks anywhere. The windows on ours look to be very well installed, with a uniform, neat sealant bead all around. My tank supports are very slightly deflected; no more than 1/8-1/4" max. Not going to worry about it unless it gets worse. So far, we havnt been more than 100 miles from home and never on any bad roads, so I'll keep a close eye on it as we rack up the miles this summer.
As far as the wheel well cover, I havnt noticed any moisture, but there is a bit of dust build up on the pipes and plastic cover under the couch. Nothing extreme however.
We spent a LOT of time WEB researching dozens and dozens of different makes, and personally inspected at least 10, but the 2109 S was the sweet spot for us when we took into consideration quality/price, functionality, and manuacturer/dealer reputation. We were a hair's breadth away from choosing another make, but an unanswered simple question I emailed to the manufacturer caused us to drop them from consideration. But now Im rambling...
Happy camping, and
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Old 06-06-2013, 04:00 PM   #4
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We have a 2012 - 2109s and love it as well. Great little camper for two people. We have logged aprox. 20,000 miles on ours, taking extended road trips (2) to the Gulf Coast around Alabama/Lousianna and to Florida as well as shorter road trips (2) to the Canadian Maritimes/Newfoundland and New England. Ours has obviously seen a number of miles as well as varying road conditions. So far...so good.
Our problems have been fairly minor:
-roof leak where antenna wire goes through, resulting in wet overhead kitchen cabinet. Fixed by dealer;
-melting rocker switches on lights over kitchen area as well as couch. Replaced one with an LED, and waiting on another to come. Supposedly we will be reimbursed by Forest River(?) This is ongoing and I would imagine that the other lights will sucomb to this overheating issue as well. There are other threads detailing this issue in this Forum;
-"hinge" which consists of a pop-rivet, on the rock guard covering front window, failed during most recent road trip. Ongoing, and still trying to get info from dealer/Forest River on how to fix it.
Other than the above, and as I stated previously, great little trailer and we plan on taking many more roadtrips with it.
p.s. I always find it amusing in that we are usually the smallest trailer in the campground. But like the saying goes, "size doesn't matter". Certainly in this case. LOL
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Old 06-06-2013, 08:34 PM   #5
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Hi all,
I did find a water leak from the antenna wire as described above. I found it after I had taken the winter cover off and was removing items in preparation of mounting a new single light fixture for over the counter area to the left of the stove. My wife cut her finger there doing some prep work for dinner, so I bought a single light fixture at Camping World. Details of the install, with pics, are posted elsewhere.

I will have to look at the water tank brackets as this is the second post on that issue I have seen.

We have been very pleased with our 2012 2109S so far. It has meet all our needs and we did install a mattress pad. But coming from a popup, this mattress is great!

If I can find it, we have a great pic of our camper with two Newmar Mountain Aire motorhomes to the right and a 5th wheel (Cougar?) to our left. We joked that we were the garden shed! But everyone's needs are different and that is why there are so many choices. For us, the 2109S is a great fit!
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Old 06-07-2013, 05:12 PM   #6
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Has anyone had issues with the shower leaking onto the bathroom floor? If I don't get the TT properly levelled or at least with the corner of the stall on the driver's side slightly low water will run out on the floor (by that inspection cover on the base of the shower). I have been using a level on the shower base before I unhook, everybody else tries to level their refrigerator .

I did add an Oxygenics shower & it is well worth the $$ Body Spa RV Shower Kit - White - Oxygenics 26781 - Shower - Camping World


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Old 06-09-2013, 08:32 PM   #7
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Wife has no problem using the shower. No leaks, or over spray of any kind so far. I dont use the shower myself because I'm too tall. (6'5"). Don't bother to get the trailer perfectly level either; I just eyeball it. Is it possible there is a restriction in the drain causing a backup?
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Old 06-09-2013, 08:40 PM   #8
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No issue with the shower here either. We have used it maybe 8 times now with no water spilling over the edge of the shower base.
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Old 06-09-2013, 08:43 PM   #9
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I agree Mkillora. The front window guard is a flimsy affair. Ours is a bit saggy, but seems to be holding up ok so far. Of course we have less than 5% of your 20k miles.

I'll be converting to LED bulbs for all interior lights soon, so thanks for the "heads up" on the light switches.
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Old 06-14-2013, 12:00 PM   #10
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Oh, Oh. Found another problem - this one not so minor. After seeing other threads re: bent fresh water tank supports, decided to check mine out yesterday. Lo and behold, mine are pretty badly bent! We never travel with a full tank, only about 1/3, so I can't understand how these are bent so bad. The iron bars supporting them would appear to be strong enough, but obviously not.
Suggest that you all check yours out as well.
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Old 06-14-2013, 12:51 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mkillora View Post
Oh, Oh. Found another problem - this one not so minor. After seeing other threads re: bent fresh water tank supports, decided to check mine out yesterday. Lo and behold, mine are pretty badly bent! We never travel with a full tank, only about 1/3, so I can't understand how these are bent so bad. The iron bars supporting them would appear to be strong enough, but obviously not.
Suggest that you all check yours out as well.
I responded to this over in the other thread.
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Old 05-22-2018, 02:07 PM   #12
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Has anyone had problems with their 2109 floor delaminating? Our 2012 started to get soft within a couple of years of purchase. The warranty specifically excludes "delamination".

What at good repair strategies for this type of floor?
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Old 05-23-2018, 08:42 AM   #13
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No problems with that but I’ take a closer look next time.
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Old 05-23-2018, 09:16 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Johadel View Post
Has anyone had problems with their 2109 floor delaminating? Our 2012 started to get soft within a couple of years of purchase. The warranty specifically excludes "delamination".



What at good repair strategies for this type of floor?


We, have a 2012, 2109s, as well (original owners), with lots of kms on it. So far, so good, wrt the floor. But we’ll keep an eye on things as well. Can’t imagine what a repair would entail. Yikes!
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Old 05-23-2018, 09:39 AM   #15
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We just had our whole floor replaced at the factory because it rotted out.
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Old 05-23-2018, 08:51 PM   #16
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Are you willing to share approximately what it cost to replace the entire floor at the factory?
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Old 05-23-2018, 09:13 PM   #17
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Or if you know any other repair strategies for this problem.
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Old 05-24-2018, 04:31 AM   #18
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The original quote was $4-4500 but because they couldn't prove that it wasn't a manufacturing error I paid quite a bit less. I did have to pay to have it hauled out there and back to me which wasn't cheap either.

The design of that laminated floor makes it near impossible to fix. Mine was all rotted by the step and along the back bumper area.
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Old 05-24-2018, 09:55 PM   #19
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Have a 2016 model.By the way the cabinet work is finished + the rubber torsion axles I consider it a nice mid grade trailer .Only problems so far was the circuit board on the water heater and the coax wire coming off at the antenna.All fixed by me because I have heard sketchy things about the dealer we bought it from .My wife got a job about 80 miles away and we moved last year .But I have been living in the trailer at my shop during the week because I can’t afford to move the shop.So the trailer is lived in and it’s holding up well .I would rate it as a good trailer for a couple.
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Old 05-25-2018, 08:28 PM   #20
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I am going to try to stiffen up our spongy floored 2109s this year if I have time. My plan is to carefully remove the vinyl flooring and bond 3/8" plywood to the existing wood skin and then finish by laying down ALLUREvinyl plank flooring. Should be fairly easy to do except for the bathroom. I am not certain it will completely cure the problem, but it should help. Biggest obstacle is going to be finding the time to do it. It's camping season you know
I will try and document the job with lots of pics and maybe even a video.
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