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Old 09-10-2013, 06:40 PM   #1
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233s- Who has one?

We currently have a Jayco 23b that will be ten years old next year and it has served us well. We have decided to replace it in the spring with a Roo 233s. We tow with an Expediton EL and last fall I checked us fully loaded and we have room for the extra weight.
Looking to hear from owners with tips, suggestions and what they tow their 233s with. Thanks to all for any help.
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Old 09-10-2013, 07:33 PM   #2
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We ordered our 2013 Rockwood Roo 233S and took delivery near the end of February 2013. Have been very happy with rig, no bunk door/end leaks at all and only problem we have had was a busted water filter. We think a pressure surge may have popped our cartridge body off the mounting head....not sure but it busted loose in the middle of the night. Rockwood offered to send me a brand new unit and have it installed under warranty, but I felt better simply removing it from the cabinet it was mounted in and instead use an external (like the ones on your fridge) made just for camping trailers. I also bought a higher quality pressure regulator than the $11 made in china straight line one I started with. Have done some modifications that I found on these forums but only because I was geeking out...didn't need to do them, just wanted to.

We LOVE camping in the Roo, enjoy sleeping under canvas and haven't minding the heat or cold since we have had it. The dinette seating isn't exactly the most comfortable (leg area is short) if you use it to watch TV...but your supposed to be camping anyway, not watching TV! ;-)

We tow with a 2012 Suburban LTZ (1500 - i.e. half ton) which has the 5.3 engine, full tow package with external oil and trans coolers and integrated brake controller. Mileage wise towing we average around 8 mpg, a decent hit but not what I consider too too bad. I would personally like to pull instead with a nice diesel 3/4 ton...just haven't gotten up the courage to bite the bullet and trade my new Burn in already! You will read plenty on this forum....just simply take your time, my sweet spot highway wise seems to fall right around the 65 mph mark...tail wind can make it 70, but any faster and I feel like I am revving to high for my own comfort. Mountain wise, we have only hit Florida hills and one trip to Northwest Georgia so far. I climbed to "Fort Mountain" state park just fine, not moving much faster than the 25 mph posted limit....but I did smell a warm engine...slight oil scent once I got to the top...no temp readings went haywire, but I was glad to be done with the climb! I have feelings that a diesel 3/4 would laugh at the trip we made...someday I hope to find out!

You will find that some folks here on these forums are VERY helpful and have plenty of wonderful ideas to share, so read through as many posts as you can find and take everything with grains of salt. As I said, we have had no leaks, but you will find plenty of folks reporting that they have leaks....and repeatedly....not sure why I missed having them, but I guess I consider myself lucky. I keep a close eye on all canvas when folding up for travel, and always inspect me seals and surfaces before closing things up, so far so good.

Have an AWESOME experience!
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Old 09-10-2013, 09:09 PM   #3
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Got me one. First season camping with it. It's a major adjustment for us as we camped for 11 years previous in a popup. Originally our thoughts were to upgrade the popup to one with a slide. So when we decided upon a hybrid and the 233s what sold the co-pilot was the dinette on the slide and the extra bed. The space when that slide is out is amazing. Huge.

The three beds are nice when we have more than four people. That extra bed on the side really makes it feel even more wide open when its down. The down side to three beds is that it is three beds. More capacity but more bedding (sleeping bags and mattress topper) on the dinette when we setup and take down (store gear on the dinette). Plenty of storage for us but then we are coming from a popup. The over head storage on three sides is wide open and I wasnt sure I'd be able to capture that into something functional until I found bins that fit perfectly. Now I have 12 bins that match perfectly and fit above the front, side and rear bed. They look like they belong there.

There is limited space to get into the rear bunk. The kids love it as its very "fort" like. We have camped in temps down to 40 and as high as mid 90's and have found that its difficult to cool/heat back there. There are no drawers as other models might have. Some have found that weird but we only had a couple with our popup so the extra storage we have overall far outweighs that. Your experience might be different as you already own a hybrid.

We do like not having to climb over anything to get into our bed also. None of the beds you have to. Our popup you did with the bed we slept on and I see your Jayco you have the dinette in the front to climb over. One final thing....that bed on the side is something we have to consider when getting into a campsite. We have had to put some thought into getting the camper positioned just right to get the bed down and the slide open more than once. Takes a wide campsite when you also consider in the awning. Love our awning btw. Plenty big.

We looked hard at getting the Jayco X23F. We purchased our popup from the local Jayco dealer but would have paid significantly more for the X23F than our Roo. Also, the co-pilot thought the Roo is better built than the Jayco. Just her opinion.
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Old 09-10-2013, 10:14 PM   #4
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Thanks so far. It's funny how we decided on the ROO. We were on a trip to Cape Cod last month. Sitting on the beach my wife turn to me and says" maybe we should think about a new trailer next year"....umm OK. She fires up the iPhone and fifteen minutes later shows me the ROO and says she likes it. We get back to the campground and a guy is backing a brand new ROO into the site next to ours. After they were set up and settled I struck up a conversation with the owner. Turns out their needs and situation were the same as ours ( four kids, full size half ton SUV [ he was pulling with a 1500 Burb]) so they gave us a real world tour and we were sold. Since then we hit a dealer lot and are just waiting till spring to buy.
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Old 09-11-2013, 12:18 AM   #5
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Where are you located geographically? I am in the Northwest, WA state to be exact and bought from All Seasons RV in Muskegon, MI. They are part of the Lakeshore RV group. Great company to deal with and they have us a killer price in January with an April delivery. We met a driver in Billing, MT to cut down on delivery costs and to save some time. You will likely have little warranty things that will need to be addressed and they have been great about addressing our every need, including sending us a new awning,

I love my Roo. I had a major condensation and wet bed issue earlierthis week in Oregon, but we got 2.3-2.5 inches of rain in one 18-24 hour period. I was not as diligent as I had been about venting for the condensation issue and the wet bed was due to us not trimming our mattress topper which allowed the sides of the topper to touch the canvas and made a wet mess of the bed.

One gripe, very little counter space. I would like to utilize my sink and have room to cut veggies/fruit and prepare meals.

Otherwise, we are happy owners of a 2014 Roo 233s. Family of three and a Mini Aussie. We like the third bed for extra storage/catch all when we are traveling.
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Old 09-11-2013, 03:20 PM   #6
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We got our last month, 2014 model year, and just love it. Have been out with it 3 times already and have 3 more planned before the end of the season. Setup is quick compared to a popup. We have loved it. Have 2 girls (1 still in a playpen) and has worked out very nice each having their own bed. Got a thunderstorm while out 2 weeks ago and we found it spacious inside with 4 adults and the 2 kids. Played cards and the kids watched cartoons.

Storage is abundant. We still haven't filled it all but every weekend things keep getting moved around until we find a final home for everything. We got a model with the sunken stove top and no oven. Love that. I am making a non slip cover for the top to increase our counter space there. Also bought a small 30" folding table that we use to help hold additional items and use for meal prep. Works out very well
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Old 09-11-2013, 08:10 PM   #7
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Gotta have an oven, wife insists. Brownies and fish sticks ( for our picky eater)!!!
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Old 09-11-2013, 08:46 PM   #8
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I love mine. I have been Back-and-forth to the dealer a few times to get some picky things fixed but besides that I love it it's lightweight I pull it with an old 1999 dodge Durango And it's a lot more comfortable than my pop-up was. It seems very sound and stable and Is pretty roomy. The only thing I am looking to add to it is more counter space.
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Old 09-11-2013, 09:18 PM   #9
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Everyone here is mentioning the lack of counter space...I omitted mentioning the fact that we added an island to ours. Our "island" gives us 30x20 space now to prepare food, hold the blender while I make smoothies, and lay out my maps when planning the next day trip while I sit on the couch. Top selling points with our island is the price, it highers and lowers, and it moves. The 23IKSS has nothing over my 233s. Sorry for the stock photo in the link. Next time we are out I'll snap a few pictures of it in action.

Amazon.com : Lifetime Personal Table with 30-by-20-Inch Molded Top, White : Tv Trays : Patio, Lawn & Garden
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Old 09-12-2013, 06:53 AM   #10
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We purchased our 2012.5 model almost exactly two years ago. We love it!

We've had a few issues, but they have all been remedied by either FR or a simple repair by me.

The amount of floor space in a (relatively) small trailer is amazing! We have had four 100lb dogs and four adults sleep (at once) in it comfortably.

Because we live in Arizona, we aren't the best gauge of how water-tight the unit is. Most of the rain the unit sees is while closed up where we park it. The storms it has seen are usually short but intense, and we have no evidence of leaks on the closed bunk doors. If the forecast calls for rain, we have the benefit of waiting until the next weekend with a 98% chance that it will be nice (one of the benefits of living here).

The biggest down-side to our 233S is the lack of counter space. A silverware type drawer would be nice also, but we make do. Because I do most of the prep and cooking outside, a folding table remedies the lack of inside counter space.

Our Roo was (fairly) comfortable last spring in temps around 100 degrees, and we survived 14 degree temps last Jan near Tucson (water tanks full and unit not winterized - I would not recommend it).

Overall: Yes, we are happy with our 233S.
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Old 09-12-2013, 11:08 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Surfncamper View Post
Gotta have an oven, wife insists. Brownies and fish sticks ( for our picky eater)!!!
We got a 1.2 cuft toaster/convection/rotisserie oven on sale here for $60 just after we got it. Use it to make Pizza, toast, baked potatoes...

That way we get our storage space and our oven all in one. Stash it away when we are not using it.
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Old 09-16-2013, 05:29 PM   #12
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We got our 233S in June and have spent over 20 nights camping in south central PA - overnight temps as low as mid 40s and daytime highs up to the low 90s. We have 2 kids (5 & 8) and occassionally one of their friends. As stated above, my daughter loves the privacy of her 'room in the back'. We do almost all our cooking outside. Just got a set of used PUGs we tried on the last trip. In addition to helping to moderate the temp in the bunk ends, they help cut down on the light which is a bonus for the DW when she wants to sleep in. We tow with an F150 Ecoboost and have had no issues, get about 9-12 mpg. Feel like we've been pretty lucky in terms of any warranty issues. Small leak between the awning and camper body which I'll seal up when I winterize it. Have had a wet bunk twice on the front which I attribute to catching part of the fabric in the seal. Enjoy it!
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Old 09-23-2013, 08:07 PM   #13
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I am from Central Pa and I am in the process of purchasing a 2011 233s next week and I can't wait to get it home, clean it up real good, and hopefully get it out for 1 or 2 nice fall weekends before the weather turns and have to winterize it. I'm sure I'll turn to this forum for some good advice quite often! So if you have any great suggestions on state parks or campgrounds to visit, I would appreciate it.
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Old 09-23-2013, 09:14 PM   #14
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Purchased our 2010 233s in June. Had a couple of issues with Bunk leaks but I think I have it solved. My wife and kids enjoy using it in the driveway but we have the first actual trip planned for October. Going to Hickory Run Campground in Pennsylvania .

Let you know how things work out after the first trip. By the way, I'm towing with a 2004 Nissan Armada. Works great!
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Old 09-23-2013, 10:02 PM   #15
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Originally Posted by FourWheelers View Post
Going to Hickory Run Campground in Pennsylvania .
Enjoy! Hickory Run is a great park. Had many good trips there. Boulder Field is a good hike with kids.
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Old 09-26-2013, 07:10 AM   #16
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Counter space problem solved in 233s...and got more storage!

The one thing that I REALLY need w/ 4 kids in a camper is counter space! I used to have to prepare meals ON OUR BED in our last hybrid (if we were stuck inside)...not a good idea. With our new 233S and the TON of space inside I found my answer. Wal-mart has a rolling cart! It fits by the dinette to the right side of the fridge when we have the camper in use and when I need prep surface I just roll it where I need it. (We also use it to place a fan on at nt.) It has 2 shelves below for basket organizers and w/ the grip liner stuff the baskets don't slide in route and the wheels lock. This is the best mod(purchase) we have made to our camper...I love it! Best $40 we've spent!
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Old 09-26-2013, 11:03 AM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TK421 View Post
Got me one. First season camping with it. It's a major adjustment for us as we camped for 11 years previous in a popup. Originally our thoughts were to upgrade the popup to one with a slide. So when we decided upon a hybrid and the 233s what sold the co-pilot was the dinette on the slide and the extra bed. The space when that slide is out is amazing. Huge.

The three beds are nice when we have more than four people. That extra bed on the side really makes it feel even more wide open when its down. The down side to three beds is that it is three beds. More capacity but more bedding (sleeping bags and mattress topper) on the dinette when we setup and take down (store gear on the dinette). Plenty of storage for us but then we are coming from a popup. The over head storage on three sides is wide open and I wasnt sure I'd be able to capture that into something functional until I found bins that fit perfectly. Now I have 12 bins that match perfectly and fit above the front, side and rear bed. They look like they belong there.

There is limited space to get into the rear bunk. The kids love it as its very "fort" like. We have camped in temps down to 40 and as high as mid 90's and have found that its difficult to cool/heat back there. There are no drawers as other models might have. Some have found that weird but we only had a couple with our popup so the extra storage we have overall far outweighs that. Your experience might be different as you already own a hybrid.

We do like not having to climb over anything to get into our bed also. None of the beds you have to. Our popup you did with the bed we slept on and I see your Jayco you have the dinette in the front to climb over. One final thing....that bed on the side is something we have to consider when getting into a campsite. We have had to put some thought into getting the camper positioned just right to get the bed down and the slide open more than once. Takes a wide campsite when you also consider in the awning. Love our awning btw. Plenty big.

We looked hard at getting the Jayco X23F. We purchased our popup from the local Jayco dealer but would have paid significantly more for the X23F than our Roo. Also, the co-pilot thought the Roo is better built than the Jayco. Just her opinion.
Do you know have pics of the drawers above bunks and where you got em
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Old 09-26-2013, 12:33 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by urocav2001 View Post
Do you know have pics of the drawers above bunks and where you got em
We purchased two different sizes of bins (drawers) that go above the bunks. Both were purchased from Walmart. They fit really well taking the curve into account. I will take pictures tonight and post as soon as I can.
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Old 09-26-2013, 02:08 PM   #19
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Ok thank you
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Old 09-26-2013, 09:03 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by urocav2001 View Post
Do you know have pics of the drawers above bunks and where you got em
The camper is closed up but I took a few pictures to give you an idea what the bins look like and what bins we use.
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