Day 1 with Roo: the takeaways so far.

[RooVader]

So it has been about 6 weeks so I figured it might be time to update my diary.

All of my attempts to outsmart you puggers ended in fail. After spending my monthly Subway sandwich allowance on ridiculous suction cup ideas I gave up in shame and followed the velcro path. Despite the fact that I sew like I mow (mainly just a lot of rippin and tearin) I am ready to declare it a success. My fingers will hurt for about a month and my sewing job looks like catfish whiskers are stuck in my pugs but holy cow those things go on easy like Sunday morning.

No one, and I mean no one, should order their pugs without velcro if you own a hybrid.

I haven't really done a lot of mods yet. I prefer to spend a little time with my Aussie pal and get to know her quirks. So far everything has worked as expected, which is awesome! I did have one weird little quarter sized puddle of the most vile, sticky substance on the floor below where the slide was pulled in. I have to assume some kind of grease or glue or something from the slide itself?? I touched it and it took me like an hour of scrubbing my fingers on hard surfaces to rub the stuff off of me. I don't know what it is. I don't know if I want to know what it is. Roo Poo perhaps.

I like my little system of hanging Ecofoil from my window using a suction cup behind the grill. It has yet to feel hot but I really like the hanging grill and I like the security of knowing any grease fire will not heat up the side of my camper. Where there is Keith, there is fire...therefore it is only a matter of time. I always tell my wife it is those weird frozen burgers she buys but I know I just am a terrible griller.

There are many positives over my previous toy hauler. I still love the larger bathroom and big shower. I still love the great kitchen. I still love lounging on the front bunk as a day bed and watching some tv with the breeze. No regrets at all on downsizing as it is a better match for me in nearly every way. The one thing I do notice is a LOT more side to side movement. I picked up an x-chock and it helped the front to back movement quite a bit...but the side-to-side...feels like a weeble that wobbles but will fall down. I guess that is a tradeoff of a lighter camper.

It is going to be pretty muggy tonight so it might be the first good test of the AC as my climate controlled wife will be joining me. While she may be the blender fan master, I fear even those will not be enough for her. It might be a good time to cut my ecofoil to fit the windows. Rain all day tomorrow expected so if I stay up there I might finally take a look at that water filter and assess what I need to pull it.

This concludes another mindless rambling of random nothingness.

[captainperry]

"Roo Poo" thanks I needed that laugh!

[jgoldwood]

Which PUGs did you go with? Can't decide between the high wind or super high wind.

[RooVader]

Super high wind. They are great but I am not using the 3 bungies closest to the roo. Too many reports of tents pulling out and while I believe pugs do not contribute to that in any way I also don't notice any value. If I knew a massive storm incoming I could always raise the bungie factor.

[Beanle]

Hi. We've been camping in a hybrid for three years now. We love it. We don't have Velcro on our bunk end covers and haven't had issues getting wet in storms. The trick is to attach the covers to your drip edge with binder clips before pushing your canvas out. Then then rain water just runs down the bunk end covers to the ground and our canvas stays dry. Love how they reduce the humidity in our camper. We made two trips before discovering bunk end covers and the canvas sweated horribly. Also a friend told us to cut those reflective shields that you put in your car windows to fit in our bunk end windows. You face the shiny side out. It reflects the heat away and it makes it so dark and cool in the bunk ends. And they're soft enough that I don't have to remove them every time we set up/take down. I just leave them in the windows. We have a 2000 Jayco Kiwi 17a.

[bikendan]

Beanie, newer Roo/Shamrock hybrids don't have drip edges.
And Reflectix is a lot easier to use than car window shades and they provide better insulation.

[RedStick]

Do people leave the reflectix in the windows when packing up?

We remove ours and place them behind our couch in the 23ss.

As to the gizmos, since my Roo has the drip edge, I place the bungee through that channel on the two top corners, keeping the pressure off of the tent corners.

Seems to work ok.


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[Jimandchris]

Hi RedStick, there was a poster a week or two back that was leaving the pugs and the reflectix in place while packing up.
We haven't since I wipe em down, easier to do when they are pulled off. I'm hesitant about leaving them on since I want to make sure nothing is pushing the bunk end back out and compromising the seals. JMO

[RedStick]

We remove the gizmos when packing up. Like you, I find it easier to wipe up and keep the gizmos clean.

That said I sure would like to shorten the time it takes to set up and take down!




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[RooVader]

I remove mine because I am running double bubble so its a little thicker. Only takes seconds and just slips in with my folded up sleeping bags. I have been taking less and less each trip and just about have my routine down to a science. If the hybrid takes any more work to put away than a regular travel trailer, it is a minute or two AT MOST. I already do a couple walk-arounds anyway so its only seconds more to push in my ends now that I know the sweet spot for positioning the mattresses.

I am jealous of your drip trays for the versatility it gives you with the PUGS. I am not jealous enough to drill holes in RooVader...but jealous nonetheless.

[Jimandchris]

Originally Posted by RedStick

We remove the gizmos when packing up. Like you, I find it easier to wipe up and keep the gizmos clean.

That said I sure would like to shorten the time it takes to set up and take down!




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Yeah, it takes a bit longer with the hybrid, but for us - thinking back to our taking down the popup, much shorter time and way easier. Just being able to leave everything in the hybrid until we get home and not having to set it back up is a big bonus. We seem to be taking more and more two day trips this summer because of that.
Be safe!

[RooVader]

Season 2 is officially underway! I placed an order with Turbs for awning poles, bought an awning shade, and picked up a shark bite to remove my water filter. I also cut my PVC hose holder down a bit so I can access the back storage. It sure worked well zip tied on the bumper.

I went to storage today armed with the most powerful flashlight I own and a bucket of courage. I always assume mice will choose my camper to live in. They know it is mine and they hate me. I did a little dance when it was rodent free! I have no idea if it matters but I have been rolling with peppermint oil cotton balls and the roo smells fantastic!

Let's get this camping season started. 30 days until liftoff. Now to find a quality bluetooth speaker that will sound awesome in my fridge hatch and begin my annual conversation with myself about why it would be great to get a solar panel even though I never camp off grid.

[ROCAMPER]

Originally Posted by RooVader

Season 2 is officially underway! I placed an order with Turbs for awning poles, bought an awning shade, and picked up a shark bite to remove my water filter. I also cut my PVC hose holder down a bit so I can access the back storage. It sure worked well zip tied on the bumper.

We're ready to get this season started also. Keep us up to date on the water filter removal. Last fall I bought a shark bite and went to install it on our 2016 23ss. Turned out that the inlet side hose is pex and the outlet side is white reenforced rubber hose (not sure what it's called). So I need to get a different adapter. I'll figure it out once it warms up a little more.

[RooVader]

Thanks RoCamper....i was wondering about that so really good advice. I will plan to take some extra pex and adapters with me when I tackle that next week. Good call!