New Shamrock/Roo

[ddbck]

Hello again, & great forum! We picked up our new 2014 Forest River Shamrock/Roo 21SSL last week. Traded off a Carson Titan/Funrunner. I am excited to drag her up the mountain. It is incredible how much room the slide out adds. The ground clearance in great with the off road tires. My only question is.....what size generator do I need to power the heated mattress pad?

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[KMP44]

Nice! The heated matresses are great - we love them, even though at first they felt like they weren't doing anything. They do work. They are only around 100 watts, so any generator should cover that.

Never checked the draw, but they are 12V, not 110V, so I think the amp draw is going to be high enough that they would kill the batteries pretty quick. 100 watts at 12V is over 8 amps, if I did that correctly. If you have a genny though, should be no problem.

[Wiscampsin]

Congrats on your 2014 Forest River Shamrock/Roo 21SSL.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by KMP44

Nice! The heated matresses are great - we love them, even though at first they felt like they weren't doing anything. They do work. They are only around 100 watts, so any generator should cover that.

Never checked the draw, but they are 12V, not 110V, so I think the amp draw is going to be high enough that they would kill the batteries pretty quick. 100 watts at 12V is over 8 amps, if I did that correctly. If you have a genny though, should be no problem.

heated mattresses are NOT 12v but are 110v AC only. you would have to plug them into a big inverter and have a big battery bank to run all night.
that's why we only use them when we have electric hookups.

[tclcyl]

Congrats! You are right the slides make all the difference in the world. We have a heated mattress as well and it is 110v not 12v at least in our Shamrock 25RS.

[KMP44]

Originally Posted by bikendan

heated mattresses are NOT 12v but are 110v AC only. you would have to plug them into a big inverter and have a big battery bank to run all night.
that's why we only use them when we have electric hookups.

Guess I had the bunk fans confused with the heaters... Losing my mind, but the good side is at 110v, the amp draw would only be .83A at 100 watts. With an inverter and a couple batteries, you wouldn't have to run the generator all night long to use them...

[ddbck]

Thx all. Some very good info in here. I do spend a lot of time boondock camping in the Rocky/Big Horn/ and Teton Mts. I thought I knew a lot but, browsing these forums I am learning more and more every time I visit. Thx again all.

[Cowracer]

I'm curious how the F150 tows it. I have a 21ssl and pull it behind a diesel excursion.

She sure catches the air, 'sho 'nuff.

Tim

[ddbck]

It towed my older heavier toy hauler very good even up the steep Mts. The Shamrock is well under the 11,200 lbs my truck is rated for.

[Talonman]

Ford also factors in the frontal area of the trailer and what packages you have. I understand all the numbers and stuff but man 11k on a hitch behind a half ton would be interesting at best.

http://www.ford.com/resources/ford/g...rv&tt_f150.pdf

[rockfordroo]

Guess I had the bunk fans confused with the heaters... Losing my mind, but the good side is at 110v, the amp draw would only be .83A at 100 watts. With an inverter and a couple batteries, you wouldn't have to run the generator all night long to use them...

The 0.83A at 110 through the inverter will STILL work out to about 8A input from the battery. You'll either need the generator to supply 110VAC to the mattress OR to supply 110VAC to the converter to charge the battery to run the inverter.

[Talonman]

Stupid math always getting in the way of good ideas lol

[Cowracer]

Originally Posted by ddbck

It towed my older heavier toy hauler very good even up the steep Mts. The Shamrock is well under the 11,200 lbs my truck is rated for.

Not talking about weight. My fully loaded 21SSL is but a wisp 'o nothing weight wise to my massaged diesel excursion. However, at hiway speeds, I find the mighty 7.3 has to work noticeably harder towing the Roo. On flat level ground at 70 mph, unloaded I usually run about 6-7 pounds of boost at roughly 700-800 degrees on the exhaust gas temps. With the roo, I run 13-15 pounds boost at around 1100 degrees EGT. That quite a bit more work.

I've hauled a 22' flatbed with two built Suzuki Samurai rock crawlers on in (about 9K pounds total) and barely knew it was back there. But get the Roo up to 65-70 mph and it tows like it weighs twice as much. I think the front deck keeps the air off the back of the Exy from smoothly going over the top of the Roo, and it hits dead square on the front.

In other words, the 21ssl is like towing a big parachute.

Tim

[Talonman]

I think the back has much to do with it as well, the trucking industry is making changes to the back of the trailers as well for airflow.

[rockfordroo]

Maybe the trailer brakes are rubbing?

[Cowracer]

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

Maybe the trailer brakes are rubbing?

Nah. The hubs do not get hot. I'm pretty sure its just because its as aerodynamic as your average suburban split-level house.

Tim

[Hoots]

Nice looking rig! Congratulations.

[ggrady]

congrats on the new roo!

[ddbck]

Got the Timbrens yesterday. Will post some before & after pics.

[MommaHuffman]

Congrats! Nice rig you have!!