Good afternoon ya'll! My husband and I fell in love with the Trailmanors and are looking at buying a used 2002 2720SD from The Car Show, Inc here in Colorado Springs. We had a couple of questions regarding the Trailmanor and thought this was the perfect place to ask them. Hope you don't mind some newbie style Q&A.

-We live in Colorado and were curious about cold weather/freezing temp camping? We are very interested in potentially taking it up to the Colorado mountains where temps can get really low, but we weren't sure if the Trailmanor is really able to do freezing temps. If so, are there any specific things we should know to do?

-Do you have winterize and de-winterize every time you take it out? It will be stored in our garage when not in use.

-The model we are looking at does not have a wardrobe and that is one of those things we would prefer. Does anyone know if an older model can be retrofitted for the wardrobe or not?

-Can you fold out and sleep in the Trailmanor while it is still hooked up? (Specifically, we have two small children that may need naps during the day while traveling. Could we leave it hitched up and let them sneak inside to sleep?)

-I read somewhere about the 2002 models having wood which can rot. Where is this wood located?

Thanks so much!

[Redtail Cruiser]

Hi Luckylindyhopper and welcome to the forum.

Trailmanors have a very good heater in them, now mind you it's a very noisy heater but should keep everyone warm on cold nights.

If your garage is insulated, you shouldn't have to winterize your TM, but if not you should drain the water out of it during cold weather.

The wardrobe closet is a simple cabinet; however the sliding piano hinge hardware might only be available from TM, which can be ordered from the Car Show.

Yes, you can open the TM while it is still hooked up to your tow vehicle.

The wood you're talking about would be in the walls of the unit. Some 2002's have wood , but some may have metal studs. It depends when it was built.

Hope this helps

[Padgett]

I have no trouble opening the 2720SL with the TV attached. It might be hard to level fore/aft.

I thought the wardrobe was standard. Too add you would need the track assembly since it slides over and rotates into the aisle.

For cold weather camping there is a thread about putting a thin but high R insulator (reflectrix sp ?) under the mattresses.

Even in Florida it has been known to go under freezing briefly so I drain water when in the grotto. Is there anything that cannot be drained when closed ?

[Bill]

I had a 2002 2720SL.

It had a wardrobe. If yours doesn't, someone removed it. Is this a negotiating issue? Perhaps TCS will get one, maybe even used, and throw it in for free?

It had metal in the shells, not wood. This is about the year when the changeover happened, though, so I would simply ask TCS to show you which one it has. Easy to do - just open up the front shell, and look under the bottom edge of the shell, along each side. You will see a row of screws along the entire length of the edge. Remove one of these screws. On the threads, you will see either (a) black rotten wood crumbs - uh oh! (b) clean sawdusty wood crumbs (wood, but not rotten - check several locations), or (c) squeaky-clean threads (aluminum!). If there is any question, grab a flashlight and peek up into the empty screwhole. You will be able to see the material the screw is screwed into. It is either wood or aluminum.

As for camping in cold weather, there is a long thread on this topic here on the forum. A Search will find it.

Is your garage heated to temps above freezing? If so, no need to do anything for storage. If not, you must drain everything.
When you camp, will you have hookups, or will you be boondocking?

To summarize what happens while camping:

The fresh water tank is inside. If you keep the interior warm, and the cabinet door open, it will not freeze.
The black water tank is inside. If you keep the interior warm, and the bathroom door open, it will not freeze.
The gray water tank is outside. It will freeze. Don't use it unless you can drain it immediately after use.
The water heater will keep itself warm if you leave water in it and leave it turned on.
The outdoor shower will freeze. Turn off the valves, remove the shower head, store it someplace warm, and drain the hose (you won't be showering outside in below freezing temps, will you?)
Assuming you have a city water supply, the water supply hose will freeze. Then you will have no water. Best to fill the fresh water tank, then disconnect and drain the hose.
The sewer drain hose will freeze if there is any water in it. If you have a sewer hookup, and drain the tanks, and thoroughly drain the slinky hose, then the only thing that will freeze is the small amount of water trapped between the coils. This will not hurt anything AS LONG AS YOU DON'T FLEX THE HOSE.

The TM is air-leaky along the edges of the beds. Get a couple swimming pool noodles, or some slit foam pipe insulation, and carry it with you.

Other respondents - what have I missed or misstated?

Bill

[scrubjaysnest]

The question about opening the camper up while hooked to the TV may not be a problem. Just don't go down the highway that way. For us we can't get the topper open without the stone guard down.

[LoveToCamp]

I camp in my 2417 when it is below freezing. I do have to put RV antifreeze into my gray tank, though, so I can still open the drain valve. Other than that, I have no problems.

I have been under 25° two nights in a row, no problem whatsoever, as it gets above 40° during the day. I did one night of 9°, and one of 20° back-to-back, and only had the gray drain freeze on me (before I thought about antifreeze).

It depends on how long you will be camping, how winter camping works out for you. I use two bottles of propane for 6 nights of heater use. I have solar, so my batteries top-off daily, so the drain on batteries by the furnace fan is not an issue for me, as of yet.

You can stay warm, but if temps are below freezing, your heater will cycle-on frequently. Be sure you have sufficient propane.

[tentcamper]

The wardrobe. If you decide to get a wardrobe from the factory you may not be able to get it with the same finish as the 02 had. If that would be a concern, you may want to check.

[scrubjaysnest]

Originally Posted by LoveToCamp

I camp in my 2417 when it is below freezing. I do have to put RV antifreeze into my gray tank, though, so I can still open the drain valve. Other than that, I have no problems.

I have been under 25° two nights in a row, no problem whatsoever, as it gets above 40° during the day. I did one night of 9°, and one of 20° back-to-back, and only had the gray drain freeze on me (before I thought about antifreeze).

It depends on how long you will be camping, how winter camping works out for you. I use two bottles of propane for 6 nights of heater use. I have solar, so my batteries top-off daily, so the drain on batteries by the furnace fan is not an issue for me, as of yet.

You can stay warm, but if temps are below freezing, your heater will cycle-on frequently. Be sure you have sufficient propane.

This is why we are taking the Mr Heater Buddy along, it uses less propane.
Nether heater is run at night, all lines will be drained as we will use a 2 1/2 gal jug for water. We have been camping when the five gal jugs have frozen.

[wbmiller3]

Originally Posted by Bill

...Easy to do - just open up the front shell, and look under the bottom edge of the shell, along each side. You will see a row of screws along the entire length of the edge. Remove one of these screws. On the threads, you will see either (a) black rotten wood crumbs - uh oh! (b) clean sawdusty wood crumbs (wood, but not rotten - check several locations), or (c) squeaky-clean threads (aluminum!). If there is any question, grab a flashlight and peek up into the empty screwhole. You will be able to see the material the screw is screwed into. It is either wood or aluminum....

I did this check out of curiosity this morning and was pleased to see aluminum! I was surprised though because we bought the camper (new) in 2001. It had the round wheel wells too, so maybe it was an "early adopter".

I'm doubly glad I did this check because a number of these screws needed to be tightened up, especially the ones nearest to the lift system mounting points.

Good list Bill on cold weather camping. One minor add on, the black and gray water tank valves will also freeze and lock up. So best, as you have indicated, is to drain the tanks, which also protects the valves.