New Trailmanor Owners

My husband and I just negotiated the purchase of a new trailmanor 3023 yesterday. We are due to pick it up in early October. We are starting to plan our first trip which will be semi-close. Does anyone have any tips and tricks for us to equip our trailmanor, our first time camp site setup, all that fun stuff? I have been reading the discussion groups it looks like everyone who owns one of these things is very happy with it. Any advice would be great.

[Chris]

The best tip that we recieved, we continue to do. Stock your trailer well. Create a setup that you will leave in the trailer, and then make a checklist that you follow each time. We have done that with great success. The only time we forget anything is when we weren't religious about our checklist. As far as setup and teardown, practice it until you can do it in the dark when it's raining. That's what may end up happening. I was glad that I had practiced.
Ct..

My first suggestion would be,,,, Take Your Time.


Take your time stocking you trailer like Chris suggested. Take your time hooking up to your truck, in setting up, in taking down. People get in a hurry, they forget things, they break things, they get mad. When they get mad, they can say things they can't take back. Take your time. Keep your cool.


Suggestion number two,,, before you fold your trailer up, stick your head in there, and look around,,, one last time.


Suggestion number three,,,, Even if things don't go right,,, so what? Laugh it off, kick back, and have a good time anyway.


Enjoy

Mack

The morning you are to break camp, turn off the water heater early so that it will have some time to cool.
Don't forget to switch the refer over to 12V.
Turn off the gas.
Lower the TV antenna.
Walk around before closing anything. I have learned to drag my feet so that the obvious will become obvious, power cable, water hose, sewer pipe.
If you are to dump at a dump station, don't forget to open the valve on the toilet.

I agree with Chris on stocking and the checklist. I once forgot the pillows :'(
My checklist is on a spreadsheet so that it will calculate how much of things I will need for the whole trip by entering the number of days I am to camp.

Learn to back up the TM before you need to back it up. Mack's first and third suggestion come to mind here.

Buy some stick on levels. Set the TM up at home and level via the refer. Close the TM and latch. Apply stick on levels. Now when you level at your camp site you can get it right before you open anything.

If you have the scissors stabilizing jacks, use a cordless drill with an allen wrench to do the cranking for you.

If you are not used to it, you will quickly learn to conserve water. If you act like you are at home, chances are you will use up your fresh water and fill up your gray tank in the first day.

If you are opening and/or closing and something doesn't look or feel right, investigate before you break or bend something.

Close the side wall curtains before folding, they will stay cleaner.

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. The folks here have learned alot and are great about sharing.

Most of all, ENJOY.

welcome. i love mind. suggestions: if you are picking up at factory, camp near by in case of a problem. buy extra fuses, and in closing down, the old adage if it don't fit...don't force it should apply.

please drive safely and i believe that means around 60mph to 65mph max.

p.s. test your brake controller being getting on the highway. have fun!

love mind. suggestions: if picking up at factory, camp near by in case of problems. purchase extra fuses. when closing down don't forget the old adage "if it don't fit, don't force it".
test your brake controller before getting on the highways. and lastly drive safely and for me that means no more than 60mph to 65mph.

have fun!

Susan, congraulations! We have much in common with you as we brought our 2001 TM3023 home just last week and are preparing it for a (delayed) camping trip to Michigan. Like you, we are thrilled with our choice, and have much to learn. As I write this, the TM is set up in the lane by our house and I am, as Chris, Mack, and the others wisely advised, making lists and double-checking each item, and am allowing lots of time for each step of preparation. And thanks, Paul, for the mention of the extra fuses--nothing worse than blowing one and not having a spare!

Susan, my simplest recommendation is to set a strict routine of things to do when setting up or taking down. Follow this routine by the numbers and don't let someone talk you into doing something out of order.

Our TM dealer has a pamphlet that he/she hands to new owners. One side of this pamphlet tells you, step by step how to set up the trailer. The other side tells you, step by step how to take it down. This dealer can be reached at [email protected]. If you have difficulty, you can contact me a [email protected] and I will give you an address and a request for an SASE. I will send you a copy.

Hal 8)

wow you guys are great thanks for all the information this is a great site with a lot of really nice people. Thanks for all the advice.

Congratulations on your new Trailmanor. All the messages I read here are great, and very informative. I am in the market for a Trailmanor 3023 myself. I'm going to an RV show in PA soon to look at them. Any suggestions on what I should ask the dealer about? May I ask what you paid for your new 3023? If I'm out of line asking, please accept my apology.