2015 T@b Review

jkjenn

I wanted to wait until I had a little time with my T@b before I wrote a review. I finally got around to it: http://jenngrover.com/2014/09/tb-travel-trailer-review/

Nomad

Thanks Jenn, good post.

I have a Jeep and a T@B is in my future.

Jimbo

jkjenn, 

Just ran across your review. Very well written and informative. I have followed several of the issues you have experienced and posted on the forum and this ties them all together. Enjoyed reading and viewing the pictures. Thanks for taking the time and effort to share.

forklift_guy59

Great Review!

radren

Great review Jenn, thanks for taking the time and being so organized in your review.

deputydog

    I have left refridgerator on believing the tow veh would keep everything charged while driving.  Found that thr fridge uses more energy than can be charged to battery after 6-8 hours. T@B battery had fully discharged.  After plugged in over night with fridege off all was well.

tstewart

Hi!  This is my first post on this site and just read your review of the T@B travel trailer.  I found this forum in my research and just exploring how to use it.  My only other experience with online forums is with the MGExperience website which deals with restoring MG sports cars.  What I've seen so far of this forum mirrors that and appears to have a very supportive group.  I am currently researching small travel trailers on the internet and seem to be zeroing in on the T@B.  Looks about the right size for me, but I have no real experience camping, save for when I was a young lad many, many years ago.  As I have been perusing the forum posts, I'm finding other interesting tidbits related to the campground experience and you also mention reasons for choosing a hardside camper related to certain campground rules, etc., which I would not ordinarily consider.  At any rate, your review was very timely and informative.  Great review and you covered many of my concerns.  Thought you'd like to know.  Thanks for posting it.

TStewart

deputydog

     Welcome tstewart..

judymac

Jkjen, thank you so much for your review and your pictures! What a great review. We also were close to a used Aliner, but Omhace read so many comments about leaks. We should have our T@B in a couple of weeks. I do have a question for all posters: Did you install a surge protector? Also Jkjenn, did you solve your battery problem? I am wondering now if we should even have this frig on when towing. Comments?

Nomad

I haven't installed a protector. But, I'm generally running of my solar panels (best investment I ever made - may not even buy a generator).

Fridge - I haven't had much battery drain while towing - nothing drastic anyway. But, most of my tows have been 4hrs or less and them I'm hooking up the solar.

radren

I am expecting my little boy soon. I read alot about the surge protectors you plug in at the posts and many get stolen, they actually recomended a lock kind of box for it. I bought a hard wired progressive surge protector and am having the dealer install before I pick the trailer up, as well as the two 6 volt batteries rather than the one large battery and a battery cut off switch. Everyone has said that the two 6 volt batteries are the best way to maximize battery power in a trailer. I guess they are about 89 dollars at costco, the golf cart type batteries. My dealer is going to re configure the compartment up front to take both batteries. I am not getting any propane and have the extra room. Happy T@bbing.

judymac

Congrats, Radren. Have you named him yet? LOL. We should have ours in a couple of weeks and have so much to learn, our first RV. I am both excited and anxious about the unknowns. Good luck.

Wanderoo

Judymac -- I think you can safely have your fridge on DC for 4 hrs while towing without worrying about battery drain and then just turn it off.  That's what I did and the food was fine.  I also put a couple of icepacks in at the beginning of the trip.  I have no complaints.   >:D<

jkjenn

RE: the surge protector - I am solo glad I had this installed. The campground I stayed at last week in Stowe, OH had an outlet with reversed polarity at the pedestal. The Progressive Industries surge protector did the job. I didn't notice that the surge protector had done its job and that I was not getting juice until bed time At that point, I had been quite liberal with my power usage, think I was plugged in. I turned the fridge on propane and thought I would investigate further in the morning. I was able to use my 110 pigtail and switch and provide power without having to move sites, thankfully. That is a mental note to self: check the surge protector for errors before unplugging.

I have not had the chance3 to get much further with my battery issue. I meant to call Ed on Friday, but my work day became too hectic. I understand why people are suggesting that I have a heavier gauge wire installed, but I believe I have probably somewhere between 8-10 gauge, already and it seems as though the RV dealer would know how to properly wire the charge wire. The dealer I was at sold mostly bigger units.

If I have to live with it like it is, I will likely run the fridge on battery for half of the day and then turn it off to prevent total draining when I am driving all day. I am hoping Ed says that my experience does not sound right and that it can be fixed, though.

I just sold my (2) 100 watt Renogy panels because they were just too big with everything else I carry on the big trips. I will likely wait until the spring to replace the. Renogy now has a 100 watt suitcase panel that looks good. I am holding off, hoping they come out with 150 watt suitcase panel, but if they don't, I will probably use a combo of that and my Goal Zero 15 watt for off grid use.

I know some suggest that it is safe to drive with the fridge on propane but I just don't feel comfortable with it.

radren

Hi Judymac,

I am calling my trailer the Mouse house. I live next door to disneyland and want to be able to bring the magic of Disneyland along with me camping. I hope to pick up the trailer this coming wed. I will be having it vinyl wrapped in the next couple of weeks. This is the design plan for the two sides. I hope it turns out half as well as the template looks. The cool thing about a vinyl wrap is that it makes almost anything possible. I wanted a vintage steamboat Willie cartoon look (along with airship willie) and we were able to distress the images and desaturate the colors so it doesn't look like a simple drawing. The images have to be re configured (something called vectored or eps, maybe esp? files) which basically means  the images have to be re drawn from the original so they can be up sized without distorting the color or imagery. I have a very talented graphics artist who took my ideas and made it happen. My trailer is starting out as a white with black trim CS-S. The vinyl wrap protects the finish underneath and should last 5 -7 years, depending on how you store it. Then the colors fade out to black. It does cost about as much as a very custom paint job but you aren't saddled with it permanently. It will make me happy everytime I look at it.

I hope to have the trailer to compare to the template in the next couple of weeks. I will post before and after pics. 

Can't wait to have my little boy parked in his home. 

happy happy joy joy to be a T@bby owner,  

ren

jkjenn

Rent, that is an extremely impressive wrap! How did you obtain the vector graphics for it? I am sure that it will look very much like what you have presented as the ability to color match is pretty impressive these days,

radren

Hi Jenn,

Thanks, I know it's over the top but once I realized I could do ANYTHING with a wrap, I did. I found the images I wanted online, got the highest res version I could find and then my graphics guy basically re drew the entire cartoon (or poster in airship willie's case)  to recreate the images as a vector image. It was very time consuming.  I make movies and he does most of my graphics. We combined and re configured the original cartoon or poster and then we cut it up and put it back together again to best fit the template. I LOVE we were able to keep the blimp and the airplane that was in the original poster. We added Peg leg Pete in the steamboat willie image, just stretched the cabin to include him. Wanted peg leg pete on both sides to tie the two side's story together. Then he used an aging program and hand copied the effects onto the vectored files to look give the image a vintage look and not the "perfect" look of a vectored file. All this happened because I was trying to find a way to have a border (like the trim) to mimic the look of the non clamshell model. Apparently borders are very hard to do with a wrap so I just went crazy once I realized just how much you can do with the images on a wrap. My wrap guy thinks it will look fairly close. He was skeptical of the aging effects but It does what I want to look older. I still haven't gotten my trailer. I am hoping for this week. How many hundreds of times have I said that?  My wrap guy is setting up an install date, assuming I get the trailer this week. I will post pictures of the final product. Can't wait. 

ren

radren

HI again,

Where did you buy your extra fuses?  I want to make up an emergency repair kit and need fuses. 

Nomad

radren - Could you get it for copyright infringement? If you did, you'd probably have to rip it all off :-(

radren

Hi Jenn,

You can use disney images for personal use. It is business uses, making money off of the image is a problem. You have never heard of Disney suing an individual for using mickey on something, just a business. I know Disney can be picky but at the same time, they love their Disney fans. 

Where did you buy your fuses? What did you buy? I am so confused by the ato and the closed and open fuses they talked about on the forum. 

ren

gilbutler

Radren,  Fuses are pretty low tech for the most part. They are basically a strip of metal that melts when the current is higher than a design amount and time.  That opens the circuit and protects the downstream equipment. Open or closed backs have no real affect on the fuse protection.   

radren

Thanks so much for the clarification. I know you handy guys are really really handy and know all this stuff and we so appreciate your sharing your knowledge. I have been waiting since APRIL for my trailer and I am just getting crazy trying to be prepared. I have an obsessive need to be prepared. When I was little, My Mother did dress me up like a cub scout to get into disneyland free on cub scout day to get in free, along with my brothers. That may have done it. Ha

Thanks

judymac

Radren, awesome graphics. Here I am trying to figure out the Alde with a grey and black plain Jane. Maybe that is her name: Plain@B

Nomad

radren - I'm not familiar on how Disney handles copyright but I know bloggers have gotten take down notices on their personal blogs for infringing others copyright and those were also non-business, non-commercial uses. So, was just curious.

radren

I thank everyone for their advice and kind words. I am gonna go ahead with the wrap and worst case, I can take it off. I know it will make me smile every time I see it and that is all I care about. The wrap guy said it would be an extreme case if I had any kind of problem. And Judymac, I don't think there is such a thing as a plain T@B but I do like the name. I am sure the Amish involved in making our little T@Bs would like it as well!

judymac

\:D/ Radren, true. Mine will not leave the lot, if we do t conquer the Alde.

TagURit

I haven't bought a Tab yet and need help in understanding issues I'm reading about with powering the refrigerator. I also need to know how to take care of the toilet. Are there any issues on toilets on the 2015 TaBs? Are these cassette models? HELP!! 

ChanW

@TagURit , The 2015 has a regular flush toilet, into a 5gal black tank that needs to be dumped at a conventional dump site.

The 3-way fridge can sometimes be a challenge, but when it's working, it's a good little fridge. 

Many modern tow vehicles can't keep up with the 3-way fridge's current draw. It draws 11 amps in 12v mode, and many modern vehicles only output enough to trickle charge the battery when cruising. A tow package with a high output alternator might be able to keep up with it though.

Also with the three-way in 12 volt mode, you need to keep in mind that it needs to be switched off when you stop for lunch, or you might drain down your battery.

We are happy with our 3-way (we seldom use 12 v mode), and it's been relatively trouble-free (since fixing the loose connection that it came with!)

TagURit

thank you for such a quick response. Still trying to “get it”. So if you don’t power the frig. Using 12 volt mode,What do you do?

ScottG

@TagURit, the 12V DC mode is intended to only be used when the camper is attached to a running tow vehicle. In this case, the vehicle's alternator provides the needed power. In theory, anyway--that was what @ChanW was referring to with regard to many modern vehicles not being able to keep up with the demand.

Once in camp, you would run the fridge off 120V AC (if available) or propane.

I also rarely use the 12V DC mode. When in transit, we find a pre-chilled fridge with couple jugs of ice in it does a fine job staying cold until we get to our destination. You need the ice for happy hour, anyway!  ;-)

In my not-so-humble-opinion, 2015 was great model year. Larger tanks had been added mid-year and front windows were virtually standard. However, the race to add more and more "convenience" features had yet to start, so these models are still relatively simple and have fewer systems to give you headaches. You can always customize your own trailer to fit your needs, once you decide what those needs are. 

dragonsdofly

@TagURit, we found a simple solution for the 12V drain during towing with our smaller vehicle. We attached our solar panel to the vehicle's luggage rack and plugged it in while traveling. The added solar kept the trailer battery charged while towing, and we arrived at campsites topped off, when it came to battery power. Just a thought, and an alternative solution.