rkj__'s Ramblings

rkj__

Hello All,

I'm rkj__, and last night, my wife and I became the proud new owners of a very lightly used 2016 T@b CS-S.

I have not taken the camera out to take some decent pictures yet, but in my excitement last night, I did manage to snap this picture on my phone after backing the trailer into the driveway.  I was successful on only my second try.  :-)



I'm going to use this thread to ramble on about our ramblings, or something like that.


Part 1:  Why did we buy a T@b?
My wife and I have been married about a year and a half, and live in a comfortable house with our mini Labradoodle we named Hilton.  She got her name when we cancelled our honeymoon reservation at the Fallsview Hilton, and used the money to buy her instead.


Sometimes, we just need to get away.  Sometimes we decide to do that spontaneously.  We both did a fair bit of camping growing up, from backcountry canoe trips, to tent trailers, to RVs.  But, since we met, we only went camping once together, when we borrowed my parents' tent trailer.  It seemed that a lack of gear, and time were holding us back. 

In May, we went on a last minute, spontaneously planned trip to Grand Bend ON.  For that trip, we stayed at a B&B, and had a great time.  On that trip, we passed by Kelder's Trailer sales, and a lineup of cute T@b and T@g trailers near the road caught my wife's attention.  We decided we would stop on the way back.  When we stopped to take a look, we were quite intrigued.

We did a little research online, about the different configurations available.  Without too much debate, we decided the CS-S suited us best.
The features that mattered most to us were: Cute, Outdoor Kitchen, Bathroom, and Air Conditioning.  The T@b CS-S was really the only trailer on the market that nailed those three points.  But, was it just a dream?

As fate would have it, our local RV dealer, Niagara Trailers, had a very lightly used CS-S, which was exactly what we were looking for.  Were we ready to buy?  The idea had only just entered our mind.  But, being the spontaneous couple we are, we figured it was now or never.  We did not want to let that trailer slip away, and regret it later.  So, we went for it!  Niagara Trailers treated us very well.  They were a breath of fresh air, after another shop I will not name, made no effort to help us. 

This little trailer will allow us to keep most of our stuff packed, and make a quick getaway on Friday after work, drive somewhere nice, pull into a camp site, and not have to worry about a bunch of setup in the dark, or rain.  Even on a regular weekend, we can have a full camping experience, without it all feeling too rushed.

Adventure Awaits!

We are wasting no time, and taking the trailer to Rondeau Provincial Park tonight!  Rather than going into too much detail on my initial impressions, I think I will save that until after this weekend.  This is starting to get a little long anyway.  I will try to snap some decent pictures for you all as well, because everyone loves pictures.

Happy Camping!

Ratkity

@rkj__ WELCoME!! It sounds like you and the wife will have a blast. You two sound like you have adventures ready to happen and now you are equipped to do them.

T@B University B@dge for only taking 2x to back it up! Small trailers are harder to back up because the sweet spot is so small for it to turn. That said, I've found a larger trailer a pita because I'm so used to backing up tiny trailers!!

Again, welcome and happy camping!

DINDAnLAN

Congrats! We also enjoy that we have our T@B packed and ready to go and within an hour of being home from work we can be on road. Happy trails!

ericnliz

@rkj__, And let the adventures begin! Welcome aboard!! Ha, 'ya put your 'Hilton' money in the absolute right place! Cool dog. Can't wait for the ensuing parts to your adventures. T@B on!!!!

Librarydragon

Welcome, here's to many happy adventures!

rkj__

ericnliz said:

@rkj__, ... 'ya put your 'Hilton' money in the absolute right place! Cool dog. ...

We've never regretted that choice.  :-)

Homebodyatheart

@rkj__ Congratulations and welcome! Sounds like you know what you want and got it, which means now you can play and never have to take down a sleeping tent in the rain again! I'm looking forward to your pics, too!

2Cougs

@rkj__ - Welcome to the f@mily!  We also stumbled upon a very lightly used CS-S 2016 last October.  Love it for the same reasons you do.  Outdoor kitchen was a must for us!  Love it sitting in the garage ready to go!  We have had a blast tinkering, outfitting it, and trying her out as I know you two will also.  This forum is fantastic... Ask any question and you will make new friends in the process.  Happy T@bventures!  Keep us posted with pics along the way.

cbarnhill

I love your story and Hilton. Have fun. 

rkj__

Checking in from the camp site.  Overall, loving the trailer, and learning lots.

We have discovered the USB charging ports do not work.  All the other 12V features seem to be working.  Is there anything else to check before concluding the USB port is defective?  We tried two different cable / phone setups.

A quick search brought up a thread from 2016 where a few owners mentioned having defective USB ports replaced.

Verna

I have replaced my USB port once and replaced the replacement once. They just do not last very long....or they last for a long time. Look on Amazon--they vary in price. Take your pick. 

Ratkity

Mine worked, but more people with 12V usb ports complain about failure (not just T@Bs or T@Gs). Since they do take a small bit of power to just exist without anything plugged in, why not just get rid of them? Just a thought

Silver320

Ours failed too and when the dealer replaced it he said that even though there are 2 ports they only put out 2.1A combined and will burn up if you try to draw more than that. So only use one port at a time. He did mention that the cigarette port is good for something like 8-10A so he suggested getting a USB adapter to put into that and use that instead.

Sharon_is_SAM

We had the wiring to the USB disconnected to eliminate phantom draw.  We use a 12 v adapter for USB charging.

rkj__

Thanks for the responses.  Clearly not an uncommon problem. Using a 12V adapter for now.

pthomas745

I bought one of these:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00F474DVG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and it works well...except for all those flaming blue lights!

Ratkity

I bought just a usb with extra outlets thingie at Home Depot. I found out the usb lights up green when empty and turn red when something is in them! Ok.. what's with the lights. lol. 

rkj__

First trip went very well!  It's getting late, so I'll mostly do a photo dump now, and add some ramblings later.

jgram2

Nice "dump" there @rkj__

rkj__

Rondeau Ramblings

Part 1: Towing

My truck is a 2008 GMC Canyon, with the 5cy engine, and 4 speed automatic transmission.  It also has a 4" suspension lift, and 1" larger than stock tires.  I don't have a lot of towing experience.  I've towed a small tent trailer a couple times, and a box trailer a few times. 

I was a little nervous when I took to the road with the T@b.  I was adjusting to the experience.  Acceleration and braking were fine, but the trailer bounced the truck more than I expected.  It is worth noting, that the lift kit in my truck, replaced the stock leaf springs and shocks.  Perhaps more tongue weight would help.  I may try packing some of the heavier items that were in the truck bed in the front half of the trailer next trip.  Sure, I miss my rear view mirror when it is not available, but I the narrow width of the tab keeps the side mirrors very usable.  I don't intend to add any towing mirrors.  I was curious to see if the truck could hold 4th (top) gear while towing.  The answer was no.  So, I kept it in 3rd gear.  That left the engine revving at about 2500 RPM while holding the speed limit of 100km/h.  That lead to more engine noise than I would prefer, but the performance was good.  Fuel economy was 16-18 L/100km or 15.5 -17.5 MPG US, depending on wind direction.  The winds were fairly significant on both trips.

Part 2: Arrival and Setup

We arrived in the dark, as we will often do.  We found our site, and eyed it up.  In the dark, it looked pretty big, so I thought I could pull in forward, and loop around.  Easy.  I tried it, and it was not even close.  I have no idea what I was thinking.  So, I backed out of the site, then backed in.  We had electrical service, but the plug was tucked deeply into the woods.  Suddenly, our 25 ft extension cord looked very short.  We will need to explore getting a longer one.  We got the trailer as close as we could, and figured we would push it around to get it a little closer.  So, we go to unhitch.  That is when we found that on uneven ground, you don't have room to insert the wheel on the leveler, even though my hitch leaves the trailer a little tongue high on flat ground.  So, I had to lift the tongue, while my wife installed the wheel.  This is when we realized we BOTH need headlamps - we only had one.  With some struggle, we got the wheel installed.  Next, we found out that maneuvering the trailer by hand, is not easy at all on soft, uneven ground.  The little wheel digs in when it pivots, and the trailer is too heavy to push over any sort of bump. 

It was late, and we were getting tired.  So, we got it in a "good enough" position, and plugged it in.  At this point, we did not have the trailer level side to side.  Oh well.  Good enough.  Off to bed.

Part 3: The Camping Experience

3A: Sleeping

My wife is 5'9", and I am 6'0".  We normally sleep in a queen bed (with our dog), so the T@b CS-S short double is a little smaller.  I wish I had an extra 2" in length, but hey, it's camping.  The dog got the boot to the bench.  It took her a little while to understand that she was not going to share the bed with us, but she learned.  The first night, my sleep was a little broken up, as I found myself awake a few times when I wanted to re-position.  I slept much better the second night.  My wife slept well both nights, but was thinking a matrass topper would make it even better. 

3B: Cooking & Utilities

When we pulled into our site, for some reason, I was expecting a water hook up, in addition to electrical.  That was not the case, and my bad assumption.  So, our trailer was parked, with no fresh water.  What to do?  First thing Saturday morning, I headed to the Home Hardware for an 7 gal water container, and some hose / tubing.  I cobbled together something.  The hose did not stay on the jug well, so it was a two person job, but we were able to fill the tank.  The setup is passable, but I would like to improve it.  Now, with fresh water, our trailer was fully functional. 

I was absolutely delighted with the CS-S kitchen layout.  Preparing meals back there was a pleasure.  My biggest complaint is that the tap barely drips / flows into the sink.  The stream of water is too far towards the rear of the sink.  I will indeed need to get a swivel adapter for the faucet, which I hope will help.

I mostly chose to use the campground's washrooms and shower, but my wife chose to use the trailer facilities.  She even used the wet bath for a shower.  I can't understand why she would choose to do that, but she was very happy with it.

As mentioned earlier, the only thing we tried, that did not work was the USB charging station.  We have a warranty through our dealer, so we have the opportunity to get that fixed if we choose to do so. 

3C: Around the Campsite

We had the opportunity to obtain a zero cost kitchen tent from family, so we took advantage.  It is a big heavy bag, with lots of poles.  It took me about half an hour to set up, for the first time, with only a little help from my wife.  I'm confident that much time can be saved on that.  We set it up, mostly to check it out.  Since our site for the weekend had some shade, we did not really use the kitchen tent much.  If we were to do the same trip again, in the same weather, we would skip it.  But, if our site lacked shade, or it rained, we would certainly appreciate it more.  We will hold onto it. 

I love having a pickup truck.  It's bed serves as a great space for storage while camping, and the tailgate serves as another table.  Speaking of tables, my wife was wanting a small folding table, as her reclining camp chair does not have a beverage holder.  Something to keep an eye out for. 

One of our concerns about camping was our dog barking, and disturbing other campers.  For that reason, we invested in a bark control collar.  It worked very well.  After the first bark, it gives a warning beep.  If she continues to bark, it uses static correction.  It worked fantastically.  Hilton adapted to it very quickly, and the correction was rarely activated. 

Part 4: Destination, and Overall Experience

Rondau Provincial Park exceeded expectations.  It is a large park, with lots of trails and quiet paths to enjoy.  The marsh provides an excellent variety of plants and animals that differ from what I see every day.  Highly recommend. 

We both had a great time.  We did not forget anything critical.  We learned a lot on this first trip, which will make future trips even more relaxing, and enjoyable.  The trailer provided a fantastic camping experience. 


If you read that all, you're a trooper!


Happy Camping Everyone. 

2Cougs

Nice summary notes.  Sounds all in all like a great first trip.  We have a CS-S also.  Love the outside kitchen.  Tinker with things... Water should come out strong.

rkj__

2Cougs said:

Nice summary notes.  Sounds all in all like a great first trip.  We have a CS-S also.  Love the outside kitchen.  Tinker with things... Water should come out strong.

With regards to the water, when doing dishes, I try to use as little water as possible, so that means rinsing with the tap far from full open.  That slow stream is too close to the back of the sink, meaning I often get water on the back of the counter top. 

ericnliz

@rkj__, Nope, didn't have to be a "trooper" at all. I enjoy reading about other folks' experiences. Sounds like all in all, you had a great outing with a good learning curve involved. Adaptation is the name of the game using the T@B trailers, per our experiences. You will soon find that some trips require more adapting than others, and you'll adjust your needs & wants accordingly.
Ref. Part 2: Arrival and Setup: I'd like to offer a suggestion for 'turning' your trailer, as I've experienced the same awkwardness on soft, un-even ground as well. I have two pieces of 1/4" plywood that I cut to stand vertical, full width in the bed of our Chevy pickups next to the cab, or tailgate, depending on how I choose to load for camping. I use them to place under the trailer jack wheel, and have two, so I can move them according to which way I choose to move the trailer. Simply move, adjust, move again, and repeat until you have the trailer where you desire. Makes it a WHOLE lot easier to maneuver! Good part is the 1/4" wood doesn't take up hardly any room at all when stored, and is light enough to easily move. At times, I also lie it flat, side by side to make sliding things in the truck bed easier as well.
Ref. 3B: Cooking and Utilities: I have for a while now, used a collapsible 5 gallon water container as we boondock a lot, and water is usually NOT available at our campsite. ( My last one took a dive on the metal corner of a picnic bench, so the 20+ year old one is getting replaced with 2) Easy to store as they collapse, and not too bad to fill, and carry. I also found a wand type pump that operates on 2 D cell batteries to use for filling the fresh water tank. The hose on the pump is long enough so I can put the water containers on the ground, and not have to lift, or hold them. Found the pump at Walmart for I think $10.00. Just a suggestion, as I found trying to lift & fill kind of a pain. @Verna & @Michigan_Mike I know both use the gravity feed method, and they might chime in & give their 2 cents worth.
Just thought I'd give you a couple suggestions. Sounds like you're well on your way to figuring out what will & won't work for you. Have fun out there, and thanks for sharing. The photos were great!

Ratkity

I loved your picts and ramblings!! My sis had a tent like that, but it was one of those Coleman easy up tents. We put it over the picnic table to keep out bugs. We also played cards in it and lounged outside and read until dark. It prevented us from getting totally eaten by the mosquitoes (they were bad that year).

For your first backing up AND in the dark, you get a T@B/T@G University Badge. 

I made the mistake of not filling up with water the first time. Off to the box store to get a 2.5 gal tank (all I can lift fairly high). Then I must have had some mud in the air vent port. On my 2015 T@B it was a tube underneath near the fill port - which I had changed out to a non-flap setup (My port flap would come off). I ran into some good luck (rare) and the spout of the water tank fit the fill-spout perfectly. The force of the water going in pushed out the little bit of dirt clogging the overflow/air vent. Of course, that meant 5 runs to the water spigot. Not just the 11 gal in the fresh water tank, but the pump primed itself and the Alde drank some water.... I was tired after that, so I understand your pain. I always seem to have to setup after dark. My friends think it's funny to set up a runway and yell opposing directions as I backup. My 'ignore' feature in my brain works flawlessly LOL.

rkj__

ericnliz said:

@rkj__, Nope, didn't have to be a "trooper" at all. I enjoy reading about other folks' experiences. Sounds like all in all, you had a great outing with a good learning curve involved. Adaptation is the name of the game using the T@B trailers, per our experiences. You will soon find that some trips require more adapting than others, and you'll adjust your needs & wants accordingly.

Ref. Part 2: Arrival and Setup: I'd like to offer a suggestion for 'turning' your trailer, as I've experienced the same awkwardness on soft, un-even ground as well. I have two pieces of 1/4" plywood that I cut to stand vertical, full width in the bed of our Chevy pickups next to the cab, or tailgate, depending on how I choose to load for camping. I use them to place under the trailer jack wheel, and have two, so I can move them according to which way I choose to move the trailer. Simply move, adjust, move again, and repeat until you have the trailer where you desire. Makes it a WHOLE lot easier to maneuver! Good part is the 1/4" wood doesn't take up hardly any room at all when stored, and is light enough to easily move. At times, I also lie it flat, side by side to make sliding things in the truck bed easier as well.

Ref. 3B: Cooking and Utilities: I have for a while now, used a collapsible 5 gallon water container as we boondock a lot, and water is usually NOT available at our campsite. ( My last one took a dive on the metal corner of a picnic bench, so the 20+ year old one is getting replaced with 2) Easy to store as they collapse, and not too bad to fill, and carry. I also found a wand type pump that operates on 2 D cell batteries to use for filling the fresh water tank. The hose on the pump is long enough so I can put the water containers on the ground, and not have to lift, or hold them. Found the pump at Walmart for I think $10.00. Just a suggestion, as I found trying to lift & fill kind of a pain. @Verna & @Michigan_Mike I know both use the gravity feed method, and they might chime in & give their 2 cents worth.
Just thought I'd give you a couple suggestions. Sounds like you're well on your way to figuring out what will & won't work for you. Have fun out there, and thanks for sharing. The photos were great!

My wife was thinking something firm to put under the little wheel would be a good idea.  I was not sure what to use, that would bend, but not break.  If you have had good luck with 1/4" plywood, I might have to try that myself.  Thanks for the tip.

We could have saved ourselves a little trouble by filling our water tank at the dump / fill station available at the park before landing.  Fortunately, the gravity fill is pretty quick, but indeed a little awkward without further improvements.  How long does it take your pump to fill the tank?

We could always pre-fill at home too I suppose.  If we don't intend to drink the water, is there any reason not to use a garden hose?  I only have a 25ft drinking water hose, which would not reach from my backyard to the trailers fill point.

ericnliz

@rkj__, Great questions, and a little follow-up for you:
You'll find the plywood flexible enough to not break. Another tip for the plywood when maneuvering. Don't go all the way to the end of it before moving the other piece, so you can place it underneath of the one the wheel is on. That way, you avoid the "bump" to go over when moving.
The pump takes about 3 to 4 minutes per jug to empty. Better than having to hold any weight up, and maneuver, and that's why I went that direction.
Filling your tank prior to leaving is okay if you don't mind hauling the extra weight. I have to go over some pretty steep mountain passes usually, and prefer not to add any more weight than I absolutely have to. At times, I do fill before leaving home if I know the water where I'm going is not easily accessible.
Your last inquiry made me laugh because my spigot at home is WAY more than 25' away! I'd say, more like 75' to 100'! I use my garden hose all the time to fill the tank when I choose to. Go to Amazon, and get the Camco fill adapter with the plastic flexible hose, and shut-off valve, you'll love it. If your city water is chlorinated, I would still drink from the fresh water tank, I do. I can't even begin to tell you how many times I've taken a drink of water from the garden hose! Just sayin'. 
If you have any more questions, please ask, and I'll give 'em my best shot. Hope this helps 'ya out!

Ratkity

As an add-on to @ericnliz's comment, I attach my official 25' water hose to the garden hose. My water hose has a filter on it (1 season use only). It'll take out any sand or whatever decided to crawl inside the 50' garden hose. I know the cautions about drinking from a non-approved water hose (mostly because of heat and chemical leaching when the hose sits in the sun) - but after running it until the water is cold and then drinking from it as a kid while cooling myself with it after my paper route in 100F+ degree weather never gave me dain bramage!  

Michigan_Mike

Ratkity said:

As an add-on to @ericnliz's comment, I attach my official 25' water hose to the garden hose. My water hose has a filter on it (1 season use only). It'll take out any sand or whatever decided to crawl inside the 50' garden hose. I know the cautions about drinking from a non-approved water hose (mostly because of heat and chemical leaching when the hose sits in the sun) - but after running it until the water is cold and then drinking from it as a kid while cooling myself with it after my paper route in 100F+ degree weather never gave me dain bramage!  

Well we certainly won't elaborate on or touch upon that last sentence!     

But agree, we survived drinks from garden hoses, lead paint on cribs and window sills, no seat belts, no helmets when riding bikes, etc.

rkj__

I'm back, with more rambling, this time, about our trip to Grundy Lake Provincial Park.

Part 1: Travel & Setup

A couple weekends ago, we took our first shakedown trip in our T@b trailer.  We learned a lot on that trip, and were excited to start our next adventure.  This time, we would be camping 4 nights.

Hilton was super excited to get the show on the road, but we had to make a few in town stops first. 



In case you are wondering, yes, she had lots of room to lay down beside the cooler...

After fighting some traffic, we arrived at our destination.  I felt much more relaxed towing on this trip.  Also, we loaded the fairly heavy screen room at the front of the trailer this time, instead of the bed of the truck.  This gave a little more tongue weight, and the ride was a lot smoother.  We encountered a few more hills on this drive, but none too severe. 



We also arrived in the daylight on this trip which was nice.  We had so much more sorted out on arrival, and setup was a breeze compared to last time.  Erica asked for a few more jobs, and I was happy to have her helping with things like cranking down the stabilizers.  We were relaxing before you knew it!



The locals were quick to welcome us as well.



Part 2: Camping

Grundy Lake is a fabulous park.  It offers many opportunities to do all kinds of outdoorsy things, and offers a significantly different landscape than where we live.



We spent lots of time enjoying the lake views....



Hiking the trails...



And cycling around the park.



It has mostly been a wet, cool summer for us so far, and this trip was no exception.  We both commented on how it felt like fall weather.  Daytime highs were in the low 20s, and we did get some rain.  We used a rainy day to travel a short distance outside the park, to the French River Visitor Centre, and enjoy some views of the river.





Most of the time, we leave the bed in the T@b setup as a bed.  But, when the rain continued to fall, we converted to the table setup, and played some Settlers of Catan.  We also got to enjoy Erica's birthday present to me, a small Bluetooth radio.  It takes up hardly any room, compared to the built in options available.



Part 3: Wrapping it up, and looking forward. 



We could not wait for our next trip, so we booked another one from our campsite!  We have a three night trip coming up in a couple weeks.  Since it was booked last minute, there were no electrical sites available, so we are going to see how that goes.  We will plan to conserve as much power as is reasonable, and see how the little battery does.  We picked up a 40W Coleman solar panel setup to try out as well.  It cost me very little out of pocket (~$30), as it was 60% off at Canadian Tire, and I had ~$70 in Canadian Tire "money" rewards saved up to use against the $100 sale price.  If I can figure out how to work with that, it should help prolong the life of our battery.  I do understand it is a fairly weak setup, that will not allow us to camp without electrical hookups indefinitely, but I am hoping it can be used to extend the battery's life.  I'll probably have more questions on connecting that later.  If it does not work out, we can always return it. 

We are looking forward to getting out as much as we can.  Erica said this trip was one of the best vacations she has ever had.  Hearing that makes me a happy husband.

Happy Camping.

Ratkity

Wow!! Great picts and descriptions!! Oooooo Settlers... Do you have any wood for a sheep? Bahahaha.... Luv it.

rkj__

Ratkity said:

Wow!! Great picts and descriptions!! Oooooo Settlers... Do you have any wood for a sheep? Bahahaha.... Luv it.

Wood for sheep?  Naw, I can't do that.  All I got is sheep!