550 / 560 Ordering Options...

Not sure where the appropriate place is for this post so admins/moderators please move if this is not the correct area.

As we continue to march toward that day soon when we can officially place our order for our 560 Ultra, I thought I would ask...

Now that you have your tear...what do you wish you had included on your order when you placed it but didn't? Or, what did you order that you find you are not really needing and so would leave it off?

What would you do differently?

Please share your thoughts...we hop to learn from others before placing our order.

 

Must haves for us:

Fantastic fan
Door screens
Heater
AC
Solar option

Ordered but wouldn't order again:

Sunroof - my wife always draws the curtain.
Hitch - never used.

 

Cant say I'd do anything differently, i almost went without the AC but am happy I decided to get it. I have the side tent which hasnt been used too often but has been useful on the rare occasion i have set it up. I am looking for a good deal on a Dometic, but I've done just fine thus far without it.

 

Love:
Door screens, fan, heater, sunroof (but hear they aren't doing it anymore..is that right?), Alcan cover, water resistant storage cover

Ordered after:
Windwalls, dometic fridge,

Still want:
Bumper, and considering the hitch eventually for bikes

Otherwise, pleased as punch with everything. Could not be a happier camper!

 

Rain sensing fan, bumper, door screens
Since ordered the dometic fridge and added a latex mattress topper!

Don't have AC (but we are mostly cold weather campers, but no heater either.) Spent a month traveling recently in all kinds of weather - snow to 114 degrees!! Only thing we really wished we had was the Dometic fridge.

 

Teardrop #1: purchased used
SUV option: must have
Came with a side tent, which I sold.
I added: hitch, stereo and speakers, TV antenna port.
Did not have: AC, which is the reason I sold #1.
Did not have brakes.
I purchased a Dometic fridge, IMO a must have!

Teardrop #2:
Debated if I should order new or purchase a used teardrop, In the end purchased used again.
AC, which is what I wanted.
SUV option: must have, I like the added height when using galley
Came with: solar connections I do not have a solar panel, not sure I will ever use, but oh well, it is there.
Hitch: must have
Brakes: was one of the items I was wanted because know I will be traveling in Rocky mountains.
Side tent: have used this time, will keep
Continue to love the dometic fridge.

Neither unit had a furnace. I do have a 12V blanket and a small electric heater instead. Only one weekend would I love to have the furnace when bookdocking, did not have the 12 v blanket at the time.

At this point, the 550 is set up to for me! No changes at this point to the teardrop. Only thing I would change is more camping.

Jean

 

JavaJack, we ordered every option except battery isolator,handicap rails,color frame and the hitch. Ordered Dometic fridge elsewhere. Got one of the last sunroofs and are glad we did. Hopefully they will come up with an alternative to the sunroof soon. My thought would be to make it non-opening or permanatley sealed to avoid leaks. I personaly would hate to not have the extra view/light that it provides. Not knowing where or when we will be camping we like the idea of being ready for whatever temps we might encounter so furnace and AC were important to us. TV/DVD player a must for us also for rain days and movies at night. A lap top computer would do the same but we like the mounted tv and storage space behind it. Good luck decieding which options to get it is a fun time.

 

OK. so what about things like the roof rack? I really like the lines of the 560 without it but I could see how it could really come in handy, more so than the rear hitch I think.

By the way, how hard is it to get dressed in the morning without something like the side tent?

 

Try dressing while laying on your bed, it's pretty much the same. Maybe a little easier in the 560 with the couch.

 

I prefer my roof racks to be on the tow vehicle. We carry kayaks and it's good to be able to dump the trailer and head out with the boats on top.

We just returned from a 28 day 8000 miler. We only set up the side tent once. We just got windwalls for the Alcove and set it up and used it for our little toilet at night. We also used the enclosed Alcove for showering with my little portable shower pump. I would have considered the side tent to be essential prior to this trip, but now I'm having second thoughts. I might go with two Alcoves rather than a side tent. We don't "yet" own a Northern Breeze type structure.

 

The roof rack stands and bars can be removed when they are not needed. There are sockets permanently installed for them in the roof. You can then install the rack when needed, and leave it off when not. However, the sockets are built into the roof structure and cannot be added after construction.

 

I like my roof racks now that we built the solar shower. Before that, we didn't really use them.

 

Jean W. How did you add the TV connector.

 

Bear!!
Sounds like you would enjoy our 500 Special....
I guess you could cut a hole in the top for a sunroof!!
Glad to see a post from you.
Hope you're enjoying your new campsite.

 

Jenn,

You are so great with sharing all of this information. Of course, I am overwhelmed by the prospect of all of this in our future, and we will have to feel our way around, but having your insights is truly helpful.

I'll share your post with my husband and will get in touch if we have questions!

Best,
Diane

 

I will answer as a person who has owned 2 550 CampInn's.
Must Haves:

Fantastic Fan: in both models. Absolute requirement! There are many places to cut costs, but the Fantastic Fan is not the place. 2008 was the traditional Fantastic fan. 2012 has the rain censor, which to me is annoying, so I use turn the rain censor off.

AC: The 2008 with no AC, which is the reason I sold and purchased the 2012 with AC. So far have used once, helped but didn't work as well as I hoped. In defense of teardrop, sitting in sun and plugged in with over 100 feet extension cord.

SUV option: must have, saves on the sore back when working in the kitchen.

Propane stove: I love it, would always want. I keep a Rubbermaid tote in the "cooler" spot contains charcoal and the COBB grill.

Dometic fridge: I keep mine in the tow vehcile

Stereo: must have for me

Hitch: needed to take bikes on trips, I use full size bikes.

Brakes: I will be towing in the mountains with the Subaru and came on 2012 tear. 2008 teardrop did not have brakes. No problems stopping with the Subaru. Also I never experienced a traffic jam where I needed to stop on a dime either.

Sink: love it. Being able to turn on water to wash hand is wonderful.

Interior Lights: They are bright and generate a lot of heat. This year I use either a headlamp or a solar light. The solar light provides adequate lighting that is gentle on the eyes. I will have to search for the Solar light used,
Optional:
Bumper, added to second tear, no opinion at this point. Bumper is easier and cheaper to replace then back end of teardrop

The 2012 came with a solar set up, have not used as I don't have any solar panels.

Previous owners requested an additional 12V plug in on the outside to be used for the Dometic while sitting on the fridge stand. The outside 12v plugin is handy for charging cell phone.

Wishlist: additional 110 plugins in the cabin and on the outside of the teardrop, in the area of the solar plugin.

 

What is it you do not like about the rain sensing fan? Is it too sensitive? Not sensitive enough?

My thought was that if we were out hiking or something and it started to rain, it would be nice to know that it would close by itself.

 

I like our Fantastic Fan with rain sensor for the same reason. If it rains it shuts off. Ours worked perfectly in the middle of the night when it rained. Very simple to set it in the manual mode if you choose to override it.

 

True about being out and about the fan will close itself, what is annoying in the middle of the night, then have to set in manual mode. Yes, rain happens in the middle of the night, and have had to close when in the manual mode. So I operate it on manual mode, do not use the rain sensing function. If rain in forcast most likely would have the Paha Que up, so vent can remain open.

Regarless of manual or rain sensing mode, both modes have pro's and cons. Above all, get a Fantast Fan.

If the light bothers a person, add a shade of somesort over the vent.

Jean

 

The automatic part of the fantastic fan is great when you are away from the trailer. While sleeping I take it off of auto because every time it goes on or off it wakes me up. It seemed to go on and off very frequently when I used the thermostat and the vent is noisy when it opens and closes. I would rather leave it on when I go to sleep and be wakened because I am cold.