Grand Design and Boondocking

[nonrev321]

Hello,

Can anyone make any observations or comments on the suitability of Grand design Imagine Models trailers for boon docking?
Thank you
Rgds

[LCBoyer]

I believe that a person can boondocks in anything, even a tent

[jmbopp]

Welcome to the forum.

Our "shakedown" was a 2-week trip w/o hookups. Not really boondocking but you get the idea.

Imagine's have larger than normal water and waste tanks than most of the competition - a plus. And the dump outlets are a good distance above the ground so they're less prone to damage going into rough sites. Also nice if you use a waste tote. And starting in 2017 (?) they have a gravity fill on the fresh water tank.
Downsides - as with most trailers they use a WFCO converter, not a good choice for getting a fast charge off a generator. I mounted an IOTA-55 in the pass-through and ran 6 gauge welding wire to the dual batteries I installed. Having AC outlets in the pass-through makes it nice for powering the IOTA off a generator.
If the fridge is on the slide there is an exhaust vent fan that will draw more 12V power, something I didn't know before I bought ours.
IMHO the Furrion solar connector is a useless gimmick, if I go the solar route I'll add a charge controller in the pass-through and tie it to the IOTA cables.
There's about 6 gallons of unuseable water in the fresh tank, I plan on adding another line to the drain valve, run it into the pass-through via the mouse hole, and tie it into the winterizing line on the water pump.
Other users note the fresh water seems to slosh out the overflow when travelling. Some people add a valve to the vent line, I use a plastic bag rubber-banded over the line. The vent on the fresh water fill isn't connected to anything. (GD, are you listening?)

What model are you looking at?

[nonrev321]

Hi JMbopp,

Our local dealer is getting that new model 2670MK in next week, also considering a 2600RB. It will probably be one of those.

Could be buying around X-Mass or shortly after.

Thanks for the info. I took a look at that IOTA-55 Charger-Power Supply. Rated at 55A. Is that enough?

Anything you could advise checking for or giving a strong "Look at" when we go up to look at these trailers?

Hey - How much of a discount did you get when purchasing. From what IO read you can expect to pay 20% to 30% off the dealer price

Thanks

nornev

[Krazy Kajun]

We took delivery of our 2600RB about a month ago and we got 24% off the list price. Some have done better, some have done worse but that is about what I expected. I had to negotiate a bit to get that price, it was not just offered at first.

Good luck on your selection choice. We love our 2600RB.

Kajun

[nonrev321]

Thanks Krazy, Hoping I can get around 25% also

Rgds

[jmbopp]

Hard to say what our discount was since we traded in a Thor Heartland, but I thought it was a fair price. The only real issue unresolved is no heat coming out of the rear heat vent but I'll pick that back up in the spring.
I've got dual G29 batteries (had to make a tray for them.) To do over I'd go with dual 6V golf cart batteries. Yes, the Iota 55 handles them fine, 30 minutes of generator a day keeps up with our useage. I got it at bestconverter.com . The generator is a 10 year old Honda 2000 I bought for our first trailer.
One more note - the GD's now come with LED lighting that uses less power than incandescent bulbs. I had converted our Heartland to LED's even before its first trip.
We looked at a 2600 but then I saw the floor plan on the 2650RK, and the local dealer had one in stock. The 2650 puts my F150 right at it's limits weight-wise but it tows fine.

[nonrev321]

Thanks for the info jmbopp,

I'm also considering going to 6Vdc deep cycle golf cart batteries. I'd like to get 4 of them, two in series than that that 12V combo paralleled, don't know if there is enough room for them though... Guess I'll see when we go up to look at them shortly

Thanks

Rgds
Nonrev

[jmbopp]

The problem with 4-6V batteries is the weight, especially on the tongue. Since you're in Florida, have you considered solar?

[nonrev321]

Hi,

Considering solar... Florida now... but our intention is most of America and Canada!