Height Worries

[John317]

If you've never been to this website it is a must see to understand the need for an RV specific or Truckers specific GPS. www.11foot8.com
With some of our units measuring just 2" below the legal maximum it is a huge travel concern.CHECK IT OUT!Edited by: John317

[5th_Time]

John, you said it! I was nervous all the way home after picking up mine. Obviously, Redwood used every designable inch to create living space, but now, we have to really pay attention to the travel-height to avoid disaster. Having just been up on my RL's roof,I don't think they could have chosentallerA/C units than those Colemans. They have to be 12" tall! I have to hook back up and measure, but I'm sure that I'm well into 13' range. Planning the "trucker-only" route for my next trip.

[TravelinAnderson]

We measured our 36FL on the truck and it was 12' 10". I used 13' as the height when we entered the rig's profile into our Garmin 365T. So far so good.
It's also a good idea to keep a paper map of the route. We try to travel the interstate as much as possible and the first thing we do when entering a new state is a stop at the visitors center. We grab as many maps as we need, state and local, then head to the campground.
My navigator keeps an eye on the route and I keep an eye out for obstacles.

[Dave&Ginny]

Something to remember...All of the old bridges were around 12 ft in height...but for the last 30 years everything built has been to the 13.6 height laws. So even ifRedwood used shorter A/C units ...the trailers would have been over the 12 ft mark so it wouldn't make that much difference. That's why you see all of the semi truckswith taller sleepers in the trucks. If you can't build out...you build up....more room. You will encounter more scratches from tree limbs though. Also watch the phone and cable tv lines over your driveways. By law they have to be at least 13.6 over roadways but not over personal property. Good Luck

[KR2011]

Two things here first Dave is absolutely correct on the height issue of Bridges , but Mike the Coleman Ac's are actually lower in profile than the dometic and advent airs the polar mach by Coleman is even lower in profile and much quieter, while I was at the factory Andy had hinted at the fact that they might start using the polar Machs insteadof the mack 3's. If they do this you would loose about 4000 btu's of cooling if you have 2 ac's, as the polar Machs only come in 9000 and 13000 btu's, I'm not sure if there is a larger one , I thoughtI saw one once but I might be mistaken.

[John317]

Originally Posted by KR2011

Two things here first Dave is absolutely correct on the height issue of Bridges , but Mike the Coleman Ac's are actually lower in profile than the dometic and advent airs the polar mach by Coleman is even lower in profile and much quieter, while I was at the factory Andy had hinted at the fact that they might start using the polar Machs insteadÂ*of the mack 3's. If they do this you would loose about 4000 btu's of cooling if you have 2 ac's, as the polar Machs only come in 9000 and 13000 btu's, I'm not sure if there is a larger one , I thoughtÂ*I saw one once but I might be mistaken.Â*

I wonder why they don't opt for the Dometic Penguin 9.5" 13500 BTU.

[KR2011]

Originally Posted by John317

I wonder why they don't opt for the Dometic Penguin 9.5" 13500 BTU.

Because they had a falling out with Dometic. The early units had Dometic fridges and I think it was when the mid 12's were being built they went to norcold/thetford.

[5th_Time]

You're right about Dometic... I complained about the equipment change. Same level of sucess you had with vent fans.Still ended up with Norcold .



Onefortunate thingis that Redwood has sold a lot of units, and so far, no one has reported hitting anything - but it does add a layer of anxiety and "paranoid watchfulness" to your road trip. Even if you manage to stop in time on some back road... then what? You have to pull a Y-turn with one of these monsters on a two lane road??Makes methink "hey, at least it's not 42.4' long! Ha.



My new GMC's Nav is great... but it thinks I'm a car and tries to take me down the Merrit Parkway and Garden State Parkway - which are closed to commercial traffic (because of lowunderpasses). I assume that it will try to do the same in states that I don't know (like Iowa).I'm headed to SC in a week and I'm sticking to the main roads...

[KR2011]

Mike thats a good Idea but I do like to travel the back roads so that I can see America from a different perspective other than what I saw for 22 years as a truck driver.

[5th_Time]

Better unhook first...

[Robin'n'Marian]

The 30,000 BTU A/C is still listed as an option, and I know several of the first ones we saw here on the Canadian prairies had them - are they still offered? They sat at the back, and you usually didn't need to add the 2nd a/c. If you have one of the 30k units, how do you like it, and does it work well?

[KR2011]

The advertising is deceptive in order to get 30,000 btu's you have to add the second ac, if you have one ac you have 15,000 btu's not 30,000. here in the lower 48 most times you need both ac's to cool the trailer.

[Tobys Home]

Mike where are you located in CT? We live in Madison, CT. We too will have an RL someday and camp over at Seaport Campground in Mystic. Maybe we'll see someday.

[lillyputz]

Originally Posted by Robin'n'Marian

The 30,000 BTU A/C is still listed as an option, and I know several of the first ones we saw here on the Canadian prairies had them - are they still offered? They sat at the back, and you usually didn't need to add the 2nd a/c. If you have one of the 30k units, how do you like it, and does it work well?

The 30,000 BTU A/C is with two A/C units, combined.not one 30,000.



Lillyputz

[Robin'n'Marian]

The first ones in Canada had 1 - 30,000 BTU a/c in the back, also with a heat pump. We saw a few. They were 2011 models though. I guess they don't offer that any more, sounds like.

[KR2011]

How big was this 30000 BTU ac? I have been in this business for a long time and have never heard of or seen a 30000 BTU ac that thing must be massive, I can't imagine how much roof support they had to do to put one 30000 BTU ac on the roof. If you have pictures I would love to see them posted.Edited by: KR2011

[5th_Time]

Bryan, you were right - the Coleman Mach A/Cson my RL are 14" tall. Rediculous! I hope they're still 14" tall when I get back from SC.

[KR2011]

You'll be fine Mike just be mindful of your surroundings and enjoy your trip.

[5th_Time]

I found a trucker website listing every reported low clearance bridge orunderpassby state. Check this out:<a href="http://www.aita&#111;nline.com/Info/Low%20Clearances.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.aitaonline.com/Info/Low%20Clearances.html







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Edited by: 5th_Time

[Grandpa]

The 'Allstays Camp &amp; RV' app for iphone and iPad also shows you the low clearances as well as lots of helpful information. You can get it on iTunes.