We picked up our new 16' Scamp at Bakus Friday Oct. 3rd. Drove off at 09:40 with snow and sleet and strong winds (20-30 MPH) for the first 5 hours of heading back east towards Michigan.
Once through Wisconsin and entering the Upper Peninsula of Mi. the weather cleared some. Still strong winds buffeting the Scamp but at least the "wintery mix" stopped.
Our first camp site (1 night) was a pull through which was good as we arrived at near dark. Had to purchase a city water connection hose.
We did not fill our freshwater tank. Apparently it should be sanitized before use. Need to read more on what that entails.
Next camp site (2 nights) was also a pull through. Aside from being on Lake Superior with gale force winds and OMG wind chill factors all was great.
Our next travel day was time to move closer to home. We stopped at a rest stop along an overlook on the northern shore of Lake Michigan to stretch legs and walk Esmé. Walking back to the car & Scamp I noticed something hanging down and flapping in the strong winds off of the lake under the back of the left side if the trailer. Crawling under it I saw that the screw that holds the metal strap on the gray water tank discharge tube had pulled out and was flapping in the wind. The screw was completely pulled out. Also the drain cover cap was now loose. Both were fine in the morning when we dumped the tank.
The screw unfortunately had a square recessed shape and not a conventional Phillips, torx or slotted head so I could not replace it.
The good news was a Dollar General store just across the street and I was able to dodge all the big big rigs thundering by and dart accross US 2 to purchase a pack of assorted wood screws, I was able to reattach the metal strap with a new Philips head wood screw in the underside of the floor of the Scamp. Apparently the flapping strap had hit the drain cover and cracked one of the locking tabs that held it in place. I tried an automotive super glue on the tab which did not work on the plastic. So I trundled back over the to the store and bought a roll of Duck tape. I was able to tape the cap into place so it would not be flapping around underneath and damage anything else.
I also called Scamp and they are sending a replacement cap ASAP.
After that bit of excitement all was smooth towing until we reached out next camp site that was a back in. I backed in nearly flawlessly with my wife guiding me.
Once I jumped out of the car and very pleased with myself how easy it was to back in…. Uh my wife told me she misread the site number and the one we were assigned was actually the next one over.
OK so a bit more practice in backing into a site. This time it took several tries as the angle was different.
Still many things to figure out. We had a lot of condensation the first night until we cracked the roof vent for sleeping there on out. We need to figure out how to not get our feet wet from the residual water in the shower pan when using the toilet. During warmer weather I am sure all the windows etc. can be opened to facilitate drying. Air temps being in the mid 30°sF did not inspire us to open the windows. The furnace really works well!
Many questions now on what others do for storage of clothes etc.
How do folks deal with the shower floor water?
Some sort of raised mat?
Early lessons learned.
Need to purchase longer tank discharge hose
Keep shower drain completely closed, tightly when not in use as sink will drain up in the shower pan when the pump runs.
We LOVE our Scamp!
Some use wood grates. I use Dri Dek, it can be cut to fit. Also found at other places.
Eddie
http://www.westmarine.com/buy/dri-dek--dri-dek-panels--P015_456_001_512
Tnx!
I will need to search for that. The 2 local boat/marine palces do not carry this.
Here to learn from others, what works and what doesn't
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Tnx Greg,
That looks like a great solution as well.
Here to learn from others, what works and what doesn't
We have a small squee gee we bring with us, and it works well. We also have used a sponge to absorb the water and that too works well.
<p>Doug Allen 2016 Ford F-150 2018 Lance 1575</p>
I've been waiting for you to pick up your Scamp to see what you thought. What a first trip though! I have read that the Scamp is a great trailer for the do-it-yourselfer and looks to be true if you have a Dollar Store in the area and that is a real plus when they create something not so unique that it costs $10.00 plus shipping for a specialty nut and bolt. Looking forward to your continued posts. I love the Scamp and if I can figure out a way to get everyone in comfortably...........
Cathy
When we reach our house the replacement cap for the gray water tank was waiting in the Wed. mail!
So all is back to "New Brand" as we used to say in Belize.
Given I called Monday while on the road they were very quick in mailing out the replacement.
Here to learn from others, what works and what doesn't
Looks like outstanding customer support, which it should be! All seems well on our Scamp!
<p>Doug Allen 2016 Ford F-150 2018 Lance 1575</p>
Just picked up our 16 scamp last tues a few days before Clouds Guy. Boy did we hit a massive rain front on the way back to Pa. Never saw the clouds so low, blocked out our GPS for awhile. Camped with it two times on the way back, stayed at a hotel once because the rain was so bad and it was getting dark and i did not want to get lost or stuck on a country road.
As for the bath room, we soon found out that the seat is to high for my wife. So i plan to build a deck type platform to raise the floor and let the water go through for the shower. That should even things out a bit and be more comfortable to sit and have your feet on the floor. (its the little things) Carl
I need to build a sort of step stool or platform for my short wife too. She has a hard time steeping up to be seated!
<p>Doug Allen 2016 Ford F-150 2018 Lance 1575</p>