AROUND-OZ MOTORHOMES

Freeway Review - continued . . .

The Bathroom and Toilet

Functional and compact describes the littlest room! Interestingly this is the longest section in this article - hope that doesn't mean anything! The Thetford cassette type toilet is just about the best of its type and as long as you use the correct chemicals it has just about zero nasty odours - except when emptying of course! You do have to learn to live with a slight chemical smell though. Always having a bottle of Airwick in there does take the edge off the slight chemical smell. Keeping the Jensen vent open also ensures that it always smells fresh. Eventually we will fit another computer fan in there driven off the small fridge fan solar panel. Another good trick is to fit a marine mushroom type solar operated vent - Camec or Whitworths Marine. There is another alternative chemical wise if you don't like the Thetford smell and the makers claim "total absence of unpleasant odours". You might like to try the Australian made Ecocare Activator - Freecall 1800 633 866. Sorry folks, no website or email at all. We have done an extensive story on this system in the Innovations section of this website. Aussie Traveller are the Australian agents and have a nice display in their Brisbane showroom.

All About Toilet Chemicals

Don't forget to budget for chemicals. The cost per litre in Brisbane is $7.89. (October 2002) At Narooma NSW it's $14.00! (January 2002) You need 300 ml every three to four days - more if you have grand children etc. travelling with you. Of course the trick is to use public toilets wherever possible, but try to empty no longer than after seven days and under no circumstances leave waste in the tank during storage as all sorts of "unpleasant" things happen. For those curious how these gadgets work. First up they are nothing like the chemical toilets found on building sites! You don't actually see what's in the holding tank if you don't wish too. Simply do your business and turn a knob. This both flushes and opens a trapdoor. The flushing water has a slippery chemical and deodorant.

WARNING:- Be aware that if you "economise" by electing not to use this red flushing chemical you run the very real risk of growing slime etc. in the flushing tank. You will get annoying "bits of black" each time you flush. Those most at risk are motorhomers who use their van infrequently. If this does happen to you it can be corrected by using a triple dose of chemical or adding Milton (liquid one only) then flushing with lots of cold water. (Info from the UK motorhome message board.) Interestingly the swivel toilets fitted to 2003 Leisure Seekers use the motorhome fresh water system and NO red chemical at all. We have tried this and guess what? No more chemical smell! This is definitely less expensive so if you are on a budget you could try leaving it out PROVIDED you empty the tank fully before not using for more than a week.

UPDATE: Chemicals now $9.00 a bottle in Brisbane (December 2002)

Flushing the Toilet

After each use and the trapdoor is closed, press for a couple of seconds and this will give a water seal in the bottom of the bowl just like home. Thetford suggest you use their toilet paper which is not cheap. You can in fact do what we have done for years and just use any of the top names in toilet tissue without problems. If you are unsure, just place a few pieces in a glass of water for a couple of days to check if it dissolves OK. Most rolls will not fit into the holder, so just remove some. The holder is a bit of an intelligence test to replace a roll. You do not have to depress the two little tabs! Just give it a sharp twist. Be brave! The photo at right below shows you the access door open, the cassette pulled partially out, a typical 1 litre bottle of chemical and the flushing tank is shown in the ready to fill position. This tank stays in the motorhome. You can see the exact contents simply by looking at the sight gauge on the right of the enclosure - you can't see this in the picture.

There is a gauge on the front which oddly doesn't start indicating anything until the holding tank is 3/4 full - the green blob in the photo above. The trick here is to empty it at this stage if you are venturing into an area without disposal facilities - you can theoretically empty into any FLUSHING toilet including septics as long as you do not use the poisonous formaldehyde formulations - usually in a BROWN bottle indicating poison. Please note that you will come across the odd caravan park with notices up virtually threatening death if you dare to empty the contents. All we do is front up with the chemical bottles and show the proprietors. This has worked so far! It is however simple common courtesy too ask before emptying into ANY caravan park toilet. Emptying is a breeze. Just unlock the door externally and release a clip and remove. It can weigh 20 kgs when full, but has built in carrying handles. Simply undo the yellow cap and empty into any toilet. If it is slow to empty just press the yellow button on the end - this lets air in. Emptying is not messy at all and you could do the deed in your bowls whites! Now that's not to say that it's enjoyable work though! Before replacing in the motorhome, just add two litres of water and some green Aquachem solution. Use the cap to measure out 150 mls. There is a built in measure in the cap of the cassette, but oddly it doesn't hold 150 ml, so you have to have two goes at 75 mls. Silly stuff really as there is loads of room to make the cap longer and measure the 150 mls in one go! Check the flushing tank level and add more fresh water and red Aquachem. It seems this is always regarded as secret men's business! The only ladies we have seen doing this chore are those on their own on the CMCA Solos!

The photo above was taken at Barcaldine - a very clever way of getting rid of the "business" as it can get very heavy if you have to walk a kilometre! The owner was a $300,000.00 Swagman motorhomer! Maintenance, apart from commonsense cleaning, is simply a matter of lubricating the trap door slide mechanism. Thetford do have a special product, but olive oil (particularly in a spray can) works really well. If you intend going away for 18 months + it would be a good move to have a spare rubber flap, as these are hard to source in country towns, and without it your motorhome could become very, very smelly.

Just reinforcing what we said above - you might be free camping, but doing the business so to speak isn't free! We have found it is best not to buy from small country camping shops. If you are on a strict budget chemical costs need to be factored into your living expenses. We have found that you get three days out of every dose. You do not use anywhere near as much "red" if you flush intelligently. You can minimise flushing by opening the trap door before using. This is the least pleasant way of using the loo though smell wise! There is a device marketed by Aussie Traveller which they claim needs no chemicals. It has a small extractor fan in the door. This is connected to the top of the Thetford cassette. When the lid of the toilet is raised the fan comes on sucking air into the unit. The theory is that this stops smells rising even if the trap door is open. The interesting bit is that the makers claim this introduces lots of oxygen and this in turn breaks down the waste naturally. At present the installed cost is around $300.00 so it would take an occasional user a far while to recoup the cost. The makers claim zero smell but we could not test this on the model we were shown. If Thetford were to include say solar ventilation as an option we would go for it as common sense tells you it would stop smells rising when "on the loo".

Having given Thetford a big wrap nevertheless this is now an old design in need of an urgent update! If you look at the locker it fits into there are small recesses to take 150 mls of chemical. This is a waste of time as you need the one litre bottles giving you six doses. It would be great to be able to store two one litre bottles in the locker or alternatively why not build a dispenser into the toilet assembly?

The top of the seat assembly needs a complete redesign to eliminate all the hard to clean nooks and crannies and to give the unit a more "with it" appearance. We don't like the way Winnebago have made no attempt whatsoever to seal the unit to the inside wall along the top. The mind boggles at the nasties that are possibly living in that dark moist area! This is something that needs urgent attention as it is a health hazard if a child has an "accident". Oddly some Freeways have been sealed.

Shower

The shower is a wand affair and works fine. To save water it can be turned off quickly on the head without losing your temperature/flow settings. You need to bring the shower curtain supplied across to stop the toilet getting wet and water leaking straight out the door. We realise that Winnebago are doing a fantastic job even getting the Freeway on the market at such a low entry price, but if we stick up a wish list they may be able to incorporate some items in future models. If nobody tells them they will never find out! If Winnebago moved the motorhome door 100mm further to the rear they could make the cubicle 100mm wider. This would make an enormous difference, as at present it is difficult to get changed in there or wash any bits below your knees! Drop the soap and that's the end of your shower! The large mirror on the door is most welcome and is a wonderful feature not found on some of the more expensive models. Lighting is excellent and the smoked 14" Jensen vent stops any steam getting into the motorhome.

TIP:- We have found that using natural soap makes it very easy to clean. The photo above shows a very clever way of storing odds and ends in the recess - there is no vanity or cabinet in the Freeway. We found these in Big W and they stick on with suction cups. At 16,000 kms they haven't moved which is rather amazing! ($6.00 each). In our view, and remember we go inside lots of RV's seeking out new ideas and web site work, the Trakka Jabiru (pictured below) is one of the best designs for a shower/toilet in a confined space. Note the lovely window and TWO cabinet areas in the example shown below. They don't use those so easy to rust piano hinges on the doors either. Interestingly Winnebago make a wonderful hire unit for Hertz and it has one of the most incredibly efficient bathrooms we have ever come across - has a great sink as well. We will be doing a review on these units shortly.

The Freeway cubicle does need some fine tuning. For reasons unknown, as they don't do it on many other models, Winnebago have put a dirt collecting gusset in the corner instead of mounting the taps on an inbuilt moulding. This severely effects the way the base drains and adds another potential leak point. Again cost would come into it, but a tiny rethink on the base is high on our wish list. The drain would be better located in the centre so that water will drain even when not parked on a perfectly level site. At present water will only drain completely if you have a slight lean towards the off side. We are thinking about putting another drain point near the shower door as per all the 2002 Leisure Seekers. One can only wonder at why these fairly obvious things take so long to become "standard" with large manufacturers! The photo below is from a 2002 Leisure Seeker - great idea.

The new drainage system on Leisure Seekers

Winnebago could win a lot of Brownie points in the bathroom area by building in soap/shampoo holders etc. All you get in the Freeway is a toothbrush holder for six people? We have looked at present and past Winnebagos and some have the interior of the shower bonded to the outside frame and others including the Freeway it just hangs there in space. This needs to be looked at, as it reduces the strength of the structure and worse still it drums whilst travelling. Why this inconsistency? An excellent example of a perfect shower/toilet in minimum space can be found in the Trakka Jabiru as pictured above. It literally has the lot in a medium cost conversion and even has a built in cabinet. Good design really costs nothing more! This is a bit of fib in the case of the Jabiru as it costs a lot of dollars more!

Sleeping Arrangements

The bed in the Luton Peak is really a 3/4 size. We aren't too big so use it as a double and it works just fine. If you still enjoy cuddling you will love this bed. Access is via a removable ladder located just inside the door. The attachment method needs a bit more attention to detail as it falls out easily. The Suncoaster Sheffield, has a far more positive and longer lasting mechanism. Winnebago also need to urgently address the way the mattress covering can tear in the area around the brackets. Other models use a better method. Ceiling to top of mattress is an adequate 610 mm. Popping an innerspring up here is really not an option. In common with most RV's with beds up against walls, making the bed up is a beast, but you do get quite adept at it eventually! (Oh yes - and who gets to be the bed maker?) Making up exact size fitted sheets helps a great deal.

Comfort-wise we love it and have had no bad back problems. The ladder leaves a lot to be desired though. In our view the locking mechanism is too hit and miss. The extreme photo below shows what can happen if the ladder slips! The screws failing actually caused this accident - probably a one off. Another odd thing is Winnebago use four rung ladders in most models, yet use three rung in the Freeway. The Leisure Seekers don't have thin fabric in this area. The Freeways perhaps need a small vinyl patch in this area - very low cost to fix. One could easily have an accident with the present set up as they can twist. Suncamper have an excellent folding model that could easily be adapted to any Winnebago. The drawback though is you would have to store it on the bed. We would certainly pay extra for this were it offered as an option.

This is the Suncamper folding ladder - very stable

This is an extreme example just to illustrate the point

UPDATE: 2002 Freeways now have a ladder with an extra brace to prevent twisting. A definite move in the right direction and an indication how Winnebago are forever fine tuning their products. (November 2002)

Most motorhomes have extremely poor ventilation in the Luton Peak area. Being old hands and realising that sleeping comfortably is important we tried to get an Electrolux hatch fitted. Sadly it missed out by a few millimetres. Instead we fitted three Jensen 14" vents - exactly the same ones as fitted to the toilet. Apart from the romantic aspect of literally sleeping under the stars, the difference these make is quite amazing. The front area now gets lots of light and is extremely airy. This only adds about $400.00 to the cost. The theory is If you close all windows except the vents and turn the Fantastic Fan to exhaust, one should stay beautifully cool all night without the need for air-conditioning.