# 210Rs Rear Slide Winter Use?



## Aball (Mar 3, 2014)

New guy here! My first post but I've been reading and lurking for some time, really close to buying a 2012 210RS! I've probably read every thread on this site (which is awesome).

We (me, wife and 4 year old) have been looking for a new trailer and for us I think the 210RS is the perfect layout. We have been using a small lightweight trailer for 3 years so we know what we want and don't want. We live in Seattle, our primary use is for winter/skiing (because summer camping is easy, right). Our driveway is small so I need to keep the length down, I want bunks, a good bed and hang-out space for people during nasty days. I like the construction and insulation of the outback, walk-on roof for shoveling snow, large furnace, having ducted heating and the water lines running somewhere near that heat. I know its not a 4-season trailer and the "arctic package" is kind of marketing, but we only spend the weekend skiing and then come back down to Seattle so we don't winterize and it doesn't typically get super cold.

The big rear slide! It awesome but also freaks me out a little. I've read all about the past problems and how they have fixed them. I'm confident I can make a canvas/tarp cover, and probably a rigid cover of some sort when it snows a bunch. My big question is will it get really cold sleeping in the slide? The side walls and roof of the slide are the same 1-1/2" think framing and insulation as the trailer side walls, correct? Does that slide drain heat all night when its cold out? Is it a lot colder in the slide area than the rest of the trailer? I'd rather not have my furnace running all night if I can avoid it. I'll use rigid foam under the bed and make window covers so I don't think the bed itself will be cold, just the air space above. We don't have plug in's in the winter, but I can make it 2-3 days on a couple batteries no problem with a Honda 2000 backing us up.

I think the outback is great (almost perfect), our alternative is a more old-school trailer without slides that's more 4-season (Nash, ourdoors, etc) but I really like the layout of the 210RS. My truck is a 2010 Titan.

Thank you!!


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## jasonrebecca (Oct 30, 2007)

Welcome, there are a few of us from the Seattle area. Its the wife, our 3 year old son and two dogs in our 21rs and its the perfect small family trailer. We camped in our 21rs at Yellowstone with 8" of snow and the furnace killed the battery in just a few hours. If you leave your trailer at your skiing destination I would put the slide in when not being used just in case of a big snow while you aren't there. I am sure there is a way to ad some rigid foam insulation temporarily when you are up skiing.


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## Aball (Mar 3, 2014)

jasonrebecca said:


> Welcome, there are a few of us from the Seattle area. Its the wife, our 3 year old son and two dogs in our 21rs and its the perfect small family trailer. We camped in our 21rs at Yellowstone with 8" of snow and the furnace killed the battery in just a few hours. If you leave your trailer at your skiing destination I would put the slide in when not being used just in case of a big snow while you aren't there. I am sure there is a way to ad some rigid foam insulation temporarily when you are up skiing.


Thanks for the reply,

Do you just have one battery? Surprises me that the furnace fan would drain the battery that fast. Slide would be out the whole weekend because there wouldn't be anywhere to hang out while its in. We do tend the batteries with a generator a couple hours a day which helps.


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## jasonrebecca (Oct 30, 2007)

We did only have one group 24 battery at that time. We now have 2 group 27. If you will be bringing it home after the weekend you should be fine, especially if you would top them off with the generator every day or two. Make sure you get a good broom to push the snow off the slide and you should be set.


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## outbackgeorgia (Jan 28, 2004)

Based on just camping in NC winters, not really that cold, we put a reflective Mylar blanket ( emergency style) under the mattress to contain the heat. This seems to work well and seems much cozier. The propane heater works well, does not drain the batteries, but I have two 6v golf cart batteries.
Dave


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## Leedek (Nov 28, 2010)

We have camped in cold temperatures and the bed will be colder than the rest of the trailer. It becomes a trade off to add more blankets for warmth then have more condensation. I found that the moisture from both of us sleeping over the course of three weeks put enough moisture through the mattress and on the bed deck. It really didn't damage the deck but it may be prudent to put a layer of sheet plastic or visqueen between the mattress and the deck. I actually screwed down perforated board to the deck to allow some venting. I haven't tried the fix so it remains to be seen.









Some of our nights were as low as 17 F. We had three days of that temperature. Would you believe, 17 F in Tucson at Davis-Monthan AFB? Dang global warming!


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## elb2000 (Aug 6, 2013)

We use our 210rs all winter up at Stevens. The slide gets chilly, so we use mattress heaters and sleep really well. Never had a problem keeping warm and had more than a few blizzards.

Snow on the slide can be a problem if you don't keep it cleared. We had 40" or so one weekend and spent a lot of time shoveling and clearing snow.


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