Cruisers Forum
Main Forum => General Discussion => Topic started by: jatrax on March 15, 2017, 11:42:25 pm
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We finally made it home and though I wanted to post this on the road pushing 500 miles per day left me just too tired to do it. So here is the customization list for our new 2017 2552.
In addition to the regular options offered by Phoenix we also had them add:
- 50 amp service
- two extra exterior lights, one on the back and one above the service bay on the drivers side
- 2x 6 volt AGM batteries
- a Norcold 12 volt compressor refrigerator instead of the lp gas / 120 volt one that is standard
- a Trimetric battery monitor
- a Progressive Industries EMS or 'surge protector'
- 2x 150 watt solar panels
- a 2,000 pure sine wave inverter
- satellite receiver on the roof
- replace the mirror with the backup camera monitor
- Safe-T-Plus steering stabilizer
- sofa in the slide out instead of a dinette
- add support in rear bay for additional hooks
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We also added the power bed option offered on the 2552, but had them install only one side on the passenger side. We also asked them to adjust it so that when extended it results in a 54 x 75 'full' size bed. Retracted there is the same amount of aisle space on a regular 2552. When the bed is extended there is enough room, barely, to walk between the bed and dinette to get to the bathroom. It is just a bit too tight and if doing it again I would consider making the bed 4" smaller. But it is working for us. For larger people probably not.
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And on the driver's side instead of the other twin bed we had them build a 2 person dinette that does double duty as a desk.
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And to store the laptops and office odds & ends a pair of custom drawers sized to fit our laptops, chargers and what not.
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And to charge all those cell phones, cameras and tablets we added USB receptacles hooked to the 12 volt power system. That way they are powered even when not hooked to shore power or running the inverter. There is one under the dinette and another over the bed. Wish I had added one more up front in the electronics cabinet.
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And over the head of the bed a shelf to hold glasses, cell phones and tablets or books.
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Since I am a photographer I wanted a secure place to store my camera bag and accessories.
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The Euro Chair is nice but we wanted a third captain's seat so our granddaughter's child seat could be strapped in.
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And where do you store your broom? On a broom hanger of course.
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And everyone should have a mag-lite by the door. They are very handy for lots of things. They even make a good flashlight.
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We did not like the mirror on the right of the kitchen. And Carrie wanted someplace to 'stick' things. So a magnetic stainless steel panel replaced the mirror. Spice containers, notepads, and magnetic hooks all worked well and did not move during our trip.
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Well there you have it. A 2552 personalized for us. I would caution anyone thinking about doing something similar to consider what customizations like these do to the resale potential. The more 'stock' anything is, the more potential buyers. So something that is perfect for you might not have a big pool of buyers that want the same thing.
But after 2 weeks on the road, I can say we would change very little. Kermit and his crew did a great job and we are delighted with the way things turned out.
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WOW! Your rig looks awesome. I love pretty much all of it. You lost the storage from one shirt closet and a good chunk of space under the passenger bed but what a great mod with the small dinette. John would claim that in a heartbeat - "his" cockpit seat, "his" kitchen, "his" eurochair, and "his" office (the dinette). I'd get the couch and navigator position (the navigator thing is for the best - John gets lost in parking lots). Now that I think about it I may need to talk to him. This whole RV thing was my idea.
The only downside I see to your mods is that storage loss (though you gained a bit back above the dinette) and the fact somebody gets that inside space on the bed but as a friend says "everything is a compromise" - I think what you gained is amazing. Well done!
As for resale, if I ever kick the bucket, John may be potential buyer. He would want for nothing more while he wanders the world (and pines my loss of course).
Beautiful, beautiful home. Enjoy your travels in your awesome new rig.
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I forgot to ask, does that dinette make into a single bed? That would be great when the grandchild is along.
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Wow! Beautiful rig and some really well thought out modifications. May you enjoy many wonderful years toodling down the road. Thanks for posting the pictures.
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Very unique, very nice! Thanks for posting!
- Mike
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Definitely can see a lot of thought went into your specifications.
What brand pure sine wave inverter did you go with?
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The only downside I see to your mods is that storage loss (though you gained a bit back above the dinette) and the fact somebody gets that inside space on the bed
Quite true and we thought long about that. But Carrie voted absolutely 'no' to twin beds so she gets to crawl over :). The storage loss was a factor we were concerned about. The shirt closet does not seem to be an issue, the wardrobe in the bathroom is plenty big enough and Carrie already claimed the existing shirt closet for kitchen stuff anyway.
The under bed storage is more of a concern, but we never had it, so will not miss it. We spend two weeks in the rig and had empty storage space. Of course 'stuff' expands to fill all available space so we shall see.
I forgot to ask, does that dinette make into a single bed?
It does not. They asked if we wanted it that way but the table would have to have been made smaller than I wanted so we said no. We do have the full sofa up front so she can sleep there.
What brand pure sine wave inverter did you go with?
It is the Xantrex that PC offers. The model is "Freedom Xi". I have not even read the manual on it yet, but seems to work just fine.
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Yes, that is the house battery shut off. It is standard as far as I know, I don't remember ever discussing it with them.
One rather odd thing that happens is if the battery shut off is turned off for storage when you turn it back on all of the capacitance switched LED lights will turn on. You then have to turn them all off manually by touching the capacitance switch. Not a big deal, but a bit scary the first time it happened to me. That is a light fixture issue, nothing to do with the battery shut off.
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2o2 Thanks for sharing that jatrax. You have applied some creative ideas. Some will surely have other people contemplating when ordering their PC.
I really should mount a handy flashlight there where you did. Does Maglite make an LED version? I love their products, just haven't shopped for a Maglite lately. My cheap LED Maglite knockoff flashlights all require "knocking" to keep lighting.
Ron Dittmer
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Hope this doesn't send this too off topic, but I've found these mini flashlights (Blocklites) to be very handy....
https://www.walmart.com/ip/3-Pack-of-Blocklite-6-LED-Mini-Flashlights-w-Energizer-9-Volt-Batteries/39096884
- Mike
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Hope this doesn't send this too off topic, but I've found these mini flashlights (Blocklites) to be very handy....
https://www.walmart.com/ip/3-Pack-of-Blocklite-6-LED-Mini-Flashlights-w-Energizer-9-Volt-Batteries/39096884
- Mike
Oh, I really like them. I wonder how long they last.
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Ron, yes Maglite makes LED versions now. The one in my coach is LED. They also make LED conversion kits for existing lights and I have converted a number of mine. They make a great light but what I really like is the heft and build quality. I feel much more comfortable going out at night with my two pound Maglite in hand.
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I use the Nitecore Srt7 both at home and camping. It is bright enough to stop anyone or animal long before they get close enough to wack. All my old Mag lights went to Amvets.
http://goinggear.com/nitecore-srt7-revenger-smartring-tactical-series-2-x-cr123-1-x-18650-960-lumen-cree-xm-l2-t6-cool-white.html
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I just use my phone and have a few LED light switches (https://www.amazon.com/VIBELITE-Battery-Operated-Cordless-Nightlight/dp/B01IOS6LPM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500224706&sr=8-1&keywords=led+light+switch+light (https://www.amazon.com/VIBELITE-Battery-Operated-Cordless-Nightlight/dp/B01IOS6LPM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500224706&sr=8-1&keywords=led+light+switch+light)http://[font=Verdana]view on Amazon[/font]) hanging around the PC should the batteries fail. They can just be lifted off their hook and used just like a flashlight.
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Hope this doesn't send this too off topic, but I've found these mini flashlights (Blocklites) to be very handy....
https://www.walmart.com/ip/3-Pack-of-Blocklite-6-LED-Mini-Flashlights-w-Energizer-9-Volt-Batteries/39096884
- Mike
Oh, I really like them. I wonder how long they last.
I went shopping for an LED Maglight today but went home empty-handed. Later in the day I decided to order a particular 9V Blocklight 3-pack on Ebay HERE (http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-Pack-of-Blocklite-6-LED-Mini-Flashlights-w-Energizer-9-Volt-Batteries/371952997918?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649) which have interesting 2-4-6 LED light intensity settings. It has great reviews saying they emit a lot of light (a few say "too much light") so having 3 intensity settings could be very useful when camping.
When we were in Glacier NP in 2013, we set out on a late afternoon hike to a mountain lake. We opted to watch the sun set there knowing the return hike would be much in the dark. We relied on our cell phone lights which worked marginally. Something like an easy-to-carry Blocklight would have been so much better and offer much peace of mind.
I'd like to keep a Blocklight by the entry door as jatrax did with his Maglight. It's a great place to keep a flashlight handy.
Thank you Pax for the tip on the Blocklight. I never knew such a thing existed.
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Come on folks ......"Buy American Made"..... Maglight all the way!
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American made until California secedes from the Union. (WH)
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pax....Can we select what part of CA secedes?!
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Sure......the western coastal side from Oregon to Mexico, or the central/eastern side from Oregon to Mexico? ;)
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My 3 Block lights arrived. They are nice and bright with the 2-4-6 LED settings, and very compact as expected. My complaint with them is that they separate from the battery too easily. Electrical tape solves the problem, but at $5.75 each, I expected better. I can spend much less for a finicky flashlight. Oh well. (WH)
I should have bought a $30 Mag light for the entry door.....Might still do it.
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The custom dinette is 69" long, the spec for that bed says 68" long so that fits fairly close. Anyway it fills the space where the driver side bed was. Width is 26.5" for the seats. The table is 25" wide by 27" long (long being forward to backward, wide being driver to passenger).
They asked if I wanted it to fold into a bed because if so they would need to changed the table dimensions a bit. I had no interest in another bed so told them no. But if you needed the extra bed I suppose they could make it that way.
It is perfect for two people but would never work for more. We also had them add two very shallow drawers under the front seat to hold our laptops. The shallow drawers are just right for our laptops, chargers, mice & such. The original drawers were about two inches too short to fit the laptops. When I pointed this out at the factory Bobby took them out, went away for about 15 minutes and came back with two new drawers custom built to fit perfectly. Really nice having a full shop to work with :) and guys that want things done right.
Note that this customization requires losing the sliding bathroom door and replacing it with the accordion curtain. No big deal for us, just FYI.
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Hi Jatrax, I'm currently in the research stage for an extended 2552 and am wondering why you chose the refrigerator you did.
Thanks!
Gary
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Hi Gary,
When we were researching I found many complaints about the absorption refrigerators catching fire, not lasting long etc. I understand now that this issue seems to have been relatively recent and is most likely corrected after the class action suit. However, at the time it scared me. We also noted many posts from people who said they turned on the refrigerator 2 or even 3 days before leaving so it would be cold. Not sure if that is true or not, but it was a factor in the decision. We also noted many people replacing their old absorption units with residential style refrigerators, and just a general feeling of dissatisfaction with the old absorption units. Keep in mind that on the internet you hear lots of complaints and few satisfied customers.
Pros:
- avoids the fire issue with absorption units, whether a real issue or not
- very fast start up, under an hour to operating temperature
- more usable interior space
- runs on 12 volt or on 120 volt, so no need for an inverter
- unlike residential units it is designed for marine use thus running while in motion is not an issue. Not sure if it is really a problem with residential ones either but some people think so
- 12 volt use is about 30 amp hours per day, so 48 hours off grid with no generator is possible
- since it runs on 12 volt, can be operated while driving for extended periods without an inverter or use of LP
Cons:
- slightly more expensive
- installation is different than a regular absorption unit as it needs to vent to the interior, not the exterior
- does not run on LP so extended boondocking might be an issue unless solar or generator is used
It has worked well for us and we are very happy with it. It may not be for everyone. However, if Phoenix corrects their installation process for it I am comfortable recommending it to others. The process they used on mine required considerable work on my part to correct the venting.
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Thanks a bunch for your very informative response!