Escapees May-June 2023

entire rig to the outdoors! This wouldn’t be possible in areas with bugs, but the western states aren’t buggy. We open both the patio door and the front door and let the breezes fl ow. The rare bug that fl ies in one end fl ies out the other! The cool breeze is a life saver when temps get really hot, lessening the need for air conditioning. We also discovered that we don’t need camp chairs on the patio. It is easy enough to put the lightweight recliners out there, along with a folding table if needed, and that way we don’t have to store extra chairs when we are in transit. One caveat, though, is that the fl oor of the patio can get really hot in the sun, so a mat or small rug is helpful. Tank Capacities and Onboard Generator In addition to toy haulers having big fresh-water tanks, they also come with a large gas tank and a gas station type of nozzle on the outside of the rig for fi lling gas-powered toys. Plus there’s an onboard gas generator. Such convenience! No more hauling gas jugs and lugging the portable gas generator in and out of the truck! With an on-board propane generator the fuel is shared between the furnace, fridge, stove and generator, which means you can go through a lot of propane while winter camping. With a toy hauler’s on-board gas generator, the fuel is shared between the toy and the generator. Our trailer has a 40-gallon gas tank. The gas fi ll on the trailer is at the far back end, however, so we have to fi nd a gas station where we can pull the entire rig forward of the pump in order to fi ll the gas tank. Overall Impressions We love our new trailer. Toy-hauler living, especially in an open-box design, is a little funky, but it’s really fun, too. The fl oor-plan fl exibility and the patio are wonderful features, and the gas tank and on-board generator are super convenient. EMILY AND MARK FAGAN #99408 traveled full-time by RV and sailboat for 13 years and now enjoy RVing part-time. Emily has written over 200 articles for various RV and sailing magazines, and the Fagans’ photography has appeared on magazine covers, in commercial wall calendars and even in museums! Follow their blog at roadslesstraveled.us.

The Patio—A Game Changer! Most modern toy haulers have a ramp door that can also be set up as a back patio. When you deploy the patio, you effectively open up the entire end wall of the rig to the outdoors and add 8' of length to the fl oor space. It is absolutely fabulous! Most toy hauler patios come with a gate system to fence in the entire deck. On the lower end Genesis Supreme models like ours, these rails are an option. Our rail system rolls open and then unfolds and latches into clips located around the edge of thepatio fl oor. It’s very quick to set up. Ironically, we have found that we don’t even bother setting up the patio rails most of the time, largely because we don’t sit out on the patio all that often and don’t run the risk of falling off! For us, the beauty of the patio is being able to bring the outdoors into the inside of the rig by opening up the entire back end. The raised patio gives the interior of the rig a sense of privacy since it is elevated above the ground, while the sun, breeze and smells of the outdoors all waft through the living area. Many people use their toy hauler patio as a dog pen so the dog can enjoy a fenced area outside. Our pup, Buddy, actually prefers to be wherever we are, so if we’re inside, he wants to be inside, too! In the summertime, we try to position the rig so the patio gets the morning sun but is shaded during the heat of the afternoon. In the winter we aim for the opposite orientation so we can open the patio to the late afternoon warmth. We always close it at night. The ramp door on our rig is fairly heavy, but is not hard for one person to manage, even me, so we think nothing of opening it and closing it to set up the patio. MORryde makes a Zero Gravity ramp door that is almost weightless but that wasn’t an option on our trailer. Most higher-end toy haulers come with accordian style doors located just inside the ramp door to keep the living space sheltered from the elements, especially

Photos on page 38: The garage/living room gets a bit crowded when we load the side-by-side and stow the furniture for traveling. However, with the chairs facing into the kitchen, we still have enough room to make and eat a meal. Once the side-by-side is parked outside and the patio is open, our living area becomes a delightful room witha view

when the wind picks up or it gets cold outside. Our rig came with a

roll-down vinyl screen (with mesh for bugs) instead of accordian doors. It is time-consuming to set up, so we don’t bother with it anymore. We simply open the

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May/June 2023 ESCAPEES Magazine