slideout covers - Montana Owners Club

Phil Eyler · 04-15-2009, 12:39 PM

Oops - This is Susan of "Phil and Susan" - Phil was actually attempting to ask if anyone has pros and cons about slideout covers for 3400. We've noticed they're expensive, and are wondering if they're worth the expense. How long do they last? Do they really help a lot? Advice necessary. Thanks.

tim43 · 04-15-2009, 04:17 PM

Pro: They keep the sun directly off the top of your slides during hot weather and this keeps the camper cooler; When camping under or around trees, they tend to keep debris off the top of your slides and this decreases the need to sweep or blow the slide tops off before retracting them; Keeps the rain or snow off the top of your slides and can reduce leaks through the slide seals. This also decreases the need to wipe down the slide tops when you are packing up, retracting, and leaving an area in the rain. Con: During storms with high winds, they sure can make a lot of noise as they flap. This is my third 5er and we had slide toppers on the others as well. Never had problems with delamination of the fabric or rips. Hope this helps.

H. John Kohl · 04-16-2009, 01:59 AM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by tim43

Pro: They keep the sun directly off the top of your slides during hot weather and this keeps the camper cooler; When camping under or around trees, they tend to keep debris off the top of your slides and this decreases the need to sweep or blow the slide tops off before retracting them; Keeps the rain or snow off the top of your slides and can reduce leaks through the slide seals. This also decreases the need to wipe down the slide tops when you are packing up, retracting, and leaving an area in the rain. Con: During storms with high winds, they sure can make a lot of noise as they flap. This is my third 5er and we had slide toppers on the others as well. Never had problems with delamination of the fabric or rips. Hope this helps.

Tim43 covered it very well. Late March we had 2" of wet snow on the slide without the topper cover. I did not get a large portion off and it melted inside. Who brings a snow shovel camping?
I will order them again.

rames14 · 04-16-2009, 05:37 PM

We have an '05 3400 and we got the slide toppers. We had to replace one topper because of a tornado - the 30' camper in front of us blew over. We ordered them on our new Big Sky. We felt they were worth the cost. As stated, Tim covered it very well.

dsprik · 04-18-2009, 12:30 PM

We have them on our 3400 (4 slides). Would not order another 5ver without them... Ditto on the cooling and also on the wind noise.

Frankenstien · 04-19-2009, 10:11 AM

So to get some follow up on Tims response, (BTW Thank you Tim) is there a way to reduce or eliminate the flapping due to wind? It seems most of the places I camp at ... it never fails I get WIND... sometime very strong... Beach and Canyon areas.

Waynem · 04-19-2009, 12:40 PM

All the above, and I have toppers and will not be without.

Yes! There have been several different ways posted on keeping them from flopping, to using a beach ball under them to roll the rain off, although I never had the problem. When the wind reaches about 35+ mph I just bring the slide in that is on the side with the most flapping.

Today I saw a slide with PVC as a method of keeping it from flapping. 1" PVC slipped in extensions under the awning and fitted to a "T" end stand. Keeps it stretched and from flapping. That's a nice one for a sitting around day to make.

Lots of people get a 3" flat strap to go across the complete top of the awning, then some rope down the side, and then a bungee cord hooked to the frame underneath the slide. If you use something over the top do not use a rope or any thin material as it will act like a knife and cut through the fabric. You can demonstrate with a piece of paper and a string. fold the paper over a length of string, put a little pressure on the paper and one end of the string and pull gently a few times and watch it tear.

Good luck.

Fordzilla · 04-25-2009, 12:25 PM

I'll just add to the comments above that I have them and will not be without them in the future. I have not had problems with them flapping too bad in the wind, but I do try to bring the slides in after a big rain to dump the pooled water(if any) off so the material dries before storing rolled up for a few weeks. You wouldn't store a wet awning for long, as it would develop a nasty stain and odor. Same goes for the slide toppers. Run the slides in and back out after a rain to assure they are dry before storing the camper for a while.

KathyandDave · 04-25-2009, 12:57 PM

We've been told that the slide-toppers prevent cleaning of debris that is blown under them. Comments?

Exnavydiver · 04-25-2009, 02:32 PM

In the last two years we have never had anything"blow under the slide topper". I use a strap over the top of the large slide with a half gallon milk bottle on each end with about a cup of water in each. This doesn't add much weight to the awning, just enough to dampen the flap. I also saw a rig that used two of the large inflatable air mattresses under the large slide topper. It worked very well and didn't let rain pool on top and didn't blow out in 40 mph winds. I think I will try that when I get back north of the "Cheddar Curtain"... Dave

You may also like: