Outside TV...get it or not?

[Joe-K]

I'm curious if anyone has looked at the exterior TV option on the Tiffins. I've noticed that they are mounting the TV higher in the slide sidewall now instead of the basement compartment.

We don't currently have an exterior TV and I don't think we'd watch it often, but for a football game or a race...it'd be nice.

What do you think about the higher location?

[Cruzer]

I've seen them on the 2008s. I talked to Bob Tiffin about it earlier and he stated that they spent a lot of money to ensure that the mounting system was bulletproof. It seems to be and there are no water leaks and everything is built very well.

We aren't outside TV people so we wouldn't personally order it but many are so it is becoming a popular option. Tiffin attends all of the college games in and around Alabama and tailgating is huge with these people. Tiffin even sends factory techs to the games to do no charge service work on any Tiffin coaches attending the tailgate parties. They've gotten plenty of feedback regarding TVs and tailgating so they wanted to improve that. With the advent of thin LCD TVs, that became possible.

One advantage is that it frees up that front basement bay for other uses. Now you can keep a freezer in there and still have your outside entertainment center as well.

The TV is fed from an HDMI distribution system. For 2008 the entire Tiffin line has eliminated the old Winegard coaxial video selector switch and gone to a high tech HDMI conversion and distribution system. So everything that goes anywhere will be high def capable and the best quality signal.

RVers who have tried this like the higher location. If you have a bunch of people gathered around it can be hard to see a lower basement TV location unless you arrange your lawn chairs just right. Having the higher location lets you look over anyone sitting in chairs or at tables.

There were some initial concerns about glare from the higher location but they found glare to be pretty much equal to the lower location and whenever the awning was extended the glare was eliminated.

For what it's worth - the Allegro Bus comes standard with a WeatherPro power awning but hey have an optional awning with a black mesh screen that can hang down from it if you really need to block some sun coming at an extremely low angle. You just extend the awning, stop, then extend it again and the black mesh rolls down about another 4-5' the entire width of the awning.

[Joe-K]

Thanks Mark for the info. In the Bus that I test drove, I took time to look at the small curbside storage area (where the TV used to be) specifically to see if one of the small refer/freezers would fit in there.

Unfortunately, I forgot to take a tape measure to measure it, but the width and depth looked pretty good. Moving the fridge up in the slide does provide the option of installing a freezer.

I wonder why Tiffin doesn't offer to put one in there

[NYMoose "Lenny"]

I know I have looked at them and I think it is great. My Tiffin I installed a TV in the basement, and it is difficult to see beacuse it is low and the door gets in the way. If there was a way to retrofit one of these in my 04 I would!

[Cruzer]

I had a freezer in my 2004 Bus and I have one in the 2007 (well, two actually). They'll fit just fine in the 2008. I ordered a Norcold MRFT-60 from RVupgrades. It wasn't on their website but a phone call or email to Debbie confirmed that they had them. Kwikee makes a freezer slide tray specifically for that unit and the whole works fits into the front bay. I know, Tiffin doesn't offer it as an option like Newmar does (same freezer and slide tray) but any RV dealer can get one installed for you so it's available to anyone. Although, it's not that hard to install and you'll probably go the RV upgrades route like I did.

By the way, that freezer is great. It's a true compressor based system rather than an RV evaporative system. It'll work upside down if it has to and it can be used as a freezer or fridge simply by setting the dial. It cools down extremely quick and it really holds it's cool well. When we boondock with the residential fridge and the two freezers on the battery power hit is so minimal we can't even see it.

[rebelsbeach]

Great info Mark....I've had four MH's with outside tv's in every one of them and not used them a lot,but as Adrienne is getting older it'd be something I'd order again....Glad to see the higher mounted tv as I saw one last year in an Amer Heritage and it looked really nice and functional....

Also glad to know my fridge/freezer would work upside down as ya never know when I'll need that...the way I DRIVE!!

[NLOVNIT]

Joe-

Go ahead & get the tv option. While we were at Salt Fork SP with Frank & Chris, we saw a 5-r with a huge (musta been at least 52") lcd hanging off the side. There was quite a crowd around it watching a college football game.

You can always charge admission to cover the cost of that option. If it's raining, just put in one of those dvd's of a fireplace fire & we'll all sit under your awning eating Cheetoes.

L-

[Joe-K]

Quote:

Originally posted by NLOVNIT: Joe- Go ahead & get the tv option. If it's raining, just put in one of those dvd's of a fireplace fire & we'll all sit under your awning eating Cheetoes. L-

But, it's never going to rain on one of our outings

[HeresLucy]

We have the outside TV in the front most bay -- and since we don't have a passenger slide our bay door opens up. We like it in this location --- so much that if we were to order a new unit today we'd not order the TV and have one added by either a dealer or by one of the Tiffin workers who do work on the side still in the front most bay if it was doable.

[jojolou]

We recently purchased a 2008 Allegro Bay 35 TSB, of course the outside tv was not offered as an option. If I wanted to, I could mount a tv in one of the storage bays, it's all ready wired for it. We are not outside enough to bother with it, but it's nice to know I COULD! We saw the outside tv option on some models at Red Bay (we were watching our coach being built) and although they are nice to look at, I don't think I would spend the money for one. But that's what makes the world go round, we all have different opinions.JMHO

[rancherwilli]

Lou, Can you explain more about how the 35tsb is already wired for it?

Thanks, Bill

[stonewings]

We did not have an outside tv on our last coach and did not know if we would use one very much, so, on our new 2008 42' phaeton we did not get the in-slide tv option. We did however install a tv in the given basement space. We have found we like that very much, and are glad we did not go for the in-slide vertion. We have found that you would end up with a sore neck trying to see the tv way up there, and would need a large rv site in order to get back far enough to use. also on a Phaeton , the drop-down awning is not an option. In the mesa AZ. park we are in now, if we had the wall mount we would not be able to see the tv from mid-day till sundown.
Good Luck!!!

[NYMoose "Lenny"]

Quote:

Originally posted by Bill Welsh: Lou, Can you explain more about how the 35tsb is already wired for it? Thanks, Bill

Bill,
My 04 already had 12V and A/C outlets in the front passenger side compartment, including a cable hook-up, I am sure that is what Lou was talking about. I am unsure if this is standard or not, but the Tiffin models I have looked at had this.

[SteveR]

We have a 2008 Bus that came with the outside PS slide mounted LCD TV. We don't use it much but when we do it is great especially when DW is napping and I want to be outside and watch a show or a game. If I had ordered the coach I would not have gotten it but we had not choice. I guess it might help on resale when the time comes.

We do like having the old PS forward compartment now open for storage. That is where our lawn chairs and related stuff goes.