Jay Feather Micro 171BH

[hoss_vw]

what is everybody doing for bicycle racks?

i know there are a couple tongue mount style. has anybody retrofit a 2” hitch onto a micro? my dealer says he “has a guy” but i don’t want anything janky. id prefer something in back as opposed to the tongue.

[JayLo]

Originally Posted by hoss_vw

what is everybody doing for bicycle racks?

i know there are a couple tongue mount style. has anybody retrofit a 2” hitch onto a micro? my dealer says he “has a guy” but i don’t want anything janky. id prefer something in back as opposed to the tongue.

I installed a front hitch.

[mtjag7]

for those of us with heavy tongue weights already, having a hitch up front on the truck for a rack makes tons of sense.

[Forester2]

Just my hangup, but not a big fan of anything blocking the radiator air flow.

[mtjag7]

There is that of course, but not sure how much airflow would actually be diverted. That being said, on those warm days every little bit helps or hurts in cooling a TV under load.

[JayLo]

Not sure that would effect much with a couple of bikes. However, I don’t live in an area where that matters and I am towing half my rating. All relative I guess right? Just depends really on your entire set up.

[McMullap]

Hey folks. It’s been a long time. I’ve had my 171BH for more than a year. I’ve spent a TON of nights in it. Camped almost every weekend we could, including the winter months. And I’ve had zero problems. One piece of trim inside the cabinets (above the dinette came off but that’s it. I consider myself very lucky. My tongue weight (loaded) is somehow always between 450-500 which is exactly what I wanted.

Traveling with full fresh water we max at just under 5K. Without water we are obviously just fine. Full fresh tank doesn’t seem to affect tongue weight much at all. As a refresher, I drive a Jeep GC with Hemi V8, with max payload of roughly 1,100 pounds.

One weird question. Does anyone know the exterior dimensions of one of the ottomans that slide under the bunk? My camper is having some work done and I’ll be without it for a few weeks. I have something in mind to swap into place but don’t want to buy it unless I know it will fit. I can’t find the dimensions anywhere. Cheers and Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas. Andy

[Lizardfdx66]

18.5” x 18.5” (exactly)

[Samion]

Originally Posted by Lizardfdx66

Trailer inverter

I have a 2022 171BH. It has a 190W solar charger on the roof. It is prewired to accept an inverter (DC to AC) power. I have 2 6V batteries in series to provide 12V power to the trailer.
I had the dealer install the wiring for an inverter. Heavy gauge wire, up through floor into area that holds the hot water tank. (Under mattress there is a screwed down “inspection plate” that allows you to access this area). All of your wiring for an inverter will enter through this area. This is work I was not knowledgeable enough to do myself besides all of the warranty issues that would arise if done wrong. Dealer did it, it’s on them.
In the pass through storage tunnel, an inline breaker will be installed between your battery and the inverter. This will provide your protection for all of the trailer (aside from protections already built into your inverter.)
I installed my inverter, vertically, in the pass through tunnel, against the wall (think of the space where the ottomans fit), braced by a 2x4 underneath (vertical support) and further braced on the interior walls from the water heater area and the ottoman area (yes you will have to take some of your trailer apart and use simple woodworking skills to manufacture the braces.
Once installed, the inverter powers EVERY SINGLE AC OUTLET INSIDE OR OUTSIDE of the trailer!
I did not have to touch, nor did the dealer touch, anything having to do with the converter panel. Additionally, the Solar charger works great at keeping everything charged, again, with no additional wiring.

Lizard,
Can you power Ac condition by inverter if you put soft starter?!

[ems437]

I installed the regular softstart in the furion A/C on my 171BH. Without the softstart, my 30amp generator would brown out slightly and dim the lights when the A/C came on. It caused enough of a power drain that it would reset the TV when the A/C came on.

I also have the 30amp Westinghouse dual fuel inverter generator. It happens to fit perfectly under the lower bunk and I can load and unload it through the side door of the 171 with the lower bunk still being able to lay flat with about an inch of clearance over the top of the generator when stored there. And with the softstart on the A/C, I can run the A/C on the westinghouse inverter generator without any power overloading or resetting problems while I'm off grid.

[ems437]

Another nice to know fact that I learned after I got my 171BH...

When I first started looking at the 171BH and it having the 12v only fridge, I questioned if the battery and solar panel would be able to keep up long enough to keep the fridge cold when I'm off grid. The dealer didn't know either. The answer is definitely yes.

The fridge has a dial to adjust the temperature inside it. It has a setting for off-grid, which I leave it on when using it. The battery holds enough charge to keep the fridge and freezer both appropriately cold overnight. And then during the day, the solar panel puts out enough power to charge the battery all the way back up while keeping the 12v devices in the 171 running during the day.

I have also used the TV, my AppleTV which I converted to 12v, my Verizon cellular internet hotspot that runs on 12v, and one of the 12v LED puck lights for a couple of hours during the evening at the same time the fridge was running off of the battery. It handled it just fine through the night and charged back up to full charge the next day.

So the Go Power solar setup is a good size for the 171. I'm still going to end up adding a second panel and a second battery to the solar system so I can be off grid longer without firing up the generator. But it definitely keeps the refrigerator and freezer cold around the clock with the stock setup.

[ems437]

Originally Posted by McMullap

This is a little off topic but I think the group will have the answer. I need to buy a sewer hose. Obviously I have not needed it since my camper is winterized. I’ve read endless reviews from both Jayco and Camco Rhinoflex owners that say that the sewer hose will not fit into a standard 4” square bumper. I’ve been searching like crazy for options. Some people say that they grind down the corners and are able to jam it in the bumper. I didn’t feel like dealing with that. Others mentioned buying a 5” square fence post. I don’t feel like pairing a fence (I’m lazy when it comes to painting, I hate it!). So I looked and I actually have a round 4-1/2” sewer hose tube. I assume the Camco will fit in there but no reviews mentioned it. What sewer hose are people using with their Jay Feather Micro? Thanks! Andy

I have the 20 foot rhinoflex sewer hose and it fits in the storage tube on the back of my 171BH perfectly.

[Mountain Man]

I installed a Retrax bed cover with built in accesory rails and used Yakima towers and crossbars, able to mount 4 bike carriers accross the top of the bed and still access the full bed space for payload.

[Mountain Man]

Hello all,

Taking delivery on a 2023 Jay Feather Micro 171BH. Curious if anyone has added a set of Sumo Springs to the regular leaf springs for vibration absorbtion and what they found with them.

Also curious if anyone knows whether the suspension is over or under sprung? I am curious about potentiallly adding a larger set of tires in order to give a little more ground clearance.

Happy motoring!

[TomC_AZ]

Mountain Man, Welcome to the Micro Family!

Unless Jayco really changed things ALL micro's have a torsion semi-independent axle. No leaf springs to worry about etc..

As for under/over sprung I would say they could have put a slightly larger one on, or maybe even dual axles to allow for more cargo. With that we have towed over 15k miles now and no issues with the axle etc.. (one issue with a valve stem on a tire)

[Mountain Man]

[Did the same upgrade but with two panels on roof. Not a lot of real estate up there so second panel is installed under the roof rack (was never gonna use that rack)...

Problem is my 2000 amp inverter is bloody loud under our heads! Does the inverter need to run constantly or can I turn it off at night?

Second option. Thinking of covering the bed bottom with Dynamat to block the sound.

thoughts?


QUOTE=Lizardfdx66;1017281]Trailer inverter

I have a 2022 171BH. It has a 190W solar charger on the roof. It is prewired to accept an inverter (DC to AC) power. I have 2 6V batteries in series to provide 12V power to the trailer.
I had the dealer install the wiring for an inverter. Heavy gauge wire, up through floor into area that holds the hot water tank. (Under mattress there is a screwed down “inspection plate” that allows you to access this area). All of your wiring for an inverter will enter through this area. This is work I was not knowledgeable enough to do myself besides all of the warranty issues that would arise if done wrong. Dealer did it, it’s on them.
In the pass through storage tunnel, an inline breaker will be installed between your battery and the inverter. This will provide your protection for all of the trailer (aside from protections already built into your inverter.)
I installed my inverter, vertically, in the pass through tunnel, against the wall (think of the space where the ottomans fit), braced by a 2x4 underneath (vertical support) and further braced on the interior walls from the water heater area and the ottoman area (yes you will have to take some of your trailer apart and use simple woodworking skills to manufacture the braces.
Once installed, the inverter powers EVERY SINGLE AC OUTLET INSIDE OR OUTSIDE of the trailer!
I did not have to touch, nor did the dealer touch, anything having to do with the converter panel. Additionally, the Solar charger works great at keeping everything charged, again, with no additional wiring.[/QUOTE]

[Mountain Man]

Originally Posted by hoss_vw

what is everybody doing for bicycle racks?

i know there are a couple tongue mount style. has anybody retrofit a 2” hitch onto a micro? my dealer says he “has a guy” but i don’t want anything janky. id prefer something in back as opposed to the tongue.

If you haven't already solved your bike rack concerns This is what we're doing. Still have full bed use and getting the bikes on the racks is easy while standing in the bed. We do a TON of mtn biking in my hometown, this has worked on logging roads etc and doesn't add too much weight to the cargo capacity of the vehicle.

[catalano]

Originally Posted by JayLo

Dry hitch is 425, I don’t have a way of measuring loaded, sorry.

Current (2023) specs from Jayco show 380 for the hitch weight.

[catalano]

Hi All,

Wondering if anyone is pulling this unit with a Subaru Ascent, and if so what ball mount you ended up going with. Thanks!

[IGoWhereImTowed]

Hi Folks,

I just got a new 2023 171BH about a month ago, installed to 2 Lion Energy UT1300 lithium batteries (210Ah), and I'm looking at inverter install options. I've got a 2000W Renogy inverter and automated transfer switch. I want the inverter specifically to power the microwave. I see folks here have installed the inverter in the designated inverter prep circuit, and used extension cords from the microwave to a different plug that's powered by the inverter (or rewired the microwave plug).

But has anyone attempted to install the inverter directly in the shore power line (splicing it and putting the transfer switch there)? This would allow the inverter to provide power to all 120V consumers regardless of circuit (theoretically), by pretending to be shore power. Of course it might not be able to run the AC, or multiple appliances concurrently, but it nominally would be about the same as hooking up the trailer to a regular 15amp socket in my mind? Any thoughts on this?

Thanks!