We have previously written about our experience in selecting a slide-in camper unit, detailing the brands that caught our attention, and the considerations that led us to choose a product made by Host Industries of Bend, Oregon. In those articles we promised that once we'd had a fair amount of time to "test" the new unit, we'd offer up our comments and opinions. Since we do not do formal "product reviews", and have absolutely no commercial ties with any of the manufacturers, we've chosen to caption our review as a "report card". Unlike product reviews you'll find in commercial publications -- in effect businesses that covet advertising revenues from the very companies whose products they "review" -- our purpose is to provide a completely objective evaluation. As in other reviews we've done, we think our readers are interested in both the positive and negative impressions we have. To the extend we discuss some items that we think could be improved, please keep in mind our purpose is not to sell advertising (because we don't), but rather to provide an honest assessment that we think readers might find useful.

The Product: The unit we purchased is a 10 1/2 foot camper unit, that features two slide outs. We purposely equipped it with many options not commonly found in camper units, such as a satellite dish; a swivel-mounted flat screen TV that can be seen equally well from the main living area or the sleeping area; AGM batteries supported by a nicely regulated solar system; two 30 pound propane tanks; a 2,500 watt propane generator; a 750 watt inverter; AM/FM, VHS and DVD players; air conditioning; a full size rear awning; and a roof mounted satellite dish. The unit is exceptionally easy to winterize, as it includes a system that lets you throw a switch, put the end of a plastic tube into a gallon of RV antifreeze, and simply turn on the water pump to send the antifreeze to each of the water outlets. The unit has a fully enclosed head with a "dry" shower area (meaning a separate shower area). The 10 1/2' unit is the second largest offered in the product line. Tank capacities include a somewhat astonishing 60 gallons of fresh water, 45 grey, and 35 black. It has all the standard hookup connections, including cable TV and telephone. As described in an earlier article, Host prides itself on "Ultralite" construction. Even so, given the fairly extensive list of options we included we opted for the carrying capacity of a new Dodge dually to handle the load.

The Test Period: This is not a report that comes from simply driving the unit, or staying in it for a few nights. We're in the process of moving from Friday Harbor, WA to Bend, Oregon. In the process our home in Friday Harbor sold several months before our new town home in Bend will be finished and ready for occupancy. As a consequence we have been living in this unit essentially "full time" for the better part of three months -- with probably another couple of months before we'll be able to move into our new home. We've been in virtually every weather condition most RVers would experience in the lifetime of any RV, and covered about 7,000 miles in our travels. We feel all the systems have now been fully "tested". One does not usually associate a slide-in truck camper with "full timing" -- but that's in effect what we've been doing.

The Experience: We should initially note that we sold our model year 2000 Country Coach Intrigue this past November, and once we're fully moved into our new home in Oregon we're intending to pursue the purchase another diesel pusher. However, and for the moment, our RVing lifestyle has downsized considerably. In many respects one might think that moving from a luxury motorhome to "a camper" would be a bit of a shock to the system. It's noteworthy that we've found ourselves comparing design features, amenities, and functionality of a high-end diesel pusher to "a camper". We found this particular brand of camper seems to have been designed and constructed with the tastes of "higher end" RV owners in mind, because despite its far smaller size it has tended to hold its own quite nicely.

What We Like: First and foremost the double-slide design makes an incredible difference to the livability of the unit. In fact it is such a radical difference from traditional -- or even single slide -- campers, that Host has redefined what a camper really can be. Anyone familiar with spending time in a camper knows that you are, in effect, living in the bed of a pickup truck. Two average size persons simply cannot easily pass each other in the traditional camper floor plan without some sort of unintended embrace. The unit is simply not wide enough, and does not have sufficient floor space, for more than one person at a time. Not so with the Host double slide system. In this unit the floor in the galley and much of the dinette area measures almost a full 5 feet across. That's roughly twice the floor width we'd had in previous camper units, and what an incredible difference it makes.

The floor is also a bit higher than in other campers we've had, which has a couple of important consequences. First, it provide for significantly greater freshwater and holding tank capacities. But it also means the elevation to the cabover sleeping area (a full size queen bed) is much less, making getting in and out of bed far easier. Happily the ceiling height is such that one can sit fully upright in the bed without touching the ceiling.

The fit and finish of this camper is also a bit of a surprise for the type of unit that's not usually associated with "high end" anything. For example, in the galley area, the counter top is made of a synthetic corian-like material that includes two fully integrated molded sinks. The sinks in turn are complemented by an attractive residential style "pull out" faucet -- something you might expect to find in a Country Coach -- but in a camper? Because of the extra space created by the galley-side slide, the counter top depth ranges from 32" to 43", providing more than adequate space for the in-house chef. A nearly full-size Dometic refrigerator, three burner propane stove, and convection microwave oven complete the tools available for preparing meals. There's ample room for a good assortment of kitchen utensils, and we easily found space for our electric coffee maker and toaster. Food storage is enhanced by an oversized slide out pantry that is supported by a very robust system of slider hardware, and which provides storage for a full complement of canned, boxed and dry goods.

Most RVers eventually discover the enormous significance of after sale manufacturer product support. We've found Host a winner in this regard. Example: One Saturday evening we discovered the sink faucet would not turn on. (If something is going to go wrong, it's invariably going to be on a weekend.) At 8 AM the following Monday morning we called Host. One of the owners answered the phone, and immediately got his top service tech on the line. I described the problem in some detail, and in no time he'd diagnosed the issue and provided a simple fix that I could easily do myself. On another occasion we were driving through Bend and stopped by the plant to see if a couple of minor issues might be looked at. Within minutes they had our unit inside the shop, and not only our two minor items addressed but some very helpful hints about other things we'd not previously known about. Every RV is going to have service and repair issues. How the manufacturer responds to those needs is a crucial ingredient in the ownership experience. Fortunately our issues have all been minor -- essentially small tweaks or adjustments. But to us the significant fact is that the response we've had from Host has been consistently excellent.

What we found needed further consideration: In our opinion no "report card" is complete without identifying as well items we think might have been done differently. While seldom found in "professional" (?) product reviews, we think this information is every bit as useful to a prospective purchaser as a recitation of virtues. And while there isn't a great deal to report in this section, there are some items we think deserve mention. Ironically, these are due in part to the fact we could not help comparing this unit to a high end motorhome suitable for full timing.

While we profess no expertise in electrical design, I suspected something was sub-optimal when we hit a spate of freezing weather and countered by using an indoor space heater. This is a convenience that's really useful when you have an electric hookup. There was really no need to run the propane heater, deplete the propane supply, and turn up the noise level. However on several occasions when we used our 1500 watt ceramic space heater we found we'd trip the circuit breaker that controls the AC outlets, except for the microwave (which is on its own circuit). When we pointed out the issue to Host, we learned that the water heater, which operates on both electricity and propane, needed to be set to operate only on propane by turning of the electric power in the outside water heater compartment. It seems to us a better design would put the DSI water heater on its own separate circuit so that the inside power outlets could not be so easily overloaded. [Note: In a subsequent factory visit changes were made that essentially cured our concerns on this point.]

Another electric issue involves the 750 watt inverter. The unit is equipped with separate converter and inverter units. To use the inverter it's necessary to turn on the small inverter box located behind a door under the entry step. When it's on, it powers only a single AC outlet located near the TV. If you happen to have purchased the DVD player as a option, it's necessary to physically remove that unit from its shelf to access the inverter powered outlet, and physically unplug the TV (and satellite receiver or DVD player if used) from their normal outlets and plug them into the one outlet that's supported by the inverter. We think it would make much more sense for those wanting access to inverter power if Host used a modest sized (e.g. 1000 watt) combined inverter charger. This could be used to power all standard outlets in the camper, excepting of course the microwave, refrigerator, and DSI water heater -- and it would address each of the issues mentioned above. [Note: In the same subsequent factory visit changes were made that greatly improved access to the inverter outlets.]

In the sleeping area there are "reading lights" on each side of the bed. However they don't swivel down far enough so that they avoid casting a strong beam of light at you, rather than for you. And if you opt for the AM/FM radio/CD player, you'll find the combination of its being installed at the foot of the bed, coupled with using a "push" type "on" knob, results in inadvertently turning the radio on in the middle of the night.

The plumbing bay might be improved if there were a more organized way to store the power cord. The area for cord storage is shared with space needed used by the two handles that are used to open the gray and black water holding tanks, and it's a bit of a challenge to store and retrieve the cord. Moreover the power cord (and TV cable) need to be fed out through a hole in the bottom of the plumbing bay. This means the cord needs first to be fished out of its cramped storage area, and then fed back through the hole in the bottom of the bay. The whole process would be made far easier if instead of the access hole in the bottom of the plumbing bay there was a sliding opening at the bottom of the bay door that would allow the door to be closed with the cord extended.

Our wish list: There's really not a whole lot that we'd want on our unit that's not already included in the package we put together. The item we'd most like to have would be a combined inverter/charger as described above, and which would resolve the only significant issues we've described. Perhaps as a result of having been "full timing in a camper" during the shortest days of the year, outdoor lighting is much appreciated. In addition to the standard "porch light", it would be nice to have a pair of passenger side outdoor lights that could provide illumination for the outdoor barbeque.

Dealer Experience: It was our intention to include in this initial "report card" a summary of our impression with Lassen's after-sale service. Because the unit was in near-perfect condition at the time of delivery, we were not able to offer much comment about the dealer "post sale" experience. However we were later able to express an opinion, and happily were able to include our writeup of it in our collection of recommended products and services. As in the past, we intend to update our "report card" on the Host unit (and dealer experience) after the first year, and again at the three year mark -- all with the intent of making this review a reflection of ownership experience over time.

Conclusion: As noted above, these comments are not based on a casual trial run of a Host camper unit -- they're based on nearly three months of full timing in it. We think we've had an opportunity to use all of the unit's capabilities extensively. Few camper owners will ever have occasion to use a camper unit under such demanding conditions. We've noted those few things about our unit that we think deserve further consideration. But collectively they do not significantly detract from our bottom line conclusion that Host has indeed "reinvented" what a slide-in truck camper can be. The double slide floorplan gives it a roominess that would more commonly be associated with a smaller Class C motorhome. Its extensive set of available features are those usually found in upscale units far larger than a camper. And finally the excellent after-sale support we've experienced from the manufacturer provides that exra margin of "peace of mind" that is unfortunately sometimes missing in the RV ownership experience. At our last visit to the factory we noted several incredibly innovative new floor plans both on the drawing board and in production. While we're not at liberty to comment on them here, it has given further support to our belief that Host will likely emerge as a "trend setter" in the camper manufacturing industry.

Ed Note: Updating this article to August '06....As described elsewhere at this site, we've just ordered a new Alpine Coach which is due for delivery in September '06. Though we'd dearly love to keep our Host Camper for RVing adventures that are better done with a smaller unit, as a practical matter it is difficult to justify the cost of storing and maintaining a second RV for only occasional trips. Thus in a few weeks we'll be putting this outstanding unit up for sale. Preferably we'll sell with our late model '04 Dodge 4x4 dually. We'd consider selling the camper separately, but initially we'll list the truck and camper as a unit for around $55K. If there are interested readers, drop us a note at CamperSale@rversonline.org.

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