2015 Spring

thing for several days. Without an electrical hookup, the house battery may need some help from the truck to make it through the weekend. Where the Carbon shines is in its ability to carry 30 gallons of gas for the toys. This integrated fuel tank is as easy to fill as the truck’s fuel tank and it has an electric pump for dispensing. I think the beauty of this will really hit home when you realize you no longer need to lug (and store) gas cans. Inside the 22, the first impression is clean lines, efficiency emphasised design and simplicity. This is not a fancy trailer, instead it’s meant to do several things well. The garage bay in this trailer is also the main living space—so as a garage it has a tough easy-to-clean floor with heavy D-rings flush mounted to secure vehicles. Incidentally the inside wall to front wall length of the garage space is 12 feet 6 inches. Drop the rear wall ramp and back out and the garage bay is empty. Now, it serves its second purpose by housing two fold-down couches, which face each other with a large free- standing pedestal table in between. These are utilitarian in design; however, they are much more spacious than a dinette and easier to maneuver around as the table moves. A not- so-obvious benefit of this arrangement is that when the rear ramp is open, it offers a panoramic open-air view. To that end, a retractable screen is offered as an option. However, when night comes or weather demands closing that door, it’s a 15-second one-handed operation thanks to heavy-duty return springs. Because the spring is installed at the junction point between the bottom of the door and the trailer floor, there are no overhead torsion bars and steel cables. This

makes the door operation better and means no unintended cable obstructions. Inside you’ll note the ceiling height is more than you’d ex- pect and this is not an accident. Again, a dual-purpose design accommodates roll cages but it also allows wall-mounted cupboards—front to back—cupboards that touch the ceiling and that pretty much stay out of the way of vehicles but still offer lots of storage space. The other purpose of those fold-flat sofas is sleeping. By adding a small center cushion, a large bed is formed (as wide as the trailer). However the main bedroom is up front and is just separate enough to make for reasonable privacy and of- fers a lot of storage. The bathroom, just behind the bedroom wall, is large—in keeping with the current trend. The shower is tall and has a skylight as well as a deep floor pan. The porcelain toilet is foot-operated and the vanity sink has both a cupboard below the counter and a large opening medicine cabinet above it. Mind you, the outdoor shower will get plenty of use during milder weather. In the galley, the double sink and tall gooseneck faucet are nice, but they eat up most of the counter space. The two- burner stove should be enough for most meals; however, the microwave will probably be used more than normal in this unit—but not when dry camping. The fridge is ample and the vented hood is a must in a smaller space. For entertainment there is a 32-inch LCD TV mounted on the exterior bathroom wall and there is a prep kit in the front bedroom for a second TV, though I can’t see wanting more than one in a unit this size. Décor-wise, despite its use as a rolling garage, the finishes are nice, clean, and even have radius corners. Some of the faux wood is distressed and in general fit and finish is good. As for towing, the unit is stable and despite its height didn’t lean. Nor did it feel loose in crosswinds. I attribute this to good tires and decent axles. One other thing I noticed, with today’s tall trucks I often need a drop hitch to get a level attitude on a trailer—not so with the Carbon. It sits tall and it hooked up dead even to the truck on a straight hitch. — Howard J. Elmer

2015 KEYSTONE CARBON 22 SHIPPING WEIGHT: 5,420 pounds CARRYING CAPACITY: 5,400 pounds HITCH WEIGHT: 660 pounds LENGTH: 26 feet, 2 inches HEIGHT (W A/C): 12 feet, 3 inches

FRESHWATER: 60 gallons GRAY WATER: 30 gallons BLACK WATER: 30 gallons

LP GAS: 40 pounds AWNING: 16 feet

12’6”Garage

4’4”

Single30gal.FuelTank

O/H

O/H

Shower

Refer

Flip Sofa

TV

QueenBed 60”x80”

Flip Sofa

Wardrobe

O/H

O/H

16’ElectricAwning

SPRING 2015 COAST TO COAST 21

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