I am the owner of a smaller travel trailer and I chose this configuration for a number of reasons. The most important reason is the maneuverability of the total package. My camping style includes moochdocking in the driveways of relatives, camping in a lot of older forest campgrounds and generally going places where larger rigs don’t fit. Most of all, we do a majority of our camping off the grid, so functionality for boondocking is also important.
My wife happened to be searching for a slightly larger rig and shared with me the Northwood Nash 18FM travel trailer. This is a relatively small travel trailer with big features that are common in Northwood’s products.
Northwood
One of the things I am entertained by in the company’s videos is when the spokesperson says their products are “absolute Northwood.” But this is smart because I would imagine a lot of customers really don’t know what separates one RV from another. So what is “absolute Northwood”?
The Northwood Manufacturing company is unusual in that they make their own chassis in-house. The reason they do this is for the off-road certification which their chassis have. Their suspension includes shocks on all wheels. That is what’s on every passenger car and every truck you can buy, but they’re on very, very few towable RVs except for the larger and heavier.
The benefit of their making their own chassis also extends to the holding tanks. For example, this smaller trailer sports 50 gallons of fresh water storage.
The company is really good about insulation and makes sure all their trailers are four-season certified. That includes really thick (1”) baggage doors and heated and enclosed underbellies.
They also use 10-gallon water heaters as opposed to the typical six-gallon models.
Basically, there are qualitative features. But the company is also smart about sharing what those are so a customer has information to use. I think this is really a smart decision.
What’s inside the Northwood Nash 18FM
The Northwood Nash 18FM trailer features a Murphy-style bed at the front, which uses a split mattress. Basically the couch is a “rollover” model. That’s where the backrest tumbles over the seat to lay flat and then the bed platform folds down on top of that. I believe it may use the couch as the base, but I couldn’t confirm that.
Below the couch are three drawers. There’s a larger cabinet below the night stand on the camp side, and two drawers below the night stand on the road side. The night stand, dining table and kitchen counters are all made of the same pressed membrane material. It’s a durable material that is relatively impervious to water damage.
The cabinets on either side of the bed feature taller hanging closets with a drawer under that and then a cubby above. When the bed’s down for sleeping there are two shelves behind it.
No shortage of cabinet space in the Northwood Nash
On the subject of cabinets and cubbies, there is a larger compartment to the left of the entry door beneath the kitchen counter. This could be for stuff you use inside or out.
The various controls and buttons for the Northwood Nash are in the cabinet above the kitchen counter – which is the same as my trailer has. I wish this were in a cabinet or behind a door. As it is, we can’t leave things turned on at night where there are lights behind the switches as the glare is annoying while we’re trying to sleep.
While we’re here, there’s a 12-volt TV in the upper cabinet on a hinge. You can either watch it from the dinette across the way or swing it out and watch it from the bed. Behind that TV is the upper cabinet storage. So you know whoever’s preparing the meals is going to need to swing it out right during the best part of a movie, right?
But they need that can of beans for dinner.
Further down the cabinet is the microwave and, above that, the stereo and solar charge control panel.
The galley has a decent amount of counter space
Below the upper cabinet, the “L”-shaped galley incorporates a decent amount of counter space. There’s a two-bowl metal sink and three-burner RV range with 22” oven. Behind the oven the company continues the marble-look material as a backsplash. Nice.
That cabinet also features drawers at the face and a cabinet under the sink.
Opposite the galley is a fairly large “U”-shaped dinette that shares the slide with a fairly large pantry closet. That pantry has adjustable shelves so you can also use it as a closet if you wish. There are two drawers below the pantry, as well.
There are also drop-down doors on either end of the dinette, but I wish these were drawers instead. Oh, well.
Along the back wall of the Northwood Nash is a gas-electric refrigerator. There is also another large pantry with two additional drawers underneath it. There is absolutely no shortage of cabinet space in this little trailer at all.
The bathroom, which is in a corner at the back of the trailer, even has some linen storage in it along with a full dry bath.
Outside
There is some nifty stuff outside as well. That includes a tall cabinet in the slide which occupies the space on the outside behind what is the pantry on the inside. Like that pantry, this is a tall closet that has adjustable or removable shelving. I could see storing rifles or fishing rods here, for example. As with the rest of the outside compartment doors, this one is a full 1” thick.
There is also a heavy-duty ladder to the roof. The company is so sure of its roof construction that you can get roof-top storage as an option.
Northwood RVs are also very much winter-ready. The company does a good job of prepping their RVs for cold weather with heated and enclosed underbellies, large furnaces, thick baggage compartment doors and more.
In summary
When I wrote to Northwood Manufacturing to get some clarification on a few things, they said this newer floor plan has been very popular. I’m not surprised. In addition, for a small trailer you can get an on-board generator (Cummins Onan 2.5 propane-powered). It has a great suspension system and is very well-suited for boondocking.
Northwood has done a good job building hefty, solid trailers that offer a lot of boondocking function and good cold-weather specs as well. No wonder my wife was looking at these.
These RV reviews are written based on information provided by the manufacturers along with our writer’s own research. We receive no money or other financial benefits from these reviews. They are intended only as a brief overview of the vehicle, not a comprehensive critique, which would require a thorough inspection and/or test drive.
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Bed’s way too short for us taller folks. Too bad – looks interesting otherwise.
looks nice enough but slide covers refer when closed..
Finally a company that puts in cabinets WITH DOORS in their units.