The good/bad/ugly of campers?

[lukenick1]

Considering buying a camper this summer after having a blast camping last summer. However, sleeping in a tent is much to be desired! I would love to pick up a camper that has a full bathroom and something small enough I could tow with my Toyota Sienna minivan. Never owned a camper and know nothing about what is involved. Can someone give me all the details of ownership?

 

[WDWCP96]

To me it sounds like your only option will be a pop-up and I am not sure if you will be able to get one with a bathroom because of the tow capacity of your vehicle. I would first find out the tow capacity of your van and then go from there.

I can say that pop ups are great to upgrade from tent camping. That is what we did. We had our pop up for 4 years and just this past summer bought our first travel trailer.

 

[Rland8228]

we are in the same situation right now. Our dodge minivan can tow 3600. We are have seen a couple of small or lite travel trailers that we can tow but most are pop ups. I know that my dad being the experienced rv repair man that he is tells me that pop ups are good but you really have to take care of them as with any rv due to the canvas. I think we are leaning more to a hard sided camper because I would like to be able to bring our dog with us. Good luck to you!

 

[~Kristina~]

PLEASE remember that DRY weights are fictional! This is a weight without any options like the an awning, AC units, etc. ALWAYS use the trailers GVWR if it isn't listed, add dry weight to cargo weight and that's GVWR. With a mini van, you're pushing the limits with a larger popup. I had a Chevy Venture with a Fleetwood Sea Pine and we couldn't drive with the A/C on because the engine would run hot. Driving down to the Ft in 2007 was a bit nerve wracking because we had a heck of a time getting up the "big" hill in TN on I75.

 

[North of Mouse]

PLEASE remember that DRY weights are fictional! This is a weight without any options like the an awning, AC units, etc. ALWAYS use the trailers GVWR if it isn't listed, add dry weight to cargo weight and that's GVWR. With a mini van, you're pushing the limits with a larger popup. I had a Chevy Venture with a Fleetwood Sea Pine and we couldn't drive with the A/C on because the engine would run hot. Driving down to the Ft in 2007 was a bit nerve wracking because we had a heck of a time getting up the "big" hill in TN on I75.

We had to put transmission coolers on all our tow vehicles, unless they specifically came with a *tow* package. Of course, you have to have the correct towing capacity also.

 

[North of Mouse]

Considering buying a camper this summer after having a blast camping last summer. However, sleeping in a tent is much to be desired! I would love to pick up a camper that has a full bathroom and something small enough I could tow with my Toyota Sienna minivan. Never owned a camper and know nothing about what is involved. Can someone give me all the details of ownership?

You may be able to find a hard side TT that is light enough to tow with your vehicle, but you really have to know your towing capacity, including people, plus whatever you put extra into your trailer.

Make sure you either have a *tow* pkg. on your vehicle, or add the necessary things to it (transmission cooler, etc.).

I'm with you about tenting. I like my *comforts* and wouldn't enjoy roughing it very much.

The best of luck!

 

[Spwhoney]

We pull a Coleman pop up with a dodge caravan. Have heard dodge is the best for towing so make sure yours has the right engine and capacity. It pulls our pop fine. But I am always nervous not pulling with a truck. I have seen some with bathroom but it is very cramped. My dream trailer is a little jayco 19 foot. Cute little trailer.

 

[jeffrey66]

We pull a Coleman pop up with a dodge caravan. Have heard dodge is the best for towing so make sure yours has the right engine and capacity. It pulls our pop fine. But I am always nervous not pulling with a truck. I have seen some with bathroom but it is very cramped. My dream trailer is a little jayco 19 foot. Cute little trailer.

I bought a cute little jayco 19' back in november and am very excited to use it this season for the first time. The trailer has a dry weight of 3657 lbs. No worries on towing with my F350-diesel though.

 

[Gaston77]

we have a coleman niagrai we purchased in 2009 brand new diddent use it at all last year from me switching jobs from the ecomony but anyways its paid off sitting in my driveway and thinking about selling it we paid 15000 brand new thinking about putting it up for sale this year its nice my daughter doesent want use to sell but my new job at wegmans (grocery store ) im always working weekends so where probally putting it up for sale this year we live in maryland anyone intersested just let us know thanks it has everything in it bath radio air etc

 

[TOGA]

My advice is to do your own homework on what your vehicle can safely tow and to do your own homework on weights of anything you will potentially tow. Knowledge is power and if you understand what your vehicle can and cannot do, you will be less likely to be talked into something that won't work for you.

 

[dalspot]

And remember to err on the side of caution! While you might get close to a tow limit, remember too, that you have to be able to STOP safely!

 

[arthuruscg]

And remember to err on the side of caution! While you might get close to a tow limit, remember too, that you have to be able to STOP safely!

That is why even the tiny Coleman Taos (8ft, under 2k lbs, popup) comes standard with brakes.

The trailer should be able to stop them selves with minimal effort on the TV part.

 

[arthuruscg]

Considering buying a camper this summer after having a blast camping last summer. However, sleeping in a tent is much to be desired! I would love to pick up a camper that has a full bathroom and something small enough I could tow with my Toyota Sienna minivan. Never owned a camper and know nothing about what is involved. Can someone give me all the details of ownership?

Not to kick you away but there is a neat forum for Sienna owners.
http://www.siennachat.com/forum/

And they have a special section for towing that has great Sienna and general towing info.
http://www.siennachat.com/forum/69-towing-hauling/

 

[bama_ed]

Considering buying a camper this summer after having a blast camping last summer. However, sleeping in a tent is much to be desired! I would love to pick up a camper that has a full bathroom and something small enough I could tow with my Toyota Sienna minivan. Never owned a camper and know nothing about what is involved. Can someone give me all the details of ownership?

"Full bathroom" is a relative phrase. I'll come back to that later.

Your vehicle is probably capable of pulling a smaller pop-up. I would also suggest possibly an Aliner which top out a little over 2000#. You don't have the Tow Vehicle (TV) to handle anything bigger.

What you get is determined by your TV and how you plan to camp. Do you plan to go out in the woods and park by a lake with no hook ups? You need a battery, maybe a generator, etc. Do you plan to camp only at state parks, developed facilities, and the Fort? Then you can skimp on the hookups and related stuff.

Back to the bathroom....

My popup has what would be classed as a full bathroom. It has a potty, a shower, and a sink (all built in). Problem is, the potty is a casette type which we only do a #1 in; we've never used the shower since we only camp in state parks, the Fort, and the like with full hooks, and the sink is over by the stove/kitchen area. Yours truly has to empty the casette tank at the end of each campout.

If you buy a trailer of some type, how do you plan to store it? In the backyard (is that allowed by your HOA)? in your garage (will it fit)? in a storage yard (prep and restore plus cost)?

We've got some old threads down the board about buying used popups. Might be a good place to start.

Bama ED

 

[PixieCamper]

we are in the same situation right now. Our dodge minivan can tow 3600. We are have seen a couple of small or lite travel trailers that we can tow but most are pop ups. I know that my dad being the experienced rv repair man that he is tells me that pop ups are good but you really have to take care of them as with any rv due to the canvas. I think we are leaning more to a hard sided camper because I would like to be able to bring our dog with us. Good luck to you!

These are the absolute devil to find but if you can find one, they are perfect for those who want a hard side trailer with bathroom and have limited tow capacity. Only 2400 pounds. Of course it's very 80s looking but I have seen remodelings on these that are fantastic. We almost had one but someone bought it right out from under us

http://www.spacenut.net/space/Apache/1985%20Apache%20Royal/Apache_Royal.htm

 

[North of Mouse]

These are the absolute devil to find but if you can find one, they are perfect for those who want a hard side trailer with bathroom and have limited tow capacity. Only 2400 pounds. Of course it's very 80s looking but I have seen remodelings on these that are fantastic. We almost had one but someone bought it right out from under us

http://www.spacenut.net/space/Apache/1985%20Apache%20Royal/Apache_Royal.htm

Some friends of ours had one of these, and they had lots of problems with it *sweating*. Not having insulation, the panels around the beds stayed wet inside, and at night would drip on them. They weren't very happy with it for this reason. The concept sounds very nice, but it definitely had issues.
Maybe they got a *fix* on them as that was the only time we were around one.

 

[PixieCamper]

Some friends of ours had one of these, and they had lots of problems with it *sweating*. Not having insulation, the panels around the beds stayed wet inside, and at night would drip on them. They weren't very happy with it for this reason. The concept sounds very nice, but it definitely had issues.
Maybe they got a *fix* on them as that was the only time we were around one.

Yeah, that condensation in the bunk ends can be a bear. Think it comes from the interior being warmer than the bunk ends. We had that occasionally with the popup but much more so with the hybrid, probably because the hybrid was more airtight maybe? Leaving some windows cracked really cut down on that for us.

 

[bama_ed]

Yeah, that condensation in the bunk ends can be a bear. Think it comes from the interior being warmer than the bunk ends. We had that occasionally with the popup but much more so with the hybrid, probably because the hybrid was more airtight maybe? Leaving some windows cracked really cut down on that for us.

Actually it is the water vapor from your breath while you sleep. It does form when there is a temp differential across the canvas. As you said, cracking the windows and allowing a little air movement will eliminate the issue. Or running an interior fan will help too.

Bama ed

 

[~Kristina~]

Popup gizmos work great for alleviating condensation on the bunk ends.

 

[PixieCamper]

Actually it is the water vapor from your breath.....

Bama ed

And the shower, and the sink, and the kids' squirt bottles....