Hello all we are new to the forum and hope we can get some help and give some along the way. We are gearing up for a trip to Orlando Fl. from Austin, TX. With our jayco pull behind. As always we travel with our little pup Wesley. My concern is something happening with the ac our power loss on the camp site while we are out and about while he's in the camper. Is there a thermometer I can buy that can send alerts to my phone in the event of a temperature rise? Thanks for any help or advice on this.

Just an FYI, you'll probably be told you're a lousy pet owner for not taking your pet everywhere you go. We personally leave our dogs on occasion in the camper, where we are allowed, and I think a monitoring system would be pretty neat to have. I have heard about some of them being out there, but not any specifics.

I am new to the forum and just bought a travel trailer. I finished up a project last night that will do exactly what you want. We have 2 dogs that will travel with us, and I was also worried about the A/C stopping while we were out. I have been wanting to convert my thermostat to a digital, and I remembered that I had an extra Filtrete Wifi Thermostat sitting around. It has an Android/iPhone app that lets you monitor the thermostat, adjust the temperature, and turn on/off the heat and A/C. I decided to try it out. It does have 2 downsides.1. It requires 24v AC for the wifi module to work. My camper was only putting out 12v so I ran 2 new wires to the thermostat and bought a $15 120v to 24v AC adapter.2. It's not easy to get the thermostat to switch what wifi is uses. So I purchased a portable wifi router that will always have the same Wifi name no matter where you go. When you get to where you are going, you log into the portable router and connect it to the campground wifi. I haven't taken it camping yet, but I figure if the portable wifi idea doesn't work, I can always buy a 4g hotspot and bypass the campground wifi. I'm sure there is a cheaper and easier way, but I had the thermostat and am a computer nerd that had extra time on my hands.

Thanks y'all. We are prepared for the negative comments but rest assured he will be checked on every few hours. I think he would be happier in the air of the camper verses the heat of Disney. And great idea on the camper Thermostat upgrade! That would handle two problems with one repair seeing I hate the one in that came with the camper. I'll start on this project as soon as possible and post some pictures when I'm done!

We've been leaving our dogs in our campers for the last 16 years with no issues at all. Even if the A/C goes out it will take some time for the TT to heat up inside. It's not like a car with all that glass. Try it sometimes and see how long it takes for things to heat up. I think you might be surprised.Now, if you're going to leave them for many hours you might have a problem. I don't think we've ever left ours for more than 6-7 hours at a time. Any longer than that and the TT will begin to smell like urine anyway.

saseals wrote:I am new to the forum and just bought a travel trailer. I finished up a project last night that will do exactly what you want. We have 2 dogs that will travel with us, and I was also worried about the A/C stopping while we were out. 1. It requires 24v AC for the wifi module to work. My camper was only putting out 12v so I ran 2 new wires to the thermostat and bought a $15 120v to 24v AC adapter.So in the case of a power failure how can you monitor or check the temperature? With no power you have no thermostat or router or wifi?

Thermometer remote monitoring | Good Sam Community

17 Replies

Tyandkate
Explorer
Apr 29, 2016
Okay so problem solved thanks to some great ideas here. i found a thermostat at the local home depot. Its a Emerson Sensi wifi thermostat that doesnt require 24 volts power. Installed in a breeze with in app directions walking through it. ill post pics soon
Lantley
Nomad
Apr 28, 2016
rockhillmanor wrote:
It depends WHERE you are.

If you have never traveled to Florida you can't make dangerous comments that it is OK to leave pets in a closed up RV in the Florida sun with an AC malfunction. :R

When In Florida. Air goes out in an RV and you have a dead dog.

I'm hear to tell from experience the temp goes from 70 or 80 to well 'over' 100 in just minutes when the AC or power to it fails. Remember all the windows are closed. It's a death trap.
How did dogs survive before air conditioning? I assume there were no dogs in Fl. before A/C was invented.
We are not talking about a car with all the windows closed. We are talking an RV. I'm sure it can reach 100. But I think a dog can survive in 100 weather for a few hours
danimal53
Explorer
Apr 28, 2016
I just saw this on the forums the other day:

AcuLink

I don't know anything about this device at all and was going to research it further, but it seems it might do what you want. still needs wifi though.

Also, the newest Tagg GPS tracker, Tagg GPS Plus (i guess the company is called Whistle now), has an ambient temperature sensor. Unfortunately, I see reviews on amazon saying the transition to Whistle has been pretty poor. Seems it would be great option, although it would include a monthly service plan of $6-$10, but you won't have to be on CG wifi for it to work as it includes cellular connection to send you alerts.

edit: I don't own either device and can't vouch for them at all, just throwing some ideas your way.
rockhillmanor
Explorer II
Apr 27, 2016
It depends WHERE you are.

If you have never traveled to Florida you can't make dangerous comments that it is OK to leave pets in a closed up RV in the Florida sun with an AC malfunction. :R

When In Florida. Air goes out in an RV and you have a dead dog.

I'm hear to tell from experience the temp goes from 70 or 80 to well 'over' 100 in just minutes when the AC or power to it fails. Remember all the windows are closed. It's a death trap.
dodge_guy
Explorer II
Apr 27, 2016
The only downside to a WiFi t-stat is you need a good WiFi connection and a campground has anything but a good connection! We have left our dog alone in the RV. If thou are at a quality campground you should not have any electrical issues.

With that. My home has a Honeywell WiFi t-stay and it works great. Does everything I want. If I was going to use it in an RV I would want a Mobil hotspot. And even then cellular data connection would be iffy at some places.

Anyway you go there is always that possibility of something bad happening, and the percentage of it happening in an RV is higher than at home!
gmw_photos
Explorer
Apr 27, 2016
I spend the winter in Arizona, and like this winter just past, I sometimes leave my Schipperke in the camper for several hours at a time.
What I do is leave the roof vent open, and a couple of windows slightly open. I leave a regular 12" table fan on the floor running. Then I turn on the air conditioner. Idea being, it's cool with the air on, but in case the power fails, then there is still ventilation.

Most important, I make friends with the neighbors there, and as it turned out like this past winter, we took turns looking after each other's dogs. We all just left our campers unlocked so if someone needs to get in to rescue a dog or cat, they can easily do so.

I was parked for over a week in Oklahoma City at a CG last summer ( August ) while at a horse show. I specifically asked for, and got a site there where my trailer was in the shade of some large trees most of the day. That made me feel a little better about leaving for several hours at a time. It was good though that I was only 10 minutes away, so I would go back every few hours to check on the dog and walk her. As it turned out, it was a non-issue, as the A/C ran the entire time just fine.

EDIT: at the resort where I stay in Arizona, there is a lady that lives there that does "dog sitting/walking" for hire, so that could be an option too.

EDIT 2: we also shared phone numbers among each other so if need be we were just a phone call away.
RavensFan24
Explorer
Apr 27, 2016
I've heard a few people comment on other posts that the Nest thermostat linked with a mobile hotspot allows for monitoring of temperatures in the RV. We leave our dogs in the RV when we go out. They are one of the main reasons we have an RV. It's pretty difficult to get a hotel to allow you to have 3 dogs in a room AND they wouldn't allow you to leave it alone there. Luckily, we haven't had any issues with power loss (knock on wood), but we have the AC on with the Fantastic Fan thermostat set as well in case it gets too hot.

I have been considering other options for monitoring them and the temperature, but campground wi fi is way too unreliable and many places we go have poor cell service (especially inside the trailer). If we traveled more, I'd definitely invest in a mobile signal booster and an extra cell line or mobile hotspot to be able to monitor via a wireless security camera and potentially a Nest thermostat or something similar. Granted if I had the camera, I could just leave a thermometer out in it's view and save money on the Nest.
vic46
Explorer
Apr 27, 2016
This product may be what you need! I did not read very far.

https://nest.com/ca/
hohenwald48
Explorer
Apr 27, 2016
Lantley wrote:
My dog stays home 8 hours per day while I'm at work. He will also stay in the RV all day if we are out sightseeing.
I do not monitor the temperature in either case. I don't think he is going to perish if there is a power failure?
Does anyone personally know of a pet that perished at a CG in a hot RV?

I think some folks equate leaving a pet in a TT with leaving a pet in a closed up car. Two totally different worlds.
saseals
Explorer
Apr 27, 2016
In the case of a power outage I would get an alert that the thermostat could not be contacted. That would give me ample time to decide if the pups would be ok based on temperature, or head back to the campsite.