My wife and I are about 2 months into owning our TT and loving it. Anyone use or have opinions on RV storage covers. I would love to have a more permanent enclosure from the weather but that ain't in the budget. Its a 33 footer. As always thanks for the help.

I cover mine when at home base for sun protection...no snow here. With my good collapsible ladder I can put it on by myself without going on the roof. Safer too. Easier with two people and two ladders however. I uncover my solar panels near the front every couple of weeks to top off the batteries. That's easy too.

Well worth it in my opinion but this is the kind of question that brings out the kind of people who will go negative because they dont have one and are antagonistic towards those who do. It's really quite strange.Our experience; After 13 years our last TT still looked like new and the graphics were perfect because I kept it covered during the winter months.The last winter I finally tossed the cover because it was nasty and we were selling the TT. During that time it aged considerably - especially the roof.Because of the cover, we got thousands more for it than we would have if it looked like all the others I found on-line. The only time I would not recommend one is if your in a very windy location. Otherwise it money well spent.

Pros and Cons for using them. I've done both.To cover or not to cover depends upon how you plan on using your camper. If you plan on using it often, then covering and uncovering is a LOT of work. But after a time or two, you figure out how to do it, it's easier, but still a lot of work. If the trailer sits long term, it's not bad to do once a year.To cover or not to cover depends upon your location in which your camper is parked. If you are parking your camper under trees where birds, tree droppings are always making a mess, then covering is good. Better a $300 cover get nasty than a $3000 roof.To cover or not to cover depends upon the climate condition where you park your camper. If the camper is subject to high winds with sand, then covering is a good thing. If in the baking sun, covering is good. If buried in the snow, ice, freezing, covering is a good thing. Covering helps protect the UV rays from cracking graphics and fading paint. The number 2 downside of covering is the potential for the cover to rub the RV and rub the paint and graphics until there's nothing left. In order for them to work well, they have to be drawn very tight so there is no movement, even in the hardest of wind. Any rubbing will leave it's scar very quick. Number 3 downside: The corner rain gutters will punch holes in the cover if they are not dealt with. If you radio antenna is on top of the trailer, you have to remove it, or tip it down to cover. Batwing antenna has to be protected or it can get caught in the cover and damaged when working with the cover.Number 4 downside: If you plan on accessing the camper when covered, you can. They come with zipper doors. But things will need to be loosened up first (possible rubbing can occur). If you plan on using it when covered, the furnace, water heater, and refrigerator cannot be turned on, or it will burn the cover, as they need outside ventilation. If none of the "down side's" affect you, then cover if you need protection of the elements, tree and bird droppings, wind sandblasting, and sun UV rays. I've done both, covered and uncovered. And the driving factor for NOT covering any more is because we use the camper too much, even in the winter with snow on the ground. Uncovering with a foot of snow on top of the cover is not something on my list I want to do.Campers are made to stay in the elements. Covers just keep them from getting so dirty. That's the advantage.

DutchmenSport wrote:Pros and Cons for using them. I've done both.To cover or not to cover depends upon how you plan on using your camper. If you plan on using it often, then covering and uncovering is a LOT of work. But after a time or two, you figure out how to do it, it's easier, but still a lot of work. If the trailer sits long term, it's not bad to do once a year.To cover or not to cover depends upon your location in which your camper is parked. If you are parking your camper under trees where birds, tree droppings are always making a mess, then covering is good. Better a $300 cover get nasty than a $3000 roof.To cover or not to cover depends upon the climate condition where you park your camper. If the camper is subject to high winds with sand, then covering is a good thing. If in the baking sun, covering is good. If buried in the snow, ice, freezing, covering is a good thing. Covering helps protect the UV rays from cracking graphics and fading paint. The number 2 downside of covering is the potential for the cover to rub the RV and rub the paint and graphics until there's nothing left. In order for them to work well, they have to be drawn very tight so there is no movement, even in the hardest of wind. Any rubbing will leave it's scar very quick. Number 3 downside: The corner rain gutters will punch holes in the cover if they are not dealt with. If you radio antenna is on top of the trailer, you have to remove it, or tip it down to cover. Batwing antenna has to be protected or it can get caught in the cover and damaged when working with the cover.Number 4 downside: If you plan on accessing the camper when covered, you can. They come with zipper doors. But things will need to be loosened up first (possible rubbing can occur). If you plan on using it when covered, the furnace, water heater, and refrigerator cannot be turned on, or it will burn the cover, as they need outside ventilation. If none of the "down side's" affect you, then cover if you need protection of the elements, tree and bird droppings, wind sandblasting, and sun UV rays. I've done both, covered and uncovered. And the driving factor for NOT covering any more is because we use the camper too much, even in the winter with snow on the ground. Uncovering with a foot of snow on top of the cover is not something on my list I want to do.Campers are made to stay in the elements. Covers just keep them from getting so dirty. That's the advantage.Yeah, I never experinced any of those cons but there are certainly some valid points there. And I disagree that campers are built to be in the weather. They're built like junk and the weather ages them faster than using them.Like anything else, the more you keep sun and rain off them the longer they will last and look like new.YMMV

I like the covers, but my real world experience is they last about 3 years (and yes I bought the good ones) and then they're toast. I have never seen one (my own or anyone else's) that lasted much past 3 years. That being said, it's worth it to me for the approximately $75 - $100 per year I spend. Your results may vary.If you use a cover make sure it's a breathable one.

TT cover question | Good Sam Community

babock
Explorer
Sep 15, 2017
2012Coleman wrote:
The amount of work required to keep it clean may be considered by some as a downside, but not to me.
Me neither...mine is getting covered.

The argument that a dealer doesn't cover the units is a bogus one. Most boat dealers don't cover boats either but if you let one sit in the sun a coupe years, the upholstery would be trashed.
2012Coleman
Explorer II
Sep 13, 2017
So I went over to my storage area yesterday with my 8 foot step ladder to check on my - read it - covered - TT after the hurricane. I disconnected one strap so I could open the zippered panel and get inside. I've been using the same ADCO cover since I bought the TT new in 2012. Everything looked good inside, but since there was a lot of tree debris on the roof, I wanted to inspect the rubber for tears.

So I removed the cover in about 20 minutes, and low and behold, no tears, and the roof was as white as it was from washing it after our last trip in August.

Now I'm not saying the cover protected it from getting stabbed by a tree limb but it did protect it from getting dirty. I can also report there were no black streaks - unlike the uncovered units around me.

While off, I inspected the entire TT top to bottom. I can say that my paint is not being worn off by rubbing, holes are not being poked into it from protruding objects like gutter spouts, and it is not being ripped to shreds due to wind - hurricane force at that. Why? Because I read the directions and know how to secure it and protect it from those protruding objects. I periodically check it to ensure the straps do not loosen - they do.

I took another 30 minutes and recovered it, to keep it clean for our upcoming fall trip. The amount of work required to keep it clean may be considered by some as a downside, but not to me.
SoundGuy
Explorer
Sep 13, 2017
danimal53 wrote:
I remember reading on these forums the last time this topic came up, the dealers store them all on outside lots without covers.

SoundGuy wrote:
Obviously. :S What dealer in his / her right mind would invest in hundreds of covers and have to pay staff to install & later remove each cover when the entire purpose of the business is to sell lot stock as quickly as possible? Hardly a rationale for an individual owner to not use a cover. :R

danimal53 wrote:
i'm just saying if they sit out in the elements on dealer lots, and still look like new, reason enough for me. not talking about whether it makes financial sense. just saying i dont want to use one, or see a need myself.

Still an irrelevant argument since the goal of any dealer is to move lot stock as quickly as possible, in which case none of it will be on the lot long enough for exposure to the elements to matter anyway. It follows therefore that one's own reasons for using or not using a cover has absolutely nothing to do with why dealers don't cover their own lot stock. :R
danimal53
Explorer
Sep 13, 2017
SoundGuy wrote:
danimal53 wrote:
I remember reading on these forums the last time this topic came up, the dealers store them all on outside lots without covers.

Obviously. :S What dealer in his / her right mind would invest in hundreds of covers and have to pay staff to install & later remove each cover when the entire purpose of the business is to sell lot stock as quickly as possible? Hardly a rationale for an individual owner to not use a cover. :R

i'm just saying if they sit out in the elements on dealer lots, and still look like new, reason enough for me. not talking about whether it makes financial sense. just saying i dont want to use one, or see a need myself.
SoundGuy
Explorer
Sep 12, 2017
danimal53 wrote:
I remember reading on these forums the last time this topic came up, the dealers store them all on outside lots without covers.

Obviously. :S What dealer in his / her right mind would invest in hundreds of covers and have to pay staff to install & later remove each cover when the entire purpose of the business is to sell lot stock as quickly as possible? Hardly a rationale for an individual owner to not use a cover. :R
danimal53
Explorer
Sep 12, 2017
had our TT for 3 years now, and decided against using a cover. i live near Chicago, so we see some pretty cold weather and sometimes a good amount of snow. maybe i was sold some BS, but on purchase we upgraded to a 5yr warranty which included "ResistAll" treatment. supposed to protect from UV damage and other elements. after 3 years now, no graphic fading/peeling, exterior still looks like new. I do have wheel covers and a spare tire cover. Otherwise I just leave it out in the elements. I remember reading on these forums the last time this topic came up, the dealers store them all on outside lots without covers. Not judging those who choose to cover, but I decided it's not for me.
mgirardo
Explorer
Sep 12, 2017
We purchased a new TT for use at our seasonal site at the beginning of the season. It will sit for almost 8 months unused, so we decided to get a cover. We purchased a Camco UltraGuard cover. Camco does not make a cover for a 40+ foot TT. Since ours is a Bungalow with 8' ceilings, we decided to go with the 40' - 42' cover for Class A motorhomes. We just put it on yesterday. Sadly, Camco did not include instructions with it, but I found instructions online for it. Even though it was for a Class A, it fit well.

This was the first time we ever covered a RV. Our main concern is sitting snow. Our camper is 800 miles from our home, so we can't get the snow off the roof. It took us about 90 minutes to cover it. I really didn't know what to expect with such a long cover, but it went pretty well. All four of us (wife, 16 yo daughter, 14 yo son and myself) worked together and made pretty quick work of it.

The cover is very well built. It has vents at the top that should allow moisture to escape. The fabric looks similar to clothing designed to wick moisture away. Unlike a tarp, if the fabric was to tear, I don't think it would cause any problems with the camper's finish flapping against it. It's very soft. Since it was such a large cover it was expensive at $331 from Amazon. Our only other option was to have one custom map at over $1,000.

-Michael
Camper76
Explorer
Sep 12, 2017
Does anyone use just a roof cover?
SoundGuy
Explorer
Sep 12, 2017
ScottG wrote:
Well worth it in my opinion but this is the kind of question that brings out the kind of people who will go negative because they dont have one and are antagonistic towards those who do. It's really quite strange.

Agree completely, and as predicted criticism against covering has already begun yet again in this thread. :(

In my own case I always kept our popups in my heated workshop but when we moved to a hybrid I had to find an alternate solution. The first winter I paid for indoor storage which around here is quite expensive so the following winter I covered the trailer with an ADCO AquaShed and had no issues at all. By the following winter we had a larger travel trailer so I sold the AquaShed and bought an ADCO Tyvek which I used for 5 winters, again no issues at all. We eventually sold that trailer and the cover so I later purchased an ADCO Designer Series Tyvek cover for our current shorter Coachmen. It's seen 3 winters, no issues at all, but last winter a friend of a friend offered indoor storage so I sold the cover to pay for the storage. If that indoor storage is still available for this coming winter I'll probably go that route again simply because it's easier, otherwise I'll buy another ADCO and cover the trailer for the winter as there's no question in my mind that a covered trailer will survive winter snow & ice much better than an uncovered, unprotected trailer.
jbjuices
Explorer
Sep 12, 2017
It's a pain to cover, but I do. You pay that much for a camper, you want some protection so it doesn't look like ****. It takes about 30 minutes to cover, which is not bad considering the alternative. We bought our cover at Camping World (on sale) and bought the warranty with it. The replacement warranty is awesome because I trade that out every 3 years for a brand new one (you do have to buy a another warranty on the new cover, but its better than paying another $300-$400. I found out the hard way that wheel covers are just as important. Had to replace 2 of my tires because I didn't cover.