Camping in hot weather

[Travelinsarah]

Hi Guys, We are in the market to purchase our first trailer but first we are going to rent a few see what works for us. We are going to Kern River for Labor Day and it's super hot in Sept. We are renting so, do you think we could go in a hybrid or should we go with the bunkhouse? We have a vehicle that can only tow 3500 so we are a bit limited. I found the KZ Spree Escape 196S and the Jayco Feather X17Z. There are going to be 5 us. Me, hubby, 2 year old, 16 year and mother in law. Thanks and happy camping.

[profdant139]

jim, I think she is on board -- she will probably take the long way around. Sarah sounds like a person who carefully considers her options before making a decision.

[jimx200]

Towing up and down Grapevine with that little SUV is asking for trouble. Go rent a Suburban or similar with a V8 and enjoy. We farmed in Tulare and Kern Counties for years, driven trucks, pulled all kinds of trailers, and a big Class C over GV many dozens of times and no way would I do what you propose. Grapevine can be tricky, especially when windy (often), panic stops are scary, and the downhill gravity is strong and why GV has runaway exits..God forbid. You get a inexperienced driver who hit the brakes or cuts off drivers and that Kia is not something I would like to be in with a panic stop. Rent or borrow a safe tow vehicle. Ford Expedition will safely to the job.

[AppFire]

Looks like you need the trailer package on the kia for the 3500# towing rating, hopefully you do... Most lease agreements does not let you tow either....

Chris

[rbpru]

You are renting it, so go with the floor plan you like the best. A lot of your questions will be answered and it will have been your "best guess" not someone's opinion.

If you like it fine, if you sort of liked it okay, if it just did not work out as planned, oh well, you are going to give it back anyway.

Floor plan remain, when all else is accepted of forgotten.

My 25 ft. TT did just fine in the 90 degree plus heat this week end. We were in the shade and the AC it kept the TT in the upper 70's. I would not have wanted to test it in direct sun. We were outside in the heat and humidity most of the day, so sleeping in a cool TT at nice was a real treat.

Good Luck

[profdant139]

Sarah, that's another thought -- when you rent the trailer, make sure that the brake controller is properly adjusted. If you are not confident that the rental agency knows what they are doing, just Google "how to adjust trailer brake controller." It's not a hard job.

Some folks will say that you should be able to reach down and trigger the controller manually in case of a skid or a bad sway event. Frankly, I doubt that I would have the presence of mind to do that in an emergency, but apparently some folks can. If that ever happens, I will just have to trust that the controller will do its job while I focus on the steering wheel.

I should add that in 13 years of towing, and well over 100,000 miles, I have never had to make a panic stop. I try to anticipate bad situations and leave enough room that if another driver makes a mistake, I will still be ok. So far, so good . . . .

I should also add that although you will find towing stressful at first (judging by my own experience), it gets easier and easier. It will never be as easy as not towing. Towing requires an extra layer of vigilance.

[CA_STORM]

boosTT wrote:
That's a lot of trailer for that little suv.

The trailer isn't going to have brakes if it under 3500 lbs also.

She lives in CA. Any trailer in California over 1500 lbs must have brakes.

[SoundGuy]

boosTT wrote:
The trailer isn't going to have brakes if it under 3500 lbs also.

Sure it will, even much smaller, much lighter popups often have brakes these days.

[boosTT]

That's a lot of trailer for that little suv.

The trailer isn't going to have brakes if it under 3500 lbs also.

[2edgesword]

Welcome Sarah.

I think it's a GREAT idea that you're renting a trailer before buying. We did the same and it gave us some real understanding of what trailer ownership and use requires and what we wanted/needed when we were ready to buy.

You can probably get more in a hybrid versus a hard sided trailer with respect to what your current tow vehicle can handle. We owned a KZ E204S (slightly large then the 196S). We had it for six years and it was a great trailer. Usually it was just the two of us but we did make some trips with up to four people. It gets a little cramped but we managed. I think you're going to find having five people in a trailer of that size is going to be a tight fit.

[SoundGuy]

Travelinsarah wrote:
O.k. Sound Guy - I'm not an idiot. We are taking two cars. I will for sure abide by my towing capacity - would you like to see the worksheet? These are single axel rigs under 3000 lbs dry.

FYI we also have the SX which is a V6 engine not the V4.

http://www.keepyourdaydream.com/payload/

Fordlover wrote:
Good job on doing your homework. Sound Guy sits up on a VERY high horse, so sometimes it's a bit hard for him to see us mere mortals with our feet on the ground. :W

One thing I never saw spelled out before I got my first camper was that full height campers are probably the most challenging trailer to tow.

Baloney. :S

About the only sensible comment you've made is your last ... towing any full height trailer is not just about weight, it's also about the significant effects of wind resistance at highway speeds, just as you've acknowledged yourself. :R

[Fordlover]

Travelinsarah wrote:
O.k. Sound Guy - I'm not an idiot. We are taking two cars. I will for sure abide by my towing capacity - would you like to see the worksheet? These are single axel rigs under 3000 lbs dry.

FYI we also have the SX which is a V6 engine not the V4.

http://www.keepyourdaydream.com/payload/

Good job on doing your homework. Sound Guy sits up on a VERY high horse, so sometimes it's a bit hard for him to see us mere mortals with our feet on the ground. :W

One thing I never saw spelled out before I got my first camper was that full height campers are probably the most challenging trailer to tow. Even if you have extensive experience with a boat, utility or car hauler, the TT's just have tall front walls and tall sidewalls that catch a lot of air, and a bunch of tongue weight that simply make the tow vehicle and the driver work harder.

Best of luck with your choice.

[SoundGuy]

CavemanCharlie wrote:
If you get the TT a few days before your trip go to the local lumber yard and purchase some Foil Backed Styrofoam. Cut, it to fit (pop into) all of the windows. Use it during the day to help out the air conditioner.

Reflectix window inserts make more sense as they take up no room to store, are as easy to make as cutting them out with a pair of scissors, and work wonders at reducing the heat load A/C has to deal with. I used them in a previous popup but the same technique can be applied in any trailer. A series of 6 pics showing how I built mine starts here.

[CavemanCharlie]

If you get the TT a few days before your trip go to the local lumber yard and purchase some Foil Backed Styrofoam. Cut, it to fit (pop into) all of the windows. Use it during the day to help out the air conditioner.

Can't hurt.

Try not to go in and out to many times. Every time you open that door you are letting a lot of cold air out and a lot of hot air in. (At least according to my dad back when I was a kid growing up. lol)

[TechGoneWild]

We have a hybrid and love it. Passport 2017 217EXP, 3 queen popouts, dinette turns into a queen and couch into a twin. Amount of space is amazing and at 6'1" even I can stand straight and take a shower in it. Our A/C unit worked great at temps in mid 90's, infact the only thing lacking is counter space. Lofs and lots and tons of storage. But little counter space. Dinner prep happens on the dinnete table or outside on our plastic folding tables we use as our outdoor kitchen. HTT has all the plumbing for the outdoor kitchen with quick connect propane line. So yes we use it. Love it. We did just buy a brand new yesterday 2019 Connect 241RLK, but that is for when the wife and I travel alone. 5 kids and a grand requires just a bit more room.