Do Bigfoot Travel Trailers stay cool in the HOT south?

[TurnThePage]

Bigfoot trailers are well insulated, but are only offered with an 11k BTU air conditioner. Just wondering if anybody out there has experience with one of these units in a hot or humid environment.

[Durb]

I had a 2004 Bigfoot 25 ft. rear queen. Had it numerous times in the high desert of Oregon, temperatures up to 105 degrees. The combination of reflective double pane windows and a minimum amount of interior cubes allowed the trailer to cool extremely fast with a 13.5k unit. Holding 70 in 100+ degree temperatures was not a problem. We would caravan with a group of other couples. The women would sit in the Bigfoot with the air on drinking wine while waiting for their rigs to cool down. The outside air was dry if that makes a difference. The nature of the hull design allowed that the air conditioner could not be ducted and just blew from the ceiling. As stated above, the insulation isn't that thick but the lack of studs and roof joists means that there aren't many heat gain pathways.

We had more issues with the cold rather than heat as moisture management became an issue. Once we figured it out things were good. They are tight and pretty much impervious to whatever nature wants to throw at it. Mine was in hail and severe rain plus an encounter with a tree branch, no damage.

They still make the 25 ft (22' box) model. Unlike the Oliver, a Bigfoot is 100" wide so room for a full bath and walk around queen. FYI, brochure weight was 4,800# but in actuality dry weight was over 5,200#.

[Tom_Trostel]

It's a 1980 17'. Not a 4 season model, (only 1" of Styrofoam in the walls, ceiling and floor) and no double pane windows. We've had it for 9 years. Camped from Durango to Dayton & Duluth to Orlando and many points in between.

[TurnThePage]

CampingKen, I've looked at Escapes before and do like them. Just a little too little though.

Tom Trostel, what size is your Bigfoot?

[Tom_Trostel]

We use our Bigfoot all year in Texas. We've camped when the temperature is still 95 degrees at 10 p.m. We've never had a problem with the air conditioner keeping it cool inside.

[campingken]

TurnThePage,

If you like Canadian trailers take a look at the Escape brand. They are made in BC, are similar to Bigfoot but cost a lot less. However their longest bumper pull is 21 ft.

We owned a 21 ft. Bigfoot and it had plenty of room for the 2 of us plus the dog.

[rockhillmanor]

No trailer is insulated enough against 95+F and 95% humidity.

X2
No trailer is insulated enough for high temps. All and all you are sitting in a box under the blazing sun. You will find out real quick all what you will need to do inside the TT to make it just bearable.

Staying in Florida in the 'summer' with my RV made me a believer it is not pleasant.:(

I would just add.> I wanted a Bigfoot RV real bad. That is until I found a dealership that had them and when I looked at the sewage lines?

They were SO FAR "UNDER" the coach you had to get on your hands and knees to connect it. Needless to say I passed on the Bigfoot.

So just a tip, look at where the sewage lines are on the one you are interested in and if you can live with crawling under the TT every time to connect to them! That is unless they have since changed the location on the connection.:W

[TurnThePage]

And that would indeed be my basic plan. I try to live by the old boy scout motto though too. 🙂

[rexlion]

It makes the best sense to do the southern states explorations in the cooler months. Utah in summer, for example, you'd probably be stuck inside by the A/C doing nothing from 10 or 11 am until 7 pm. If you plan those trips for times when it isn't beastly hot, your A/C issue won't be so much of an issue and you'll be comfortable. JMO. Living in Oklahoma, my summer trips are to the north (like Michigan) or to the mountains where it's cool enough to get outside; sitting indoors due to heat is something I can do at home.

[TurnThePage]

Though I haven't convinced myself to purchase anything just yet, I'm trying to narrow down my options. I will probably always live in the northwest, but would love to spend some extended time exploring this continent. I prefer trailers. Of the trailers, I lean toward non-slide units, though it needs to be roomy enough for two to not trip over each other. I also want something that is not likely to break easily, and can stand up to a variety of weather, including heavy hail. Only two brands that I can think of that meet those requirements; Bigfoot and Oliver, though the Oliver unit would still be pretty cramped. Outside of those, I'm leaning toward Outdoors RV's smaller trailers (20FQ), and one or two models from other manufacturers. The other fiberglass trailer brands are just too small.

[wrenchbender]

As a 15 year Bigfoot owner I can honestly say 2 inches of foam does not keep it much cooler just a little more comfortable.For my rig the A/C does a great job.

[kerrlakeRoo]

Remember these are built largely for a Canadian market. Heat is a more frquent need than AC.
You being in Idaho, if you want to consider your average daily highs of the low 80's in Coeur D'Alene in June -Sep, it will be fine, but even there you have had record highs of 109, under those circumstances, no.
I would think if you were looking at ordering a new one, you could probably get it upped to 13.5 or a 15. If used, check on what they do for wiring, if they prewire all of them verify wire size.
The roof openings, or hole you would have to cut are the same from 11K to 15K for most brands.

[theoldwizard1]

No trailer is insulated enough against 95+F and 95% humidity.

Find a way to get the A/C upgrade !