Frustrated by short beds and uniformed salesmen

[Stevensondrive]

We are shopping for our first travel trailer. Something around 26-30ish long. The lighter the better.....

I'm 6' tall aka 72". Most of the mattresses are only 74" long. So with my pillow I'll probably be hanging off the end and not comfortable. Some of the salesmen acted like they had no idea the mattresses were shorter.

I'm finding it frustrating to compare brands and features. We have a toddler so we need a bunkhouse with a tub. I looked at a Keystone Premier that had the bunkhouse but no tub. 😞

And finding what a fair price is annoying too.....

This whole process is frustrating

[Halmfamily]

If your not in a hurry wait until the fall or winter to get your best deal. It's a sellers market now, in December they will do almost anything to sell a unit.

[Stevensondrive]

Thanks for all the feedback. I'm actually looking to buy this winter. Just trying to figure out the market. I hadn't considered the water heater only being 6 gallons. The toddler will be 4 years old in a couple months. He really enjoys his baths so that's why I'm trying to get a tub. I'm amazed at how many options are available.

I had to reread a couple posts twice.

"No different than buying a new car. It's you that have made yourself frustrated. Slow down, keep looking and enjoy this major purchase. Buy the trailer first, then the TV that fits. If you already have the TV, watch your TV payload weight."

Lwiddis you threw me off. I had no intention of buying the television first lol!! Then I realized you were talking about tow vehicle ha ha

[Bols2DawaLL]

There must be a few brands that use "full" size queens . I know Coachmen Freedom Express line do even in their smaller trailers .

[ScottG]

I find it ironic that as people get bigger in every direction, the beds of RV's get smaller.

[troubledwaters]

I must disagree. We had a tub in ours ever since our 19 year old was 6 mo. old. We used the tub almost every night when he was little to give him a bath. A few gallons of hot water mixed with cold water (which is really warmish water sitting in the tank) goes a long way. Actually all you need to do is sit him in the tub with a little water in the bottom, and use the shower for rinsing him off. The extra room you get with a tub to do all this is priceless. Our new Aerolite came with a tub also. They are out there, you just need to keep looking until you find what you want.

[wrgrs50s]

We had a short queen in our first rig and we pulled the mattress out from the headboard about 6 or 7 inches and stuffed a piece of foam across it. Put a full queen size memory foam pad down over that and ahaaa !!! You could never tell the difference since your pillows went to the headboard anyway.

As far as a tub, you will only have a 6 gallon water heater and you most likely wont be able to run enough hot water to fill a tub anyway. A few couples I talked with told me that they had to heat extra water on the stove to make a decent tub of water for their baby.

[rbpru]

If you buy a bed at the store, they come in standards lengths and widths, twin, full, queen and king, they go into various size bedrooms.

The RV bed is placed if a bedroom of fixed width so the bed size is adjusted as needed to fit in with whatever else is crammed into it. There may common sizes for RV beds but they seem to be manufacturer/model dependent.

It is entirely possible that the salesperson does not know the bed size of every model. However, when the customer inquires, they should tell them it is an RV queen size etc. which is usually smaller than the standard size bed.

The RV industry does not spend a lot of money on the mattress either. Almost everyone end up adding a pad of some sort.

[RandACampin]

Stevensondrive wrote:
We are shopping for our first travel trailer. Something around 26-30ish long. The lighter the better.....

I'm 6' tall aka 72". Most of the mattresses are only 74" long. So with my pillow I'll probably be hanging off the end and not comfortable. Some of the salesmen acted like they had no idea the mattresses were shorter.

I'm finding it frustrating to compare brands and features. We have a toddler so we need a bunkhouse with a tub. I looked at a Keystone Premier that had the bunkhouse but no tub. 😞

And finding what a fair price is annoying too.....

This whole process is frustrating

Not to mention those uninformed consumers!

[Durb]

I'm also 6' and had a trailer with a RV queen. My wife used king size bedding and tucked it deep under the foot of the bed. My feet did hang over but they didn't stick out of the bedding and get cold. Not the perfect solution but I got used to it. The rest of the trailer was really nice and I didn't want the bed to be a deal killer.

[DutchmenSport]

More than likely, EVEN if you do find a camper that has a mattress your size, it won't be comfortable. Almost every mattress factory installed is junk. Mattresses are usually the VERY first think RV owners change when getting a new camper. (of any make, model, design, or class).

We got lucky with our Outback. It actually came with a decent mattress. We never had to swap it out. Previous 2 trailers we did.

About the mattress? Chances are you will swap it out anyway. So, if mattress is the #1 draw back, then take a tape measure with you when looking at various campers and measure to see if a standard size (length) mattress will fit. (check with slides IN!!!!). Even if the bed frame is a bit small, you can always add an extension support for the end of the mattress that might hang over. So, just because it's a short mattress, does not mean you can't swap it out. Just make sure the camper has room for a long one with everything buttoned up and all relevant slides retracted.

About "tubs"? IF you find a trailer with a bath tub, it will be so small, it will be virtually unusable. Your camper will probably have a 6 gallon water heater, which will not even be enough water to adequately heat, even a small bathtub, with enough water for even a small child to take a comfortable bath.

If your baby is a "baby", you are best to just get a child-size bath tub that can be stuck in a closet when not in use. Also, if the camper has a shower, you can always put a cover over the shower drain, fill the basin with an inch of water, and put the baby in the water on the basin floor.

6 gallons of hot water will not go very far... Tubs are useless in a camper. Teach the toddler to take a shower, or just simply give him/her a cat bath. Or better yet, hose him down outside.

Bunkhouse models are popular floor plans. But really ... kids will sleep anywhere and DO adjust to anything! Get a camper that is comfortable for you and your spouse FIRST! Kids second! Kids are along for the ride! You are the one paying the bill. Especially if your child is a toddler, he/she won't know anything different. Get what works for YOU first! Chances are very great that in 2 - 4 years you will be getting a different camper. As the kids grow, you're ideas will change too. So you really don't need to make this purchase a life-drama event or stress over it. It's not a life-long commitment. You will eventually change for a different camper. It just happens!

[Lwiddis]

No different than buying a new car. It's you that have made yourself frustrated. Slow down, keep looking and enjoy this major purchase. Buy the trailer first, then the TV that fits. If you already have the TV, watch your TV payload weight.

[RoyB]

What kind of uniform does the salesman wear? hehe...

They are just there to sell something... Doesn't mean you have to buy it...
Go with what you have learned from your own experience...

My 'you can tow this 5th wheel with any truck' still sits at the edge of the woods here and is a storage shed now haha... Put maybe 200 miles on from here to Roanoke VA and back . My F150 did not do well towing it... Going up hill was fine but coming down the other side was a 'Katie Bar The Door' experience...

I can go anywhere in my OFF-ROAD POPUP trailer my 4WD F150 truck will pull it and make it back alive and well with a smile on my face...

Roy Ken

[midnightsadie]

you will never find a sales person that can remember what every unit has in it. take your time the right one will come along.

[kerrlakeRoo]

You may want to look at the k-z C281bhk seems to meet your requirements
tub
bunks
80" bed
6800 gvwr
2 yrs warranty
but only a 1100 lb CCC

[Second_Chance]

You're going to be hard-pressed to find a lightweight travel trailer with a tub. You might find a Grand Design dealer and look at their Imagine line of travel trailers. All of the GDs I've been in have full-length beds (ours is a full-size queen at 62 x 80). Don't know about the bunks, though.

Rob