Winter Camping - how warm on the inside of your Popup TC

[countrycampers3]

Best place to get answers to things I don't know is ask those that have experienced it.

Thanks for taking the time to help me out. There are many factors in weighing out decisions. Your straight answers will help us answer this last question we have.

Considering getting a Popup TC.

So those of you who have winter camped in a popup tc. If temperatures dip down into that 0 degrees range, what type of temperatures would it be on the inside of the TC.

Example: 0 degrees outside, 50 inside.

Another Question?
I've heard there is a lot of condensation on the inside of the TC do to lack of insulation in cold weather.

Do you crack a ceiling vent to elevate that problem like in a hardside? OR What??

[magic43]

We regularly camp in the Outfitter in October in Colorado and yes, it sometime gets down to 10 degrees at night. We crack the roof vent and set the digital thermostat on the furnace at 40 degrees. We can quickly warm it up in the morning before "get up" time.

[Dvoigt17]

We have camped in our Hallmark down to 5 degrees with -20 degree wind chill with no issues. We have a Wave 3 (vented correctly) with furnace as backup. We have the heat turned down 50 at night unless it gets to warm to sleep. Just spent New Years weekend up at Marry Jane. Pic is from last year at Crested Butte.

[Geewizard]

cewillis wrote:
Never camped at 0 degrees, but significantly below freezing. No problem maintaining 60 inside while awake, 50 at night. Furnace is pretty noisy though. If you want to go for 'arctic pack' extra insulation, really button it up, and get one of these , a well made popup could be pretty toasty.

Ditto. I installed a Wave 3 heater and now don't have to put up with the loud furnace. I don't have any added "arctic pack" insulation in my Outfitter......and don't need it.

[SidecarFlip]

It's so cold here today (-25 wind chill, 3 actual) that keeping just the house warm is a chore. It's barely 65 in here with the wood stove going full blast and the furnace coming on to pick up the slack. I would not want to be in any RV today, anywhere cold.

[Oldtymeflyr]

We have been to -10 degrees a number of times and once down to -35, at which temp the regulator on the propane system froze, moved to a warmer location.

The Outfitter has a large furnace and it kept things warm. We like 45 give or take at nights maybe 60 during the day. 30# tank would last 3 days. Carried a 5# tank just in case.

No problems with the tanks, they were heated by the furnace.

Rick

[SidecarFlip]

cewillis wrote:
Never camped at 0 degrees, but significantly below freezing. No problem maintaining 60 inside while awake, 50 at night. Furnace is pretty noisy though. If you want to go for 'arctic pack' extra insulation, really button it up, and get one of these , a well made popup could be pretty toasty.

Nice country. Reminds me of my hunting trips...

My furnace is noisy as well, I think all RV furnaces are with the exception of the Cirrus hot water unit but, don't bother me at all. After driving over the road for decades and sleeping behind an idling diesel, the furnace is a non-issue for me. Cannot speak for the wife though I've never asked her. She hasn't crabbed about it however.:B

[SidecarFlip]

cewillis wrote:

SidecarFlip wrote:
Only pop up that I'm aware of with a 'slide out' and it's not really a slide out but rather a fold out sleeping space is the Northstar.

Outfitter started making Junos with flip out bunk areas years ago.

Didn't know that but like most things, I don't claim to know everything. Nice camper, I went and looked at it.

Nice price too. A bit beyond my realm of a camper though, especially a pop up. 40 puts you firmly in hardside territory if you must have a hardside which, I don't.

If we had kids then a viable option but for 2 of us, not required.

[cewillis]

SidecarFlip wrote:
Only pop up that I'm aware of with a 'slide out' and it's not really a slide out but rather a fold out sleeping space is the Northstar.

Outfitter started making Junos with flip out bunk areas years ago.

[cewillis]

Never camped at 0 degrees, but significantly below freezing. No problem maintaining 60 inside while awake, 50 at night. Furnace is pretty noisy though. If you want to go for 'arctic pack' extra insulation, really button it up, and get one of these , a well made popup could be pretty toasty.

[SidecarFlip]

Only pop up that I'm aware of with a 'slide out' and it's not really a slide out but rather a fold out sleeping space is the Northstar. No one else does that and I agree, most pop up TC's will be smaller. In actuality, a good thing because they are geared toward limited camping and seasonal use but surely can be used in the winter, no issue so long as one follows some common sense guidelines that apply to all RV's in the winter, not just a pop up TC.

[SidecarFlip]

Bedlam.. It will depend on the BTU output of your furnace and of course your propane supply and battery capacity. In my case I run my small inverter genny anyway so battery longevity isn't a big issue.

My pup up has a standard sized furnace and while I don't remember the BTU output, it's plenty. I could run the inside temp up to I'd say 80 with no issues no matter what the outside temp is but we like it in the 60's max anyway, where we keep our house at as well.

Being northerners, guess the cold isn't a big issue. We dress accordingly and sleep accordingly.

Of course a pop up will loose heat faster than a hardside but considering the minimal wall thickness of a hardside and the lack of insulation (on most but not all), the transfer of heat from the occupied space to the outside isn't a factor we worry about.

So long as your heat source is sufficient and you have sufficient propane to run it, all is good.

[Bedlam]

My experience was only with a pop up trailer and everything else was hard side, but these things don’t change:

1. The less insulation you have, the more fuel and battery you will burn to keep a desired temperature.
2. The greater the inside air temperature difference is verses the inner walls, the more condensation will form.
3. Air exchange and movement is vital to keep condensation down.
4. Once your heater gets to the point where it is constantly running and not cycling you have reached your limit. You can add insulation to reduce heat loss but now know the minimum temperature in which you can comfortably camp.

I camped in hard shell campers down to single digit nights, but only down to low 30’s with my pop up because I couldn’t keep it comfortable when any colder. I expect a pop up truck camper will be able to hold heat better than my trailer but don’t expect performance like your previous Northstar hardside.

[SidecarFlip]

Condensation inside any TC (or for that matter any RV) is an INDIRECT result of not much insulation but more so a direct result of a tight living space (homes breathe through air infiltration RV's don't) coupled with the human occupants aspirating moisture from their bodies and cooking which gives off a large amount of moisture not just from the boiling water but from the propane burners themselves and has no where to go but condense on the cold walls, windows and ceiling and places you cannot see...under the wallboard, on the frame structure and in the insulation that's under the wallboard, all contributing the the eventual demise (rotting) of the unit.

The cold water glass example on a hot day. Water condenses on the outside of the glass.. An RV is cold on the outside and inside walls, occupants and cooking gives off moisture. Moisture condenses on the cold surfaces. Simple really and the answer is simple too.

You need to vent to the outside at all times when in the unit. Know thats counter productive, you are heating the space to keep warm but you have to vent off the inside humidity od bad thins will happen. Might take a while but it will eventually degrade the unit.

Far as winter camping goes, My furnace keeps out pop up very comfortable no matter what the ambient outside temp is. We typically keep the inside temps at 65 during the day and 60 at night, we sleep under a down blanket but at all times the ceiling vents are open a bit and at least one lower window is cracked open as well even though the tent is closed up and the windows on the tent have reflectix over them.

Haven't been out this winter but I was last winter on my Northern Michigan property in sub freezing temps with no issue other than using quite a bit of propane for heat. Glad I run twin bottles. Over the course of 3 days I went through one and a half bottles.

Only difference between a pop up and a hardside is the upper 1/4th is canvas. Other than that, no difference. Roof is the same as, as are the sides and the bottom... and of course the same issues (condensation) appear, just like any other RV and you deal with them in exactly the same way, by venting the interior humidity out.

To me, the big advantage is of course a lower vertical Cg, much less wind resistance at speed, easier storage in the off season and an overall lower unit weight. Unless you have a commercial type garage, you ain't getting your TC inside. I put mine in my garage next to the truck in the winter. Inside, protected from the elements and not outside, all pluses in my view.

[joerg68]

As long as have enough propane and electricity, the furnace will keep you warm. Not all popup TCs are the same, so there is no telling how warm exactly. Our Outfitter was specified at 65 inside with -25 Outside, I think. We only used it in slightly below freezing weather, and that was no problem at all. With the limiting factor being electricity. One battery, one night, as the old saying goes... And solar may not be very effective in winter, with short, dull days and a possible snow cover.

Condensation is always something you need to take into account. Again, not all popups are the same, but keeping a decent ventilation going is never a bad idea.

Just keep in mind that popup TCs tend to be smallish, so it can be somewhat uncomfortable if you need to spend a lot of time inside due to weather.

It is absolutely possible to winter camp in a popup TC, and many people do so successfully. But only you can know if it will work for your use case.