Quote:
Originally Posted by rumbleweed
Make sure you have some pool noodles. Also you will find that considerable moisture penetrates the mattress and condenses on the top of the bed tray making the bottom of the mattress damp. Not a big deal, but you will need to remove the mattress when you get home to dry out.
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We just purchased a 2013 Trailmanor 2027 SD and in the process of updating it to current technology. As far as cold weather camping we were in Moab when it hit 9 degrees F two weeks ago today just before dawn. We had a Little Buddy Propane heater inside to support the forced air furnace pointed at the aft bedroom. We had electrical hookups so we weren't concerned about the furnace running the batteries dry.
I had taken the step to get some pool noodles and pipe insulation (also fantastic for making sure the hanging cabinets and wardrobe don't get beat up on rough dirt roads) around the bed and my wife found a decent draft behind the wardrobe and we stuffed pipe insulation it it and it was fine. Thanks to the folks that suggested using pool noodles around the bed area. I had also put down Reflectix insulation under the bed. The condensation between the bed and the Reflectix is a problem as we noticed mold under on our mattress cover. We washed it and it seems fine. We are planning on using a pair of twin 12v mattress heaters to deal with that problem and wanted to know if others have had a similar issue and what they did to correct the issue.
We also had really good luck with Reflectix cut to fit the windows. Going the full "Cousin Eddy" saved us a ton of propane such that the forced air furnace actually shut off at 15 degrees F in the middle of the night because it was that warm inside.
Our next issue was the previous owner had put peel and stick gray foam door insulation to prevent door drafts and at anything below 15 degrees F we had to defrost the door with the portable propane heater before it would open and we have a little dog that needs to have a bit of personal time early in the morning. Any suggestions there would be appreciated, probably more by the little dog as we fire up the Coleman coffee maker and climb right back into bed as it goes to work.
We did have a water protocol for each night. Our camp host would turn off the water each night and wait for the temps to climb to 35 degrees F before turning the water back on. We left the plumbing drains open and all of the faucets open inside. Please let me know if this in y'all's experience is excessive.
We don't have a heated supply hose (yet) so we would disconnect the supply hose, filter and regulator stow that inside after topping off the water tanks and making sure the hot water tank was full. We would open the plumbing drain valves and open the under sink cabinet door and the bathroom door. We did have the gray water drain open and a had a sloped drain hose to the sewer connection and never had a problem with the gray water operation. Overnight we used water jugs. In the morning when the temps would climb above freezing, I'd run outside and close the low plumbing drain valves and fire up the demand pumps and we were good to go for the day. When the camp host turned back on the supply water, I'd hook up the supply hose and refill the tanks.
I do have plans to put some underbody insulation and pipe heating this season.
Cheers, Brian