Second Thoughts

[Carl O]

As I've mentioned before, I'm looking for a trailer and I think it's going to be a 13' trailer, but.....I keep thinking, maybe I should get a 16 or 17' trailer instead.


I'd like to know if you had second thoughts about the style/size of trailer you bought, not necessarily the brand unless you could only get the layout you wanted in a different brand that you did not buy.

13' positives for me:

1. Even a Scamp at 7'6" tall (the new ones) fits through my garage door.
2. At 13' it fits in my tandem garage with my truck - no storage fees
3. It can sleep 4 people (my wife and two young sons)
4. It is easy to tow and set up.
5. Cost - less expensive to buy and I'm guessing to tow (gas $)
6. It is WAY BIGGER than my teardrop

13' negatives for me:

1. Since I need to sleep 4 people, I can't get a bathroom
2. In a Scamp specifically the stove is the same level as the second bunk and very close to the bunk, which scares me since my eldest son is only 5 and he'd be the one on the top bunk.

16-17' positives for me:

1. Sleep 4 with a bathroom
2. Stove is away from bunks or beds

16-17' negatives for me:

1. Set up? Is it more difficult?
2. Who wants to clean the potti? Not my life's ambition.
3. Storage. Would need to pay to keep it stored.
4. Cost to buy and tow > 13'

My truck can easily pull either (Honda Ridgeline). Scamp's 5th wheel looks nice, but see a different thread for reasons why I'm not considering this option.

I'm not really into the luxuries that come with the bigger trailers, so that's not a reason for me to decide one way or the other.

So, I'm sure I am not the only person to think about this stuff, did you have second thoughts and why did you decide on what you purchased?

I'm sure I and other 'newbies' will find your responses very valuable and interesting.

Thanks,

-Carl

[Per Walthinsen]

A couple of random thoughts: It all depends on what you use it for. Ours has served as a traveling motel room and more often as a boondocking camping aid. For four people the smaller ones could be a tight fit when the rain is pouring down and you are stuck inside.

Cleaning the potty can be distasteful but a whole lot better than the alternative at 3 in the morning with the rain coming down sideways and the outhouse is a long ways away.

We are not into luxuries either, but our central vacuum may not have fit very well in a 13 footer.

If you keep reading the forum you will find answers to almost anything. Good luck and good hunting!

[Bill Boone]

Hey Carl, Welcome aboard. Your needs for space for four people kinda make a 13 footer a litle tight but thats mostly whils sleeping or rainy weather. Most activities are outside.

We tend to want bigger and better but bigger is not always better in my opinion. I have had larger campers in the past but as I get older I find that all the extra work of set-up and take-down are more taxing. There are several 13'models that accomodate 4 o.k. but you usually have to sacrifice something else, like bath or closet.

You might think about 13' with one of the add on enclosed awnings which give more storage area for coolers and such. I'm sure there are folks here on the forum with the same requirements as you have and they will chime in when they log on. Good luck on your decision. Bill

[Donna D.]

I haven't regreted buying my 16 footer...not once. I love having the bathroom for those nightly trips or when it's raining and don't want to hoof it to the "facilities." Cleaning the bathroom in the trailer is not any more difficult than one in my home. And the payoff for having it is huge...to me.

Then too in your circumstance...you're at the beginning of the camping times with your children. They are going to grow. Will a 13 footer accommodate your family as well in say...five years In 10 years you'll have children old enough they'll probably want their own space...a tent right outside the trailer door...or?? But it's that "tweener" time you may have wished you had a larger trailer. The good part is used molded lightweight fiberglass trailers hold their value pretty well, if maintained and you wouldn't have a hard time selling and getting something larger...when it's really needed. But, if you get what you need...long term, you won't be doing the same mods twice.

So many decisions. Good luck in making yours

[CindyL]

I love our 13' but I now find myself looking for a longer trailer, even though it is not likely we could park one in our limited space. Even with two people, it can seem cramped. And even though we have a portapotty and have rigged out a shower, both have to be set up to be used. I would love a bathroom.

But our little one is really cute, fits in our limited parking space, and pulls like a dream.

CindyL

[Roger H]

Carl, I've had at least one of everything in the past four or so years... three or four of some of the sizes! Each has its relative merits and drawbacks. Some of the folks here use their trailer primarily as a hard-sided tent. Others, like me, use it as a mobile motel room.

From a financial perspective, you'll do much better buying a loaded 16' trailer even though it's initial cost may be higher. The difference is that there are more folks looking for loaded trailers than basic models so the market is always stronger. Nice 13' trailers sell well too, there just aren't as many folks looking for one at any given time.

I've had and used trailers since 1979. The one piece of wisdom I can pass on, especially with kids growing up, is that you seldom have "too much" space in one. Your needs will change as the kids grow, and unless you plan for that now, you'll actually spend more in the long run as your family outgrows a small trailer. You may eventually outgrow a 16' as well, but by that time, the kids can tent outside the door. Everyone sleeps better!

The one feature that I've found that I won't scrimp on is bed space (THAT only took me twenty five years to figure out ... or maybe it wasn't as important when I was younger ). But today, if I don't sleep well, the adventure goes poorly. At 6'5" tall, it's been a challenge, but there are trailers out there that accommodate me nicely. It took a while to figure out which ones, but I'm a happy camper right now!

The bath, some folks wouldn't have, and others (like me) wouldn't buy without. Most folks who have them though, even if they didn't think they'd use it, or even only use it for "middle of the night emergencies" won't go back to not having one.

It's a tough decision, and I wish you well!

Roger

[David Schroeder]

My wife and I considered a 13' in the beginning, but after we tried the bed found it to narrow at 46". We then looked at a 53" bed and couldn't believe what a difference 7" makes. The majority of the time spent in the trailer is in bed. The trailer we choose is only 1.5' longer (11.5' vs. 10' box) which yields a 7" wider bed and 3" wider goucho/bunk area with a bit more storage. The trailer fully loaded is only approx. 2000# which will be viable for a smaller TV if we opt. for that in the future.
The more deluxe the trailer, the more cabinets and storage/bathroom areas installed. This made the trailer seem more claustrophobic to my wife who is sensiitive to this. For the limited amount of nightly use, a portapotti has worked so far and is easily cleaned, maintained and stored. I am also interested in the disposable bag system that is odor and bio acceptable to toss in garbage. The deluxe 16' seemed more cramped than the 13' basic model.
There are lots of threads dedicated here on maintaining the more complex systems. Simple can have a big upside sometimes. We live in a time like no other in history for the vast number of choices available to us. May the choices you make bring you happiness.
Dave

[jack maloney]

My wife and I have a 13' egg, and it's perfect for us. But we don't even let our dog into it, it's that compact. For camping with 3 or 4 people, I would not consider a 13 footer.

[Christi V.]

Carl..
I have had the Scamp 13', Scamp 16ft side dinnette (which I love the layout ) and now the 5th wheel.... Ya know with the two small children you really may want to go to a 16 footer. I loved my 13ft ( just me and the 2 doggies ) but really wanted more room so sold that.... Got the 16ft loved it, but pulling it was white knuckle experience for me.... so I sold it... then I got this lovely 5th wheel... ( all were used and in great shape )
From what your saying I would consider the 16 footerw with the potty.. Its NOT really that bad.... LOL ..... I thought the first time i had to 'dump' it would be sickining but its not.. like donna said its no worse than your own bathroom at home... and lots of reasons like she said with NOT having to have a chamber pot around in the middle of the nite...
Even with the bathroom.. i use the public ones during the day and use mine at nite.

Maybe you could have time to run down the the NOG and look at some trailers.. that would really help you see visually to make your decission in purchasing one... I am sure there will be Scamps, Casita's and Big Foots there for you to tour.....

[DonInChatt]

Hi, Carl, and welcome. Another thing I would think about: if the 13 trailer is in the garage and handy, would we be more likely to use it than a 16 or 17 in a storage lot? Would I enjoy going out to the garage after dinner and tinkering around with things? Would the kids enjoy helping you tinker? (maybe you don't want to think about this one!) For me, having it close at hand is a high card.

I looked for 11 months before finding our trailer and I enjoyed every minute of the search, even the disappointments because I learned something. Even though our trailer is being gutted and restored and we've never camped in it, I am thinking down the road to the next one. Men are never satisfied.

[Donna D.]

Maybe you could have time to run down the the NOG and look at some trailers.. that would really help you see visually to make your decission in purchasing one... I am sure there will be Scamps, Casita's and Big Foots there for you to tour.....

Christi has this right. You can look at all the brochures you want, view pictures on the web and even talk to owners...but until you see one and look at the features of each, it's almost impossible to make an objective decision.

Click to go to the listing on this first post of all the trailers (and people ) coming to NOG. Quite a variety!
Northern Oregon Gathering - Part 2, Spring Event , April. 27-29, 2007

[Cam A]

What it boils down to - get whatever seems like the best choice and use it. Experience will show you what you need and don't need. The advantage of fibreglass trailers is that the depreciation is minimal - it should not cost an arm and a leg if you decide to sell your first trailer and get what you now know you want.

[David Schroeder]

Christi & Donna are, as usual, spot on. Discussing and theoretically picturing is fun,but seeing and physically trying out is far and away the best way to make good choices. If I were anywhere near NOG I be all over it just to see all the neat trailers.

[David Schroeder]

[quote]
Carl, I've had at least one of everything in the past four or so years... three or four of some of the sizes!

Roger,
I've noticed the list of trailers you've had in the past and was awed by the number and variety! What makes you tick? Is it just for the thrill? Attention deficit disorder? Alcoholism? Come on give.

[Jeremy Witt]

Hello,

We are a small family, mom & dad and two kids. Kids are ages 12 & 10 now. We started with a 16' Scamp (used) and have since "upgraded" to a 2005 13' Scamp.

Most of our camping is local and on the weekends so the 13' was perfect for us. We have spent a week in it with no problems.

We went down in size for many reasons, but mainly because the 13 foot trailers are so darn cute!

[Frederick L. Simson]

(1) did you have second thoughts and
(2) why did you decide on what you purchased?

I'll answer the 2nd question first:

We started out as tenters. We used KOA's when travelling, or when the weather was bad, we'd go to a motel. Then I saw an ad in an airline magazine for the Lite House trailer. It sure looked easier to deal with than setting up and taking down the tent, and foam cushions instead of a leaky air mattress! But I could not justify the expence of buying a new trailer at that time. I searched the "Auto Trader" magazine RV publications and found several Compact Jr and Compact II's which were older trailers that were similar.

The features we needed (for just 2 of us) were: a place to keep refridgerated medicine, and an easily accessable porta-potty; in addition to the hard sides & cushions. We did not plan to "cook" in the trailer, other than for morning coffee. The Compact Jr. we bought met these needs. It's bed was bigger than the Burro we had looked at.

[b]But that wonderful large bed in the tiny trailer became an irritant. There wasn't any standing room inside for more than one person at a time, and there wasn't enough storage space. I got tired of disassembling the 2 halves of the potty to empty it in the already limited space.

That led to finding the Fiber Stream.

[Gina D.]

I have not regretted any trailer I owned.

My first pop up was tiny, but it taught me the basics of towing with little risk and provided an off the ground camping experience that one likes as they get older.

I moved up because.. I had to live in it for two weeks and I didn't want to do that again in such a confined space with a literal full set up. The trailer was bare bones, everything had to come out of stowage and be set up.. appliances, everything.

I miss it because I could take it WAY into the back country without breaking a sweat. My camping spots were basically unlimited with it.

My second pop up was short lived, but it taught me about towing a BIGGER trailer and gave me a taste of what it was like to have more room. It was still bare bones, but had better stowage and was easier to set up

I also lived in it for a week, had the same thoughts about space and convinience, so I moved up to the 13 ft Burro.

I miss the second pop up because I could still get it into most places, but have LOTS of room if stuck inside.

Had the 13 for almost 3 years, enjoyed almost every minute of it, it taught me about towing a "big" trailer in perspective to my Element tow rig.

I lived in it for a month.. no bathroom.., having to work daily, shower and poop in a 13 footer with two dogs.. OK for a couple days, not long term.

I will miss it because of it's ease of use, cute factor and that I put my heart and soul into making it uniquely "mine".

Since I often use a trailer for work reasons, the bigger Burro came into play purely for the bathroom. I am sure once I learn the systems I will find ways to make the set up faster and work better for me.

Can't miss it yet, it's still here!

I always say "This is THE one" but who knows? I may move to a fifth wheel sooner or later.. but that remains to be seen. I haven't even slept in the 17 yet.