Scamp13 owners, how many can they REALLY sleep? - Fiberglass RV
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Old 08-03-2015, 06:18 PM   #1
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Name: Christyn
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Scamp13 owners, how many can they REALLY sleep?

Looking for some advice from them that knows . We are a family of three, we are strongly considering the Scamp 13 but with the front bath (a must-have for us)...I know that takes away the possibility of bunk beds, so my question is realistically, if you had the dinette table put down with the bed set up and a mattress for the floor space in front of the kitchen, how many could you REALLY sleep in there? Seriously just two? A kid if they're little? Four adults could squish in? We're hoping that dad and the kid(s) would sleep in tents outside but for bad weather or parks with bears etc. we would want the option of getting everyone inside in a pinch. We don't need luxurious amounts of space certainly but we would like to be able to eventually get two adults and two teens all in there possibly (and a dog, am I getting ridiculous?) even if a little squished.
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Old 08-03-2015, 06:48 PM   #2
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We are four in a Scamp 13 with front bunks and it's very tight. I could not imagine three or four in the front bath model. The lowered center floor area is a little more than 36" square. The floor under the dinette is raised 6".

At one point we tried putting one of the kids on the floor with a 5" compact crib mattress on top of a 1" folded blanket with her feet extending under the dinette bed. It was very uncomfortable for her, and no one else could move around inside the trailer because there was no floor space left. The contortions I went through just to get up in the morning (I rise earlier than the rest of my crew) were pretty comical. We abandoned that plan.

Our girls are now 9 and 12, and they sometimes sleep outside in their own tent. When we all need to be inside, I share the bunks with the older, and the younger shares the dinette bed with my wife, sleeping head-to-toe. Head-to-toe is the best way we found to fit two people comfortably in the 45" dinette bed.

I honestly can't see more than two people in the front bath version.
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Old 08-03-2015, 07:05 PM   #3
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The single reason we sold our 13' Scamp w/bath was because it was to small, and there were only two adults. Basically, with the bed made up there is no place to be. Adding in more would be a real crowd.



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Old 08-03-2015, 07:08 PM   #4
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We do 4 people in a scamp 13' with bunks. Wife and daughter at 5'8" and husband and son at 6'2".

I can't imagine putting anyone on the floor if you had the bathroom unless they were very small (up to 2yrs old perhaps). Even then, you would have almost no room to maneuver to even get to/from the bed. The danger of being stepped on would be very real.

Since we have 5 people in the family, when the 5th kid comes he sleeps in a tent or in some circumstances the minivan. I would suggest a vehicle would be much more comfortable/spacious than the floor of the scamp.
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Old 08-03-2015, 07:16 PM   #5
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If you can tow a S-16 you have much better sleeping options. If you are buying a used trailer there have been some real nice deals on some S-16's lately. In some cases the same year and better equipped S-16's are selling for less than the S-13's.
S-13 FB two people. Sleeping on the floor rarely works out.
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Old 08-03-2015, 07:58 PM   #6
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I cannot find any Scamps nearby to see in person so this is hugely helpful, thank you! We may be in a bit of a bind, our car could not possibly handle a 16' (questionable on the 13') and upgrading the TV may push this entirely out of the realm of financial possibility. So clearly only 2 and maybe a baby or dog could sleep in the trailer, I suppose someone could sleep in the car though that sounds kinda unpleasant.

I was thinking originally it would be great for mom and dad to sleep in the trailer and the kid(s) have a tent and rough it like kids like to do but it has occurred to me that dad would have to rough it too for many years till they would be much older for safety reasons of course. Hmmm
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Old 08-03-2015, 08:05 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Christyn Midwestyn View Post
I cannot find any Scamps nearby to see in person so this is hugely helpful, thank you! We may be in a bit of a bind, our car could not possibly handle a 16' (questionable on the 13') and upgrading the TV may push this entirely out of the realm of financial possibility. So clearly only 2 and maybe a baby or dog could sleep in the trailer, I suppose someone could sleep in the car though that sounds kinda unpleasant.

I was thinking originally it would be great for mom and dad to sleep in the trailer and the kid(s) have a tent and rough it like kids like to do but it has occurred to me that dad would have to rough it too for many years till they would be much older for safety reasons of course. Hmmm
A tent is no more unsafe that a Scamp trailer. We took our kids backpacking at 4 years old and they slept in their own tent. At 40+ they're still sleeping a tent. Remember we live in a paranoid world today. You either continue with the paranoia or ignore it.
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Old 08-03-2015, 08:10 PM   #8
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Using an add-a-room with a sidewinder awning might work pretty well like below plus the privacy walls. of course maybe two could sleep in the TV. We do a setup for king bed which would work with small children.
Realistically a Scamp13 front bath is perfect for two, providing they like each other.
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Old 08-03-2015, 08:26 PM   #9
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The outdoor room is definitely an option I had not considered!

Here's a question, if the closet to the left of the door when you walk in was removed, would that make any significant difference in being able to fit another bed in that area? I know the closet and kitchenette are structural to the actual shell but perhaps a support could be custom made I suppose? I have seen that done on a vintage Burro...
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Old 08-03-2015, 09:46 PM   #10
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In your case the dog has the best room in the house. The dog gets the space under the bed. Skip the front bathroom and use a porta potty tent. If the kids are small now you can manage with your smaller car. As the kids get bigger the you can move up to a van as your tug and everyone gets more space.
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Old 08-03-2015, 09:52 PM   #11
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Thirteen is good for two. We try to think how to fit a small gradchild in our front bath model. Can't be done, other than to velco him to the ceiling or hang him vertically in the bathroom. If he ever joins us we will bring our tent as well.
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Old 08-04-2015, 06:48 AM   #12
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Let me throw out one more idea. If the kids are quite young, and nobody in the family is claustrophobic, it would be pretty easy to rig a bunk bed over the dinette bed. To make it simple, it would mean sacrificing the dinette for a permanent bed, but if the bath is priority #1, that is an option. If you go this route, NEVER FORGET to put down your rear stabilizers!!
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Old 08-04-2015, 07:27 AM   #13
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Christyn, since letting go of the bathroom is non-negotiable, and I sense you really want to stick with a 13' trailer (the larger ones do lose some of the "cute" factor...), here are my thoughts...

An add-on room is nice, but it won't stand much wind, and if it's well-made with side walls, it will be fairly heavy and bulky.

A good quality, lightweight family-sized tent would be more secure for sleeping in bad weather than the add-a-room, and can generally stand up to windy conditions that would necessitate taking down the awning.

It would be nice to leave the inside of the trailer as-is so you'd have the dinette, galley, and bathroom on a rainy day. Think of it as your personal space while your husband camps, though you might share in a pinch.

Rather than tearing out the inside of the trailer for back-up sleeping space, look for a tow vehicle that could sleep a couple of people. Long before I owned a trailer, I used to sleep very comfortably in the back of my 1993 Subaru Legacy. We have a 2011 Honda Pilot now, and the back folds into a nice flat (slightly inclined) space that could sleep two if needed. I don't consider a mid-sized, V6-powered crossover (Pilot, Highlander, Santa Fe, Pathfinder, Explorer,...) overkill for a 13' egg when you're talking about bringing a whole family, extra camping equipment, toys, pets,... It would also leave open the option to trade up to a larger trailer later as your family grows and if you were so inclined. If you are willing to shop used, it wouldn't necessarily break the bank, either.

Minivans may lack the cachet of SUVs, but they also make great tow vehicles, have a ton of space for traveling, and generally cost less and get better fuel mileage than crossovers. Another possibility...
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Old 08-04-2015, 07:33 AM   #14
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Scamp13 owners, how many can they REALLY sleep?

Christyn -

The standard engineer's answer is "It depends.". 😉
What size main bed are we talking about?
How big will the child become during ownership of this trailer?
Are you creative and willing and able to do mods?

A while back we briefly slept 5 in our Scamp13 with the 54" bed and the sofa/bunk beds.
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/s...ad.php?t=68650
(Hint: My wife and 2 teenage granddaughters slept in the 54" double bed.)

I have seen a mod where someone constructed a 54" tall bunk over the foot area of a 54" main bed.

If you have access to a standard 54" double bed, you could try sleeping in some sort of a "head to toe" arrangement.

I think that you may find that sleeping more than 2 people is a bit cramped. Since many people camp in tents and pop up trailers, I'm not sure why the bathroom is essential, but that is purely your choice. Just realize that it really limits your "inside the trailer" sleeping options.

For "outside the trailer" living/sleeping options, we carry either of 2 CLAM screen room/tent units (CLAM 1660 or CLAM Traveler). These units have no loose poles and offer a simple 45 second setup (not counting staking it to the ground.) With the optional wind/privacy panels, the screen room can become a private sleeping space or porta-potty space. Even purchasing both sizes of CLAM screen rooms and panels costs several hundred dollars less that the $900 that Scamp wanted for an awning (that I would never leave up in a storm and which offers no protection from bugs.) Check Amazon.com and/or YouTube for CLAM screen room/tent prices and video setup descriptions.

Good luck!

Ray








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Old 08-04-2015, 07:59 AM   #15
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Christyn --

I don't think you have mentioned what your tow vehicle actually is. If you tell us, it will start the inevitable he said/she said about viability for the purpose. So, I will just say this - the 13' with bath does not weigh significantly differently than a standard 16' without bath. The 16 has plenty of room for your people, and a closet to hold a porta-potty.

But, I am guessing that it is all a moot point. If you are that pressed on capacity with your tow vehicle, you are probably over the limits for the 13' with bath, too. The elusive 1000# weight that is so often referenced only applied to a totally stripped and empty base 13, without appliances, cooktop, propane tank, cushions, spare tire, etc, and even then very few ever weighed that little.

My suggestion -- please don't tell us what your tow vehicle is. Just tell us what it is factory rated to tow. If we know that, we might be able to suggest a solution that gets you out camping.
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Old 08-04-2015, 10:18 AM   #16
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most State Park and National Park campgrounds that I go to all have wonderful bathrooms and showers. My suggestion would be keep the bunksby Get a porta potty for emergencies that slide under the center bumk unless you plan to do a lot of boon docking and then you can't use the shower anyway.you
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Old 08-04-2015, 10:21 AM   #17
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We have the 13 foot front bunk option and the smaller dinette bed. In ours we sleep kids on the bunks (11 and 13 yo) and my husband and I in the bed. I'm on the smaller side, 5"6" and 115 pounds and he is 6', 220 pounds. There is no way we could add one of the kids to the bed with us. It's cozy (which we don't mind) but there is zero extra space in our dinette bed. We may be a bit biased as we come from a tent camping background, but it's easy to find campgrounds with actual flush toilets and sinks for washing up, so having the extra beds for kids was way more important. We usually reserve campsites on line ahead of time, so often I will pick a site near the restrooms, so if someone needs to go in the night, it's close by. It was also helpful when the kids were smaller, that during the day, I could send them to the bathroom and watch them go there and come back, eliminating the need to walk them to and from every time.
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Old 08-04-2015, 10:49 AM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Byron Kinnaman View Post
A tent is no more unsafe that a Scamp trailer. We took our kids backpacking at 4 years old and they slept in their own tent. At 40+ they're still sleeping a tent. Remember we live in a paranoid world today. You either continue with the paranoia or ignore it.
Tents and soft sided campers are no longer allowed in a number of Yellowstone campgrounds, not due to danger from peeps, but from bears and other hungry animals.



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Old 08-04-2015, 10:56 AM   #19
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I do not have a 13 but really, really like my 16 for two humans and one medium dog. The floor is for a dog to sleep on IMHO. The dog just moves out of the way and does not complain when I get up in the middle of the night.

And to ask a question about the following excerpted quote from the OP: "We're hoping that dad and the kid(s) would sleep in tents outside". Is "dad" one of the "we" who are "hoping" that "he" can sleep outside in a tent? Speaking just for me, the "dad" in my bunch, I bought the Scamp so "I" could have an inside bed.
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Old 08-04-2015, 11:40 AM   #20
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Just curios your reason for the inside bath being a must? We have a Scamp 13 with front bunks and sleep 4 very comfortably. My girls are 13 and 19 and will not outgrow the bunks ever as we are a very short family lol. We have a porta potti for night trips and inclement weather. For privacy we set it up at night in the doorway area and use spring loaded shower curtain rod and shower curtain. Also makes a great changing area during the day if needed with easy and lightweight set up and tear down. So if the reason for the front bath is night time visits there really are other options that to me are easier to deal with than an entire add'l system that must be cleaned and maintained not to mention adding a lot of weight. Front bath Scamps are more tongue heavy. You didn't mention your tow vehicle but if it's marginal on weight you may find the tongue weight unacceptable in a front bath. We also have the 54" bed and regularly sleep 3 in it and 2 in the bunks when my daughter's best friend comes so my 4 sleeper becomes a 5 sleeper. We love it, it's perfect for us and we feel no need to upgrade to a 16 anytime soon
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