burro interior

Can anyone tell me if the Burro interior walls are carpeted? My wife has asthma and this is a problem for us. We looked at the Casita and they are very nice but the walls, ceiling, floors are carpeting so we have to find something else. The Burro seems like a nice alternative depending on walls. Any info is appreciated. Thanks.

[MyronL]

Walls are not carpeted. There is a narrow strip of carpet on ceiling and down front and rear walls. On mine, this strip of carpeting is aahhh.. about 20 inches wide, I think. Newer burro designs I think employ a narrower strip.

I installed this carpet in my '81 burro, currently still being restored. Glued on with contact cement. So if you had to it could be removed and replaced with other material, perhaps even plastic.

[Rand]

Hi,

If you can find a Burro you will be in luck!...the two I have seen and think all are built this way have a fiberglass inner wall...so you have two fiberglass walls and that's how it is insulated...works great. It is a shame they went out of business!!!!!!!!!

OOps! I sure didn't see the carpet on the ceiling in the ones I saw...guess I better get back to the eye doctor!!

Randy:-)

[Per Walthinsen]

Andystato:

On our year 2000 the ceiling strip is 8" wide and covered with white vinyl. No carpeting except if you choose to have some on the floor. Walls are easy to clean with a damp rag.

[MKohlman]

Can anyone tell me if the Burro interior walls are carpeted? My wife has asthma and this is a problem for us. We looked at the Casita and they are very nice but the walls, ceiling, floors are carpeting so we have to find something else. The Burro seems like a nice alternative depending on walls. Any info is appreciated. Thanks.

Burro's were double-shelled, having a gel-coated fiberglass surface both inside and out. Most all of them has a carpet strip about 20" wide running down the middle of the ceiling to cover the roof seam but this would be a pretty easy item to pull and replace if you had to.

In our 13' Burro, for example, our roof-seam carpet was replaced with a layer of reflectix and a "top" layer of pebbled fiberglass sheeting (same stuff you see covering the walls of a lot of restaurant kitchens) which I got from the local Menards. With the floor covered in Wood-laminate, this makes our little mule carpet-free and remarkable easy to clean up.

MEK

[Steve DeWeese]

Nobody mentioned that U-hauls are built like the Burro. They both have fiberglass interior with the roof seam. Just trying to widen the search a little.

[jack maloney]

Steve is right. Burros and UHauls have smooth gelcoat interiors that are bright, easy to clean and hypo-allergenic. They also seem less claustrophobic inside than carpeted interiors. The narrow carpet strip on the ceiling is easy to replace.

The downside: Burros and UHauls aren't as easy to find. The bright side: when you find one, you'll love it!

[Suz]

What about Bigfoot and the Escape? I don't think they have carpet.

Also, if you are wanting smaller, 13 and 14' Trilliums will also be available very soon. For me, the thing that I'm always the most interested in is the bathroom facilities. When I inquired about this, here is the response that I got:

My intention is to offer both 1300 & 4500 models with a bath/shower.
As you may know, the 1300 molds are already built. So, it will be relatively easy to get this model going again.
The 4500 molds need to be made from scratch, so the time element is a little uncertain.


I think this is VERY good news -- and I don't think they have carpet either.

[BOBSMITH]

Yep, having a full bath was just about the most important secondary feature for us. Both my wife and I wanted to have access to a shower and toilet when we go camping at the semi-developed campgrounds that are our favorites in the National Forest system. Also, we like to visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and the campgrounds in the park do not have shower facilities or even hot water in the bathrooms. So a Casita with a full bath was a must.

That's very cool news that the Trillium folk are going to make an effort to have a bathroom option. My feeling is that they won't be able to compete effectivly without that option.

As someone noted, I don't think that the Escape has carpeted walls. My wife and I researched the Escape and we like it a lot. It's quite a good tralier.

[Brian B-P]

The Escape which I saw has vinyl-surfaced foam-backed lining on the walls, and smooth fabric-faced foam-backed lining on the ceiling. Neither is at all like carpet, and neither is "rat fur" pile fabric. As the Escape Trailer fact sheet explains, this is automotive headliner material.

Currently Bigfoot uses "Washable vinyl wall panelling" and "Marine quality fabric headliner", as described in the Features & Options list on their travel trailers page. I believe that the wall panelling is the interior surface covering their polystyrene foam insulation board, while the ceiling material is a finish for the plywood which covers the foam under the roof as can be seen in Bill Abbay's Odds and Ends page. Perhaps the fabric-on-plywood could be replaced by a panel like the walls if too much fabric is a problem. Older "little bigfeet" (the 13' Bigfoot model, for instance) look much more like other small "eggs" - my guess from their more curved shape is that they do not used foam board insulation and paneling, but I've never seen inside one.

On the other hand, the Trillium Outback uses a carpet-like material on all wall and ceiling surfaces, except where the moulded fiberglass interior fitting form the backsplash in the kitchen area. That smooth fiberglass area is conventional for small moulded fiberglass trailers. I have no idea what the new/revived Trillium will have; they have an updated and much more specific web site (including, for instance 1300 specs), but I don't see a mention of surface finish except for the carpeted floor.

All of these brands, like Scamp, Casita, Boler, and just about everything else, are single-shell designs, with a gel-coat exterior finish. Something is usually applied to the interior of the shell everywhere it is exposed to provide an acceptable finish (rather than raw glass-reinforced plastic), and for insulation.

[SandraD]

Our 13' Bigfoot (1990) had an upholstered interior. The upholstery fabric was backed with a material similar to Reflectix and applied over very soft foam insulation (think pool noodle consistency), which was glued directly to the fiberglass. We're about to - after some serious de-mildewing- glue vinyl over the foam to make a washable interior.

[Loren G. Hedahl]

SandraD -- How are you going to do the serious de-mildewing?

[SandraD]

SandraD -- How are you going to do the serious de-mildewing?

With bleach and some elbow grease.

[Loren G. Hedahl]

And how are you going to keep from de-mildewing your lungs?

Don't ask me why I ask.

[SandraD]

And how are you going to keep from de-mildewing your lungs?

Don't ask me why I ask.

Well, I was planning to wear a respirator. And of course I now have to ask "why do you ask"?

[Donna D.]

Well, I was planning to wear a respirator. And of course I now have to ask "why do you ask"?

I think he was trying to tell you to be careful because of respiratory infections associated with mold.

Minnesota Department of Health

[Loren G. Hedahl]

The mold in our Scamp never bothered for the 2 - 4 day trips we did for several years. Then we tried a 3 week trip trial taking the Scamp instead of the Avion.

Upon returning I developed a nasty upper respiratory condition. In the course of doctoring and treating, it was decided that it was probably a mold that set it off. It was explained that the body will tolerate exposure for just a short time with little effect. But at some point the body is overwhelmed.

So in the course of tracking down the mold, I also found out how bad chlorine is to the respiratory system.

A respirator with filters for chlorine would be good. Also, don't spray it on. Use a brush or paint pad or paint roller.

[SandraD]

The mold in our Scamp never bothered for the 2 - 4 day trips we did for several years. Then we tried a 3 week trip trial taking the Scamp instead of the Avion.

Upon returning I developed a nasty upper respiratory condition. In the course of doctoring and treating, it was decided that it was probably a mold that set it off. It was explained that the body will tolerate exposure for just a short time with little effect. But at some point the body is overwhelmed.

So in the course of tracking down the mold, I also found out how bad chlorine is to the respiratory system.

A respirator with filters for chlorine would be good. Also, don't spray it on. Use a brush or paint pad or paint roller.

Thanks, I appreciate the advice. Did you wind up de-mildewing your trailer or just taking shorter trips from then on? If you de-mildewed - or if anyone else has - does the mildew get under the foam (EPS?) insulation too? We weren't planning to remove that, just to soak it in bleach/water (which we will now be applying with a roller).

Just as an aside, the mold colonies under the vent hood were at least an inch thick and were producing their own special slime - mmm mmm.