Trailer skirts??

[Jon in AZ]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

Yes, but attaching and supporting it is the problem.

Originally Posted by k corbin

It could be supported with a frame of pvc pipe. The pipe does not have to be glued together. Slip joints so that it can be disassembled and stored. Stitch rod pockets into tarp fabric rather than using clear plastic. Leaving a flap at the base of the fabric pieces to pile snow or dirt onto it or alternately putting grommets into the flap so that it can be secured down with tent stakes. While it won't be air tight it will block the majority of the wind. To add additional ability to hold it in place you would add more grommets around the top to tie it to the bumpers and axle.

Quod erat demonstrandum.

[Friz]

I like to sit out in the lawn chairs in the evening. When it's cold and breezy, the wind coming under the trailer is uncomfortable. Here's my windbreak.

Next election, go to the voting site the day after. Gather up 20 or so political signs of the same size. They will be happy to have you pick up the trash.
Remove the wire supports. Measure the circumference of the trailer.
Lay the quantity of signs needed out on a flat surface.
Duct tape every other one of the signs together (sides).
Flip them over, duct tape the remaining ones. This will allow the whole assembly to fold up into a neat stack. Cut out where necessary to clear steps, etc. I only made mine long enough to cover one side of the trailer, since a windbreak was the only purpose, but would help reduce freezing. The whole thing was self supporting when curved around the ends of the trailer.

Cost: $1 worth of duct tape. The corrugated plastic is fun to work with, great for other projects as well. I used 50 of them to cover my roof after a hurricane. They lasted a year.

[Byron Kinnaman]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

Yes, but attaching and supporting it is the problem.

There are numerous ways of attaching.
One is where the rivets are that hold the decorative trim put snaps there then mating snaps in what ever you're using

Tuck the skirting material up under the lip and duct tape it in place.

That just two the possible attaching methods.
If there's snow pile snow on the outside bottom of shirting material.
Or put sand or dirt on it.


Sometimes it pays to think outside the box.

[Lisle]

If using the plastic, you'll need to find a way to secure the bottom. If you're camping in the woods, you might be able to find tree branches to put on the bottom edge of the plastic to keep it from blowing. And putting a light bulb that will generate a little heat may be a good idea. I've used a drop light inside an uninsulated chicken coop to keep the water from freezing even at low temps.

[Fred762]

I may try a redneck solution..4 mil roll of plastic, bricks at bottom and gaffer tape @ the top.

[Glenn Baglo]

Gaffer tape isn't real keen on sticking when it gets wet.

[Jon in AZ]

Originally Posted by Byron Kinnaman

There are numerous ways of attaching.
One is where the rivets are that hold the decorative trim put snaps there then mating snaps in what ever you're using

Tuck the skirting material up under the lip and duct tape it in place.

That just two the possible attaching methods.

...
Sometimes it pays to think outside the box.

I was specifically referring to the use of thin plastic as the skirting material. I would never attach duck tape to any surface I cared about, and snaps won’t work on thin material. Wind will tear it loose unless it’s stretched taut on a framework, which defeats the simple and portable requirement.

A whole line of snaps along the bottom of the trailer in conjunction with vinyl skirting is probably the commercial solution. Not cheap even if you do it yourself, but neat and effective. Might be worth the trouble if you plan to use it a lot.

I love the idea of the old campaign signs! Now that’s my kind of out-of-the-box thinking.

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

I would never attach duck tape to any surface I cared about,...

Ahhhh, but it depends on the Duct Tape. Some, the glue turns to concrete. But, I've used No Residue Duct Tape successfully. Left on my trailer Jan-April and NO residue. Waterproof too. Win-Win

[Pierregy]

What I saw in British Columbia was something like a Cool Shield Thermal Bubble Roll being used as a skirt on the trailers. The ones that stayed in one place for the winter used snaps to attach it skirt to the trailer. It looked relatively easy to roll for travelling. I'm still a little stuck on (no pun intended) how to attach it for quick removal and attachment on a fibreglass trailer.

[Fred762]

Originally Posted by Glenn Baglo

Gaffer tape isn't real keen on sticking when it gets wet.

I dunno, but the gaffer tape WE use has been "tested" and seems to work.

ie..I read several posts last year in various forums, telling about some outside shower doors "popping open when a big truck passed going the other way on 2 lane roads"..their shower hoses flipped out and got caught under the L wheel, resulting in expensive repairs needed.

Several responders said they had used different door locks, and several said gaffer tape (white) was their solution. I tried it and it seems to work..a small piece added to the side of the shower door just beside the lock, helps our peace of mind on long hauls.
Easy to apply and easy to remove w/o sticky residue. + it's white and there4 does not show.
BTW we use that same gaffer tape to tape 2mil plastic film over all of the various openings when we winterized last November..keeping bugs and dirt daubers OUT of the trailer and refiringerator. I have checked the covers often and so far the gaffer tape is holding..tho it IS under a Casita cover too. It seems to be helping keep out moisture, bks the tub of Damp-Rid we put on the floor is still hardly used up and looks to be good to go till March.

[Danmc44]

Originally Posted by Pierregy

What I saw in British Columbia was something like a Cool Shield Thermal Bubble Roll being used as a skirt on the trailers. The ones that stayed in one place for the winter used snaps to attach it skirt to the trailer. It looked relatively easy to roll for travelling. I'm still a little stuck on (no pun intended) how to attach it for quick removal and attachment on a fibreglass trailer.

Could you use neodymium magnets to attach a skirt to the exposed frame?

These magnets are very powerful. Attach the bubble wrap to a plastic tarp with enough "tail" to use site acquired rocks, sand, logs to hold the skirt to the ground.

[Jon in AZ]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

Ahhhh, but it depends on the Duct Tape. Some, the glue turns to concrete. But, I've used No Residue Duct Tape successfully. Left on my trailer Jan-April and NO residue. Waterproof too. Win-Win

Thanks for that, Donna. Based on past experience with duck tape, I was skeptical of such claims, but your experience is encouraging.

Duck tape or duct tape... that is the question!

[Glenn Baglo]

Duck tape was originally made with cotton duck cloth.

Duct tape is made with an aluminum foil.

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Glenn Baglo

Duck tape was originally made with cotton duck cloth.

Duct tape is made with an aluminum foil.

Yeah, then I screwed up the spelling in my post.


It's DUCK Tape... No Residue.

[Kevin in Denver]

Originally Posted by Friz

I like to sit out in the lawn chairs in the evening. When it's cold and breezy, the wind coming under the trailer is uncomfortable. Here's my windbreak.

Next election, go to the voting site the day after. Gather up 20 or so political signs of the same size. They will be happy to have you pick up the trash.
Remove the wire supports. Measure the circumference of the trailer.
Lay the quantity of signs needed out on a flat surface.
Duct tape every other one of the signs together (sides).
Flip them over, duct tape the remaining ones. This will allow the whole assembly to fold up into a neat stack. Cut out where necessary to clear steps, etc. I only made mine long enough to cover one side of the trailer, since a windbreak was the only purpose, but would help reduce freezing. The whole thing was self supporting when curved around the ends of the trailer.

Cost: $1 worth of duct tape. The corrugated plastic is fun to work with, great for other projects as well. I used 50 of them to cover my roof after a hurricane. They lasted a year.

That stuff is called twinwall if you need to actually buy it.

[Iowa Dave]

The Thinwall will also work for a muskrat stretching board for at least a couple muskrats and the support wires can be cut and bent for a fishing rod and reel holder for bank fishing to keep your reel out of the sand or dirt. Waste not want not.
Iowa Dave

[grimjed]

I don't know if this has been mentioned before.
Have you looked at Air Skirts? https://www.airskirts.com/ They are crazy expensive, but appear to do the trick. They can be purchased in kits or as separate pieces: https://www.airskirts.com/product/skirt-tube/
I'd like to get these, but the cost is prohibitive for me.

[k corbin]

skirting for cold weather>

you can accomplish one or of both of these things.


1.keep cold wind out from under the trailer. That can be just a relatively thin wind block made out of a variety of weather resistant materials either ridged panels or vinyl like products including tarps.


2. Reduce heat loss from your trailer's heated interior. That requires thicker traditional insulation materials such as closed cell foam products that do not absorb moisture. Straw bales will work but they might also attract nesting insects and rodents and they do absorb moisture. Products that absorb moisture can get moldy so do take that into consideration when making choices.


Of course any warm, dry, area that animals and insects can get into is going to create potential issues for them moving into it. So take that consideration into mind when designing your skirting scheme. Skirting that is not buried into the soil at the bottom is going to have mice and other creatures burrowing under it. You should put in an access panel(s) for occassional inspections during the winter. The animal types that might move in are rodents including squirrels and chipmunks, also raccoons, possums, feral cats and dogs, etc.

[k corbin]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

How do you drive tent stakes into or shovel frozen ground /earth ?
When we camp in the winter we use a dome tent .

I do not drive in traditional tent stakes, it is too hard on my mid 70s aged hands and wrist. Instead I do what a friend taught me, use large, long Timberlock type of screws with a pair of fender washers that fit onto those screws. Both Home Depot and Lowes sell those heavy fastener types that are used to fasten 4x4 and larger timber materials. You use a battery powered drill/driver to put them in and remove them. Fast and easy and worth the investment in the screws as you can use them for many years. Starting on my 4th year of using the same screws, none have ever broken! Not for loose beach sand but they work find in the forest areas, prairie grasses and in the rocky desert soils too. Frozen ground should not be an issue for them to be driven into as those screws cut their own path into materials.