Hi Iam new...a newbie

[RETIRED]

Hi
Likes I said I am new to RV'S. I would like a RV for retirement for one to three people at most. Usually one or two. I would like a eggshell for a number of reasons.

1) I would like to keep it all year on my driveway. I have looked into this. Because of bylaws I can do it provided it is parked in my garage. Problem is height of garage door is 82 1/4 inches high. It might be possible to put it in garage if I use smaller rims (no rubber) and/or a rims cut down just for storage. Other choice is to heighten the garage door opening. I will try and avoid that if possible. Anyone know the diameter of the drums without the rims? Anyone done this and what was the net loss in height? I would like to use a Trillium as they seem to be the lowest in height.

2) I like the eggshells because they are light in weight, narrow, short and hopefully easy to tow. Great for one or two people.

3)They are easy on gas and can be towed by many cars/mini vans. My mini van is rated for 2000 lbs. (I do not have the tow package which is 3500 lbs.) but I had to replace the rad. with a heavy duty one. So I bet it is now 2400 lbs. Will add a large tranny cooler when I get a eggshell. That should raise it to 2800 lbs.

4) Looking for a late model/new eggshell like a Trillum size. No pop ups. Prefer same Dimensions as the Trillium ( no wider and no higher), must have a shower with a portable potti.

Right now I am looking for a Trillium or a Scamp. Is the Scamp 100% fiberglass? I have done a lot looking into the Trillium and it falls a little short of what I need but is still a possibility

Please your opinions especially anyone with the garage door opening height problem.

[carlkeigley]

Welcome to the forum.
Thought a Lil Snoozy would do for you, but they are 89 inches high.

Can't speak to the other brands.

[deryk]

maybe a cadet...something with a little poptop would fit in a garage easily. Just because you add a few of the components doesnt necesarily raise the tow capacity sad to say. But there are smaller fiberglass trailers that might work for you...

check this link to see some trailers and their weights of various people at events... you don't know what they have in it exactly but would give some ideas.

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...rld-43010.html

[carlkeigley]

Don't know if this is still out there or not, but it's a Cadet

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...tml#post377375

[deryk]

compact II are nice too ... just hard to find

[David B.]

Originally Posted by carlkeigley

Welcome to the forum.
Thought a Lil Snoozy would do for you, but they are 89 inches high.

Can't speak to the other brands.

With small 8" golf cart wheels swapped on, one should be able to get a Snoozy through a 84" (standard 7' door) door opening. I presently do this for my Scamp, and have ruled out the Park Liner because there is no way to make it through the 7' opening.

[carlkeigley]

Originally Posted by David B.

With small 8" golf cart wheels swapped on, one should be able to get a Snoozy through a 84" (standard 7' door) door opening. I presently do this for my Scamp, and have ruled out the Park Liner because there is no way to make it through the 7' opening.

Now that's a thought. I would never have thought of doing that.
I bought a metal garage with 10' side walls before I bought our Snoozy.
Didn't know what we would wind up with, but was ready with a roof. lol.

[RETIRED]

Hi

Thanks for the reply. The Lil Snoozy is too wide for
"me and my garage" Snoozy is 7' 11". The trillium is 6' 7" wide. The Trillium is perfect width. But the height of the Snoozy I think is OK If is use smaller rims for storage. I like the rest of the Snoozy.
My RV must have a shower and a portable porta potti too.

In any small RV I can add a small generator for cooking, heating and heating of a hot water tank. Propane tank is not necessary, it is a bonus.

[deryk]

look at his tow weight... just because you add a tranny cooler doesn't mean you can tow more weight.

[RETIRED]

Originally Posted by David B.

With small 8" golf cart wheels swapped on, one should be able to get a Snoozy through a 84" (standard 7' door) door opening. I presently do this for my Scamp, and have ruled out the Park Liner because there is no way to make it through the 7' opening.

You have been thinking. You have a good brain. 8" golf cart wheels. Hmmm something to look into. Do you know the total diameter of the 8" golf cart wheels?

[RETIRED]

Originally Posted by deryk

maybe a cadet...something with a little poptop would fit in a garage easily. Just because you add a few of the components doesnt necesarily raise the tow capacity sad to say. But there are smaller fiberglass trailers that might work for you...

check this link to see some trailers and their weights of various people at events... you don't know what they have in it exactly but would give some ideas.

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...rld-43010.html

I spoke to my car dealer where I bought it. The only difference between the 2000 and 3500 lbs. tow capacity is the heavy duty rad. and engine oil cooler. I already have the larger rad. The engine oil cooler I do not have so instead I will add a large tranny cooler. The engine and transmission is the same for both tow ratings. That should be ok since I will be towing about 2000, maybe 2200 lbs. fully loaded.

[RETIRED]

Originally Posted by David B.

With small 8" golf cart wheels swapped on, one should be able to get a Snoozy through a 84" (standard 7' door) door opening. I presently do this for my Scamp, and have ruled out the Park Liner because there is no way to make it through the 7' opening.

Unfortunately my garage door opening is 82" and not the standard 84". However I may be able to remove some trim wood below the steel lintel bar which would add 1.5 to 2 inches more clearance. I need to see that in daylight, it's is pitch black now. I am crossing my fingers. With the golf cart wheels it might be OK I hope. This is the lowest cost solution and the simplest one. Otherwise I need a contractor to open up the height of the door, new door too.

If this works out then I go shopping for a egg.

[Donna D.]

Hi Mitchell, to FiberglassRV, we're glad you're here. I just wanted to pop in and say "hi."

[honda03842]

Mitchell, Definitely no roof air conditioner will help. Dave's solution works well.

I notice you did not mention the brand of your tow vehicle nor your engine size. What are they?

[Thomas G.]

Re getting under the garage door. Some people use the 8" wheels with no tire on it to even lower more. Another solution is to use car dollies under the hubs like those in the link below.
Vehicle Dollies - 2 Piece, 1500 Lb. Capacity

Does your tow vehicle need a transmission cooler or an engine oil cooler? Some vehicles , like the Sienna need an engine oil cooler that is very expensive ($1200) to retrofit. A transmission cooler is generally quite inexpensive.

[Bob Miller]

Don't know if I have ever seen an FGRV with a shower and a porta-potty. Unless someone took out the original loo, by the time they get a shower they usually have on board black & gray water holding tanks.
I have seen pop-up tent trailers with showers and cassette loo's though.

Any yes, the Scamp is all fiberglass, but the 13' is very, very tight for more than 2 with the bathroom/shower option.

As mentioned, the Hunter Compact series as well as the Campsters were all designed to fit in a garage as-is. Our Compact-II has a bathroom and an outside shower panel, but again, is suited for no more than two.

[David B.]

Originally Posted by David B.

With small 8" golf cart wheels swapped on, one should be able to get a Snoozy through a 84" (standard 7' door) door opening. I presently do this for my Scamp, and have ruled out the Park Liner because there is no way to make it through the 7' opening.

One more thing of note, I use a small dolly with a hitch ball mounted on it, and connect it to my Jeep's winch, to drag the trailer through the door, as there will not be enough room to keep the trailer connected to the tow vehicle. I would probably use the car dollies as someone else posted, in place of the 8" wheels if I had a paved driveway. Good luck with your quest.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by deryk

Just because you add a few of the components doesnt necesarily raise the tow capacity sad to say.

tow capacity is normally set due to the weakest link - which in most cases is the back end components and the tugs frame.

yes the Scamp is all fiberglass. But you will be hard pressed to find a used 13' Scamp with a bathroom - especially in your area unless you are willing to import it as I did. Its more common to find a 16' with a bathroom but its weight and height will not work for you - even then you will be hard pressed to find many of them in Canada. Its also really hard to find/keep a 16' under 2500 lbs loaded even without any water in the tanks.

Due to your location I would think you would find it a lot easier to find a used 13' Boler. No bathroom but it would fit your weight restriction and have a better chance of fitting into your garage.

I understand the garage need as I also cant park a trailer in my driveway from Nov 1 to April 1 other than to load it or unload it. Even in the summer months it has to be moved/used at least every 30 days. To get around that some people use commercial facilities to store their trailers in the winter months. Some RV dealers and fairgrounds located some distance out of the urban areas offer pretty good deals on winter storage. A member of my family found a spot for $120 for the whole winter. Often means though that once the trailer goes into the cheap storage it cant be moved out again until a set date.

Good luck with your search.

[RETIRED]

Originally Posted by David B.

With small 8" golf cart wheels swapped on, one should be able to get a Snoozy through a 84" (standard 7' door) door opening. I presently do this for my Scamp, and have ruled out the Park Liner because there is no way to make it through the 7' opening.

I measured to day and the max garage door opening is 84". +/- 1/8".
what is your max opening. What was the clearance to top of Scamp?
Did you have to remove the exhaust fan?

[RETIRED]

Originally Posted by Thomas G.

Re getting under the garage door. Some people use the 8" wheels with no tire on it to even lower more. Another solution is to use car dollies under the hubs like those in the link below.
Vehicle Dollies - 2 Piece, 1500 Lb. Capacity

Does your tow vehicle need a transmission cooler or an engine oil cooler? Some vehicles , like the Sienna need an engine oil cooler that is very expensive ($1200) to retrofit. A transmission cooler is generally quite inexpensive.

The dollies don't look like the best idea. The 8" wheels look better. The hub is 7"? and a 8" wheel with no rubber is better. I know that seems like 1/2 " from the hub but it is actually 1" from hub to ground (this I know from work). Example if you car/truck is 15 inch rims go measure total rim diameter and you will see it is about 16". How close are the dollies to the ground? Dollies must be less than 1" otherwise it is better to get 8" rims.

My mini van is stock 2000 lbs. Tow option is 3500 lbs. And this is with the stock engine/tranny as there are no choices. The tow option included a heavy duty rad and a engine oil cooler. For odd reasons I had a heavy duty rad installed a year ago. When I get a egg I will install a large tranny cooler. That should do the trick because I will go probably to a max of 2200-2400 lbs.