Anyone converted Casita to 4-season capable?

[vdan40]

We live in Colorado and have a Casita Freedom Deluxe 17'. We'd like to camp in the winter and are wondering if anyone has attempted to modify/convert a Casita to keep it from freezing up. Note, we have the heat strip but not a furnace.

[Stephen_Albers]

I've always thought it ridiculous that an RV owner MUST PAY green money to take his investment out of service for several months of the year because it was not up to the rigors of the real-world environment, and then PAY AGAIN to put it back into service. Yet nearly all RVs require this. Your Colorado winter camping aspirations are right in line with my thinking. The Casita would be a wonderful fun in the snow machine. But it is certainly not set up for it from the factory. Another wonderful capability is negotiating unimproved roads which it cannot handle either. I started with a new chassis, axle, brakes and tires from Bill Hilman's modifications to achieve unimproved road capability that is shown here:
https://youtu.be/zkfaMf4JCUg

I then revamped the entire trailer to achieve 4-season capability (-20F to +130F). The project isn't quite finished yet. But that is my goal. More information on request.

[Thomas A Cronquist]

I would like to see all the upgrades and the cost of these upgrades.
I to would love to 4 season camp in my Independence Casita 2019.

Thank you,
Tom C

[Jon in AZ]

Personally I’d start looking for a Bigfoot 2500 series 17.5’er. It starts with thicker 1” wall/ceiling insulation and thermal windows, as well as protected, heated holding tanks.

You could put a lot of money into your Casita and still not have what you get right out of the box with the Bigfoot. Some of the upgrades, like the thick insulation, would not be practical to add to your Casita at any price.

Owning a warm weather RV does not have to mean taking it out of service for 4-5 months. For many it means taking it to warmer places during the winter. But for those who want to seek out cold weather camping and winter sports, the Bigfoot is the better tool for the job.

[ShelbyM]

Stephen, did you come up with a double pane or otherwise improved window solution? If so and you have time to post about it, I think lots of us would be interested.

[Perryb67]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

Personally I’d start looking for a Bigfoot 2500 series 17.5’er. It starts with thicker 1” wall/ceiling insulation and thermal windows, as well as protected, heated holding tanks.

You could put a lot of money into your Casita and still not have what you get right out of the box with the Bigfoot. Some of the upgrades, like the thick insulation, would not be practical to add to your Casita at any price.

Owning a warm weather RV does not have to mean taking it out of service for 4-5 months. For many it means taking it to warmer places during the winter. But for those who want to seek out cold weather camping and winter sports, the Bigfoot is the better tool for the job.

For a year we owned both a 25' RQ Bigfoot and a 17' Casita Spirit. I don't know why anyone would try to turn a Casita into a fully-insulated 17' Bigfoot. The Bigfoot is made for rough roads, and fully insulated with proper double pane windows, heated tanks from the factory, and would be easy to upgrade the suspension if needed, but the Casita would only be marginal at best.

Our Escape 5.0 with thermal windows, black tank inside the camper, extra foam insulation underneath, 17' body behind our tow vehicle, 465 watts on the roof, and high clearance is a much better start for colder weather off-grid camping than our Casita ever was. We've camped around 0 F once and many times at 10 F. Our Escape is what we could call a 3 1/2 season camper, but not 4 season, much less with the comfort the the Bigfoot provided at less than 0 F.

Enjoy,

Perry

[Governor Bud]

I'm on second season using my Bigfoot 21 throughout winter here in NH. I'd agree with Jon about Bigfoot's 4 season capability. I have an oil filled radiator running off 110 keeping the interior at 60 degrees. All the plumbing's been winterized and use the campground's facilities for water needs. It's great to be in the snow and use the camper year round.

[Nick J]

I pulled most of the interior out of my Scamp 13 and adhered 1 1/2” and 2” foam just about everywhere using great stuff foam (it is great stuff) to the fiberglass shell, the difference is remarkable. The last three winters I have heated it 24/7 and it keeps it quite comfortably warm, I should note I use a Dickenson P9000 propane heater and I rarely turn it up as high as low. (I live in NE WA state 15 miles from Canada) I have a 10gal forklift propane tank and it lasts about 2 weeks when I’m in it, longer when I am using the trailer for storing materials to prevent freezing. Do check out the P9000, any heater with open combustion will be a real PITA. BTW, you might need to be modestly maniacal to do this to a new trailer as I did.

[Rockytop]

We use our Casita for 4 seasons if we want to, but our winter season consists of traveling to places where the weather is more agreeable for the hiking, biking, and paddling that we like to do as opposed to cross country skiing and those types of outdoor activity. I wouldn’t want to tow a camper in wintry conditions anyway, so it isn’t a big sacrifice, and I would not want to pay extra to buy a trailer equipped to do things I wouldn’t even desire to do. So, I’m glad there is an alternative available. Since the vast majority of RV owners limit their outdoor activity to sitting in chairs outside their trailers, they wouldn’t go camping in the winter anyway.

[Yvimij]

Originally Posted by vdan40

We live in Colorado and have a Casita Freedom Deluxe 17'. We'd like to camp in the winter and are wondering if anyone has attempted to modify/convert a Casita to keep it from freezing up. Note, we have the heat strip but not a furnace.

I have spent quite a bit of time winter camping in Colorado and New Mexico in my old 1998 Casita Patriot. Temperatures down in the zero range have never been a problem. The propane furnace will keep things hot on even on the coldest nights. Never had a problem with anything freezing, but the Patriot is pretty basic as far as plumbing goes. The only thing I do for extra insulation is some Reflectix cut to fit the windows. I do dress appropriately for the weather and use a good sleeping bag at night.

The Casita bounces around on rough jeep trails, but as long as I pack well and keep speeds appropriate it will follow along behind my 4x4 without any problem.

[EllPea in CA]

I agree 100%.

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

Personally I’d start looking for a Bigfoot 2500 series 17.5’er. It starts with thicker 1” wall/ceiling insulation and thermal windows, as well as protected, heated holding tanks.

You could put a lot of money into your Casita and still not have what you get right out of the box with the Bigfoot.

[LuckyPenny]

I have a 13’ Burro that had an original propane heater. It worked but didn’t heat much above 4” from floor. I had that removed & had a chinese diesel furnace installed (vents to rear). It really heats up space & is fuel efficient.

[jgilliam1955]

I agree saving your money & getting a Bigfoot would save you money. Plus they are a great step up from a Casita.

[Komrade]

I've slept in both Bigfoot 17.5 and Casita 17.
Casita becomes uncomfortable below 45 even with heat on.

You should try sleeping in Casita a few times when its near 30 degrees.

Bigfoot has other benefits beyond insulation. It is 2 feet wider, which helps with bulky clothing and storage.

Given BigFoot has a "wet basement" (where all the pipes and tanks are) you can just run a little heater there to keep things from freezing. You can't do that easily with a Casita.

Bigfoot is 1000lb+ heavier than Casita.

[frthompson]

I agree with the consensus on this post on the superiority of a Bigfoot for winter camping, but have you tried to find a used 17 ft Bigfoot in the US lately? I'm interested in some mods to a Casita to make its a little better suited for occasional winter use. Interested in the forums feedback on this-- what about moving the black and gray water valves back to right by the tanks, so you don't have liquid in the long exposed drain pipes, and possibly insulating the gray water tank?