Dry camping

[trainshop]

Can anyone comment from experence about dry camping with a cougar 26bhs or any other keystone??? how,s the insulation,,ventilation battery use ect
thanks (tx)

[SteveC7010]

Can anyone comment from experence about dry camping with a cougar 26bhs or any other keystone??? how,s the insulation,,ventilation battery use ect
thanks (tx)

Very little difference from any other manufacturer's RV's.

Battery use is not a trailer issue; it is 110% dependent on how you do things.

[Nimbus]

Funny you should ask about dry camping. My wife & I are taking our 2013 Cougar 21' on our first trip into the Cascade Mts. The first two nights will be dry camping at a National Forest site. This is our first RV so we'll see how it goes. With the night temps in the upper 50's it should be fine with no AC.

The third night will be at an RV park in the Skagit area where we'll have hook-ups.

I plan to purchase a generator that has the power to run the AC etc.

We'll return & report!

[azlee56]

I love dry camping as a woman. The thing to watch for is what do you want to do. I like to watch movies, so the generator has to be there. I do that in early afternoon, then I sit out and about. You have to watch the fresh water and be careful with the black water. I will do dishes once a day or every two days.

The battery is what makes it or breaks it. We have one light on and shutoff others, in the winter and the furnace is running, we recharge.

[randy69]

We dry camp most of the time. Boys ride in the sand and I lke to drink beer. We run our generator from 8:00 am to 12:00 sometimes. At night we watch movies outside on the side of the trailer. We only use our battries with out gen occasionaly. Also if you haven't dry camp very much make sure you unplug the trailer from the truck. This will save truck battery in case you rundown the rv's. The truck battery can be plugged back in to start the gen or if no gen you can start the truck and charge rv battries. Back to the first question, the insulation in my opinion sucks, And the ventalation is good in the bathroom and in the garage. The hood fan don't know, I always cook out side on a coleman propane stove in the mornings. and a BBQ. at night.

[flc]

When dry camping I always have two batteries and a Honda 2000i. I'm not interested in TV so mostly use the generator sparingly to keep everything charged up. I haven't dry camped yet in my new trailer but other Keystones I used have been as good as anything else on insulation. One thing, older trailers kitchen hoods vented outside. Most new ones don't - they just move it around. I installed a Fantastic Vent fan in my kitchen vent opening and it was a very good move - even when not cooking.

[28Bunkhouse]

Up here in the great White North we do a lot of camping with no hook ups to power or water. Use your electrical appliances judisciously, even then in about two days you will need to charge your battery(ies) As others have said a generator is a good idea, if you want to use air you will need at least a 3000 watt unit. If you have the money change your light bulbs to LED, they are pricey though.

Regards Brian:wlcm:

[f6bits]

I’m surprised that nobody has said much about water and waste. That’s the killer for me. Or the time it was 25 degrees out and the furnace ran our single 12V battery in a hurry, but that’s another story.

We have 30 gallon tanks (fresh, grey, black). I can refill fresh from water cans if there’s a water supply nearby. Black lasts a week (or more). Grey fills up in a hurry because I haven’t mastered it yet. I can get by with a minimal shower and so can the wife. But limited showers and the need to wash baby bottles and cookware fill up the grey in a few days. So I have a portable tank if we have to dump, but that only works if we’re near a dump station.

Next time we dry camp, it’ll be in a mild climate with a nearby water supply and dump station. And our 2000W generator.

[randy69]

I agree with that one. How do you master that shower head? Turn the hot on and all you get is cold water for a while. And when you stop the shower head to soap. Try to push it back on for the temp you had set it for. Oweee that burns. There are some campgrounds going to Big Bear that let you dump your grey water. But they want you to use a garden hose and water the bushes. That's kinda neet"bouncey:

[mikell]

I used to use a 5 gallon tomato buckert to collect the grey water in. Had to dig a little hole so it would fit under the pipe but worked fine. End of the week rinsed the bucked and filled in the hole. left the valve full open then a short piece of garden hose so it didn't make noise running into the bucket.

I had a friend that had 40 acres next to state land in Michigan. Went there one weekend and a group had cut the fence and moved on to the back of his property. Called the DNR and they kicked them off but as they left they opened their tanks and drained them. Called the DNR and they were arrested a few miles away and all 3 rigs impounded truck 5th wheel and everything in them. Probably didn't think it was so funny when they paid $15000 to clean up their mess and get their rigs back

[randy69]

If dry camping areas all let you dump grey water with out making a mess. Some idiot will dump there black. So no dumping for anybody. And yes I talk to some of those idiots. They think is funny, It screws it up for everbody.

[SAABDOCTOR]

Mikel that is some story. don't ya just love it when the good guy wins"bouncey:"bouncey:

[JRTJH]

One way to save on "gray water space" is to wash dishes outside. If you have an outside shower, put a small table with a couple of dish pans on it next to the shower. Hot and cold running water, wash the dishes, and when you're done, just like any other "outside water" just dump the dishpans under a bush. That's what we'd do is we were tent camping, and it doesn't hurt the environment. Also, it's pretty easy to shower outside if you build a small wooden platform to stand on. Use the outside shower, wet down, (wearing a bathing suit please) soap up, rinse off. No water into the gray tank, and you get clean to boot.

Of course, in Michigan, with our sandy soil, drainage is good, so there's hardly ever (usually never) a problem with mud. Your experience may be different where there's more clay in the soil.

[Big Boy w/ Big Toys]

Paper plates and Grilling are your best grey water beaters. The shower outside also is a good one. If you need to conserve your fresh water you can recycle your grey water, even for toilet use. Black water tank you can help along by not putting paper products into the tank and using alternate facilities.

Travelling with two ladies I can get 6 to 8 days easily between tank dumps. Everyone needs to be careful.

[Benrubid]

I noticed above that randy69 said that they run their generated from 8:00 to 12:00. I have never had a camper with a generator before. I have a onan 5000. Do I need to turn it off periodically, or does it turn itself off and on by itself? Can I run it continuously. Looking for advise. Thanks

[Festus2]

The hours of use of generators in campgrounds, both public and private, are often regulated by the management or park officials. Personally, I've never come across a campground that allows generators to be run until 12 (midnight).
Having a generator running at that hour is, IMO, poor campground etiquette and having a generator running constantly from 8 am 'till 10 pm doesn't show a great deal of respect for your fellow campers either.

Out of consideration for your camping neighbours, I would like to see anyone running a generator to shut them down periodically. If you happen to notice that your neighbours are away, that would be a good time to have them running.

As you can probably guess I'm not a huge fan of generators but have learned "not to sweat the small stuff" and try to ignore them. I realize that, for some, watching TV for most of the day and making use of all the other household appliances while away camping is just part of their camping lifestyle. Having said that, I would expect those that do enjoy these things to also think about being considerate of their neighbours.

The noise level also depends to a large degree on the type of generator you have. Some are noisier than others while others are not that noticeable. If you plan on getting one and if you can afford a Honda, for example, then I would tend to go with that - simply because of the noise factor.

Not sure if generators turn themselves on and off by themselves but I wouldn't think so. Some have remote/electric starts.

[azlee56]

I know our generator doesn't shut itself off (or didn't, it got stolen). Normally when dry camping we will only turn it on to recharge the batteries after everyone is out and about. We turn it on for an hour or so and then shut if off. We also have a trickle solar battery charger that will stay on it to keep it up somewhat (80.00 kind). However in the mid evening we like to watch a movie so about 7:00 we run it while watching one movie and then it is off. So far the other campers are happy.

During the cold months we camp we might have to turn it on a little earlier in the morning, but since it isn't a honda (or wasn't) we also put up some stuff to muffle the sound, but always we know that not everyone wakes up at 5:00 am.

[SAD]

When we dry camp, we use the generator for about an hour in the morning - coffee, recharge batteries, and a bit of news.

Again at lunch for 30-45 mins.

That's about it for the day.

[Benrubid]

Fully understand Festus2, and that makes sense, but I assume that you are not dry camping during 100 degree weather, or how do you stay cool. We try and be out and about most of the day, but I do not think I could deal with that high of heat and not want to run the A/C for a good amount of time

[Festus2]

Dario -
Where we live 100 degree weather would almost never happen - low 90's maybe but that would be about it and for a very short period of time. When we do venture out in the summer and are in areas where temps like that are the norm, we would never be dry camping and would head for campgrounds that have hookups.
We plan our trips so that we stay away from regions that are typically hot during the summer months and instead try to head for areas that are somewhat cooler and A/C may not be necessary to keep cool. Needless to say, we've never been to Texas ( sorry geo)or any of those states whose summer temps are typically in the 90's or 100's. We'll save those trips for times of the year when the temps are cooler!
I agree that you certainly wouldn't want to be camping in 100 degree temps without A/C and if a generator is the only way to run the A/C, then you don't have any other option and you wouldn't get any static from me!

[SteveC7010]

Fully understand Festus2, and that makes sense, but I assume that you are not dry camping during 100 degree weather, or how do you stay cool. We try and be out and about most of the day, but I do not think I could deal with that high of heat and not want to run the A/C for a good amount of time

Somehow, the idea of going camping some place primtively beautiful and then shutting oneself in the trailer with the A/C just because it is hot just does not compute.

Sit in the shade with a tall, cold one.
Take a dip in the lake.

People found ways to keep cool in hot weather long before there was air conditioning.

Here's the facts:

#1: Many campgrounds limit generator usage to a few fixed hours a day.
#2: Running a generator during quiet hours in any campground is just plain rude and inconsiderate plus it might well get one evicted.
#3: Dry camping is not for every RV owner. It means finding ways to enjoy one's self comfortably without some of the amenities that shore power provides.

My wife and I dry camp at least 30 days in the summer and many more in the spring and fall. Our generator time is limited to just a few hours in the morning and again in the afternoon so we only rely on it to keep the batteries up plus using the Keurig in the morning and maybe a hair dryer after a shower. If the weather is hot, we've been known to take our lawn chairs and go sit in the lake in the shade.

The last thing I want to do is shut myself up in the trailer when the great outdoors is right there waiting to be enjoyed.

[azlee56]

Here in Arizona it is too hot to camp in the summer without AC, but we do hookups. We mostly camp during the winter months. In September is when the group heads out and we hope to have a generator that we can have the option to cool off the RV a little before we go in for the night. At night I open all the windows, knowing I will wake up to shut them sometime during the night. It will get colder.

I have seen a ice chest cooler that acts like a swamp that I am kind of interested in, but it won't work if a person lives where there is humidity.

[OhhWell]

I had a friend that had 40 acres next to state land in Michigan. Went there one weekend and a group had cut the fence and moved on to the back of his property. Called the DNR and they kicked them off but as they left they opened their tanks and drained them. Called the DNR and they were arrested a few miles away and all 3 rigs impounded truck 5th wheel and everything in them. Probably didn't think it was so funny when they paid $15000 to clean up their mess and get their rigs back

Ohh man, that's awsome. I love it when there actually are consequences for poor behaviour like that.

We took an older TT to Alexander springs here in FL once during the summer and had a dog we had to leave in the trailer while using the day area. I felt really bad leaving our generator running all that time especially since I couldn't use the sound baffling I had made due to the heat. I just sent as much sound as I could to the trees, locked it up with a chain and hoped no-one vandalized it.

At night, I would run it from 7 to about 8:30 pm and get the air in the camper as cold as possible then ran little fans from the DC battery power. I would have to get up around 1am or so and open some windows.

The 5 gallon bucket is a great idea to offload some grey water to the surrounding greenery. I really couldn't see many campgrounds giving any grief over that. Pulling your valve and making a nice puddle on the other hand sounds awfull. With a wife and 2 kids, it seems like i am always running the portable dump cart for the grey tank when we don't have sewer.

I bought a 5 gallon cheap plastic gas can that I sanitize and use to bring fresh water to the camper.

[SAABDOCTOR]

mOST GENERATORS SHUT THEMSELVES OFF AUTOMATICLY THEY DO IT AT THE SAME EXACT TIME THEY RUN OUT OF FUEL OR OIL! there i go yelling again sorry must be getting deaf!;) Auto start and shut down are reserved for the biigger non moble types with the corrisponding automatic transfere switch. my home unit is 21kw 4cyl isuzu runs at 60db. my neibors lawn mower is far louder than that! air cooled engines are inharantly lounder than water cooled. so your camper gen can tick off fellow cmpers if it runs all day long. I personaly can't dry camp too long. i have sever sleep apenia. with out my cpap my ox level goes so low i could have a hart attack in my sleep. so i need shore power i do have a seperate line tied into my 12v battery with a relay. that will get me through the night if we loose power.

[randy69]

Ok I made a statement run gen all morning to midnight. I don't do this all the time. But where we camp out in the middle of the desert. If anybodys around us we all do the samething. But Now in the 100 deg plus heat I brought some clip on misters for the awning. and it's great to sit outside. To get cooled off. It must be 95 in the shade. We ride atvs and dirt bikes. only in the mornings and early evenings. During the day too hot so the boss and the boys are watching movies with there best friend (Mr wilson the dog) And I'm outside with Misters and beer.

[mikell]

To those that don't know a tomato bucket has holes in to make it useless for anything but hauling tomatos. Great for grey water though

[28Bunkhouse]

I have found leaving your generator in your pickup box (bed) reduces noise by redirecting it upward, good for those larger noisey units. Recently we purchased 2, 2100 Power house generators from Costco with a parallel wiring kit to run both for the AC and only 1 for recharging the battery and lighter loads. Will keep everyone informed after our August long weekend.:bfart: