I was thinking of buying a travel trailer and moving it down by the lake to live in this winter. I am in Va. and it gets down to the mid teens in Jan and Feb. Have any of you ever stayed in a travel trailer for any amount of time in the winter, what was it like? Any suggestions? Thanks

 

My friend used a travel trailer as a snowmobiling camp up here in the winter. It actually worked out quite well. Keep in mind what we go through is a little overkill for you, but you will still need to do some of it. It gets down to -20 and even -30 up here in the winter.

-Removed all screens (his had removable screens...early 80's trailer) and wrapped them with clear plastic and reinstalled them. That worked great to help insulate the windows. You probably won't need to do that for the teens, especially with a newer trailer.

-Bought ridgid insulation (2" should do...thats all he used) and attached it between the trailer and the ground once the trailer was set up. It insulated the bottom of the trailer and kept the cold wind from blowing through. Thats mostly to protect the pipes and water lines, even though we didn't use the water in the trailer. It also helped insulate it and keep the floors warmer. You should be able to use your water supply if you keep it insulated.

-His heater actually did a pretty good job of heating the place. He bought an electric heater to use on the coldest nights, but didn't need it often.

-Don't shovel all snow off your roof. If you only get a couple inches, just leave it...its actually great insulation.

Other than that it was fine. It stayed quite warm, and even warmed up within a couple hours of our arrival on the weekends. (he kept the heat off when nobody was there). Everything else was just like using it in the summer.

Jim

 

I've been livin in a 5er during cold weather many times, as long as you have it setup for cold weather before hand
The water systems need to be winterized like the holding tanks for grey and black water will freeze unless the tanks and dump pipes are protected....so they can be dumped
The potable water system will need freeze protection too
Condensation inside the RV can be a problem too, I cover and insulate any roof vents because condensation will collect on them and drip
If its possible to skirt around the bottom of the RV that will help too


I always have a backup heating system like a catalytic LP heater in case of power outages and as a backup heater if it gets too cold.....plus I run off of a 100 lb propane tank rather then the tanks of the RV

If you do everthing right it will be "Home Sweet Home"

 

The lake....What lake? If you're asking about the confining quarters, a class A makes all the difference when it's raining, and everyone has to sit around the table. How many occupants?
Nat

 

i bought new off the lot in '96. i have a 34' 1997 coachman tt. it has a 12' slide out room on it. also has a 6' 10" cieling. i am 6' 7" so i appreciate that. anyhow i have stayed a few months in mine in the winter.

i told the dealer i planned on useing it more in the winter, they failed to tell me about better insulating and heated storage tanks for winter use. this is very important to me.

great advice about closing up the skirt area and the roof vents.

i found that the furnace runs alot. on and off, on and off... mine is kinda noisey because of where it is in the trailer you hear it in the bedroom and the living room. i run an oscilating fan all the time in the winter. keeping the air moving helps with condensation.

a few years ago some friends of mine were experimenting with blue flame or radiant heat sources. much more efficient running and a constant source of heat. the forced air furnace runs and shuts off, it does get noticeably cooler in my trailer in between cycles.

i bought a real nice blueflame furnace (vent free) to run in mine. it has a thermostat and built in fan. i have not installed it yet. will this winter. they are supposed to be real safe and efficeint. we'll see.

there are 2 choices of vent free furnace, one is radiant heat and the other is ??????? (cant rember what it is called) anyhow one heats the air and the other heats the surrounding objects. one does make more condensation than the other. i cant remember wich. i got a great deal on mine so i bought it anyway. if i need the other i will buy it and put mine in the garage.

you didnt say if you plan on buying new or used, tt or 5er? etc... lots of stuff to consider but i can say i enjoyed staying in mine for several months at a time.