Pleasant surprise!

[Squatch]

Some may recall back in the spring I repainted the bottom of my Eagle. At the same time I also insulated between the skid strips with 3/4" blue foam board.


I also built a new lower 3" platform (Eagle in full sized truck) and did the same to it with 2" blue foam.



Well I haven't thought much about it since that was completed.

Earlier in the week I went up to my normal close by state park for a couple of nights and some bike riding.
Anyway it got pretty cool at night. Not cold but cool enough to close the camper up. Early am I had to get up for a restroom trip. When my bare feet hit the floor I was startled. it was nice and warm. Everything else I touched inside had cooled off. But the floor pack felt good on my feet. Hmm, Might be something to this insulation stuff!

I now have almost 3" of foam under the floor and 1/2" under the bed mattress. It seems to be working well. Now I'm really thinking about that Arctic liner for cold weather!

 

[todgru]

Great idea, Squatch! My fleet has a similar setup on the bottom side. Time to invest in some insulation!

A comment on the arctic pack, it does do a good job of keeping warm/cool inside the camper. The major drawback for me is condensation. Moisture will still collect on the pop up canvas. With the arctic pack on, it makes it difficult to wipe down the canvas before I close the top.

It might be time for me to come up with a non-permeable arctic pack!

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

What a nice secondary benefit.
Frank

 

[CharlieW]

Ahhhhh! Thanks so much! I'm going to do this for my Eagle. Next time I do this...

http://www.charliewhitfield.photography/Badlands-Winter/

... my feet will thank me.

(I think I'll look into the "Arctic Pack" too.)

 

[buckland]

Did the same and I noticed it as well.

 

[ETAV8R]

Great idea. I remember Jeffwanamog doing this to his eagle. I think he did the sides on the bottom where the cutouts are for the turnbuckles too.

 

[RC Pilot Jim]

Great idea. Even way down here the floor is cold in the am. Glad floor is at least carpeted.

 

[CougarCouple]

Well done Squatch
What a pleasant suprise.
Russ

 

[Squatch]

Great idea. I remember Jeffwanamog doing this to his eagle. I think he did the sides on the bottom where the cutouts are for the turnbuckles too.

I've been thinking of doing that too. 1/2"-3/4" blue foam and some sheet rock screws are all that's really needed to do it. it doesn't take a lot of insulation to improve on plywood!

I wanted to try this much out 1st and go from there. I probably use my camper more in the fall and winter than anytime else. I don't do a lot of real cold weather but down in the 30's is normal.

Jim my floor is just stock vinyl. But I'll probably cut a piece of scrap carpet to lay down as well in cold weather. Just carpet is not bad insulation when you don't have any.

 

[Durango1]

We added 1" insulation between the strips on our Flatbed Hawk. (It compressed a bit when we bolted it down.) We also have indoor-outdoor carpet cut to fit and loose laid inside. Floor always feels warm(er).

We also have the Arctic liner which helps... I suppose. At the end of the day these really aren't cold weather campers. Sioux and I are good down to about 25 degrees at night. After that I tend to lose enthusiasm for camping!

We do have the furnace. But it is such a power hog I'm thinking about adding a catalytic heater for those cold mornings just to warm things up. Anything new out there beyond the Mr. Buddy or the Wave 3 heaters?

 

[todgru]

I have a Mr Buddy heater. It heats really well. But the by-product of the propane combustion is water vapor and a tiny amounts of other nasty gases. Water vapor in a camper produces a lot of condensation. Even with the vents open and the fantastic fan moving air, it doesn't remove enough water vapor, especially when outside temps are below freezing. And at that point we end up sending most of our heat outside! The other gases and smells don't seem healthy, either, though they have never tripped the CO detector.

I'm planning on installing a RV type furnace with a blower motor and external exhaust in my Fleet shell, something like the Atwood/Suburban. I'll add extra battery and solar if needed to accommodate the power draw.

In the end, the catalytic heaters aren't worth it for us. They will work as a backup, but not long term.

 

[Squatch]

The factory Attwood furnace in my Eagle shell works very well. Only issue is over cycling because the thermostat is mounted on an exterior wall. I'll get around to moving it soon. but it only draws 2.5 amps when running. From my observations of my Trimetric when it runs I think 1 amp of that is the solenoid that opens the gas valve. Once the gas shuts off the fan only draws 1.5 amps.

I don't try to keep a 70* camper in cold weather. Just warm it up before bed and again in am. But have run it most of the night when outside temps were in the 20's. It worked well enough. This was before insulation with no arctic pak.

I don't do a lot of snow camping or hanging at Ski resorts. Those that do might look at thing much differently.

 

[smlobx]

Squatch did I understand that you just used drywall screws to attach the foam?
Sounds like a great idea for all of us who camp in cooler weather.

 

[Tightlines]

I've ordered a Hawk, will take delivery in 2-3 months.
So I should cut out a 3" piece of insulation for the bed before I mount the camper in my Tundra ?
Does it stay in place once the camper is mounted to the bed. ? New to this site. Thanks for any help

 

[Squatch]

Squatch did I understand that you just used drywall screws to attach the foam?
Sounds like a great idea for all of us who camp in cooler weather.

Yes short ones. Cut the foam to fit tight and just set the screws deep enough to be flush and don't bury them in the foam. You don't want them coming through the floor!!! Doesn't need much once the camper is in the truck.

The foam in the platform was anchored with the screws at a 45* into the 2x3's as the plywood is thin 3/8".

I painted the bottom with 2 coats of gray latex porch enamel first.

 

[Squatch]

I've ordered a Hawk, will take delivery in 2-3 months.
So I should cut out a 3" piece of insulation for the bed before I mount the camper in my Tundra ?
Does it stay in place once the camper is mounted to the bed. ? New to this site. Thanks for any help

NO! I wouldn't set the camper on a foam sheet. My camper is an Eagle for mini trucks with a 17" deep bed. It is in a 1st gen Tundra with a 20" deep bed. I had to make a platform to raise it. 2x3's and 3/8" plywood. So I insulated the underside of the platform between the 2x3's.

Check the pics. If you look close you will see how I anchored the platform so it holds itself in place. Wood blocks with tension bolts in rear corners. I didn't want to depend on the camper to hold it.

You won't need the platform.

These campers have 1" skid strips built into the bottoms. I insulated the space between with 3/4" blue foam.

 

[smlobx]

Yes short ones. Cut the foam to fit tight and just set the screws deep enough to be flush and don't bury them in the foam. You don't want them coming through the floor!!! Doesn't need much once the camper is in the truck.

The foam in the platform was anchored with the screws at a 45* into the 2x3's as the plywood is thin 3/8".

I painted the bottom with 2 coats of gray latex porch enamel first.

Thanks for the reply. I will try and figure out how thick my subfloor is.
I may also look into using a foam adhesive that we sometimes use in residential construction if I can't confirm the thickness.