Truck Campers

There is one more RV option to be considered that is neither a trailer nor a motor home. That is the truck camper. This is kind of like a wheel-less camper trailer that slides into the bed of a pickup truck. Like any other type of RV, there are many styles, sizes, features, and prices to choose from. A truck camper may offer the advantage of being able to use the truck for other traditional uses between camping trips by removing the camper. If you plan to do a lot of off-road driving where 4WD may be useful, a truck camper may be a viable solution since the camper can be mounted on a 4WD pickup. There are a few 4WD motor homes, but they are generally difficult to find and significantly more expensive than their 2WD counterparts or than a 4WD pickup and camper. Truck campers are not to be confused with "camper shells", which were originally designed to be a camp shelter but are now mostly used to protect cargo in transit and storage. Truck campers usually have stand-up head room, a galley, a cab-over bed, and a dinette.  The galley typically includes a sink, stove, and ice box.  Fancier campers will have a refrigerator instead of an ice box.  Larger units may even be self contained and include full sanitation facilities. 

                    

Some truck campers have a pop-up feature that allows them to be collapsed lowering profile, wind-resistance, and center of gravity while on the road. When expanded they have full head room and all the conveniences of standard campers although you do sacrifice some overhead cabinet space.

Even the most basic slide-in campers typically provide a comfortable bed, an ice box, a table, and a stove. More upscale units will include a refrigerator instead of an ice box and perhaps a furnace. Some campers are even self-contained, with hot water, shower and toilet but because of the added weight of extra fresh water and the contents and location of holding tanks, they will be heavier and sometimes less stable than smaller units. One of the advantages of a motor home is that heavy elements such as water tanks and holding tanks are mounted deep within or sometimes even below the vehicle frame to keep the center of gravity low for better handling and more stability while the very nature of a slide-in truck camper places the water and holding tanks (if any) inside the bed and fairly high above the vehicle frame making them somewhat top heavy.

Sleeping in a truck camper is probably going to be a little different from sleeping in a camping trailer or motorhome. There are usually two places to sleep: make the dinette into a bed or sleep in the cab-over bed. Most RV dinettes are limited in size and those in most truck campers especially so.  Often, but not always, they are primarily intended for children.  If you plan to sleep adults on the dinette, measure it to be sure they'll fit.  The cabover sleeper is designed to be the primary sleeping area in most truck campers. The cabover sleeper is similar those in Class C motorhomes, but usually has less headroom. These beds present a couple of special considerations you don't usually have to worry about in most other RVs: getting into the bed and low head-room. Since they are up over the cab of the truck you'll need to do some climbing to reach them. Some campers have kind of built-in places to climb up. Some need ladders. Either way, if you have any physical ailments that prevent you from climbing, plan on sleeping on the dinette -- even if you have to pull your knees up to fit. The second consideration, head-room, doesn't affect you very much while you're lying down sleeping. But it will definitely affect you if you are startled awake in the middle of the night and try to sit up suddenly. You just might return unexpectedly to a different kind of slumber if you sit up too fast and bang your head on the ceiling! The configuration of the cab-over sleeper makes the task of making the bed a little difficult, but you'll soon learn to shift your weight from knee to knee to pull the bedding back into place in the far corners. Cab over sleepers usually have windows on each side of the camper, at the head and foot of the bed so you can get some cross ventilation. The front windows are usually fixed, providing light but no ventilation. Most will also have a roof vent to allow hot air to escape.  A powered roof vent will cool even better.   If you find it is still too warm for your comfort you may want to add a 12-volt oscillating fan or two to move the air so you feel cooler. Remember, fans don't actually cool the air, they just move it to aid evaporation of perspiration on your skin to make you feel cooler. Keep a spray bottle filled with fresh water handy in hot weather. An occasional spritz will help keep you feel cooler.

Air conditioning is a luxury usually available only on very large, high-end truck campers. The added weight on the roof plus the need for a generator to power the A/C is usually prohibitive. There are some possible alternatives. One is what is affectionately called a "swamp cooler". This is a 12-volt powered evaporative cooler. They work fairly well in dry climates and in outside temperatures above 85 degrees. They don't work at all in high humidity. The original brand was called Recair and you may still find a few used units available now and then. The brand was taken over by another company who now markets them under the name of "Turbo-Kool". New units are not cheap. They run about $700 plus installation. They work pretty well in camp, but I found using them while on the road less than satisfactory. A turn or lane change can cause the water to spill from the reservoir over into the fan and get sprayed all over the place! If you use a "swamp cooler", remember you are constantly drawing fresh air in from the outside so the old air has to have some place to go. You will need to keep one or more windows partly open. Selective choices of windows can affect the air flow and distribution of the cool air within the vehicle. We have had some success with portable evaporative coolers. There used to be some designed for automotive use that were about the size of a small ice chest and plugged into a cigarette lighter socket. There are some that look like over-grown box fans. They have a reservoir for water in the bottom and one side is fitted with the same kind of "cooling pads" as a residential swamp cooler. Water is pumped up to drizzle down through the pads and the fan draws warm air in through the wet pads to be cooled by evaporation. Ever wonder how well that works? Well, consider this. It takes only 80 calories of heat to turn 1 gram of ice into 1 gram of water. It takes 539 calories to turn 1 gram of water into 1 gram of water vapor! So each gram of water cools more than 6 times as much when it evaporates as one gram of ice as it melts. The rule of thumb is an evaporative cooler can reduce air temperature about 15-20 degrees. So if is 100°F outside, a swamp cooler can only bring it down to about 80°F inside -- and will significantly raise the humidity.  Sometimes just running the fan without the water (if you have that option) will be more comfortable.

Limited space is typically a defining characteristic of truck campers. You will have limited head room in the cab over sleeper, limited floor space, and limited cabinet and closet space. Truck campers are not ideal for large families or large people but can be very effective for a single person, a couple or a small family. You may have to be very selective in what you bring along on each trip, but with some practice, a truck camper can be a very comfortable home-away-from home. Slide-outs are now an option on some high end truck campers, which greatly increases the living space inside when extended. Of course the slide-out also adds weight so there are definitely trade-offs.

The bottom line: anything that gives you a place to get in out of bad weather and make your stay more comfortable is better than having nothing at all and will make your outings more pleasant. The trick is to find what works for you -- and your budget. I got my first truck camper for free through a local classified newspaper! Sure, it needed some work, but the acquisition price was right and after a little basic repair and TLC it was quite comfortable and I even made a modest profit when I eventually sold it. More recently we picked up an older, self contained  11 1/2'  truck camper for $100 to give us access to mountain roads and smaller campgrounds where our big diesel pusher Class A motorhome can't go. It is more than 40 years old but it was a top of the line unit when it was built and is still in remarkably good condition.  The coach body is solid, no broken or missing windows, and all the appliances work.  With some careful shopping and a little patience, you can find some genuine bargains. As with any previously owned unit, check for serious structural damage and signs of water damage that could indicate major problems. A foul, musty odor is usually an indication of severe water damage, even if there no visible signs of leakage. Be skeptical of units with heavy air fresheners as they may be disguising telltale odors. However, the mere presence of an air freshener does not necessarily mean the owner is trying to hide something. Some people just like the smell of "Vanillarama" or gardenias or pine but very heavy fragrances are often an attempt to cover up chronic nasty smells. Another indicator of water damage is soft spots on the floor, ceiling, or walls. Be leery of any RV that has soft spots. I once owned a Class C motorhome on which the manufacturer had failed to complete all the welds on the brackets intended to support the extended frame behind the rear wheels. The whole back 10' or so of the motorhome was sagging and felt bouncy. The average buyer probably isn't equipped to handle the task of re-aligning the bent steel and welding in new brackets to correct problems of this type and this kind of professional repairs doesn't come cheap. More common are squishy spots on the floor due to dry rot caused by water damage. Any outside leak or plumbing problem that isn't taken care of promptly can result it this kind of damage. Even a leaky ice chest or a dripping ice box can eventually ruin floors. If you have some basic carpentry skills you might be able to make satisfactory repairs to damaged floors. Roofs and ceilings are usually more difficult and may require professional services to achieve satisfactory results.

Driving and handling. Since a truck camper sits on your pickup truck, many driving features will already be familiar. However, a camper is going to significantly affect handling, especially accelleration, stopping, turning and and in cross winds. You will notice the camper sway in the wind from passing trucks or even from your own lane changes. Because campers sit in the bed of a pickup truck, they have a relatively high center of gravity compared to motorhomes and even travel trailers. Well-designed motorhomes keep as much weight as they can as low as possible. Holding tanks are often between or even below the frame rails. With a truck camper, almost all of that weight is above the floor of the bed, unless it hangs off the back like many of the larger self-contained units, which creates its own momentum problems. Talk about the tail wagging the dog! As a result, they tend to make the entire unit a little top heavy. You may find simple maneuvers such as lane changes will start the camper rocking. Your best defense is to avoid sudden moves and keep away from uneven pavement lanes. If you find your camper sways excessively you may need to add a sway bar and/or upgrade the shocks or even the springs on your truck to improve handling and safety. Also make sure the camper is securely anchored on all 4 corners so it doesn't rock within the truck bed. Having it securely anchored will dampen oscillations that might grow if it were free to rock back and forth.  If you're considering buying a camper, be sure to find out the weight and confirm your truck can handle it safely.  If you also plan to tow a boat or trailer, be sure the combined vehicle weight rating is sufficient for all your needs.

Wiring. Truck campers usually require some special wiring connections. If your camper covers the taillights of your truck you'll need to connect the taillights on the camper to the truck wiring. The camper will usually have a trailer-style connector that can be hooked to the truck trailer connection with a proper pigtail. Some campers may have a coach battery installed in the camper. Others rely on power from the vehicle. In either case any connection from the vehicle alternator to charge the coach battery should pass through a battery isolator to prevent the camper from drawing down the starting battery and leaving you stranded. Some tow vehicles have an extra battery platform under the hood for a second battery for the camper. If yours does not it would be a good idea to look for a place to put an extra battery in the vehicle or in the camper. You don't want to rely on powering the camper from the starting battery. Most campers have doors that give you access to the unused space in the truck bed in front of the wheel well. You may be able to put a battery in this space. Just be sure to anchor it securely so it doesn't bounce around, tip over, or get broken or damage your camper.

If you already have a truck capable of carrying a camper a truck camper may be an economical solution for you, especially if you shop around for a true bargain. Remember, cheap does not necessarily mean it is a good bargain. From my experience, there are enough inexpensive units in good condition that you should never have to settle for a trashed camper. I recently bought an 11 1/2' older (40+ years!) self contained camper in excellent condition for $100! All the appliances worked and there was no structural damage or dry rot. It had once had walnut colored wood grain stripes on the outside that had faded to a dull, dusty cocoa color. A few cans of metallic blue spray paint quickly refreshed the appearance and made it closely match my pickup truck. The relatively narrow stripes were pretty easy to paint. Be sure to remove any emblems or nameplates and to mask off adjacent areas before you start painting. I wouldn't want to attempt to paint larger areas without a good air powered paint gun and much more practice.  When I replaced my truck I again repainted the stripes on the camper to match the "new" truck.  Took only an afternoon, including cleaning, masking, painting, and cleanup.

Most of the amenities you find for travel trailers and motorhomes can be adapted to truck campers as well. You may have to make some compromises in size or capacity to fit the camper. Awnings are a good addition to any RV. For a truck camper you may want to install it on the curb side for in camp convenience or on the back so it protects the entry. Bag awnings, though less expensive than permanently mounted models, can be difficult to install and remove due to how high the top of the camper is from the ground. If you get a camper that doesn't have a furnace you may be able to add one -- or at least a catalytic heater -- to keep your warmer on in chilly weather. NEVER use the cooking stove for heating!   The limited cabinet space will probably restrict your entertainment system options, but, thanks to flat-panel LCD TVs, it is getting easier than it once was.  Inverters can give you 120 volt power for entertainment systems if you have sufficient battery power available.

Truck campers seldom have on board generators.  But that doesn't mean you have to do without.  It is possible to get engine-driven generators that will run off the truck engine.  They are used on ambulances and other emergency vehicles that need reliable 120-volt power and they are not cheap, but they are available and would be more practical than attempting to add a generator to a camper and more convenient than dragging along a portable generator.  Also, in the past, I've seen kits to run a 120-volt outlet off the vehicle alternator but a quick online search didn't come up with any current offerings so you may have to rely on an inverter if you have sufficient battery capacity.  The standard vehicle alternator should provide sufficient power to run lights and 12 volt appliances, but won't be enough for A/C units and other high amperage 120 volt appliances.

Keep on truckin!