Whats missing from teardrop camping????

[mxgibby911]

I am trying to figure out where the original poster says anything about down grading in size from a large RV.

I think you Tear Drop dudes are just a little defensive.

thanks standupguy

and stuff like the laptop shelf, the mini fridge or the washroom area are more like the ideas i was looking for.

and this post had NOTHING! to do with downgrading from a huge RV, using cheap materials, obviously not rushing into it, or any other off the wall thing you can magically see from my original post. Simply was looking for interesting stuff that could make my build more enjoyable. And before i get jumped all over about that too, it is always possible to make any thing even more enjoyable.

[WayneW]

I have not started my TD build yet, but I have done a lot of camping in tents, big RV's and smaller (18 ft) RV's. As I've switched between the three, I've noticed several things, I miss or that I like. However, this all boils down to personal preference.

First, I'm not a big TV addict, but the kids like to watch movies on occasion when we go camping. I've used a bigger TV as well as one of those little portable DVD players. I'm just as happy with either. We like to read books as a family, so I always bring a couple of books. They don't require any electricity, so they work with whatever kind of camping you like to do.

I like to be clean!!! I've got to bathe at least once a day. I don't care if it is in the lake, stream, or under a spigot, as long as I can wash my hair. I prefer having my own shower, but I can live without. The one thing I miss is the outside shower head on my smaller RV. That really came in handy. I would like to put one on my TD.

I don't like to mess with ice in the cooler. I really love having a refrigerator in my trailer. I don't want to mess with installing a gas refrigerator on my TD, so I have been looking at the 12v coolers discussed in many of the threads on this site.

I like having my own toilet (I know where it's been). I've used everything from a hole in the ground to a fold out toilet with a plastic bag. Port-a-potties can be a bit of a pain, but they help keep your shoes clean. I really hate the open pit toilets common at national and state campgrounds, but I'll use them if they are well maintained. Never hurts to bring your own along just in case.

For me, camping is about comfort and ease. I dirty as few dishes as possible and use paper plates when I can. I cook simple meals that don't take a lot of time or preparation. And I never sleep on the ground ... any more (my back has become very intolerant with age).

[Shadow Catcher]

A teardrop can be as simple or as complex and loaded as you wish. Pretty much the only thing you cant do is stand up in it, and some can do that.

The only limit is your imagination

[Mukilteo]

What's missing ? Maybe a woman my age might come in handy once in a while.

[StandUpGuy]

I am not a
Tear Dropper so I do not know if you want me to answer your question. I will take a shot at it anyway. For my money I like the idea of a hot shower. I am building a Trailer with a small shower in it. One of my earlier plans was to build an outdoor shower into the sidewall of the trailer and make a flip up suround support for a shower privacy suround. Then I was thinking what would make it extra convienient would be a wooden walk way you could laydown from the entrance door to the shower room. That way you could bare foot it to and fro.

[newrollo]

Thanks Kevin and Sandy, that short reply and had us LOL Loudly! Can I use it when needed?

[Maverick71]

Howdy,

Wifey, a certified girl scout leader has imbeded in her mind that camping is room service at the Marriott; so I go camping alone most of the time.
Some think I get lonely; no, I am just alone. Others think that I will miss intimacy; no I have that with nature. I do admit that I miss the cheap labor of Wifey, especially her cooking.

Therefore, if you have to design or build something in to the Teardrop be sure it accomodates Wifey. Maybe a reading lamp since my Wifey seems to read all night even when she has a headache or a throne room of the porcelin god or just a mirror on the ceiling so that she doesn't have to get out of bed to put her make up on.

Think about it! I always have to promise her something to get her in the
mood to go camping! Maybe next time I will try some chocolates and nylons to do the trick. I just don't really know considering all the variables.

Take care,
Maury

[happy phantom]

Mukilteo, I must be used to facebook because I found myself wanting to locate the "like" button on your post!

[stumphugger]

I'd like to miss the DVD screen that came with my Little Guy. I am thinking of tearing it out, then there will be a little bit more storage room.
That think is a power drainer. I just have battery power. That's all I should really need.

[bobhenry]

My buddy with the monster fifth wheel says I am missing out on his leather recliners, 40" tv with satellite, three slideouts and a gas fireplace.
His pickup barely pulls it so the only place he goes is to a lake 25 miles away.

I told him he missed out on the Redwoods I went to see last summer.....

This post reminds me of watching those guys making attempt after attempt to finally get jackknifed into a tight site in a already mostly full campground. Great entertainment

[DRYVEM]

When I built our TD, I placed to much importance on the shape and aesthetics. Because of this I ended up with not enough storage for the set up items, without storing them in the TV or sleeping area. Also, making mockups out of cardboard to check fit and function really helped. The best item I installed was a 5000 btu furnace (not a open flame heater). Another item I haven't installed, but need, is a good solar charger.
You are very wise to consider what people in your geographic area consider important, as weather and terrain should be considered for how you build. (heater vs. air conditioner) etc. Martin

[atahoekid]

My buddy with the monster fifth wheel says I am missing out on his leather recliners, 40" tv with satellite, three slideouts and a gas fireplace.
His pickup barely pulls it so the only place he goes is to a lake 25 miles away.

Reminds me of someone I know who has his trailer towed to a lake for him and he leaves it there all summer and drives back and forth to it. If I wanted all those things, I'd stay in a hotel. I stay in hotels during my business travels, I want to get away from that! A TTT provides me everything I want and I'm in the great outdoors without having to pitch a tent

[the other side]

The only thing I miss going from a 25 ft TT to a teardrop is a LARGE FRIDGE!!
I tote a dorm fridge with us now with our teardrop. Approx. 100 lbs out of the back of an SUV (empty ofcourse cuz I couldn't pick the fridge up full), all the stuff to transport the food that goes in the fridge, fill the fridge, just to empty the fridge before I leave packing the leftovers back into containers/bags, and lifting the fridge back up into the back of an SUV. Maybe if I get better at meal planning this problem will lessen.
We never one time used our TT shower stall (except to store stuff). We never one time turned on the water heater. I hated cleaning out the toilet/plumbing junk.
I love the idea that if something breaks (like your portapotty) you just throw it away and buy a new one (and it is WAY easier to clean out a portapotty vs a TT black water tank/sewage with its hoses and brushes and tornados etc...).
We went from tent camping to a 25 ft TT to a teardrop. I could see us possibly going to a TTT because of our age and physical limitations some day in the future, but not anytime soon.

[stumphugger]

Since mine is wired for battery use only, I think I would like to add a solar charger.

[tearhead]

Well, I appreciated the "4 v. 5 foot decision" comment-- A person with a big RV never has to think about that.

How about sleeping in close proximity to a container of #1 and #2? None of that in a teardrop!