wildlifer, I was talking about the ones that are level with the truck roof. I have an F250 and just measured. That kind of topper would give me 40" of vertical space. I could not tolerate trying to live in with only 40 inches of head room. I really hated my dome tent’s 4’11 maximum height. And I rather frequently haul stuff that is more than 40 inches in height.
Ah, I gotcha. Yes, I agree, the short ones are far less useful. They should make pop up ones!
I AM CHEAP AND I SLEEP IN THE BED OF MY TRUCK!!!
I have a cap on the bed of my truck and love this camping option b/c I don’t have to set up a tent. I have a stall mat in the bed of my truck instead of a bed liner. (I know you are now accepting the sleeping in the trailer option but if your search leads you to a cheap cap BUY IT!!! The extra storage is great to have!).
Air mattresses get cold at night - same temp at the air. I have had really good luck with Coleman brand air mattresses.
Eddie Bauer Self Inflating Mat (cheaper than Therm-A Rest brand – longer and good thickness ) - $40 from Target (did not see on web site, but maybe in store in camping section)
Found this Coleman brand for $26: http://www.target.com/p/coleman-self-inflating-mat/-/A-675176#prodSlot=medium_3_8
Foam Pad - twin size foam pad mattress topper - $35 at Walmart
Camp Sun shower - in camping section of most stores. Crank your trailer up some so front is higher than back, put a shower curtain or tarp down on the floor so water will drain out the back . I have bars on my trailer windows i can clip the shower bag to them, sit on small overturned buck with a towel on the top of it, then I am low and can let gravity work in my favor.
The nice thing about camping in truck is I can drive to electric if I need to run a space heater. Or move to a quiet area to sleep at night.
Best of luck!!!
[QUOTE=La Chasse;7215729]
southernyankee…can i pin that to pinterest? 
awesomeness.[/QUOTE]
Sure!! It is like camping in a hotel! We plan on getting a mini fridge in the future so we won’t have to pack coolers.
We used 2 army cots then put the air mattress on top, felt like sleeping on a real bed and we had extra storage under the cots.
[QUOTE=shr;7227210]
I have a cap on the bed of my truck and love this camping option b/c I don’t have to set up a tent. I have a stall mat in the bed of my truck instead of a bed liner. [/QUOTE]
This is a really good idea. There are also truck bed mats made specifically to fit and may be cheaper. Examples:
Custom fit to your truck-
http://www.autoanything.com/truck-bed-liners/20A55656A1.aspx?IgnoreVehicle=1
Buy it by the foot –
http://www.qcsupply.com/250461-natural-rolled-rubber-mat-3-8-4.html?utm_source=googlebase&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=CM2_l5qgqLoCFdKf4AodwHcAHw
Heck stop by your local Advance AutoParts and get one for a whopping $10.50 and get out your exacto knife.
http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_x_10041666-P_x_x?ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=10041666&ci_gpa=pla&zoneAssigned=1&gclid=CPayxo2hqLoCFYee4AodnHwAMQ&cm_mmc=ACQ--Google--GPLA-_-10041666#utm_source=acq&utm_medium=google&utm_campaign=gpla&utm_content=10041666
This is just from a 2 minute search for “truck bed liner mats” on Google Shopping, so you can see what you like. I might put one on top of my regular spray on bed liner!
A couple of quick comments:
-go with a Thermarest type of mattress – air mattresses really are cold by comparison
and (I can’t help myself!) please please remember no gas or similar stoves / heaters in a closed space (carbon monoxide poisoning), and be aware of any fire hazards you might be creating with air conditioning / heating / cooking etc. Please! Better to camp simple and safe than having some gadget catch on fire in the night. (see also http://www.usrider.org/news_10_07.html)
Oh definitely agree about safety! This is super important – I always read a couple stories every year about folks who put their generator or gas stove inside their campers/LQs over night and died in their sleep. 
The only heater I use in the truck is a ceramic space heater (plug in) with fan and a very sensitive tip switch (use it in my office too). I am not aware of an emissions on those, although please correct me if I am wrong! The back of my truck is not air tight - it’s insulated, but even if I have the screened windows closed, there are the gaps around in the tailgate and sides of the back topper window for air exchange and I can also open the slider window on the truck cab end. In the summer, I just got two battery powered fans at Target and set them on the inside wheel wells.
I don’t bother to use a space heater in the trailer (it’s all going to go up to the ceiling!) but I DO use a plug in heating pad from CVS I have b/c I have back issues anyway. I tuck it down to the bottom of my sleeping bag or sheets by my feet and it’s WONDERFUL. Mine has a digital control that lets you adjust the temperature and a timer, so it can go off after 0.5 to 4 hours or just stay on. It’s not full body size, but you could really go all out and do that too (although I think I would sweat to death). I think it was about $25.
Heh, I like extension cords.
wildlifer: stall mats are 3/4" thick (better insulation)
4’ x 6’ stall mat at Tractor Supply $40
http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/rubber-horse-stall-mat-4-ft-x-6-ft
Another safe electric heater option:
Electric Portable Oil-Filled Convection Radiator Heater
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Optimus-H-6010-Portable-Oil-Filled-Radiator-Heater/15162311
(have not used for camping but use one at home and it is very safe)
Wow, COTH’ers are some crafty people, haha!!
If I do find a cheap topper I will buy it, but only if its under $100, which is highly unlikely.
As awesome as the Thermarests look (and sound) I am needing to go with a cheaper option for right now. Next year when I’m (hopefully) working full time and have more money to spend I plan on pimping out my camp site, haha!! I did splurge and buy an AWESOME LED lantern from the store I work at today. $30 well worth! It has different settings and lights up a pretty good size area. Plus I’ll use it to do chores at night since its getting dark so early now!
Luckily showers are available, so for this show I won’t need a portable shower. As far as the foam pad…do you put them on top of the mattress, or below them? That part has me mildly confused, lol.
Put the foam pad or self inflating mattress on top of the air mattress to help with insulation. The air mattress will become the temperature of the air.
I got a couple of used “boy scout” type of sleeping bags at goodwill. Cleaned them at the laundromat and pile them unzipped on top of the air mattress. This provides some insulation. I put my bedding on top of the whole thing, otherwise the air mattress is way too cold.
Don’t worry, I can’t afford the Thermarests either. I actually have a “singlewide” air mattress I picked up when I was living in Australia for like $15 but that thing is indestructible. I use it when I am camping on my own. This is how I set it up in trailer, from bottom to top layer:
Trailer mats - tarp - folded blanket - air mattress - sheets/sleeping bag/blankets (temp dependent) with heating pad as needed - extra flap of tarp or second tarp to side in case it should sprinkle during the night (stock side trailer, never had to use it tho, it has sprinkled, but nothing really comes in if I sleep near middle)
In truck:
spray in bedliner - tarp - sometimes cardboard (hey, I never throw stuff away) - folded blanket - the rest is the same except obviously, it won’t sprinkle on me inside truck cap. I also may have space heater inside truck bed.
I also have a cheap double air mattress I got at Target I can inflate using cigarette lighter in truck if BF is with me. It does lose some air over night but not that bad and honestly, I always have to get up early anyway.
I have never done the shower in the trailer thing. To be honest, I make sad eyes at friends who either have a full LQ trailer or live nearby. In return, I share from my always full snack and beer supply and of course they get the glory of my presence, LOL!
[QUOTE=Eleanor;7216285]
This FB group has some great ideas.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/565970220097130
I have a small two horse straight and have a small camper. I set up a shower in my horse trailer and it cost less then $25. I used a metal watering can. I tie it up at the back of the stall, close the area in with shower curtain/tarp and put down a little cedar platform to stand on. I use a metal can as then I can put hot water in it. I went to a 3 day clinic, and had this set up in my trailer and it worked so well. I had 6 showers, there was enough water in the can to get wet, wash hair/body (I have long hair) and rinse and still have water left over. I made sure the trailer was higher at the front so the water just went out the back door. I wish I had taken a photo of my set up.
This photo will show how you work the watering can.
http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/236x/03/43/12/034312184e109d5ca24c01e87ed38234.jpg[/QUOTE]
This is fabulous! Wish I had thought of it. Or you can find camping showers at camping gear/sporting goods stores. I can’t recall what I paid for mine, but it was under 50$
[QUOTE=ccr0009;7222625]
We used the shower at Pine Top years at Young Rider’s camp in the barn behind their ‘main/home’ barn. (To the farthest right) I want to say through a dark office.
River Glen in TN does as well. It’s also a bit hidden.[/QUOTE]
Much appreciated!! I have gone there a couple times and was not aware of a shower so now I will know for the future!
I seem to recall that LAZ used a Zodi portable hot water heater for hot showers.
http://www.amazon.com/ZODI-Outback-Gear-Travel-Shower/dp/B000X4IAMS/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1382464447&sr=8-2&keywords=zodi+camp+shower
This is really a good idea!
http://www.amazon.com/ZODI-Outback-Gear-Water-Heater/dp/B003EEEST8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1382464363&sr=8-1&keywords=Zodi+heat+coil+shower
Of course bumming showers is cheaper.
[QUOTE=vineyridge;7229132]
I seem to recall that LAZ used a Zodi portable hot water heater for hot showers.
http://www.amazon.com/ZODI-Outback-Gear-Travel-Shower/dp/B000X4IAMS/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1382464447&sr=8-2&keywords=zodi+camp+shower
This is really a good idea!
http://www.amazon.com/ZODI-Outback-Gear-Water-Heater/dp/B003EEEST8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1382464363&sr=8-1&keywords=Zodi+heat+coil+shower
Of course bumming showers is cheaper.[/QUOTE]
i do have a Zodi shower and it is great.
i keep an eye on Campmor and REI’s hot deals pages–you can find fabulous camping stuff for some really cheap prices if you keep an eye out.
This is clearly a reason to buy one of the insta-hot horse washer units from Schneiders. I have one and love it for bathing anywhere…me or the horse!
I have only every stayed in LQ or a hotel when grooming professionally at a show: as a competitor I’ve ALWAYS slept in the back of the trailer or camped.
I do a lot of camping so I have good gear. Sometimes just staying in the back of the trailer is easier, though: esp if it’s raining because you don’t get stuck in a wet tent. The trailer tends to be cold, though, because you’re basically just outside. Bring a big tarp to spread out on the ground so you don’t have to touch the smelly mats. Like others have said, an air mattress is going to be cold because there’s no insulation. I use a thermarest.
I just don’t shower at horse shows. We’re sitting out in the sun and dust all day on the back of sweaty horses: a shower just seems a bit ludicrous. Yet, the times I’ve stayed in LQ while grooming and got to have daily showers were pretty darn sweet, I must admit.
I camped for years. YEARS. Theoretically in a tent, but with the amount of rain we get early in the season, I often inflated a twin mattress in the back seat of my truck :lol:
First: get thee a mattress with batteries so you can inflate without a pump. Why? Because you will forget the pump or the pump won’t work. Trust me. It will happen. Also, when you wake up at 1 am lying on the ground because your mattress deflated in the cold, you can just reach down and flip a switch to reinflate. Without. Actually. Leaving. Your. Bed. Also-also, put the empty mattress in the bed of the truck, THEN inflate. Finally, yes, airmattesses get cold. I keep a wool blanket in the truck. Put that between your sleeping bag and the mattress. Makes a world of difference. Btw I picked up my heavy wool blanket at Goodwill for $5.
Second: get a gazebo. I bought a Coleman one. It pops up in minutes, has a bug screen, is the perfect place to set up your stove and make coffee/breakfast/lunch/wine. Mine fits about 8 people comfortably and you’d be surprised how many people end up hanging out at your gazebo.
I finally bought a camper for my truck. It’s in-bed, has a stove, oven, fridge/freezer, and bathroom. I can still pull my bumperpull. I redecorated and it looks amazing. Way. Ether than the industry standard! And I honestly can’t believe how many years I spent camping at shows/trail rides/clinics…
It wasn’t that expensive, $3000 used and $1000 to renovate? Camp out for a year on the cheap and then start watching the Craigslist ads
