You guys are reaLLY helping me think things through! 
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My trailer is 20 years old and the roof vents do not leak.
I keep a claw hammer in the trailer. Its just 5he right thing to grab the vent bar and pull it closed, or indeed to tap on it to open it.
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If you get an escape door that can be latched and opened from the inside, your horse will open it on the highway.
I put an additional paddle latch on the outside of the door that can NOT be reached by a horse. You can get in and out using the handle latch. Before you leave, close the paddle latch the horse canāt get to.
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Also, I have hauled all sorts of nosey/young/fractious animals and none of them have chewed the screens on the windows. Maybe I got lucky?
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yeah i think youāre lucky. I have at least 4 very destructive animals when confined. Well, theyāre hard on the barn and fences too. They chew up trees as well. They just destroy for the heck of itā¦because they can.
paddle latch, yesss! thatās the thing that i hooked onto with my mareās halter. Didnāt know what you called them. If it were up just an inch or two higher i could have reeeeeeched it!
iāve not had any eye injuries hauling with open slats, and the lower one is at eye-level. Are windows moreā¦hazardous because they are bigger?
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Maybe. Iāve never had an eye injury with windows, and up until a year ish ago I hauled with the drop downs down (but the bars up).
Some facebook post about a trailer fire really resonated with me, and I started hauling with the drop downs up but the bus window open so I had screens in place. Paranoia on my part, probably.
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ogodā¦cigarettes! Last night when coming home w/repaired trailer i saw someone toss one out the window and saw it bounce on the highway. How can anyone be so careless and stupid!!
I donāt use shavings or straw. I just have mats over rubber boards. I donāt think fresh poop is ignitable either lol.
The VP guy who helped me at the manufacturing company said i donāt need to buy the rubber boards. That their infused board floor will never rot. He said three things he could guarantee: Death, taxes and Titanās floorboards LOL. So i wonāt be paying for the extra special boards. (plus, iām 70. Doubt iāll need a trailer after about 15 years) They DO have this new kind of flooring (over the boards) in lieu of rubber mats that looks kinda interesting. Iāve sent out a question about them to the dealer iām working with. I didnāt know about it yesterday when i was RIGHT THERE at the manu ā¦i could have gotten a good explanation and see in person dang it. Here is a blurb about the floor plus pic:
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Regarding roof vents, consider getting Flettner vents like the Equitrrek has. Theyāre sealed units that donāt let in water, but they spin with any kind of airflow, sucking hot air out of the trailer.
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I agree, I also struggle with reaching the vents in my trailer. If I tippy toe and flail around long enough, I can snag them! My trailerās a '97 and no sign of the vents leaking.
I might be imagining this, but it seems to me like the stock style trailers have a lower resale? Drop downs head and hip being the premium option. A stock trailer would be higher airflow. I have drop downs at the head and I prefer safety bars + a fly mask. This doesnāt reduce air flow to the trailer cabin like a screen will, but it still protects their eyes from debris.
My current trailer is 16ft on the floor and pretty handy. Iām moving to one thatās 18 and I donāt anticipate that to be a large difference. I did sacrifice the dressing room size to keep the back tack and add a horse slot though.
As a small person, I found the extra height I gained from standing on the running boards on my trailer helpful when operating the latches on the drop-downs.
Mentioning this because the pictured trailers donāt seem to show running boards, unless Iām misunderstanding the photos.
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Excellent observation!!! Thanks! I have added it to my questions for that poor saleswoman when she gets in on Monday. LOLā¦i have an ongoing email iāve been working on the past couple of daysā¦loaded with pics from their web and brochure. Like 30 questions so far. Looks like there is a wedge sort of step right in front of the wheels. My existing one has that, and my existing one has a wedge right aft of the wheels too. That has been all iāve needed. I routinely step up on the wheel to reach in and grab a halter and put a leadrope on.
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Yes, those wedges work great.
As of this morning iām back to 16 footer again. My farrier had me definately thinking 18 yesterday. Based mostly on resale-ability. But geeze, i donāt think i really need to think that way. I think i should concentrate more on what is good for me, now. BUTā¦since iāll be changing the way i haul now and instead of having the two (i haul in two for dressage lesson every week) loose together, and them both peering out the back door. Iāve done the research and have had a ātalking-toā from the manufacturerā¦ i now know i must keep a horse forward for better control over the trailerā¦better weight distribution. Soā¦that mid-way divider will be pushing a horse into either 6 or 7 feet. The 16 foot trailer, less 4ā for tackroom, has only 6 feet long and 6.8 feet wide. But an 18 foot, less 4 for tackrm, has two 7x6.8 stalls. Which is i think a lot better ā¦for THEM. For me, iām hauling over hilly curvy roadsā¦ and shorter seems much easier, more realistic for little ole me.
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This is probably silly, but I prefer shorter. That way, when some fool tries to pass me in a poor situation, there isnāt as much of me to get around.
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You probably do as i do, slow down and let him. Then keep it down for a little while to let the jerk get waaaaaaay ahead!!!
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Yupš. I sure do.
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This is a gooseneck trailer. IMO, it starts out with better weight distribution than a bumper pull.
Your horses are primarily mustangs, correct? I am assuming not 16+ hands, or well over 1000#. Iāve had GN trailers ranging from 12 foot box to 14 foot box to 18 foot box. The largest is the only one where I kept the dividers in (it was a three horse slant). Otherwise, I either had my small (800-900#) horses tied sideways or, if taking more than a couple, possibly even loose (or tied alternately sideways) ā depending on how far Iām hauling and possibly other considerations.
Currently, I have the 12 foot box GN (with a tack room, but no dividers), and have always tied my two horses with heads to the road (butts to the curb). Theyāve positioned themselves in such as way that I could fit in another one thatās their size and general dimensions if I had to do so ā would be snug, but workable ā so have plenty of room for just the two of them. If loose, they naturally turn to stand at an angle, facing backwards (reverse slant).
Of course, all of my horses have been the type to get along, and theyāve always been in that size range, too ā Iām not trying to squeeze large horses in.
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My Standardbred is 16h and iām working with a mustang that is also that big. Youāre right ā¦most of my others hover around 15. I ride three pony size equines that occasionally travel too. I have a combined herd so they all eat/run/sleep with eachother. Will not be a problem gathering any two or three together. Plus, iāve found that after the first haul together horses bond. Like shipwrecked sailors on a lifeboatā¦lol
i only have about 5 horses and one mule that are 1,000 or under. Everyone else isā¦thick. Mustangs, at least the ones iāve chosen, tend to have a heft to them. Not all, but most, are large for mustangs. Iām pretty sure the two young boys (3yr now) will top out over 16. Theyāre 15.2 already and still reedy looking.
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Slant dressing room or squared off 4ā one? I think i donāt need much space for my stuff. Iām able to carry everything i need in the rear cab of my pickup now. And it will be wonderful to have full use of my truck! But for two -or 3 saddles max- i can use a 3 saddle swing out rack.
Will i be sorry if i go with a baby tack space instead of a full dressing room? Cannot IMAGINE ever sleeping in there, so thereās always the upper nose for storage.
Agree with the Flettnor vents. We put them on all our trailers.
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