Outfitting New Trailer: What Can't You Live Without?

[MuleLady]

Hey! I have one of those plastic tables that folds flat; it’s 4’x2’ soo EASY but sturdy. Never thought about storing it under the airmattress, great idea. In fact, it probably makes sense to store ALL the camping stuff in the bed area of the gooseneck, so it’s out of my way for day trips but doesn’t have to be repacked when I go camping.

I have been looking at porta potties…want one of the more expensive ones eventually but have settled for the cheapie hassock style. I’m going to try clumping kitty litter in it, double-bagged. If it works great in the cat box why not in the porta pottie? Any thoughts on this idea?

[gothedistance]

@katarine

…we can’t rig a screen door, so I’m going to give this a try.

You can make a screen door for any trailer. All you need is a roll of window screening (preferably fiberglass as opposed to aluminum) cut to fit the width and height of your door opening, with 2-3" to spare on all four sides, and a method to attach it to your trailer. Magnets work for a steel trailer, as does sticky-back Velcro. The idea was shown at a recent endurance ride seminar, and I thought it was absolutely too clever!

I had a round metal railing welded on the inside of my trailer at the base of the roofline which I use it to hang all sorts of things that I don’t want cluttering up a floor. Since the railing is continuous, and extends over the doorway, I use that portion to hang my “screen door” (via Velcro sewn on) Gave the “screen door” the acid test this weekend, and it performed flawlessly. Let air through beautifully, but not the flies. I even left the regular door open at night with only the hanging screening to protect me from nighttime insect marauders, and emerged the next morning unscathed. I used two small but powerful magnets to secure the screen sides to the doorway frame near the bottom, so that the air could continue to flow easily, but the curtain would remain firmly in place.

@katarine

AWNING: Love mine. I drop one arm from the trailer, the one by the LQ door, and anchor it with a tent stake. I lower that end, too, to drain the dew/rain water off. If a storm is truly horrid enough, that’s what insurance is for.

My quik-shade canopy has a four corner peaked roofline that doesn’t hold water, and I can take it down faster than my trailer neighbor can her installed canopy. However, my main beef with an awning is that I don’t like the idea of lines and rope running straight down to the ground since I extend my pony’s corral all up the side of my trailer. The quik-shade canopy, however, is big enough that the legs on one side are against the trailer, and the legs on the far sides are right at my electric fence line. Nothing is standing in the access way.

On extra storage space: I had my welder put an outside rack against the side of my trailer between the end of the wheel well and the very back – that nice space that typically isn’t used for anything (on trailers that do not extend all the way out to the wheel). At the bottom I had him put the lattice-work metal to ensure that anything on the bottom stayed there. The rack holds all my electric fence poles, the fencing tape roll, pitchfork, broom, my 10x10 portable tent, small wheel chucks, and emergency wheel chuck/tire changer. All very easy to access. All the less stuff I need to worry about carrying in my truck, or my trailer.

[MuleLady]

To PM someone, just click their user name and choose the Send a Private Message option…you’ll get a screen that looks just like the one where you reply to a topic, but the message just goes to the one person instead of the forum itself.

If you send me that list, I’ll put it on my web server and share a link to it so everyone can access it…if that’s okay with you.

[MuleLady]

Katarine sent her list…it’s here. Thanks!!!

If anyone else wants to send me their horse-camping related docs to post on my web server, my email addresss is mulelady @ bullrunhunt.com (take out the spaces).

[gothedistance]

re-order the list

Under FOOD the first item should be beer. Then snacks. Then candy.

Under FUN the first item should be beer. Then beer with the trailer neighbors. Then dinner and dessert with the trailer neighbors, followed by after dinner beer.

[MuleLady]

I want to go camping with you, GTD!

[katarine]

no no no - if I don’t list WATER, then WINE, then BEER- then I end up with nothing but beer. Me, I likes my wine, and my water, too ;), THEN my beer :winkgrin:

[gothedistance]

cold brews for hot days

Actually, I’m the “wine 'n cheese 'n smoked oysters” type by nature. Popping a cork is music to my ears.

But this past weekend I discovered the delights of a cold cold beer on a hot hot day. Nector couldn’t be sweeter.

I’m going to have to add some brew to my stockpile of high toned supplies… medicinal for those sweltering summer rides, of course. MuleLady - ya’ll are welcome to be my camping neighbor anytime. Be prepared to party late – nothing more relaxing to encourage some much needed shut-eye before dragging oneself out of bed to be ready for that 6AM “trail’s open!” call (or, in the case of this last weekend, 5AM).

[JoJo]

LOL, it looks like two campers would get up pretty bleary-eyed, but fun. lol!

One neat thing that I ran across (any supermarket, mine is Hannafords) is… Ziplock now makes gigantic bags. The X-Large is about 2 x 2 feet, but the XXL is 2 x 3 ft. These look like they’ll be GREAT for carting hay and keeping it dry and anything else along the bulky line. They come with a cut-out handle, and the ziplock strip seems pretty darned sturdy to me. I’ve been keeping my helmet, on-trail fly mask and bridle in an XL and it’s pretty easy to shlep to and from trail riding start point (just over at a friend’s house). I just grab my saddled horse in one hand and the big baggie in the other, and that’s that. They seem pretty strong too. Definitely disposeable if one gets funky or a hole in it.

[JoJo]

GTD…

GTD, I’m looking at these canopies you suggest, and need to know something.

Why do you say you insist on peaked roof and straight legs?

[gothedistance]

@JoJo

GTD, I’m looking at these canopies you suggest, and need to know something. Why do you say you insist on peaked roof and straight legs?

Because a horse won’t get their ears caught in a peaked roof canopy where the supports go upwards. I’ve seen canopies with supports going horizonally right across the top of one’s head, only inches above. NOT good for a horse to stand under one of these.

The straight legs are easier for a horse to judge (see) … and a human, too… and allow the canopy to be snugged closer to a trailer if one wants to use it as a pseudo trailer-canopy.

JoJo - I saw those big ZipLock bags! Thought “WOW!” how terrific!! Haven’t found a use for them yet, but will buy a box anyway…just in case.

[JoJo]

The Huge Ziplocks: Well, I’m thinking of these for transporting to/from horse camping site next weekend. No tonneau or truck cap. I figure anything I want to transport in the truck bed would stand a pretty good chance of staying dry in these, hay included. They’re a really thick grade of plastic, and seem to lock really tightly. I only bought one bag of the XL and the XXL to be able to look at them and picture uses, but think I may be getting more.

Strait Legs and Peaked Roofed Canopies: The straight legs seem better all the way around for both the reasons you mentioned. As for the “vertical supports,” I’ve never seen how one of these things is constructed, so I don’t know what you mean by vertical supports but am picturing accordian type baby gates, and yeah, if the horizontal supports are like that then if a horse walks under an open part (widest part of diamond shape) and keeps walking, that would not be good, lol.

What I’m now thinking as a possible alternative (these canopies are minimum $150, ouch) is… corkscrew type pet tie out stakes, the longest ones I can find, set in at an angle flush with the human side of the trailer. Run ropes vertically up the side of the trailer, to the top edge. Attach it to the tarp at that point (top edge). Run the tarp right over the top of the trailer and straight out, however far. Secure that other side via tent poles. And let that be horse shade.

Additional possibility I’ve been thinking about… attach two tarps together (say 9 x 12) with wrapped bailing twine, grommet to grommet. Drape the thing over the top of the trailer with length on each side, then use tent poles and guy lines on each far end. That would make horse shade on one side and human “awning” type shade on other side. Two cheap blue plastic tarps, 4 tent poles and 4 corkscrew stakes plus some rope. Seems it would be pretty stable, no?

It would surely take 2 people to slide the tarp that high up onto and over the trailer top, but seems a really cheap way to get both horse and human shade on each side “in one swell foop.”

[catm]

ziplock bags

I’m not sure it has been posted, but I use a lot of the gallon and two gallon size ziplock baggies when I pack for a weekend trip. One bag may hold my coffee bags, tea bags, splenda etc Another will hold my toothbrush, toothpaste, lotion etc.
I also set up my folding table in the boxstall portion of my trailer and use those plastic table clothes from dollar store. Just throw the plastic tableclothe away after the end of the weekend.

Heading down to Iron Horse Mountain Camp at the end of June. Anyone been there? Any comments?

TGIF!
cat

[MuleLady]

Hi Cat–nice to see you here! I could not LIVE without ziplocks, much less camp without them. I swear, my whole life is organized into them and plastic storage boxes!

I’m anxious to hear what you think of Iron Mountain, as I’m thinking of going down there later in the year. I’ll be at Ft Valley June 30-Jul 2.

[JoJo]

Hi Cat, I use the 1 and 2 gallon ones also… a LOT! Even when going on a plane, “suitcase camping” – I keep unders, socks, shirts, etc. packed in them first before putting them in suitcase. The reason I do this is because they slide against one another really nicely, and if you have something at the bottom of your suitcase that you want to get to without getting everything on top of it skewed (hence wrinkled), you can just slip out its ziplock and everything else stays stacked.

In fact, once I had a pair of super warm, soft sheepskin slipper boots that were very, very bulky. Way too bulky to take with. I fit them into a 2-gallon ziplock with the harder rubber type soles facing flat. I then zipped up the ziplock all but a teensy bit. And placing the bag on a chair so the soles were flat against the seat, I then SAT ON IT. And squeezed all the air out, then quickly zipped up the bag the rest of the way. It was like being vacuum sealed, LOL. I got them into my suitcase. I figured if the bag wasn’t air tight and it expanded, at least the suitcase was shut and strapped. Interestingly enough, it actually was (and stayed) airtight. The whole thing stayed compressed until I opened it and let air in. Then they bounced back to their fluffy, floppy, bulky state. Got 'em home the same way.

This whole idea would also lend itself to using jackets or towels you want to keep clean as padding between equipment. Just pack them into ziplocks, sit on them, zip them flattened, wedge them in between equipment (e.g., ProCat which is delicate and odd shaped heater) and other stuff, then once it’s all arranged, let in some air and everything will puff up and make things super tightly padded.

Hey, whatever works right? LOL.

[ArabianDreams]

It works…

@MuleLady

Colorful beads keep out flies? I never knew that and wondered why they ever were used/popular! You learn something new every day. Here’s another fly repellent idea: A mom-and-pop drivein restaurant near us hangs ziplock bags full of water over the doors that lead into their ordering windows. They SWEAR that those bags of water repel flies. I am not sure I believe it because can’t figure out WHY it should work, but I have to admit, there are very few to no flies in their ordering area. If this idea really does work, it’s certainly adaptable to trailers.

This is off-topic I know, but wanted to back the claim about the water-bags.
My trainer did this in her horse barn with the large Ziplock bags after hearing it from someone (her husband I think??) and did it at first to humour him, but then, did notice a signif. reduction in the # of flies around the barn as a result and “swears by them” now. (advocates?) She has had the same ones up for a year now, and they are still hanging up there, neat idea. I am going to try it one of these days ( when I have time!?!?!) at my barn.

[Fancy]

Pre-made modulars

Hey, guys. I was searching the net and found this website:

http://www.robertsmanufacturing.com

Check out the cool racks. They’re a little pricey, but you could make almost the same thing yourself. I have a 3-horse slant–I’m thinking about hanging the racks on the front wall and hauling my mare in the second stall. I don’t have 3 horses in the trailer twice in one year.

[gabz]

@Fancy

HaH! Very good! Thanks! Yes, my trailer is steel, thankyouverymuch. Magnets will work perfectly.

I buy the super heavy duty magnets from hardware stores. I bought a couple of yards of mesh screen fabric and hang it over my door with magnets. I also have a small mag light with a magnetic holder and a Coleman personal fan with a magnet base (that sucker is STRONG!!). I keep the small mag lite attached to the inside of the DR door for emergency in’s and outs… I love my Coleman flourescent lantern - but it doesn’t work when it’s super cold!!

[JoJo]

Well, I’m working on a way to create shade over the top of the trailer AND get awnings on both sides – one for the horse(s) and one for the humans. Once I get the details figured out, I’ll post it.

Meanwhile, I’ve been looking for a magnetic flashlight (full size) for ages. Hardware, Walmart, no one seemed to have them. Well, yesterday I noticed a two-pack of Ever Ready flashlights. I already have these, and they’re good flashlights. However, in the two-pack, one does have a magnetic side. I bought two packs just to get the two magnetic ones. Highly recommended, they are strong enough to stick anywhere (steel trailer) but not so strong they’re impossible to get off.

GABZ – WHAT hardware store have you found that carries just plain magnets? I’ve checked several and no one has them. Only craft supply stores and those are teensy, piddly little things that wouldn’t hold beans. (Quite literally.) Pray tell!

Meanwhile, I tried my Hot Water On Demand unit. Whoever mentioned loving hers, I can sure see why. I bought the thing over the winter and never tried it. What a great unit !!!

So I bought a hoola hoop (a 24-inch, the smaller size) from Target and rigged up a way to hang it with bungie cords in the walk-thru of my little 2H BP steel Valley oldie-but-goodie trailer. It rocks!!! Plan is to stand in a Rubbermaid 31-gallon rectangular storage box and drop the shower curtain inside the box so water doesn’t trail down onto the carpeting. HWOD unit is meanwhile placed in horse’s stall (sans horse of course) on a 2-drawer Starlite unit (the drawers are removeable and actually storage bins). Can reach the thing easily, and the shower hose/head is long enough.

One thing about the HWOD, I thought I’d have to turn off the unit to soap up, wash my hair, or whatever else doesn’t need water running then and there. A friend has one, and simply drops the shower head right into his water source (an ice chest since it holds more) – and he leaves it running. Not for long, but it beats turning it on and off. Besides, as it’s recirculating its own water in the ice chest, that water’s getting warmer so it’s all a no brainer. I’m not sure I’d have thought of that.

Also today set up Kelty Noah’s Tarp for first time. GREAT tarp!!! I understand these neither blow down in the wind NOR do they leak. High tech design, they can be configured a zillion ways depending on the wind, velocity, direction, etc. One backpacker (review website) said he used his in super high winds and a downpour, and was snug as a bug. This is something you CAN put up by yourself. Anyone who’s considering one, let me know because the directions that come with it just didn’t work. Friend and I figured out a way to set it up yourself. (Of course I haven’t done it from scratch alone yet and proof is in the pudding, but I think it’ll work fine.)

Getting ready for first horse camping trip this weekend, and many ideas and advice on this thread have been extreeeeeeemely appreciated !!! !!! !!! Hopefully I’ll be able to report back with the awnings/shade setup once I get the thing somewhat refined. It’s actually a little comical. But hey, whatever works. IF it in fact does.

[gabz]

Here in Michigan we have ACO and ACE hardware stores; also True Value.

Look in the automotive sections . I usually can buy 2 in a blister pack. 1" by 2" ?? and 3/8" thick. I have also bought very strong clips on magnets too.

I have considered a device that is used for oil changes to stand on for my showers. It’s a round thing, about 5-6" high, about 28 - 32" across, and has a small hole in the center. It’s used as an oil collector when you change the oil in a car. It has a handle on it and a drain plug, sometimes you can find them with wheels. I thought it might be easier to empty… I hadn’t thought about recycling the water through the HWOD unit. But then I couldn’t use that water for anything else … hmmm. gonna consider that though when I get my HWOD… Plus, the rubbermaid container could hold the HWOD, hoses, etc. right?

I usually stand at the back of the trailer - I tie the rear doors open and hang my shower curtain between the doors. That gives me the floor of the trailer to put things on (shampoo, soap, etc.) I hang my 5 gallon bag of hot water from one of the bars over the last butt window.

Your sterlite drawers? Buy another set and put them together to make it taller.