Just thought I'd try and get some real life experiences from those with trailers. My husband drives semi and his weekly schedule is "4 on 3 off." He commutes about 30-40 minutes into work. There are about a handful of campgrounds that are closer to his work than our house. How realistic would it be for all of us to "live" at a CG for a week and survive with this kind of schedule...he would need to sleep from about 7-9am to anywhere from 1-4pm, depending on when he got back and when his next route starts. Then he would have his normal 3 days off to spend with us at the CG and try and sleep normally. (Wait, do truck drivers ever sleep normally, lol?) Basically, my question is, in your experience camping, would he realistically be able to sleep during the day at a campground? Yes, the kids and I would be around, but we would pick CG's that have some kind of pool/beach/activities so we wouldn't be hanging around the campsite ALL the time he would be sleeping. Is a TT comfortable enough to do that? Quiet enough? Large enough? Or would that be a terrible idea, lol? If it makes a difference, the days he would need to sleep during the days are Fridays-Mondays, so essentially the busiest days at a campground.
Probably not a very smart idea? I suppose we could try it once and know if we would never attempt THAT again, haha I'm highly assuming finding a TT with wooden pocket doors would be the only way something like this could possibly work. Just thinking it would be nice to have a little vacation, without using vacation days to do it!
Why not give it a try? Depending upon the kids ages and how lightly he sleeps, it shouldn't be too much of a problem. I've had no problem napping during the day in our Northtrail TT, which had a sliding door on the master and another on the WC, which was close to the front door. He could put on an eye mask and some ear plugs and he should do fine. Once he gets used to the noises outside (kids squealing, folks talking, RVs coming and going), he should be ok.
Sounds like a great way for the family to be together and for y'all to have a little vacation time!
-mamajava
* This post was
edited 05/31/12 06:06am by mamajava *
Very do-able IMO. We found the TT we have now much easier to sleep in that the previous one. On some trips where we are getting away to recharge, we have "accidentally" slept to 10am or later (or course that's without kids on board LOL).
Two things that really improve sleeping are the dual-pane windows, they really healp reduce noise, and also the pleated day/night shades have a blackout feature that makes the room pitch black even in daylight.
FWIW we had wood pocket doors to our front bedroom and took them off and replaced them with heavy drapes. Aside from taking valuable room at the foot of the bed when closed, the hard surfaces reflected sound and light. The dog could beat that door like a drum with his tail!
The drapes that we put up (DW made them)are double-sided, take up little room when closed, and the soft surface absorbs sound and light instead of reflecting it, keeping the bedroom much quieter. If a kid or dog or ball bumps the curtain, there is no sound, vs. the big boom the hollow door makes. If you make drapes keep them 2-3" off of the floor for air circulation.
Another thing that I have found that helps is having a small fan running in the bedroom. It helps creates "white noise" so that you don't hear the small outside noises.
It will also depend on the campground and where you are located in the campground. The farther from a clubhouse or pool the better. But noise from outside the campground can be a problem. Close to a road? In one place there is a biker bar across the road so the noise from the Harley Davidson motorcycles is a constant problem.
cm wrote: Another thing that I have found that helps is having a small fan running in the bedroom. It helps creates "white noise" so that you don't hear the small outside noises.
It will also depend on the campground and where you are located in the campground. The farther from a clubhouse or pool the better. But noise from outside the campground can be a problem. Close to a road? In one place there is a biker bar across the road so the noise from the Harley Davidson motorcycles is a constant problem.
Having spent a great deal of my life sleeping at strange hours and with little kids in the house, I can tell you the fan and white noise is a great help. For him to sleep, I think you are going to have to be away from the trailer. It is the suttle movement or different noise that will wake him.
BUT, I certainly would give it a try. We are currently living one week at a campground near my work and then a week at the house. Even though I'm at work, coming "home" to the trailer is a very different experience and at the end of the week you do feel like you were on vacation. It also gives you something to really look forward to on the weeks we are at the house getting the yard work and other maintenance items done, because next week we are camping.
That is one of the main reasons we chose a TT over a hybrid. My dh works third shift, and if we were going to have any fun, he was going o have to get some sleep. He hears nothing while sleeping in the TT, then again, I think he can sleep anywhere since he can sleep though our day noise at home.
winonamom wrote: ...Is a TT comfortable enough to do that? Quiet enough? Large enough? Or would that be a terrible idea, lol?
I think it is very doable. I would think that these need to be done -
- get a quiet campgound / campsite with minimal kids and animals
- make the RV as comfortable as possible (cool and with bedroom air changes)
- wear earplugs just in case (he can practice sleeping with them before actually camping).
TTs should be plenty comfortable since my hybrid is pretty comfortable for sleeping.
I would consider putting black out curtains on the windows. I have them on my bedroom in S&B and now have discovered light really bothers me when I sleep. I am planning to buy black out curtains at WalMart and cut one pair down to fit the two windows in my TT bedroom. I plan to use a small spring rod inside the valance to hang them.
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I'm highly assuming finding a TT with wooden pocket doors would be the only way something like this could possibly work. Just thinking it would be nice to have a little vacation, without using vacation days to do it! 
