silversubey
Oviedo, Florida
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Joined: 07/09/2007
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Cabella's must be making a fortune off of these blankets. I ordred 3 of the Olive colored ones 2 months ago. Last week I tried to order another Olive one and they were out. I settled for Red. Kinda funny that they are out of Emergency blankets in June.
2000 Coleman Fairview
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Fast Mopar
Houston, TX
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Joined: 05/03/2005
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We don't use any official emergency blankets. We bought a roll of some sort of silver reflective insulating material (not sure where - maybe Home Depot). It's not a perfect fit, but it works great and makes a huge difference in keeping heat out. We just tie it on with string. It sounds crude, but actually several people have commented on it (in a good way).
2004 Ford Freestar 4.2 liter
2003 Jayco Qwest 12A
preserve the Second Amendment
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Tarponteaser
Space Coast Florida
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Joined: 09/12/2005
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We went to Jetty Park for a shuttle launch last year and our PUP was covered with space blankets because the sun was brutal and we had no shade. It was funny because the camper looked like something from NASA . I used the cheap very thin mylar emergency blankets which have worn out over the years. I did have one "high quality" red/black emergency blanket which is still good as new, but want something more now. The thin mylar space blankets do work...we used them in the Keys last week and noticed an immediate difference, but there is a better alternative.
I had previously used Reflectix to make window inserts and decided to get some more to make new covers for the bunk ends and dinette roof. One of the other forum members did a lot of research and found the manufacturer of Reflectix which sells the same product under a different name cheaper. http://www.radiantbarrier.com/ is where I picked up a 4' by 75 ' roll of Tempshield double bubble foil/white radiant barrier. The price was 81.00 for 300 ft2 plus shipping (came out to $0.33/ft2 after shipping. Perhaps I should have bought the 500 ft2 because it is a fantastic product and I can always discover/invent a use for it. I opted for the foil/white because it had the same insulation rating and I thought the potential for marking the Aqualon fabric would be minimized. The amount of material required for the Centennial 3606 will be 126.67 ft2 at a cost of $41.80. I'll try using my existing clips, but may upgrade so something a bit larger.
If you think you cannot justify spending $100.00 for 300 ft2 of radiant barrier when you may only need 130 ft2 to cover your camper, consider the other uses of the material
Our garage door is uninsulated and faces West so I measured and will cut panels to fit and will insulate the door with 112 ft2 of material at a cost of $36.96. (much cheaper than the insulated door upgrade)
We have used screen rooms/gazebos since tent camping and spend a good portion of the day/evening in them playing games, eating, or just enjoying the day. Sometimes in the heat of the Summer...if shade is scarce....you can feel the heat radiating through the roof. I used to place space blankets on the screen room too, but will now make panels to fit over the top(and overlap a portion of the side for shade and to provide rain protection). You could also 'improve' your old beach umbrella with some tempshield/reflectix,or space blanket if the heat of the Sun just radiates through the thin fabric.
Reflectix/Tempshield also makes great cooler covers to extend the life of the ice. I've made several and always get comments at the campgrounds.
Not having tire covers for the PUP, I'll probably make a pair from some old Reflectix so the grass sprinkler keeps off the wheels and the tires are protected from the Florida Sun while in the yard.
My next shed (project next year) will have radiant barrier on the ceiling, and if I have any left over after doing the gazebo next week, the water heater gets a blanket made to increase insulation and reduce electric expense.
So there you have it...go get some radiant barrier and enjoy cooler Summers and warmer Fall/Winters in the camper.
Regards
Randy
2006 Centennial 3606
2008 F-250 4X4 PSD King Ranch Crew Cab
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Baytoven
AZ
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Joined: 11/08/2005
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In a southern climate, we use ours primarily for reflecting radiant heat. Darkening the beds and keeping them clean are pleasant side benefits.
PUG covers were originally designed before people started adding Velcro to them for convenience, so the Velcro isn't necessary. Here's their installation tips:
http://www.popupgizmos.com/install%20page.htm
The high wind model solar covers have elastic cord in the trim, so they hug the PUP and are much easier to deploy because they don't use clips on the ends.
If you have double sized bunks, you can more easily substitute sportsmans blankets, at lower cost. If you have king sized beds, the blankets would have to be seamed together to cover adequately, and PUG covers are more worth their cost.
I think Reflectix-type material is more efficient than the single layer solar covers, but Reflectix is bulkier and degrades along fold lines if folded to fit in your storage space.
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daystrom
NE Ohio
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Joined: 06/16/2005
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If I may make a suggestion. If you do buy the real Popup Gizmos do yourself a favor and spend the extra $ to get the high wind version. I love my Gizmos but wish I had bought the high wind version. Any little gust of wind seems to blow them off. I even switched over to strong office type binders and I still have the problem with them unclipping from the bunks.
A few weeks ago in fact the wind blew one and draped it over the water heater exhaust melting a nice big hole in it.
2005 Dodge Ram 1500 QC 4x4
2005 Jayco Select 12HW
Nights camped in 2008: 29
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popupgizmo
Texas
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Joined: 02/18/2006
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Daystrom,
Please contact me off forum...we'll replace your damaged cover for you. No charge. And we can discuss improving your problem with wind too.
Best Regards,
Bob Pitney
PopupGizmos
daystrom wrote:If I may make a suggestion. If you do buy the real Popup Gizmos do yourself a favor and spend the extra $ to get the high wind version. I love my Gizmos but wish I had bought the high wind version. Any little gust of wind seems to blow them off. I even switched over to strong office type binders and I still have the problem with them unclipping from the bunks.
A few weeks ago in fact the wind blew one and draped it over the water heater exhaust melting a nice big hole in it.
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He Ruide
Cincinnati Ohio
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Joined: 08/30/2006
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popupgizmo wrote:Daystrom,
Please contact me off forum...we'll replace your damaged cover for you. No charge. And we can discuss improving your problem with wind too.
Best Regards,
Bob Pitney
PopupGizmos
This is exemplary customer support!
Ruide
Fleetwood Evolution E3 - Yellow (DW let me get a Yellow one since she wanted an E3 with a slide out  )
Hummer H2 - Black (DW vetoed the Yellow one, but I got two Yellow Hummer Folding Mountain bikes  )
My Pics and Mods and My Weekly Blog
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daystrom
NE Ohio
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Joined: 06/16/2005
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Yes it is and is the reason everyone should buy from Bob. I will contact you Bob. Thanks so much!
Todd
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jtbeck
Kentucky
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Joined: 04/23/2008
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I'm going to purchase some PUG's before next season starts, but as a temporary fix what do you think about using regular old blue tarps that have a silver backside with the silver side up? I know they're nowhere near as reflective as PUG's or sportman's blankets, but wouldn't they be better than nothing? They're not reflectix, but they definitely do relect.
Or would they just serve to hold heat in instead of reflecting and be worse than nothing?
EDIT: I'm leaving for Florida dark and early on Monday morning so I've definitely waited too long to do much about this at this point. Plus, seeing as this is my first PUP, I've already spent quite a bit of cabbage getting this thing up and running, so I'm looking to save a few sheckles for right now.
Me (69), DW (69), DD (95), DS (00), DS (01) and 1 camping toy fox terrier (08)
95 Fleetwood Utah, 02 Ford Explorer Limited (V8)
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SoCalRailFan
Riverside, CA
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Joined: 04/02/2008
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When I was looking at purchasing my new popup I looked at all the accessories I might need and the bunk end covers came up. I ended buying these Sportsman Space Blankets from Cabela's. I did this because of the price compared to the ones at PopupGizmo.
Well when I was in Death Valley this week it was around 113-115 degrees. I decided to put the blankets up on the bunk ends. I think it made a big difference. I didn't feel the heat blasting through the roof and the inside of the popup with the a/c going was comfortable and noticeably cooler than outside. Here's a photo of ow I attach them using wood working mini-spring-clamps that are very strong. I had high winds and they never even moved.
Thanks,
Dave
www.SoCalRailFan.com
2006 Jeep Wrangler Umilimited, 2008 Fleetwood Westlake
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