Posted 2005-12-30 8:21 PM (#34583) Subject: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Expert
Posts: 2828 Location: Southern New Mexico
I was wondering if anyone has seen or if it is even possible to have a "pop up" installed on the sleeper area of a GN. I have no head room in my current trailer and I'd like to be able to sit up in bed. Getting a new trailer is not an option, according to my husband.
Posted 2006-01-02 6:51 AM (#34706 - in reply to #34583) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Elite Veteran
Posts: 954 Location: Hagerstown, MD
If my memory is correct the moderator, Mr. Trailer brought up the idea on this site and literally got his butt shot off with the comments about a year ago. I was lucky enough to keep my mouth shut until I read some of the comments, which I thought were more than harsh! My thoughts at the time was that it was a good idea and still think that same way now. Imagine, being able to sit up, or even stand up in the sleeping area? Just from a house keeping standpoint, it's a great idea. I hate making the bed anyway, but making the bed in a GN is a pain in the butt and I have an extra tall GN trailer! Let me go WAY out on a limb and paint an idea for you. Imagine a small popup camper turned sideways and sitting over the GN of your trailer. You could have 2 double beds and walk in between them! Think how many kids you could put up there, know where they are, what they are doing and you are sleeping on a pullout sofa on the main floor of the trailer. The possibilities are endless, but I ALWAYS thought it was great idea. Happy trails.
Posted 2006-01-02 11:07 AM (#34721 - in reply to #34706) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
New User
Posts: 1
Location: Kennett, MO
This is interesting. I have a family of 4 and we are looking at trailers that will haul 4 horses and sleep 4 full-sized people. The pop-up idea sounds like a great use of space. The only LQ's for 4 that we have found so far are very long and housed in super-luxury trailers. The pop-up idea sounds like it would sell to people like us who like to haul to horse campgrounds, sleep indoors in comfort, but do not require mirrored ceilings, leather walls and tile floors.
Anyone know of anything on the market now that might be an option for us?
Posted 2006-01-02 3:29 PM (#34732 - in reply to #34583) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Elite Veteran
Posts: 824 Location: Kansas
Like the initiator, the only thing wrong with my trailer is lack of head space. Why would having a pop-up top make any less sense than glide out sides?
Posted 2006-01-02 9:21 PM (#34758 - in reply to #34583) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 402 Location: Lockport, Illinois
The Pop-up sounds like a great idea, but removing such a large part of the roof to add the Pop-up feature would hurt the integrity of the trailer. Look at a Semi-trailer, they don't have a large support frame, the floor, roof and the sides act as a frame. Look at a flat bed gooseneck, and the I-beams used for a frame.
The only way that the Pop-up idea could come to be, is if a manufacture would engineer the trailer to accept the Pop-up.
Posted 2006-01-03 5:30 AM (#34770 - in reply to #34583) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Expert
Posts: 3802 Location: Rocky Mount N.C.
They could build it if they wanted too, they got them with so many slides now that they look like a maze. Give them a little more time and the squeaky wheels will get their second floor upstairs bedrooms. I like the idea of a pop up roof in the gooseneck area, I don't got but one leg and have a hard time of getting up in and situated in the bunk. If the roof in the dressing-living area was only 2' to 3' higher it would make all the difference in the world.
Posted 2006-01-03 7:55 AM (#34780 - in reply to #34583) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Member
Posts: 26 Location: NC
Sounds like a good idea to me as well, especially since we usually have several people crash in our trailer with us. For those of you that cant wait, you may want to consider having your next trailer gooseneck dropped 4 inches (when they build it), it makes a huge difference.
Posted 2006-01-03 8:59 AM (#34787 - in reply to #34583) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 534 Location: Zionsville, Indiana
Regarding Lurker's suggestion: If you have the gooseneck floor dropped, be sure to raise the entire trailer via change in the axle articulation, etc. Otherwise, the trailer can not be pulled by a jacked up truck or a 4X4. Remember all the problems with the older trailers when newer trucks, particularly the Ford and Dodge 4X4s, had beds so high that the trailer frame was crunching the truck bed rails on slanted turns? Most trailer manufacturers have solved that problem by making the gooseneck floor higher, but you will re-create it if you drop the floor and don't compensate by raising the trailer! Adding inside trailer height is better for the horses, anyhow. More space, more air circulation, etc.
Posted 2006-01-03 10:30 AM (#34800 - in reply to #34770) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Elite Veteran
Posts: 954 Location: Hagerstown, MD
retento, plug in Custom Iron Workers in your search engine and look at their raised roof GN trailer. You walk up and into the bedroom at the top of the stairs over the GN area. I've often looked at their trailers and thought, "I'll have one of those some day." Happy trails.
Posted 2006-01-03 11:39 AM (#34808 - in reply to #34583) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Expert
Posts: 3802 Location: Rocky Mount N.C.
deranger, thanks for that link, but I didn't seen any trailer pictures on their site. Printed at the top of their page was that they are not doing any horse trailer work at this time. You may have waited too late!
Posted 2006-01-03 12:18 PM (#34811 - in reply to #34808) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Elite Veteran
Posts: 954 Location: Hagerstown, MD
My apologies retento, I haven't visited their website for a while and didn't know they weren't doing any trailer work at this time. Did your search engine pull up any other sites that might have one of their trailers listed for sale so you could get a look at one? Happy trails.
Posted 2006-01-04 12:38 PM (#34869 - in reply to #34829) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Elite Veteran
Posts: 954 Location: Hagerstown, MD
Thanks Big T, for posting the address to CIW trailer pictures. They build an awsome trailer and often think I'll have one to travel in when I retire. Takes a beefy truck to haul one of those rigs though. Happy trails.
Posted 2006-01-04 5:46 PM (#34898 - in reply to #34758) Subject: RE: Pop ups on sleeper areas
Expert
Posts: 2689
Originally written by BigT on 2006-01-02 9:21 PM
The Pop-up sounds like a great idea, but removing such a large part of the roof to add the Pop-up feature would hurt the integrity of the trailer. Look at a Semi-trailer, they don't have a large support frame, the floor, roof and the sides act as a frame. Look at a flat bed gooseneck, and the I-beams used for a frame.
The only way that the Pop-up idea could come to be, is if a manufacture would engineer the trailer to accept the Pop-up.
Agreed.
The gooseneck "sleep area" is essentially a torsion box.
It is a VERY DIFFERENT proposition cutting a big hole in that roof vs a big hole in the side for a slide out. Yeah, I know, its just a thin metal skin over skinny little roof ribs (-:
OK, so they cut little squares out for roof a/c units, but a pop-up ?
Not without some SERIOUS re-engineering.
OTOH, I have seen horse trailers with the rising up roofline, just like some of the bigger RV trailers. They probably push air like a barn door (-:
I'd go to an 8ft 6in inside height before I'd do that, which would get more air space ALL THROUGH the trailer, no special hacking up, no worries about structural integrity, more fuel )-:
Pop ups on sleeper areas
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