One option I’m considering to save precious money is to get a quality SUV tent to attach to the back of my HRV. I’d sleep in the HRV and then be able to move to the tent in complete privacy to go potty or change clothes standing up. I have a couple concerns but the major one is that if I leave the hatch open at night, I’m more vulnerable. I feel more secure with something that has hard sides and locks. I’ve owned a converted cargo trailer in the past but I can’t tow much of anything with this vehicle and changing vehicles isn’t an option so I have to make it work with the HRV. I could potentially make it work with a super lightweight teardrop like a Runaway, but that’s $4-5000 I would rather devote to an emergency fund. Would appreciate your thoughts about the vulnerability issue. TIA!
WOMEN ONLY! SUV tent
- Thread starter gourdgirl
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People camp in tents all the time without any issues. I don't think it is a big security issue. However SUV tents do not seal tightly against the sides of the vehicle so you will have issues with flies, no see-ums and skeeters, mice, etc. It is actually easier to get a free standing tent to use. Perhaps one of the Clam or Gazelles that go up far easier than an SUV tent when you are traveling plus maybe a ground cloth as they don't have a bottom in them.
Totally true fact of life:
If your tent is a pain in the neck to put up you will rarely use it. If it is super easy to put up and take down you will use it often. Being able to put the tent in the shade and have the solar panels on your van in the sun is also a big advantage of a free standing tent for the summer months when you might be camping at higher elevations in the national forest lands.
Getting up in the middle of the night to potty, use one of the female urinals and pee into a bottle or a wide mouth canister with a lid.
This video from the woman whose youtube channel is "A Nomad for Nature" has an interesting setup for her toilet. Her pee container is an easy solution to fit into a minivan for night use. She has a great travel channel and she has years of experience, worth subscribing to. Of course bonus points for being a solo female traveler.
Totally true fact of life:
If your tent is a pain in the neck to put up you will rarely use it. If it is super easy to put up and take down you will use it often. Being able to put the tent in the shade and have the solar panels on your van in the sun is also a big advantage of a free standing tent for the summer months when you might be camping at higher elevations in the national forest lands.
Getting up in the middle of the night to potty, use one of the female urinals and pee into a bottle or a wide mouth canister with a lid.
This video from the woman whose youtube channel is "A Nomad for Nature" has an interesting setup for her toilet. Her pee container is an easy solution to fit into a minivan for night use. She has a great travel channel and she has years of experience, worth subscribing to. Of course bonus points for being a solo female traveler.
Thanks. I’ll check out her video. I’ve tried female urinals and wide mouth hugs but I still always have spillage, and that’s standing up. I won’t be able to stand in my SUV and that’s a problem since I wake several times each night to pee. If I have to get up and go outside, I won’t be able to go back to sleep.
I agree that safety is not an issue with a tent.
Use common sense and that will get you thru.
I looked at SUV tents a couple of years ago, and passed on it because of my dog, but I have seen one deployed by a woman traveling solo and believe they are a viable option for many.
I liked the idea of sleeping off the ground, yet having the tent space for living room during the day.
Use common sense and that will get you thru.
I looked at SUV tents a couple of years ago, and passed on it because of my dog, but I have seen one deployed by a woman traveling solo and believe they are a viable option for many.
I liked the idea of sleeping off the ground, yet having the tent space for living room during the day.
A small portable, 2.5 gallon flush toilet might be a good solution for your night time pee use. It won't need to be emptied too often if your reserve it for pee only. There are natural enzyme products you can put into it for odor control so that it won't make your small living space stinky. You can also keep a small spray bottle of the enzymes to clean the bowl area with every morning. That way it won't require a lot of work to rinse the bowl out on a daily basis. If you put TP into it be sure you buy something that says "septic safe" on it and opt for single ply, not the super fluffy stuff. You need TP that starts falling apart right away when it hits the liquid.
I am not sure that you are actually familiar with the real life size of a 2.5 gallon toilet. They are typically only 12 to 12.5 inches in height. They are much too low for most people to feel comfortable sitting on them. I just went out and checked the seat height in my Honda Element which is classified as a mini SUV. The forward edge of the seat is just over 13 inches and it slope down to 12 inches towards the seat back. I suspect you will be able to sit upright on the 2.5 gallon toilet if you are not a well above average height woman but of course I don't know how much head room your car has since I don't own the same vehicle. Go out and measure the height of the driver's seat in your car. Figure out how many inches of clearance there is above your head. Use that to judge things when looking at potential products. You need a real world measurement comparison rather than just a guess. It will take the stress out of making decisions to have those measurements.gourdgirl said:
"My small portable, 2.5 gallon flush toilet" sits on the left upright passenger seat behind the driver's seat. My cot is on the right cargo area (that seat is stowed below the cargo floor there). I can semi-stand on the lower floor by the potty. There is enough head room to crouch on the potty, too.
I lined the dry potty bowl with a cat pee pad, taped in place with painter's tape and set a short coffee jug on it. I line the inside of the jug with a small plastic bag, held in place on the outside of the jug with a large rubber band. The jug lid snaps shut over the bag. The potty lid closes over it all.
The jug is wide-mouthed enough I can sit on the potty and pee in the jug. In the morning, I tuck the jug in a tote bag and empty it in a toilet at my first pit stop (campground bath house, gas station or rest stop bathroom). I tape in a new bag for the next use. This way I have the convenience of a camping potty without having to clean it or empty it. I tried the funnel method and found it a piss-poor method (pun intended) due to my poor eyesight and coordination.
I lined the dry potty bowl with a cat pee pad, taped in place with painter's tape and set a short coffee jug on it. I line the inside of the jug with a small plastic bag, held in place on the outside of the jug with a large rubber band. The jug lid snaps shut over the bag. The potty lid closes over it all.
The jug is wide-mouthed enough I can sit on the potty and pee in the jug. In the morning, I tuck the jug in a tote bag and empty it in a toilet at my first pit stop (campground bath house, gas station or rest stop bathroom). I tape in a new bag for the next use. This way I have the convenience of a camping potty without having to clean it or empty it. I tried the funnel method and found it a piss-poor method (pun intended) due to my poor eyesight and coordination.
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I use a coffee jug, too. Is the plastic bag so you don't need to rinse the jug after emptying? Is it a hassle to deal with the bag? What kind of bags do you use? (Inquiring minds want to know...)GypsyJan said:
RoamerRV428
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Not too familiar with car tents but you can close the back hatch right? When sleeping? That way you are locked in safely from your tent if you want? The back door doesn't have to remain open I believe to have the tent stay attached therefore you could lock yourself in for the sleeping part of your night, if bathroom needed, open the hatch door and enter the tent part for bathroom break. Back into tent and lock up and sleep more secure. A tent is a tent so total security won't happen with it, but you can get a good night sleep knowing your back hatch door is down and not easily accessible from the tent. A fast bathroom break into the tent I don't think would be a huge issue because I don't believe it is a scary issue when it comes to being too vulnerable. I truly think this set up should work well for you actually.gourdgirl said:
"I’m trying to visualize how this works. Type of bags you use in the coffee container that are leak proof. Any pictures?"
Nope...sorry but my cheap Tracfone has no camera. I just grabbed the smallest size I could find at a dollar store.
Nope...sorry but my cheap Tracfone has no camera. I just grabbed the smallest size I could find at a dollar store.
if you can't open the rear hatch from the inside just head to youtube. Someone will have posted a video on how to add a cable pull with a handle so that it can be opened. It will be a DIY, step by step instructions and state the parts and modifications needed. My Honda Element does not come with the ability to open the rear hatch from inside. But there is a company that makes roof tents for that vehicle that even installs those cable releases. They have to do that when they install their roof tent product onto the Elements.gourdgirl said:
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Excellent! Thanks for the update.LERCA said:
i just did my first trip in my minivan. I did not spend money on building it. I brought a tent that I can stand up in. I have a cot behind the front seat with a foldable mattress. I store everything under the cot and beside it. Things were crowded and a mess. So I put my folding card table and chair in the tent. I can paint,read, do taxes whatever in the tent. I put the bucket there too. I can change clothes, bathe whatever in the tent. I sleep in the car. I also use child window covers over the front windows. They are stretchy black fabric then I can open the windows for air flow. The car is roomy with things in the tent. I find it the best of both worlds.
NomadicFoodie
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On the safety issue, it depends on where you camp. You need the hard walls/ doors in the urban, high traffic areas but if you are in a campsite or with other campers in a place that’s normal to camp in a tent is fine. The good thing about sleeping in your car is, tent or not you can drive off easily. Even with a tent extension to get away from a danger or nuisance. Teardrops / trailers are not as safe in that way.
I feel safer sleeping in the car and using the tent to lounge in during the day and store stuff so the car has more room. I am a wimp and worry about bears, puma, etc., as well as human invaders. Being able to activate the alarm on my key fob, which causes flashing lights and noise, might deter "whatever" long enough for me to drive away.
