Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 01-29-2013, 09:44 PM   #1
Member
 
Rapidz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 85
Snow load

We were camping at Idaho's City of Rocks Jan. 26 and it snowed 6 inches of heavy, wet snow.

We had the lid popped on the Sportsmobile. Suddenly in the middle of the night the lid slowly came down under the weight of the snow.

Nobody wants to go out and sweep snow off the roof in their PJs in 20-degree weather.

Any ideas on how to keep the lid propped up or will that damage the lid under the snow load?

Thanks for any ideas[photo][/photo]
Attached Thumbnails
mountaingoat.jpg  

Rapidz is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-29-2013, 09:58 PM   #2
Senior Member
 
larrie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Oregon Ciry Oregon
Posts: 2,843
Snow load

I have four wooden dowels that I put in the corners to keep the from coming down. SMB also make some fold up supports that mount on the inside. One of the forum members built their own fold up supports.
__________________
Larrie
Read detailed trip reports, see photos and videos on my travel blog, luinil.com.
Current van: 2002 Ford E350 extended body camper with Colorado Camper Van pop top and Agile Offroad 4WD conversion.
larrie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-29-2013, 10:11 PM   #3
Site Team
 
daveb's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Turlock Ca
Posts: 10,407
Garage
Re: Snow load

I bought 1" aluminum tubing and put rubber foot plugs on the ends. Just curious, is your top electric?
You're the first person who has ever said the top came down that I know of. Damn, that could be a death wish is you failed to put some sort of backup support up.
__________________
2006 Ford 6.0PSD EB-50/E-PH SMB 4X4 Rock Crawler Trailer

Sportsmobile 4X4 Adventures..........On and off road adventures
daveb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-30-2013, 12:30 AM   #4
Senior Member
 
schluchtenflitzer's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Unterfranken
Posts: 456
Re: Snow load

I would take two small woods. One in front one in back. I saw a thread here a guy took an adjustable tool (no idea what the name is for) A great idea! And also good for protection. I heard that one time criminals go on the top and shut it down with their weight. So the guys inside had no change to get out of the bed. In that time an other took everything out of the car.......Happend in South Africa

I will sleep upstairs in cold waether. So the isolation is better
Attached Thumbnails
PIC_0964.jpg   PIC_0963.jpg  
__________________
www.Dieda-unterwegs.net
2001 SMB E350 4x4 7.3 Powerstroke
1968 Pontiac Firebird 400 Convertible ,1978 Peugeot 504 Convertible,1988 Porsche 911 Carrera 3.2,KTM 300 EXC,BMW G/S Paris Dakar,BMW "Diabolo"
schluchtenflitzer is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-30-2013, 07:59 AM   #5
Site Team
 
daveb's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Turlock Ca
Posts: 10,407
Garage
Re: Snow load

Maybe a hood prop...kinda expensive

http://www.mactools.com/shoponline/prod ... aptor.aspx
__________________
2006 Ford 6.0PSD EB-50/E-PH SMB 4X4 Rock Crawler Trailer

Sportsmobile 4X4 Adventures..........On and off road adventures
daveb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-30-2013, 08:08 AM   #6
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 533
Re: Snow load

Is that a Landcruiser with a camper top you have buried in the snow? If so, it's ironic that you have now bought a 4x4 US camper van. Most folks here would kill for a diesel Landcruiser pick-up with a camper which are plentiful in the EU, while you have imported a US van into the EU!

Despite the so-called 'free market' USA, practically speaking we cannot import any vehicle newer than 25 years, even the diesel model of a car sold with a gas engine in the US. And we are given a very limited choice of vehicles by the major manufacturers. The market is very tightly controlled here. From what I understand you can import anything you want into the EU if you pay the duty, apart from the fact that you have a much wider range of vehicles to choose from.
witoke is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-30-2013, 08:30 AM   #7
Senior Member
 
shenrie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: boise idaho
Posts: 2,625
Garage
Re: Snow load

^^^ its not hard to import the actual motors and if you know the right avenues, you can get the entire vehicles here. wether or not its worth the time and money is a completly different story.

a company i worked for had a few containers shipped here. it was badass to have some very rare stuff, but the hoops you have to jump through and the chance of loosing your ass if you get caught make it hardly worth it....but some customers were willing to take those chances, so we did it successfully a few times.

where you live makes a big difference too. idaho is so lax about regestering a vehicle with no vin is just silly. all they care about is DOT approved lighting. the stuff we brought in here would never fly in a state like california.

and the snow we have been getting is super heavy. kinda crazy your top came down. that would be a rude awaking.

ive lived in idaho my entire life and still havent visited the city of rocks. im hoping it will be one of our first adventures once we get a top on our van.
__________________
"understeer is when you hit the wall with the front of your car, oversteer is when you hit the wall with the rear of your car, horsepower is how hard your car hits the wall, and torque is how far your car moves the wall."
shenrie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-30-2013, 08:40 AM   #8
Site Team
 
macmcintire's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Posts: 1,537
Re: Snow load

Here's my rig in Evanston, Wyoming on January 29th.



__________________
Mac McIntire
2003 Ford E250, 5.4L V8,
macmcintire is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-30-2013, 05:59 PM   #9
Member
 
Rapidz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 85
Re: Snow load

I don't have an electric top. It's pretty hard to push up and can be stiff. That's why it was a surprise to have it come down.
Thanks for the tips.
Rapidz
Rapidz is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-31-2013, 12:04 AM   #10
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 1,715
Snow load

Favorite pics of our rigs are when they're covered in snow.
Ocsmb is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3
Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Sportsmobile SIP or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 01:02 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.