Cheap DIY 5$ window vent option for in-vehicle camping!

[Matsterious]

They definitely help if camping inside your rig. Without some windows being open the humidity level will suck. You’ll freeze more when it’s cold and sweat more when it’s hot. Good airflow helps with that. These with keep out mosquitoes as mentioned - but if you have no-see-ums in your area there’s no guarantee. You could double-up the mesh to help.
no need to change anything. They work. Be careful using any heat source for any reason near them - they’ll warp easily. I would imagine you could somehow add a bit of a coat-hanger frame around the perimeter (on the outside obviously) to give it better rigidity - but I don’t use them enough for it to matter.
Good luck with your project and have fun camping!

Thanks man! I'll buy some mosquito netting and glue an extra layer onto the gutter guard!

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[RBF 1401]

Great idea!

I plan on making these this weekend with intentions to only sleep in the bronco on my coming road trip using the deep sleep overland mattress.

What are your thoughts on the Deepsleep mattress?

 

[Matsterious]

What are your thoughts on the Deepsleep mattress?

It's very comfortable and easy to inflate. You will definitely need an inflator to get it on the firmer side. I'm 6'2 so it's tight but I had one of my most comfortable nights rest while camping on it. If you plan on sleeping in the bronco then you will have much less room for cargo. I know that's obvious but it is a struggle to fit everything.

 

[RBF 1401]

Can you confirm if these are bear proof or not?

Would be good to know what level of R&D went into this setup.


FWIW: we used to have these in our track cars as it greatly aided airflow in the cabin to have the rear windows open, but they still had to pass tech inspection. Having the front windows open was obnoxious with an open face helmet. Made from aluminum or carbon fiber typically though.

Do you think there will be anything like this available for our 2-door front windows?

The DIY in this thread is super cool, but won't work with the slanted window on the 2-door.

 

[BroncoTrail]

Thanks for making this thread! They fit absolutely perfectly. Now I just have to find some sort of bug net to put over them.

 

[BroncoTrail]

Do you think there will be anything like this available for our 2-door front windows?

The DIY in this thread is super cool, but won't work with the slanted window on the 2-door.

Sure it will! Just use two pieces and cut the ends at an angle catty-corner. Then glue them together. The plastic is easy to work with.

 

[cbrenthus]

Vents for in vehicle camping? = $




Ventilation kit for Overlanding! = $$$$$$$$$$

 

[Mlarv]

Thanks for making this thread! They fit absolutely perfectly. Now I just have to find some sort of bug net to put over them.

Use a piece of air cleaner filter from a home HVAC unit. That way when it gets dirty you can change it. It will keeps the bugs out and filter some dust as well.

 

[cynicalrider]

Thanks @The_Axeman for this idea. Trying it this weekend, was expecting 75* humid nights so was going to do two vents and two fans but temps changed to 55-65* nights I'll probably just need the two vents and that's it.

I changed mine a bit by taking another one, cutting it, and gluing actual window screen on it which netted me smaller holes. Not bad for $30 in stuff.

Untitled by Michael Halat, on Flickr

Untitled by Michael Halat, on Flickr

Untitled by Michael Halat, on Flickr

By doubling the vinyl material it makes the entire piece more rigid. I might also line the edges with fender trim for extra rigidity and durability.

Here is a comparison of the screen that came on it vs the window screen from home depot.

Untitled by Michael Halat, on Flickr

 

[cynicalrider]

Actual in use photos from this weekend.

Untitled by Michael Halat, on Flickr

Untitled by Michael Halat, on Flickr

We only had 55* nights so I only needed one vent (I would have used 2 if an RV wasn't running their generator all night on the other side ) and no fans except for a little bit one night when I buried myself in my bag when I went to sleep and woke up hot.

But with 2 vents and 2 fans I think I can even deal with a humid 70* night.

Fan locations:

Untitled by Michael Halat, on Flickr

 

[redone17]

This is great. Thanks for putting this together. I’ve been needing something like this. I use these on my gutters - so, have a box already. Very intuitive. Cheers.

 

[redone17]

Turns out Amerimax makes these in brown too...

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