Four Season Airstream?
 

I've read lots of threads about using an Airstream in colder weather but there is one question I have not yet been able to find an answer to.

We're in the slow process of looking for an Airstream, probably something in the 25 foot range. Since we live in Wisconsin and have hopes of being able to use the Airstream in the colder ends of the season (early spring and late fall) where temps can fall suddenly and drastically, I would really rather have a trailer which is factory equipped for this.

Did Airstream every make a true 4-season model? We'd prefer a used trailer, so if there were 4-season models made at some time I'll narrow my search to just those. Or can one be ordered with a true 4-season package from the factory?

I don't know about ever, but there are no options to make this a 4 season trailer today. Go to a brand that really builds a 4 season trailer.
Larry

Welcome Aboard👍
 

As far as I know Florida still has all its Seasons.😂

Bob
🇺🇸

Airstreams are NOT for camping in weather where it goes below freezing, snows and is this way for 4-6 months. The windows are single pane glass and the condensation is a problem. In saying this, cold weather camping can be fun as long as the Airstream is inside a heated garage.:lol::lol::lol:

We live on Vancouver Island where early "summer" can be in the low 40's and same with "late October" and we do camp in this temperature. But seriously Airstream get complicated when it goes below freezing. You know, condensation, freezing waterlines etc. and baby it's cold in those metal tubes.:blink:

AS is only useful for 2 1/2 seasons,

once the temp goes lower than 10C, many issues occur such as
too much humidity
frozen pipes etc at night,
frost on the walls

To my knowledge . . . no.

This recent thread from Colorado is an interesting read for how it can be done, with a lot of time and effort, by customizing our aluminum tents:

https://www.airforums.com/forums/f46...-a-215428.html

Post #83 goes into detail: https://www.airforums.com/forums/f46...ml#post2442068

Well, that's disappointing.

We live in Wisconsin. You can get by when the temperature is cold. We have done it for a week or so. But the LP gets sucked up pretty fast, and you really need to keep vents going. But the camping season is pretty much April 15 to October 15. Maybe extend it 2 weeks either side. That’s when most campgrounds are open in the north. Unless you are going to boondock quite a bit, which then means using generators.

And honestly unless you really like cold weather it isn’t much fun to camp when it is cold. At least we haven’t found it to be.

Now if you are really into things like cross country skiing, etc. and boondocking then you can get a 4 season trailer. Lance makes one that is pretty nice. As I get older I like the cold weather less and less. THE ONLY reason I would go with a 4 season trailer is I’m leaving here in March and going south where it is warm. But for those few days I’ll stay in a warm motel room.:)

It seems every one of these writers has an insight that might help in your search. You may notice a common thread among their opinions - none of the choices are visually appealing and none are an Airstream:

https://camperguide.org/four-season-...trailer-guide/
https://rvexpertise.com/travel-trailers/4-season/
https://whereyoumakeit.com/rv/four-s...avel-trailers/
https://rvblogger.com/blog/4-season-...railer-brands/
https://rvfavorites.com/all-seasons-rv/

Thanks for the information. Guess I'm somewhat surprised, both that in all the years Airstream has never found enough of a market to do a 4-season model and that in the absence of a factory 4-season option no one else has produced a mod kit to accomplish this.

I've seen lots of SOB trailers with 4-season packages, but none of them have that special something inherent in an Airstream.

All you have to do to answer the question is consider the construction.....the outer and inner skin in an AS are metal......which in newer AS are separated with double sided tape to create a small thermal break......other brands are wood or other materials that are not metal....so creating a 4 season other brand is something that can be done because the conduction methods of cold to the inner chamber is very different.......pros and cons to both I'd guess.

The fact is most people don’t camp in the winter. How many campers do you see going down the road in the Winter? Very small percentage camp in the winter.

Airstream is not a 4 season trailer..hot in the summer cold and froze in the winter....4 season. Look at artic fox. Be better for winter

Sadly, I have to agree.

Wouldn't take much for me to go in for a 25Y model :D

I believe that another very capable 4 season trailer is the Bigfoot. Apparantly they have been building a 4 season since 2007.

I don't want to camp in the winter either - my goal is to have be able to extend the season further than what's normally done here in Wisconsin. My current coach is usually winterized by the end of October and I don't de-winterize until the end of April or early May.

Meanwhile there are events and rallies around the country in warmer states taking place every year in March and November. Attending those in with a trailer not suited to cold weather would mean having to winterize or de-winterize while on the road, something we're not at all interested in doing.

In some years getting to the events we want to attend would mean driving a day or more through temps in the teens or lower, not a risk I'd want to take with exposed plumbing. On top of that, when we travel we like to be able to stop for a night or two along the way to enjoy the areas we're passing through, and that isn't possible if you're trying to hi-tail it out of town to keep from having the pipes freeze.

We'd also like to visit some higher-altitude places in the country, and in those areas it can be late May or June and still have below freezing temps, especially at night.

I get it that winter camping is not a thing everyone enjoys, but with the number of threads I see on the various RV sites about how to travel from a cold climate to a warmer one without incurring freezing damage, I don't think I'm the only one wanting to do this.

My point? There are lots of things to do in this country in an RV which aren't really "winter camping" but still require an RV suited for below freezing temps.

If Airstream never made a 4-season model, what about the possibility of doing a renovation to an older one to convert it to 4-season? Is that possible, or does the structure inherent in an Airstream preclude the possibility of making the necessary improvements?

Of course "you" could do a winter oriented reno. Put in spray insulation, bubble wrap, thinsulate etc. Carry underneath skirting, install a dehumidifier, a dickinson heater with a wave heater and sleep under down duvet covers. Schedule for lots of propane delivery's and enjoy.

Airstream likey is selling so many 2.5 season trailers for big bucks they haven't the need or time to make a fully winter geared, more expensive, heavier model.

There are folks in here who tuff it out for a winter or two. There are also some folks who regularly go skiing in there's.

Just traveling to a more southern location in the winter doesn't take that many upgrades. Stay winterized until you get south.

We just got back from a trip to Arizona from Minnesota for the Holidays. Both Colorado and New Mexico had very cold nights. (13-19 degrees) We used the water in the belly tanks and the gas furnace to keep them warm. Even when we got to Iowa and Mn with temps down to 7 degrees this worked fine.

The issue we had was the waste gate valves froze up at night. If I could figure out a way to prevent that I would be in Colorado more often.

I assume then that the waste gate is outside the enclosed area?