We do car camping with two young kids. But as they get bigger, their stuff gets bigger and space gets tighter for car camping. I'm trying to find ways to conserve space - specifically with our gear. A few things that are awkward:

- Camp stove. It's a two burner coleman, but I'd like something with the same surface area but smaller when folded up
- Air pump for air mattresses. Not super big, but just awkward.
- Lantern. We have one similar to this [i.ebayimg.com] We want something as bright and stable, but packs up smaller.
- Zero gravity chairs. My wife and I have really liked these [www.amazon.com] , but they take up a ton of space. I'd like something that packs up better, but still works as well.

One thing I would like is a rectangular bin for camping gear. We have one like this [i.ebayimg.com] but its tapered sides mean things to fit as well inside, and it doesn't pack as well next to other things.

We already pack our sleeping bags, tent and clothes pretty tight.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/31/2019 10:31PM by M A V I C.

is it an old school liquid fuel Coleman, or one of the new thin propane ones using 1 pound bottles?

also, there were 2 sizes of the liquid fuel colemans, the larger 413, and the smaller 424/425



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/31/2019 10:37PM by Racer X.

The Helinox chairs at REI are super comfortable for the size they pack down. The zero gravity chairs are cool, but not for car camping.

[www.rei.com]

We ditched all gas and cartridge type camp stoves five years ago. We have a Biolite stove that is the size of a small loaf of bread. You just burn twigs and small pieces of wood. No landfill trash or spilled fuel and you can always find fuel. We also have the grill attachment for BBQ. I wouldn't go back unless I was cooking for a crowd.

[www.rei.com]

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/31/2019 11:24PM by Markintosh.

Quote
Racer X
is it an old school liquid fuel Coleman, or one of the new thin propane ones using 1 pound bottles?

also, there were 2 sizes of the liquid fuel colemans, the larger 413, and the smaller 424/425

LED

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A friend of mine gave me one of these years ago. i haven't taken it camping but i think it's an ingenious idea.

MPOWERD Luci Lux - Inflatable Solar Light, Matte Finish

sorry. couldn't figure out how to post an image.

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How about a roof box so you can carry more? Or even a small box trailer?

Could prob find a trailer on CL for cheap.

If car camplng is a really big thing for you... and you have a place to store it-- popup trailers are pretty cheap. Work awesome.

This would be awesome: [sacramento.craigslist.org]

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Edited 999 time(s). Last edit at 12:08PM by jdc.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/01/2019 12:09AM by jdc.

Skip the propane stove, get a cast iron griddle and use it over the camp fire.

There are plenty of really small LED lanterns. I have a black diamond one that I like.

All air mattress pumps are awkward as are folding chairs. You could look at the Air couches perhaps.

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C(-)ris
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Mavic,

You don't say what kind of vehicle you are using.

I've found roof carriers and trailer hitch platform racks work quite well for the lighter but bulkier items.

Put the sleeping bags in garbage bags (double up if needed) and carry them on top or out back. Same with the chairs and tent.

When not camping, the cartoon carrier and the platform carrier can be stowed up high in your garage.

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Ed (modelamac)

I think I will just put an OUT OF ORDER
sticker on my head and call it a day.

how much smaller?

Thanks for the tips. We have a 21cf roofbox already. A trailer isn't an option right now. Don't have a place to park one. The plan is to wear out our current car and then get a SUV. We currently have a wagon which does have 33cf of space in the back.

We might just start renting a SUV for camping trips.

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Some campgrounds do not allow wood fires during high fire danger, only camp stoves with liquid/pressurized fuel and a shutoff valve are allowed. Some also discourage people from burning scavenged fuel. Small single burner butane/propane stoves are great for backpacking but they are expensive and don't heat as evenly as the Coleman white gas stoves.

Smaller lanterns generally use AA batteries so they may not last as long. [www.newegg.com] They can be cheaper if you are willing to risk no-name offshore suppliers.


Chairs are tough, it's really subjective on what's comfortable.

Edit: If you have a trailer hitch, you can buy hitch mounted storage boxes/racks that can carry as much as a rooftop box.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/01/2019 10:36AM by Filliam H. Muffman.

.....can the camping gear be.....campy.....??

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Quote
M A V I C
We might just start renting a SUV for camping trips.

Check out [www.outdoorsy.com] . It's like airbnb for RVs and has everything from volkswagen campers to popup trailers to giant RVs.

Also, since you live in Seattle area, get yourself to REI. They have a great selection of lightweight and compact camping gear, both for backpacking and car camping, including a large assortment of chairs that you can try out in the store. As you surely know though, lightweight and compact don't come cheap.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/01/2019 11:38AM by davester.

Quote
Filliam H. Muffman
Some campgrounds do not allow wood fires during high fire danger, only camp stoves with liquid/pressurized fuel and a shutoff valve are allowed. Some also discourage people from burning scavenged fuel. Small single burner butane/propane stoves are great for backpacking but they are expensive and don't heat as evenly as the Coleman white gas stoves.

And cooking dinner for four doesn't work so great on one burner.

Quote

Smaller lanterns generally use AA batteries so they may not last as long. [www.newegg.com] They can be cheaper if you are willing to risk no-name offshore suppliers.

Yeah, I might try some of those, or go for the inflatable solar option.

Quote

Edit: If you have a trailer hitch, you can buy hitch mounted storage boxes/racks that can carry as much as a rooftop box.

A hitch isn't an option. Well, technically they make one for it, but it won't work well for us.

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Quote
davester

Quote
M A V I C
We might just start renting a SUV for camping trips.

Check out [www.outdoorsy.com] . It's like airbnb for RVs and has everything from volkswagen campers to popup trailers to giant RVs.

I'll take a look. Thanks.

Quote

Also, since you live in Seattle area, get yourself to REI. They have a great selection of lightweight and compact camping gear, both for backpacking and car camping, including a large assortment of chairs that you can try out in the store. As you surely know though, lightweight and compact don't come cheap.

We're at REI quite often. At this point, it's cheaper to buy smaller camping gear than a bigger car. They have a ton of things that work well for backpacking, but not so much for a whole family. Admittedly, we like some of our comforts like a ~6" air mattress. REI has plenty that don't need a pump, but they're much more thin and just don't work well for us.

I think one of our challenges is finding a way to pack all of the various types of gear. They just don't fit well next to each other and just eat space.

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Here's a rough list of what we carry with us.

4 sleeping bags
2 kids sleeping pads
1 air mattress
3-4 blankets
3 pillows (I know there's inflatable travel ones, but we don't really like those.)
2 kids chairs
2 zero gravity chairs
1 tent
1 tent footprint
1 tarp
1 set of clothes per kid, per day
1 medium sized suitcase for all adults' clothes
2 sets of shoes and flip flops for each person
8 towels (4 for beach, 4 for showers)
1 bin of camping gear with
- A very compact pan, plate, bowl and cup set
- Plastic forks, spoons and knives
- Table cloth
- Wipes
- Small container of dish soap and small sponge
- Clothes line
- Hatchet
- Paper towels, plates and bowls
- 5 lights - one bigger like the one above, two headlamps, one mag light and one mini lamp
2 burner camp stove
1-2 small propane tanks
1 screen tent
1 cooler with 5-8 days of food
2-3 grocery bags worth of food
1 shade pop-up (usually for beach days)
Sand shovels and buckets

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I'd get a tire inflator/battery jump combo for the car -- everybody should have one, and car campers most especially -- and figure out a way to use it to inflate the air mattress.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/01/2019 07:24PM by Mike Johnson.

Last year I added a pop-up shower tent and used two 5 gallon Coleman sun heated bags. The filled bags were a pain to hang due to their weight.

So, I bought a battery shower head with the other end to a bucket of warm water.

Checked costco, you can get a mini van for $350 for a week. We have done it a few times... got a Chrysler Pacifica.

August 23 -30. $40 more over labor day.

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Edited 999 time(s). Last edit at 12:08PM by jdc.

I have one of these lights from walmart:

[www.walmart.com]

USB rechargeable, LED, fairly small, and very bright. Can be used on a table top, or there’s a ring on the bottom to hang it front a tent roof.

For storage, check out Rubbermaid Action Packers. My scout troop uses them exclusively for kids’ gear because they stack/pack so well together in the trailer. More expensive than the run-of-the-mill totes, but well designed and solidly constructed.

[www.sportsmans.com]

They’re hard to find at a decent price, but right now, this is the best deal for the 24 gallon size that all of our scouts use.

For chairs, I know we all have different priorities and yours and mine may not match, but I’d skip the gravity chairs and just go for some bag chairs. Those gravity chairs are awkward as hell.

For family car camping, you’ll be hard pressed to find anything that works or packs better than a standard two-burner propane stove. Going smaller means going to backpacking gear where the prices go up and the usability goes down, at least for what you’re doing.

For an air pump, are you using battery powered? Get a 12V pump and plug it into your lighter. Get an extension cord if you need to fill your mattresses in your tent, or just do it at the car and muscle them in. Smaller, lighter, cheaper, and quicker than battery powered.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 06/02/2019 08:34PM by BernDog.