How to Store a Truck Cap in a Garage
A truck camper is typically mounted on the bed of a truck. It can also be used in two different ways, when it is attached to a truck and when it is free standing on its jacks and legs.
Thankfully, in today's world, there are several camper sizes, ensuring that people can find something that suits them and gives them just the right amount of space they require. There are even truck campers for just about every pickup size there is.
From small trucks to massive 1 ton rated trucks, finding a suitable camper has become a whole lot easier.
So, can a truck camper fit in a garage? When the truck camper is mounted on your truck, it's unlikely to fit in your garage. Even modestly small pop up truck campers will be between 7 and 8 feet once mounted, with the average garage door being around 7 feet, which leaves little room for maneuvering.
Types of truck campers
Additionally, it is possible to purchase truck campers with extended walls. There was a time when extended, slide-out walls used to be a feature on just Class A motorhomes, however, even truck campers can provide you with additional living space. This feature can only be applied when the truck camper is stationary.
To get moving again, all that has to be done is a single retract of the slide outs. The slide outs can be controlled using a single switch or button.
If you want the additional space but are not a fan of slide-outs, you can look towards a popup camper. Just as its name states, you can pop open the top section of the camper once you park, enabling you to have more room.
There are several benefits and advantages associated with truck campers. For one, a truck camper can be a great way to dip your fit into the RV life pool without spending an arm and a leg.
Truck campers have been developed to not provide additional disruption to the storing, parking, and driving that a regular truck might cause. Additionally, given that you simply need a truck, you have the opportunity to boondock just about anywhere.
If there is one thing that comes to mind when people think about purchasing RVs, it is how and where to park seeing as an RV is bound to take on additional space.
Pretty much anything you attach using a hitch is likely to stick out the back of a truck. When you move around you will have to search for additional parking space.
What this means is that you might have to release your trailer every time you would like to rest, or use up extra parking spaces simply to ensure that your trailer is not obstructing the flow of traffic.
This is a problem that happens with the fifth wheels, and travel trailers, but it is not something that happens with truck campers.
With a truck camper, you can park just about anywhere given that your camper fits right in your truck's bed. It means that you can park just about anywhere you want.
While this is all well and good for when you are camping, what about when you are not? If you cannot leave your truck camper in the bed of your truck you will need to place it somewhere till you need it again. Typically, a garage is the first place that comes to mind.
Storing a truck camper in a garage
When you live in a home with multiple vehicle garages you have the opportunity to keep your truck camper out of the driveway, into a protected area. This is quite useful if you live in an HOA area where statutes state an RV of any type has to be kept in a garage hidden from view.
The problem is what if your truck camper does not fit into the garage. A standard two-car garage can be anything from 20 to 24 square feet and an average truck camper can be as long as 21 feet. So going by length it is possible to fit a truck camper in a garage.
Where a problem that might arise is the height of the garage. Seeing as the truck camper is unable to by itself, it would mean that it has to remain in the bed of the truck until it is reversed into a garage.
Most truck campers add at least 9 feet to the height of a regular truck making the garage inaccessible while the truck camper is mounted.
The way to fit your truck camper in the garage would be to dismount it, but how do you manoeuvre it to do so?
Using a dolly
A quick search on RV forums will show that quite a lot of people have this problem. However, the majority of them have been able to solve it using dollies. The dolly can be made to specification, as it has to perfectly fit and cradle your truck camper in the right places to ensure structural damage does not occur.
The dollies need to have swivel wheels as that can make maneuvering much easier. Some circles prefer to put swivel wheels on all four corners while others prefer to put it at the front.
Doing so is more about preference than anything as some believe having swivel wheels only at the front can help you accurately control the direction of the dolly.
Process of lowering the truck camper to the dolly
If you are building a dolly for your truck camper, it is better to create one that fits the truck camper to the point that the camper is sitting on the dolly's frame with the wheels directly under it.
Doing this will enable you to reverse as far back as you can to ensure the dolly and the truck camper is as close to the garage as possible.
Remember, you could have to push something that weighs anything from 2000 pounds to 5000 pounds. Below is the process required to place the truck camper on the dolly:
- Reverse as far back you can
- You will need a winch to lift the truck camper off the bed of the truck
- Lift it just enough for you to reverse from under it after disconnecting all tethers
- Place the dolly underneath it. Ensure that it is properly aligned
- Slowly lower the truck camper using the winch. Make adjustments if necessary
- Once the truck camper is firmly on the dolly, move it into the garage for storage
Ideally, if you do not have a winch you can use the truck camper's jacks to hold the camper off the truck for you to drive away and fit the dolly underneath it.
Conclusion
Whilst there are truck campers of different sizes, types, and weight, one thing that they all have in common is that they add dimensions to whatever trucks they are connected to.
For one, the average truck camper is 9 feet when mounted on a truck making it important for a driver to be aware of any clearance issues. This additional height already makes fitting the truck camper into a typical garage difficult.
And this does not take into account the length of the garage or if a vehicle in there would have to be removed to make room for the truck camper. That being said, the dolly system clearly shows that it is possible to fit a truck camper in a garage for storage and for other reasons.
How to Store a Truck Cap in a Garage
Source: https://crowsurvival.com/can-a-truck-camper-fit-in-a-garage/