I am interested in buying a 2005 Fleetwood Bayside Camper. However, I am a little turned off by the fact that this units shower is outside. Does anyone use their outside shower? I couldn't imagine taking a shower outside at an RV park.
Quote from: donisasatxI am interested in buying a 2005 Fleetwood Bayside Camper. However, I am a little turned off by the fact that this units shower is outside. Does anyone use their outside shower? I couldn't imagine taking a shower outside at an RV park.
That is the downside of an outside shower. But, most folks who camp at a campground use the facilities there for showering. Many times you will have it to yourself because folks in TTs and motorhomes use their showers. You just share with the tenters.
Now, for camping in the boonies
shower stand, shower curtain and extended shower hose I built a shower stand, shower curtain and extended shower hose. Check it out.
Other folks just use the hose extension and move the shower inside a privacy tent.
First I would like to welcome you to PUT.
Second I have an inside and an outside shower. We use them both, but we use the outside shower more often. I have a hanging shower stall that I hang from the roof rack of my PU to shower outdoors. Other people use shower tents (like the Paha Que) for outdoor showering. I also use the outside shower as my hand and dish washing station. 2 dishpans and a small folding table make washing dishes or hands outside much easier than washing dishes inside the PU. :)
Hey all!
99% of the time we use the CG's showers... for the other 1%, we do a quicky shower with our bathing suits on. Yes, it feels weird showering outside but it beats being stinky.
To be 100% honest, we mostly use the outside shower for the doggies when they get muddy or to wash off muddy boots, etc. outside.
Hope this helped!!
Tim, thanks for posting the link to your outside shower. I had one but it looks like I won't be getting it back from @#$%*&. I want to make one to hold our porta-potti now that we are back to tenting.
Thanks!
We have an outside shower, and use it for hosing of the children after getting out of the lake and dirty shoes, bathing suits, clothes, and stuff like that. We prefer to use the showers at the campground for the adults. But keep in mind this option is only available when combined with the water heater option. You will enjoy the hot water option while cleaning up the pots and pans, and dishes after dinner. Think of the outside shower as just an added bonus.
We also have the outside shower on our Bayside. We don't use it very often, preferring to use the CG shower facilities, but it does come in handy for quick hose-offs of sandy kids, dirty dogs & sometimes for the dishes. We don't use the sink inside for dishes, we prefer to use a table & wash tubs outside - less messy inside that way.
Sharon
I don't think that the outside shower was really intended to use for daily showering. I think it was designed more as an alternative to using the interior galley to clean up really dirty or sandy items, with the occasional full quicky shower for grooming.
We use our shower just to keep gear clean and as a hot water source outside the camper.
Quote from: campincrewI don't think that the outside shower was really intended to use for daily showering.
You made me curious, why do you think the shower isn't intended to be used as a shower?
We've used our outdoor shower in our old 03 Santa Fe CP for rinsing off kids when they got dirty, washing hair when not wanting to take a shower at the CG and our kids ABSOLUTELY LOVED taking baths outside in a Rubbermaid container. We've also rinsed things off while packing up to go home. The outdoor shower does come in handy and if you really want an indoor shower, purchase at PUT that has one. I didn't like showering in CG's so when we decided to buy a new PUT, we picked one that has an indoor shower. We're purchasing our 05 Niagra on Friday.
Quote from: tlhdocYou made me curious, why do you think the shower isn't intended to be used as a shower?
My first guess would be a complete lack of privacy. Other than what you can achive from an outside tent like the Paha Que, assuming the sun isn't shining through it while your'e using it. My second guess is that it is located at waist level without any factory provision to hang the showerhead up high. My third guess would be the grey water laws in various cities, counties, and states.
Correct. There is no privacy for that shower. I believe that if it were intended as a personal hygene item, the manufacturers would include a way to hang some sort of curtain. Also, the hose is very short, so unless you sit or are a small child, the thing is useless. Just my opinion.
We the kids and adults use the outdoor shower all the time. If you look at my webshots site you will see a picture of the hanging shower stall we use. You can put the bottom of the shower stall inside a Rubber Maid tote to collect grey water. The hose on the outside shower is the same length as the hose on my inside shower and the inside faucet is much lower than the outside faucet. We just hang the shower hose over the top of our hanging shower stall. Using either shower we use it as a hand held shower and don't really use the hanger inside except as a place to put the shower head when scrubbing. When it is time to rinse we hold the shower head, aim and rinse. It is much quicker than waiting for water to run down your body from the top. One more thing, if there was a longer hose on the shower, you wouldn't be able to put it back inside the compartment.:eyecrazy: To each their own. I really like having an outside shower.:)
Quote from: tlhdocOne more thing, if there was a longer hose on the shower, you wouldn't be able to put it back inside the compartment.
Another important point regarding the outside shower not being adult friendly.... Besides having to provide your own flooring, catch basin, walls, canopy, and an adult height shower head holding location, the compartment size was not designed for the length hose needed to make it an adult shower.
As I stated earlier, it is a good bonus that is included with the water heater option. You can use it for a multitude of uses..... even an adult shower if you desire.
Quote from: hoppythe compartment size was not designed for the length hose needed to make it an adult shower.
I don't know how long of a hose you need to make a shower an adult shower, but both hoses (the lower inside hose and the higher outside hose) work fine for the adults in our PU.:)
We used our outside shower quite a bit last summer, both to rinse things and people off and to take a shower. We have a pop-up privacy tent (http://www.sportsmansguide.com/cb/cb.asp?a=77400) from Sportsman's Guide ($19.95) that we set up next to the shower controls. Works great! We like to stay at state parks and NF camp grounds where the sites are often spread out a bit more than you might find in a NP. Having a shower is the height of luxury when camping as far as I'm concerned!
Like many of the others, we use our outside shower for a multitude of reasons.
I have an a masson's tray (kind of an oversized wash tub) that I got from Lowe's. We use it as a catch tray when cleaning dishes, feet, hosing off the girls, etc.
When camping where there are no public showers (or the showers are too grungy), we use a Coleman shower enclosure, and a Coleman battery powered shower head/pump. I fill up a bucket with hot water from the outside shower, take it over to the shower enclosure, and Viola, I can take a nice, hot, 2 or 3 minute shower.
As for the privacy issue, the shower enclosure is made of heavy vinyl, and is pretty tall. I just go out in my bathing suit, get into the shower, slip off the bathing suit, and I'm ready to go! (Try not spoil your appetite by visualizing me in my shower!)
We were camping in Yosemite, and there were people who started offering money to use our shower!
We have friends who have the Niagra, and they do like the option of the indoor shower and cassette potty. But the downside is, they loose a lot of valuable space, so it's a trade off.
We also use our outside shower very frequently. Mainly it is used to wash dishes, wash hands, clean the dog off, and general washing needs. We had the outside shower on our popup and used it all-the-time and with the hybrid this feature was a must to have.
We do get some looks that the CG's since we still wash our dishes outside instead of inside the camper, but we just enjoy being outside.