|
|
Regular
Posts: 70
| Want your opinions. I'm in HOT CALIFORNIA and really place alot of importance on COOLNESS and AIR CIRCULATION/VENTILATION for the horses' comfort with our hot weather.For that reason, I love stock trailers.
I'm looking at one that has only two air slats, fairly high up on head and hip side. The ceiling is insulated (very important to me if it's aluminum) but the back door is totally SOLID and there are NO ROOF VENTS.
So with a SOLID BACK, and only two "air slats" running at head and hip side......and NO ROOF VENTS....do you all think that would get too hot/stuffy?I wonder how expensive it would be to add roof vents and/or create air slats in the back door, up high, like most stock trailers have.
Again - I'm a stickler about too much "heat" being trapped in a trailer. I've seen it way too many times with sweaty horses and stale/still/stuffy air in a hot-box type trailer.
I just wonder if two air slates along the sides and no other ventilation is "enough"?
Edited by Fancy That 2013-04-26 9:14 PM
|
|
| |
|
Expert
Posts: 5870
  
Location: western PA | Adding roof vents will go a long way to providing ventilation to the stall areas. Two way vents are available for ~$40 each. Adding one over the front area of each stall will direct fresh air to the horses' heads. Adding a second one in each stall will more completely ventilate the stalls. A lower rear door window actually pulls air into the box, and will only vent outward when there is no other opening to exhaust the incoming air. Open side slats or windows will exhaust air much better. If the horses are standing in a non moving trailer, as many ventilation sources as possible should be utilised. A door mounted drop or bus window would greatly help then. Heat builds up underneath the ceiling, so if a vent could be provided on the very top or over the rear door, air would be extracted from the interior whenever the trailer is moving, and provide natural circulation when it is at a standstill. Adding the vents can be an easy DIY project. I would recommend bolting the vents to the roof instead of using the common aluminum pop rivets. One of the easiest ways to lower the temperatures of a bare aluminum roof is to paint it white. Bare aluminum has the same reflectivity as BLACK, and at times can result in surface temperatures of almost double the ambient temperatures. A white roof coating can result in an interior decrease of at least 25 degrees of heat from a bare or black aluminum roof. Combining that with insulation, and your roof temperatures and heat source will be much lower and more comfortable. |
|
| |
|
Regular
Posts: 70
| Thanks Gard. This trailer has an INSULATED WHITE CEILING....it is not bare-aluminum.
So that's good :)
But it has no vents in the ceiling and the rear door is SOLID. That's what worries me.The two-air-gaps that run along both "sides".....just wondering if that's enough?
Edited by Fancy That 2013-04-27 10:34 AM
|
|
| |
|
 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 420
Location: Iowa | Look for a different trailer. Not near enough air flow |
|
| |
|
Regular
Posts: 70
| Thanks Sinful.So I was concerned for good reason! My husband thinks it's enough air flow because of the two air gaps/stock sides. You don't think that's enough, hey?
Hmmmmmm.....Here's a pic if that helps. You can see the stock sides....but again, no roof vents (though it's insulated/white) and wierdly - a solid rear door!
http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/elaineshickman/Tack%20and%...
Edited by Fancy That 2013-04-28 9:47 AM
|
|
| |
|
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 489
| I have a similar trailer, different brand but similar setup. From what I can see in the picture it looks like it has a single swing door on the back? Does it have the slider on the door? If so you should get some airflow through the trailer as there are gaps between the door and the trailer...it doesn't seal tight like 60\40 doors on a horse trailer. I would say airflow through the trailer is good but not great. |
|
| |
|
Regular
Posts: 70
| BC - thanks!!!! It has 50/50 rear doors AND a ramp. So I don't think the back door has much air at all. I don't know why it is solid at the top. It SHOULD have the air gaps!??? (she ordered it that way) Anyways, my trailer specialty shop can "punch/cut out" air gaps in the back easily. I'm still leaning towards it.
Edited by Fancy That 2013-04-28 12:29 PM
|
|
| |
|
Regular
Posts: 70
| It's not letting me edit, so here is what I wanted to add to the above post: See? You can see it has insulated white ceiling, solid......just the air gaps on the side and TOTALLY SOLID REAR DOOR. I think the top of the 50/50 doors can EASILY be modified to put a couple air gaps in. That's my preference. PIC:
http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/elaineshickman/trailer-2_sm_zpsecdfa2f2.jpg |
|
| |
|
Expert
Posts: 1205
Location: Arkansas | here's my take on it... probably fine for airflow while driving... would heat up a bunch stuck in traffic... depends on how you think all that would sort out.. |
|
| |
|
Regular
Posts: 70
| Thanks, FF. I agree that at a standstill/in traffic, it'd be too hot without any modifications.... |
|
| |
|
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 322
Location: Fort Madison, Iowa | Might sound dumb but take a short ride in the back. Three of us riding together got talking about what it'd be like for our horses traveling in our trailers. We decided to take each of our trailers for a short spin around the campground area and I found out mine didn't have enough air circulation and I removed all the slats and never put them back in. I wouldn't buy unless you plan to put in roof vents. |
|
| |
|
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 402
Location: Valentine, NE | Mostly agree with prevous posts. Depends how you define "enough air flow". When we lived in So. Calif., had a comparable trailer. Horses would sweat in slow traffic or when stopped. Drops/vents/windows would help, but I personally don't think enough to help. I would add a few roof vents.
One thing not discussed is use of 12 volt fans. See a lot of them but I have no experience. A 12 volt fan is pretty reasonable priced and not difficult to install I would think.
Good luck! |
|
| |
|
Regular
Posts: 70
| thanks for more opinions, gang.I love the suggestion to ride around in the back of the trailer and feel what your horse feels. FWIW, I NEVER EVER have the plexi-glass on the air gaps/stock sides. I always keep it open. For this trailer in consideration, I would ALWAYS leave the air gaps/stock open sides OPEN - not enclosed with the plexi-glass. That said, I really do think I'd need to consider having the upper part of the rear doors "punched out" to have the air gaps that most normal stock trailers have. Once that is done, I think it'll have plenty of air venting/circulation. so the rear doors would look like this:
http://www.dhmco.com/trailerpix/5820-2012112079259.jpg |
|
| |
Opinions on how cool/ air circulation on a stock trailer
