Downsizing to a Tiny Trailer

[DavidM]

We have enjoyed our big motorhome we transitioned to a year or so ago. It has all of the comforts you could ask for in a 25' coach. But we are thinking about going the other way and downsizing to a Tiny Trailer.

By Tiny Trailer I don't mean one with just a bed and an exterior kitchen. I mean a full height walk in trailer with most of the amenities of a Camplite but smaller, lighter and easily towed by a small SUV.

The only one that fits that bill that I have found is the Aliner Ascape ST. It is 13' long, has a teardrop shape, but a Karman squared off back end and weighs about 1,600 lbs dry which means it could be towed with an SUV with a 2,500 lb tow rating. It does require a few compromises: wet bath with cassette toilet, no slide so it is a bit cramped inside. But it does have a propane fridge, furnace and stove top, roof A/C, minimal fresh water storage (13 gal) and grey water (11 gal).

Having thought through the toilet, I think I can live with it. The cassette pulls out from the back so no chance of spillage inside. Then you just dump it at the campground's dump station along with the grey water. Five gallons should cover us for a few days.

Why not stay with our motorhome? Well, we don't do the long trips I had expected when we bought it. We do 1, 2 or 3 day trips within 200 miles of home. Even though I like the amenities of the MH, something like the Ascape would cover 95% of our needs since we are outside almost all of the time we are camping. And it is green. I hope to get 16 mpg towing it with something like a Toyota RAV4 or Ford Escape.

What do you guys think? I know it isn't a CL. It has a steel frame although it does have aluminum sides and roof. I suspect the floor is plywood. Any other similar trailers meet these requirements?

Here are a few pics:

Floor plan (click on the link)- https://spec.dlrwebservice.com/sb-rv/floorplan/2019_Aliner_Ascape_GreatST_EXT.jpg

Overall- https://cdn2.rvtrader.com/v1/media/61d62412107ced12db0b6963.jpg?width=1024&height=768&quality=70&bestfit=true&upsize=true&blurBackground=true&blurValue=100&upsize=true

Inside- https://cdn1.rvtrader.com/v1/media/61d624ad80479209cc13dbb6.jpg?width=1024&height=768&quality=70&bestfit=true&upsize=true&blurBackground=true&blurValue=100&upsize=true

Toilet and Shower- https://cdn2.rvtrader.com/v1/media/61d624baac75f92a57292813.jpg?width=1024&height=768&quality=70&bestfit=true&upsize=true&blurBackground=true&blurValue=100&upsize=true

David

[Merlin]

What fun! My wife and I went through a similar round of thinking this time last year, but for a different purpose. We wanted a tiny trailer we could keep at some property and use in lieu of a tent. It had to be small to get in a tiny driveway and parking area. We gave up because everything we found that was small enough didn't have standing headroom.

I think you found it!  Looks like a nice setup with useable space. I found a YouTube walk around and liked the design and features. Depending on your camping areas and seasons, I wonder if it would worth considering removing the A/C and installing a fan.......but maybe it already has a vent?

This is a good time of year to buy an RV. Let me know what you find for inventory and prices out East.

[DavidM]

I watched a couple of videos and really enjoyed the technician (not a model or a salesman) who walked you through the use of all its systems. It actually has a few things I like better than my 2013 16TBS: windows that have positive locking knobs rather than fighting with getting the strut to lock on the 16TBS. The stove has an actual powered vent. The technician also confirmed one question about the cassette toilet- it does flush with pressurized water from the water storage tank, not water that you have to add to the cassette.

Here in the northeast, if it gets hot enough (about ten days each year) to use the A/C, we just don't go camping. So, I take your point about replacing the A/C with something like a Fantastic Fan. But it would have to be easily replaced for resale value.

My main concern is if the two cushions on each side are wide enough to use as twins rather than set up as a queen with a middle filler. I guess I will have to see one in person to know for sure.

In today's market, I could sell my 2021 Thor Axis for what I paid for it and then buy a used Ascape and have a bunch of money left over. I don't think Aliner is currently making Ascapes, so it will have to be a used one for now.

But I will probably enjoy our motorhome for another year before doing the downsizing.

David

[djsamuel]

Don't know if you looked at these:

https://intech.com/rv/

or this one may not fit the bill but it is a new company:

https://encore-rv.com

[DavidM]

The Sol is the smallest Intech that could work and it is about 2,600 lbs dry weight, probably 3,000+ loaded. I am trying to keep my tow weight down to 2,500 lbs to work with most small SUVs, so it is marginal.

FWIW, the Intech website is a POS.

I couldn't find any dimensional or weight data on the Encore. Looks way too heavy though.

David