26BH bunk question

[Octopus Prime]

I know I have a lot of questions. Were brand new at this.
The upper bunk has an a/c vent for older child, so I'm comfortable closing the curtain on that bunk so that kid can get some air.
The lower bunk for my little one doesn't have the air vent. Should I be concerned about air flow? We would like to close their curtains after putting them to bed at night, but I don't want to restrict air flow for the younger one, especially if it could be dangerous.


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[Iraqvet05]

I think the air flow at the back of the 26BH is horrible. In the summer, it gets hot in the bunk area. To help this, I bought sheet foam insulation and installed it in the cargo area under the bunks, cutting the panels to fit between the framing. I plan to add a layer of luan to protect the foam at some point. Also, I place a fan on top of the vanity at night to direct air into the bunk area. I have seen others put battery powered fans in the bunks and some hard wire 12V fans too but I didn't want to go that route.

[Iraqvet05]

Ask all the questions you need....this is the place to do it. I was in your shoes 5 years ago and I'm sure I did the same. Glad to help where I can.

[Midnightmoon]

I don't know how your kids are, but mine end up in the same bunk no matter where they start out. Officially, the top bunk is my oldest daughter's and the bottom is my youngest's. Probably 90+% of the time they are both in the bottom bunk by the time the night is over.

Their feedback is that the top bunk is too cold with the AC on and too warm at night when running the furnace. I just think they want an excuse to sleep in the same bunk, but who am I too judge. When I've had enough of the wife's snoring, I just crawl in to whatever bunk is available and call it a night. I prefer the bottom one also since it is just easier to get my oversized middle age self in and out if it. But, both will do.

As far as the curtain is concerned, we've found that it is more hassle than it is worth at night. Usually, one of my little genius children gets themselves tangled up in it on the way to the restroom and wake us up. I'd prefer they didn't mess with it, but sometimes one of them closes it on their own.

[Octopus Prime]

Thanks so much for being patient with us.
I did a search also, although it did include much older units also, and the heat seems to be a recurring problem in that bottom bunk.
I think we may do the insulation board like you suggested, and keep the curtains open at night.
My little one tends to get hot anyway, so I know now that I'll need to get a fan.
I won't be surprised if they both end up on that bottom bunk if they can stand the heat. They, too, prefer to bedshare. The oldest one is a mover at night and wakes the younger one, so that doesn't always guarantee us a night of uninterrupted sleep. Lol

Do you think it would cool it off enough in the bottom bunk if we put the insulation in the storage area and gave him a clip-on fan so we could draw his curtain late at night and in the early morning when we are up and he isn't? I won't do it if it will suffocate him, but I hate to wake him also. (we could easily keep curtains open once we get ready to turn in for the night.)

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[Midnightmoon]

You will be perfectly fine with a small fan to start out with for that bottom bunk with the curtain open. Then, you can add insulation and or make changes based on what your needs are. Your kids may be different than ours as far as preferred temp to sleep. So I hesitate to suggest doing too much preparation until you see what happens. You never know, you may end up not needing to do anything.

[Jagiven]

They will be fine. I do not have a TT with bunks. One of the TTs my parents had while growing up had bunks. We called them coffins, as they were alongside the bathroom, so they had a small passage to slide into.

We would close the curtains and go to sleep. Ours did not have an vents in the bunks. If you crawled in head first it was differently warmer back there.

There is plenty of safe air to breath. A few years back a few people posted a mod where they added a small 12V outlet, and attached a 12V fan within the bunks.

[stevenl]

Your other option would be to place one curtain across the hallway and leave the bunk curtains open. That way the air would be better able to circulate for them.