The first camper we looked at had a floor that gave under my heel like a wet sponge. It was right inside the door, next to the sink, exactly where years of wet feet and slow leaks would land. The seller said it was "just the vinyl." It was not just the vinyl.
Since Dana announced on New Year's Day that we're buying a camper, we've looked at six used pop-ups around Miami-Dade. I'm writing this before we've bought anything, while it's fresh, because the checklist we built along the way turned out to be more useful than most of the campers.
What we were shopping for
Our limits were simple. About $6,500 for the camper itself, plus roughly $1,000 we guessed for a hitch, tires and paperwork. Light enough that the Pilot, rated to tow 5,000 pounds, would barely notice it. Two bed ends, one for us and one for the kids. And because this is Florida, an air conditioner on the roof already, or room to add one.
We wanted a pop-up rather than a hard-sided trailer because of the side yard. It has to fit behind the chain-link gate next to the house, and it has to tow without me white-knuckling the Turnpike. Three nights in a rented pop-up at Myakka in November convinced us the format works for four people.
The checklist
Maya carried it on a clipboard, color-coded, and checked boxes as we went:
- Title first. In the seller's name, matching the number on the frame. No title, no conversation.
- Floor. Press with a heel by the door, around the sink and near each bed end. Soft means water got in, probably years ago.
- Ceiling and cabinets. Look for stains and smell inside the cabinets. Musty means water.
- Lift system. Crank the roof up and down yourself. Count the turns, listen for grinding and watch that all four corners rise together.
- Canvas. Hold the bed-end canvas up to the light for pinholes, look for mildew and work every zipper.
- Bed ends. Slide each one out, press on it and check the support poles.
- Tires. Read the date code on the sidewall. Old tires with good tread are still old tires.
- Propane tank. Check the date stamped on the collar.
- Lights and power. Have the seller hook it to their vehicle to test the lights, then plug into shore power and run the AC, fridge and outlets.
- Battery. Ask how old it is.
Nico's job was to lie down on every bed and report back. He took it seriously. He also tested every curtain, twice.
The six campers
- Hialeah, early 2000s, $2,900. The spongy floor. Cheap for a reason. We were back in the car in 15 minutes.
- Cutler Bay, 2014, $8,900. Clean, newer, beautiful canvas, and $2,400 over our limit. We left feeling poor.
- Doral, 2006, $4,500. Torn canvas on both bed ends and black mildew along the seams. New canvas would have eaten the savings and then some.
- Palmetto Bay, 2011, $5,200. Looked great until we cranked it. The roof groaned the whole way up, and one corner lagged an inch behind the others. Dana's dad, who came along, quietly shook his head at me.
- North Miami-Dade, 2008, $3,800. Good shape, good price and a seller who couldn't find the title. He said he'd "get one from the state." We wished him luck.
- Homestead, 2009 Jayco, asking $6,500. A retired couple who had camped in it for 12 years. Dry floor, good canvas, a lift that cranked smooth and level, a roof AC they'd added and a binder of receipts on the kitchen table.
What Rafael caught
Dana's father, Rafael, is a retired auto mechanic, and he came to the last three. At Homestead he spent more time under the camper than inside it. He spun each wheel by hand and listened, rocked it and said the bearings were "fine to get it home, not fine to get it to the Keys." He read the tire date codes, about eight years old, and pointed at the propane tank's collar, stamped 2009. We were told a tank that old is past its requalification date and has to be recertified or swapped before anyone will fill it. The battery, the sellers admitted, no longer held a charge overnight.
None of those were deal-breakers. All of them were money, and I wouldn't have caught any of them on my own.
We're going back to Homestead on Saturday with an offer and a cashier's check. Maya has already drawn the camper's floor plan in her journal, with a star on the kids' end.
