Cheap cheap cheapest family camping setup?

M

MSCantrell

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Mar 12, 2005
Messages
1,213
Hi guys,
looking for ideas here. :)

A few times recently, my wife and I have said, "Man it would be nice if we could go ______ and just camp instead of getting hotel rooms or inconveniencing someone."

So we need basic camping gear for two adults, a toddler, and an infant. For the purpose of this question, we don't have anything at all to start out with.

We won't try it in the winter, so ultra-low temps are not a big concern, and we won't be backpacking it anyplace, so weight is not an issue either. Space is only moderately important- everything needs to fit in the trunk of a small four-door car. The main concern is dollars- if we can't get by on a shoestring, we'll put it on the back burner for some other summer.


So. Creative low-budget solutions for shelter, sleeping, cooking, drinking water, bathing?
Thanks, guys! :thumbup:
 
Watch craigslist and garage sales. I'm not sure how low your budget is but you can find second hand tents for fairly decent prices. The rest of the gear can be adapted from stuff around the house. Blankets instead of sleeping bags, a skillet and pot from your kitchen. Grill over wood instead of a campstove.

SDS
 
A 9x9' Coleman tent, twin size airmattress and 2 full sized rectangular sleeping bags that zip together should get you started.
Toddler can sleep with you and the wife.
Infant in what ever kind of portable thing, what ever they call them nowadays.
;)
Besides that, your basic picnic gear.

Start off at a campground where they have a table & bbq. You are near the vehicle, bathrooms and showers.
As you get more comfortable you can get more gear and make more rustic trips.

If it doesn't work out, you won't be out a ton of money.
The coleman tent should last a more than a few years as long as you don't leave it up all summer.
 
Keep checking discount sites like Sierra Trading Post, or the REI Outlet, for cheapo tents and sleeping bags. They almost always have family camping stuff in their "bargain bins". The size family, and car setup you have reminds me of my family arrangement too. So I know where you're coming from. So let me give you a few tips. One, get a 4 person tent. A 3-person may sound OK right now, but it fills up with bodies and gear real quick, even when you're not chased inside by a rainstorm. And make sure it has a full-coverage fly, for those moments. Get a cooler. 48 quart size should do ya, and leave some room in the trunk. Air mattress...meh. I have one, but prefer a few camp rest Thermarests and a Z-rest or 2 for the kiddos (they're young, they can take it). A few large zip-together Coleman sleeping bags, to make a big blankey, should work OK. Down would be better, but harder to clean if a spill occurred (and it will!). Small butane stove (we have an MSR Pocket Rocket) at the minimum, for boiling water. Larger 2-burner Coleman stove for fancier stuff. Small gas grill, or Smokey Joe, would be nice too. And finally, camp chairs. They're cheap, compact, and they make small ones for the toddler in the group. Sounds like a lot, but it's how we roll, and we have a Corolla. We even have a roof rack that we never use, because it all fits in the trunk with a little finagling. Hope this helps...
 
Wash gallon milk and 2L bottles for water storage.

Black plastic bag and rope can make wilderness shower. Put water in bag, tie shut and let sit in sun. Whrow end of rop over tree branch when water's warm, hoist up and shower. Poke hole/s in corner of bag as needed.

Small charcoal grill for cooking. Less/no smoke residue on pots/pans.
 
When I was young we were very poor, and military surplus was the way we'd roll.

Pup tents, sleeping bags, canteens, ALICE packs, mess kits, etc. Believe it or not, eBay is often the least expensive way to get this stuff. Nice thing is, the older woodland camo pattern MOLLE packs and pouches are often cheaper than the older, ALICE equipment because the market got flooded with it when the Army and Marines fielded their new camo patterns.
 
Ebbtide said:
A 9x9' Coleman tent, twin size airmattress and 2 full sized rectangular sleeping bags that zip together should get you started.
Toddler can sleep with you and the wife.
Infant in what ever kind of portable thing, what ever they call them nowadays.
;)
Besides that, your basic picnic gear.

Start off at a campground where they have a table & bbq. You are near the vehicle, bathrooms and showers.
As you get more comfortable you can get more gear and make more rustic trips.

If it doesn't work out, you won't be out a ton of money.
The coleman tent should last a more than a few years as long as you don't leave it up all summer.
Click to expand...

I second these suggestions. Unless you have some aversion to the COleman brand, or visits to Walmart in particular. Coleman gear is, IMHO, way under rated. Their gear quality has improved vastly over the years as ownership has changed several times. Don't forget to comparrison shop the other big box stores like K-Mart. Target, etc. By not going overboard at the start, you should be able to outfit for family car-camping for $200-300 or so. Less if you improvise as has been suggested. I generally don't advise buying used (cast-off) tents though. Being wet or finding holes, torn zippers and missing components is a sure way to ruin a trip and wind up in a motel.

I have a personal aversion to buying/using some used items like sleeping bags. I did happen to find a pair of "used" Hillary brand (Sears) sleeping bags that were actually new in the box for $8 each. They were clean and the papers were still inside each bag when I opened them in the thrift shop. But a thrift store will likely have some usable cookware, plastic plates, etc. far cheaper than new and just as servicable.

Start by making a list of essentials. Mark what you can improvise, then comparison shop for the rest.
 
I second (or third?) most of these suggestions. Craig's List (consider posting a Stuff Wanted ad,) yard sales, flea markets, Salvation Army store, church bazaars are all good locations for cheap dining and camping gear. It doesn't have to be 'campin gear' to be camping gear. Any pots/pans, utensils, cutlery will do.

Spend cash up front for the tent new is another good suggestion.

I'd invest in an air mattress or two to make it more comfortable, and a good tarp for over the tent or to provide shade/shelter from rain.
 
I've gotten a few nice tents cheap on craigslist.

If you go with the Coleman / big box store tents, make sure to pick up a bottle of seam seal.
 
I agree, go to garage sales. I got this sleeping bag for $ 20.00 Its a $ 200.00 military sleeping bag, that honestly I don't think was ever used, It was brand new.

ussleepingsystem.jpg


As far as tents go, I would probably buy a new one at sears or some where. This would be a good first tent, I have a similar one. This one cost $59.99

060675025_1_271.jpg


That way you can be fairly certain you have all the parts and shouldn't leak and will last you. Get just the basics and then add to it every year, if your family ends up enjoying it. Don't try and get too much right away, ease into it.
We started camping 7 years ago and every Christmas we get more gear or upgrade. We love camping and hopefully so will you're family, its great times together.

p.s. Don't forget to get a basic first aid kit, especially with kids. band aids, sting ease, aloe...deffinatly should have one.
 
Don't use old Milk jugs for water storage. I've read you can't ever really get all the bacteria out of the plastic. You can buy gallons of water for $1-$2. You can then even save those and re-use them if you want. Just give them a rinse with a bleach mix before you refill them after they've been siting.

You don't need sleeping bags at all, don't even buy them. Just roll up a few blankets from the house. And you definitely don't need backpacks, unless it would be a small one for day hiking. You really only need to buy five things (that I can think of) assuming your going to a designated campground:

Small Charcoal Grill - O.K., not a need, but why bother even going if your not going to grill. Although you could do foil packs in the fire and skip the grill.
Tent - Buy a big cabin type tent. Why? Because you don't care about weight and you have four people to accommodate. Four people that are not at all used to being in a small tent. Try to find a used one locally, then set it up at home and seam seal the crap out of it.
Air matresses
Cooler- For food and drinks. Always take more drinks then you think you could possibly drink, you'll end up drinking them. Also, a cooler full of hot drinks and no ice is worthless. Opt for more ice, then rotate in additional drinks as you drink them. May sound trivial, but being stuck with nothing but a hot soda or hot water to drink sucks and will ruin your fun.
Lighting; lantern, few flashlights. If you're at a camp site with electricity you could even bring a small lamp and extension cord from home for the tent and you can get a few cheap flashlights for a few bucks. One thing to remember though, tent camping on a site with electricity is sort of a waste and the site will cost around twice as much.

IMO, camping gear in a car camping scenario is mostly about playing with stuff, most of it really isn't needed. For instance, just take a plastic storage bin and throw a bunch of cheap stuff from your kitchen in it for cooking and eating and drinking. Sam thing for first aid, throw your stuff from home in something and take it with you.

As far as bathing, just bring towels and toiletries from home and use the shower house at the campground. Just remember some sandals to wear.

Last piece of advice, don't plan your first trip when there's any chance of it being warm or even sort of cold, like higher then 80 or a low of less then 50. People that aren't used to camping are usually surprised at how temperature sensitive we have made ourselves living in AC environments. Nothing will make a person never want to camp again faster then baking in a hot humid tent.
 
Last edited:
If you don't mind Walmart, they do have some bargains. Go to the website and check the consumer reviews first. When an item is really crappy, the reviews will show it. I'll only buy items with excellent ratings.

I got a Remington backpack for $20 there last year that's pretty nice. I also bought a few of usable U.S.-made sleeping bags for $10 each.
 
Garage sales are huge, I bought an older pack, some hiking poles, some tin cookware, an old case folding knife, and a wool blanket for 6 bucks total last weekend. Depends if you want to car camp or if you're packing in as well. Don't fall for the expensive outdoor freeze dried or MRE style meals, buy a few cans of soup, some tuna, and wrap some potatoes, onions, carrots etc in aluminum foil. Baked beans, canned spaghetti... there are so many cheaper routes than spending 7 bucks per meal per person on freeze dried food. A condor bolo machete will cost you 14 bucks and it will batton and chop all the wood you need. You can get a collins belt axe at any hardware store for 10 bucks if you prefer an axe to a machete. A buck packlite skinner will cost you 12 bucks and can handle all of your slicing tasks. I got my North Face tent on ebay for 100 bucks but if you watch ebay and sierra trading post and other deals you can buy some decent quality tents for less than 100 bucks without a problem. If you do your shopping you can find a Slumberjack Solara sleeping bag for 30 bucks, it weighs 3 pounds, fits in a tiny compression bag, very easy to pack, and keeps me warm 4 season camping in a mountain environment. You can pack like a god if you do your shopping right.
 
If you have a vinyl tarp , take it. Tents leak. A tarp suspended above the tent will help keep things dry. Freeze some wate rin plastic soft drink containers . Use it as ice for the cooler. When they melt you have cold water to drink. Freeze tea and koolaid this way also.
 
+1 on the wise words of those above!
happy0034.gif


I've found eBay to offer incredible bargains, including brand new military outdoor gear which went for pennies and had free delivery! Had I not personally seen it, I would not have believed it.

The Coleman gear is very good, I have two of their gas lanterns and two gas stoves, and to be honest, I'm really impressed with the quality, performance and price, my personal favorite is the Coleman Alpine remote gas stove, great simmer control, use it for my Outback Oven.

In the UK we have 'for sale' adverts in the back of local newspapers and in newsagents windows, both of which yield good gear at pocket money prices. Perhaps your local area papers and shops have similar adverts.

Involving the family at every stage and making the whole thing a family adventure is more likely to lead to enthusiasm and good humour along the way.
 
Campmor has a good selection of family tents. Some are quite reasonable. I would suggest a dome for ease of setup and room. You will need a couple of coolers, one for food and one for drinks. Freeze water in milk jugs or 2 liter coke bottles, lasts longer than bag ice. After these two items, improvise with blankets and pillows from home. Cooking gear from the kitchen. MAKE A LIST! Otherwise you will arrive at camp without some very important piece of gear.
 
+ one million :thumbup: on the list!!! 3 ticks for each item: When you've obtained it, when you've packed it, when it's in the car. A specific member of the family should be in charge of the list. Keep it on the puter and print it off for each trip.

And get all the gear second-hand, you can always upgrade it later bit by bit.
 
A word of caution about freezing bottle of water and using them as ice.
This works fine in a beverage cooler, but...
Once the water melts halfway in the bottle it acts as insulation for the ice and doesn't pass the cold into the cooler.
This is fine for a cold drink.
But I did lose some pricey steaks and bratwurst to a cooler lined with 1ltr ice bottles.

One can improvise a bunch with camping gear.
You don't want to play around with a good night's sleep, keeping dry and eating well.
 
Ebbtide said:
A word of caution about freezing bottle of water and using them as ice.
This works fine in a beverage cooler, but...
Once the water melts halfway in the bottle it acts as insulation for the ice and doesn't pass the cold into the cooler.
This is fine for a cold drink.
But I did lose some pricey steaks and bratwurst to a cooler lined with 1ltr ice bottles.

One can improvise a bunch with camping gear.
You don't want to play around with a good night's sleep, keeping dry and eating well.
Click to expand...

I should have been more specific on this. I freeze the water in jugs and then cut the jug away and chip the ice up. The larger chunks of ice last longer than bag ice. I agree that leaving the ice in the jug is not the best way.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top