Shower Awnings

[ChasingOurTrunks]

Hi folks,

These kinds of awnings are becoming more and more popular in Australia and elsewhere, and I'd like to add one to my build. I had one picked out but have decided to change directions slightly, so I thought I'd ask this group for feedback. I did a search but didn't see any threads dedicated to shower awnings (also referred to as "Commode Awnings").

These awnings are typically very quick to deploy and provide a privacy curtain, useful for getting cleaned up, changed, or even to use a bathroom. Obviously, this is less critical the more remote you go, but every remote place I've ever been meant driving through a lot of non-remote places, so having a quick-deploy privacy option would be great.

I have a few options on my list, but most are from Australia. Does anyone have an example of a good quality shower awning purchased in North America (or purchased elsewhere and shipped at reasonable rates to NA) that you'd be willing to share a bit of your experiences with?

Here's a few I've found, if anyone can chime in opinions (some of these have not been released though) that would be great:

Mounted Shower Tent Enclosure, 42x42 Inches

A mountable shower tent that will stay put and not stick to you during windy conditions. Attaches to your existing roof rack and...

tuffstuff4x4.com

Instant Ensuite Shower Tent

Ironman 4x4 America offers off-road parts, accessories, and equipment for the off-roading enthusiast. Check out our website for more information.

ironman4x4america.com

HD Nomadic Car-Side Shower Room

Stay fresh on your camping trips with our HD Nomadic Car-Side Shower Room, the perfect camping shower tent for all your outdoor adventures.

overlandvehiclesystems.com

 

[Clrussell]

I have a dfg one, I like it. If I was going to change it would be to the quick pitch brand one.

 

[Clrussell]

The dfg

 

[Victorian]

We have been looking into these. I think they are way too fancy for you actually need. Also think about weight and cost...
But I still like the idea a lot! Because of that, I went out on a hunt to find something that's simpler and cheaper. The first batch was sold out overnight.... Our second huge order should arrive within the next couple days! US$68.75 Or CAD$75.00 https://expeditionupfitter.com/collections/on-sale-now/products/shower-spider

 

[ChasingOurTrunks]

I have a dfg one, I like it. If I was going to change it would be to the quick pitch brand one.

Thanks @Clrussell -- looks like that one is pretty reasonably priced too. And it looks good on your rig! That's exactly the same position as I was planning on placing mine, assuming I can mount it without interfering with my side-opening RTT (I think I have a way to do that). Just out of curiosity, why would you change to the Quick Pitch over the DFG one? Put another way, what makes the Quickpitch worth the extra $200 based on your experience?

We have been looking into these. I think they are way too fancy for you actually need. Also think about weight and cost...
But I still like the idea a lot! Because of that, I went out on a hunt to find something that's simpler and cheaper. The first batch was sold out overnight.... Our second huge order should arrive within the next couple days! US$68.75 Or CAD$75.00 https://expeditionupfitter.com/collections/on-sale-now/products/shower-spider

Weight is my main concern too, as that is limited in terms of wiggle room for me, so I hear you on that score. I'm very intrigued by the link you posted -- that is both affordable and simple, which I like. How much room do you get behind the curtain when it's deployed? I see some advertise about 9 square feet (so that means they are about 3 feet by 3 feet) -- do you have a rough estimate for this product? And is there a way to stow it with the curtain attached, or does it have to be removed/replaced each time?

Super interesting -- thank you for that recommendation!

 

[Clrussell]

The only reason I would switch to the quick pitch would be lower profile metal latching instead of zipper.

however I don’t see that happening anytime soon. I have no quarrels with the dfg unit.

 

[emulous74]

I have a Quick Pitch Aluminum Box and RLD Shower Cube and I looked closely at the Alu-Cab one. I know those are above the price range of the ones you posted so I'll tell you the features I like and don't like on the more expensive ones so you can see the features that would be more important to you.

Quick Pitch, I got this one as it was the first one I saw of it's kind. I wish I would of got bag version over the box, as the box has no mounting provisions besides two holes in the case and the latching mechanisms don't stay shut unless you wrap a tie around them or use a pad lock. Because of the cluggy mounting for the box, I did have one side come off on a trail and scratched the side of my trailer. I do find all the adjustable straps annoying to use and get in the way when packing up. If you have it fixed mount on the vehicle you wouldn't really be messing around with the straps, but it's mounted to a movable rack on my trailer so I have to adjust the straps according to how high or low the rack is raised. The biggest plus of the Quick Pitch is that it has zippers on the back two corners, so I can lower the back panel to use my trailer as a shelf. Having metal all the way around on the top means I've never had to guy line the shower as the bars provide enough support in windy conditions. It also has weighted sticks at the lower part of the curtain to keep it straight.

I got the RLD because I liked that it didn't have adjustable straps, and I found I don't need or want the curtain going to the ground. I don't really care if someone sees my feet or shins when I'm taking a shower or changing clothes. I guess it could be a problem if you were sitting down. The bag material is really high quality and its cloth, not vinyl. The RLD is huge when its open, you could easily get two people in there, if that's your thing. RLD has metal bars at the bottom (on the sides) that are connected together with velcro in the middle, this really keeps the wind from moving the curtain. Speaking of curtains the RLD is much thicker than the quick pitch and you don't see shadows through the curtain, like I can on the quick pitch.

I decided not to go with the Alu-Cab is because it's over engineered for what it needs to be which adds to the weight and the oblong/rectangle enclosure didn't make sense to me and made me feel closed in. It is high quality, but do you really need to pay that much when a slightly lower quality one will do the job and last longer and is not as complex.

So basically look at the materials used (will they rust, tear easily, provide full privacy), the size and weight of the unit closed (will it fit where you want to put it on your vehicle), the size of the unit opened (will you feel comfortable in it). Also consider when mounted will it open properly. On my bed rack on my truck, I had to use L brackets to mount it further away from my truck so it would open properly.

I haven't seen or used the OVS one, but I've been nicely surprised by the quality of their 270 awnings for the price.

 

[pith helmet]

Disclaimer: I'm cheap. All these outfits are so expensive, yet very simple...@jscherb did a nice home made one in one of his threads that you could probably show to a fabricator and have one made for the same money or less, maybe even a bit larger. I also like things to have multi uses or be convertible. I have another canvas tarp like the one in the pic coming to take the place of the green tarp...with two more Bass Pro poles for $30, I can use it for another awning on the side when we need more shade instead of privacy.
This is my homebrew version, albeit very specific to my needs. Its about 50x50"

 

[kwill]

I'm cheap too. I don't like the cost, the weight or the wind drag. One other thing I don't like is having a mud pit right next to the vehicle. So do you stand in a kiddie pool and, if so, then what do you do? I have a cheap pop-up tent located away from the main area of camp.

 

[pith helmet]

I'm cheap too. I don't like the cost, the weight or the wind drag. One other thing I don't like is having a mud pit right next to the vehicle. So do you stand in a kiddie pool and, if so, then what do you do? I have a cheap pop-up tent located away from the main area of camp.

I hear you. I have not had a chance to try this out. I plan to use a rubber mat with a lip, like a trunk liner-floor-mat and also to move the vehicle. To shower earlier in the day before camp. More than anything, just privacy and changing room area and wind protection for when in a campground or otherwise camping close to others. If just out in NF, really no privacy needed.
Also, a sponge bath really doesn't make a muddy mess, you really just need privacy.

 

[ChasingOurTrunks]

I have a Quick Pitch Aluminum Box and RLD Shower Cube and I looked closely at the Alu-Cab one. I know those are above the price range of the ones you posted so I'll tell you the features I like and don't like on the more expensive ones so you can see the features that would be more important to you.

Quick Pitch, I got this one as it was the first one I saw of it's kind. I wish I would of got bag version over the box, as the box has no mounting provisions besides two holes in the case and the latching mechanisms don't stay shut unless you wrap a tie around them or use a pad lock. Because of the cluggy mounting for the box, I did have one side come off on a trail and scratched the side of my trailer. I do find all the adjustable straps annoying to use and get in the way when packing up. If you have it fixed mount on the vehicle you wouldn't really be messing around with the straps, but it's mounted to a movable rack on my trailer so I have to adjust the straps according to how high or low the rack is raised. The biggest plus of the Quick Pitch is that it has zippers on the back two corners, so I can lower the back panel to use my trailer as a shelf. Having metal all the way around on the top means I've never had to guy line the shower as the bars provide enough support in windy conditions. It also has weighted sticks at the lower part of the curtain to keep it straight.

I got the RLD because I liked that it didn't have adjustable straps, and I found I don't need or want the curtain going to the ground. I don't really care if someone sees my feet or shins when I'm taking a shower or changing clothes. I guess it could be a problem if you were sitting down. The bag material is really high quality and its cloth, not vinyl. The RLD is huge when its open, you could easily get two people in there, if that's your thing. RLD has metal bars at the bottom (on the sides) that are connected together with velcro in the middle, this really keeps the wind from moving the curtain. Speaking of curtains the RLD is much thicker than the quick pitch and you don't see shadows through the curtain, like I can on the quick pitch.

I decided not to go with the Alu-Cab is because it's over engineered for what it needs to be which adds to the weight and the oblong/rectangle enclosure didn't make sense to me and made me feel closed in. It is high quality, but do you really need to pay that much when a slightly lower quality one will do the job and last longer and is not as complex.

So basically look at the materials used (will they rust, tear easily, provide full privacy), the size and weight of the unit closed (will it fit where you want to put it on your vehicle), the size of the unit opened (will you feel comfortable in it). Also consider when mounted will it open properly. On my bed rack on my truck, I had to use L brackets to mount it further away from my truck so it would open properly.

I haven't seen or used the OVS one, but I've been nicely surprised by the quality of their 270 awnings for the price.

That's fantastic info - thank you. I just googled the RLD one as I wasn't previously aware of it, and it is exactly the kind of info I was hoping for in this thread. This is a case of "You don't know what you don't know", and in watching the videos of the RLD shower cube, I was immediately intrigued by the velcro aluminum frame at the bottom to keep everything taught. Great design idea. Another example includes a 12v LED light strip in another manufacturers product -- again, not something I would have thought to look for, but after reading the description I can see it being a very good idea -- not a "must have", but I don't think anything about a shower awning is a "must have", but a "nice to have" all the same. I also like that this RLD one is fixed to the aluminum frame as opposed to being on adjustable straps.

Disclaimer: I'm cheap. All these outfits are so expensive, yet very simple...@jscherb did a nice home made one in one of his threads that you could probably show to a fabricator and have one made for the same money or less, maybe even a bit larger. I also like things to have multi uses or be convertible. I have another canvas tarp like the one in the pic coming to take the place of the green tarp...with two more Bass Pro poles for $30, I can use it for another awning on the side when we need more shade instead of privacy.
This is my homebrew version, albeit very specific to my needs. Its about 50x50"

View attachment 661424View attachment 661425View attachment 661427View attachment 661428

Love that setup, @pith helmet! We used something similar by stringing a tarp from our RTT when deployed. Off the back of our JK, it made for a perfect shower/privacy curtain setup for years. I am considering DIY-ing this, but am hopeful to have a solution that is quick and easy to setup and tear down independently of the rest of my camp setup. There is always an equation of balancing the cost of materials and time to build it, with the cost of just buying one commercial produced -- time is the biggest factor for me as I get limited "project time" these days and I've got a lot of other DIY parts of my build. I might be able to squeeze one more in but it's great to see the commercial options to get ideas, too! I took a look at @jscherb's work too - that fella is a master craftsman on his projects and has some fantastic projects in his barn door thread!

 

[kwill]

Another low budget approach is to use a hula hoop (or length of PVC pipe) and a shower curtain. You can hang it from a tree or your roof rack.

 

[ChasingOurTrunks]

I'm cheap too. I don't like the cost, the weight or the wind drag. One other thing I don't like is having a mud pit right next to the vehicle. So do you stand in a kiddie pool and, if so, then what do you do? I have a cheap pop-up tent located away from the main area of camp.

We've not had much problem with mud from showers but you raise a great point. We combat a muddy ground by using the floor mat from our truck. The old ones were flat but they managed the mud issue fine. Our new ones are the Weathertech brand, so they have a bit of a lip that catches virtually all the water from our showers (which isn't very much) so we can get rid of it appropriately. Not quite a "kiddie pool" but not far off I'm also aware of folks who just stand in a bucket to shower up, and that deals with the dirty ground quite effectively.

The pop up is a nice option - I've considered those as well, but we really like the 8 second setup/teardown that these mounted options offer and the ability to basically have a private space anywhere -- need to change into swimmers for that beach? Done. Need to pull over to bust out the porte-potty because "you should have gone before we left" has never changed the outcome of a "dad I have to go" situation, ever? Done! Plus, we have on-board water, a handy shelf for all of our toiletries, etc. built into the vehicle so the built-in shower tent appeals to us. But, the remote tent is our plan C if we can't settle a commercial option or a DIY solution.

 

[pith helmet]

We haven’t had an opportunity to travel a lot in the Jeep yet and I have more ‘fab time’ than ‘travel time’ these days So I’m just having fun getting ready for the opportunity to get away.

 

[towee]

I have the Alu Cab one it’s well made and simple to use. It’s mainly for the significant other or when in organized campgrounds. The few times I needed it it was a life saver. The only annoyance is they are like kites in even the slightest breeze even pegged out and I’m sure that’s not just an alu cab thing my guess is they are all like that. I never leave it deployed but it’s simple enough to open and close that it’s not a big deal. If I had a do over I probably wouldn’t buy again.