Community Forums

bethmarie · 01-23-2020, 07:26 PM

Hi guys, I am in the process of possibly purchasing a new travel trailer but need some help. I came across this forum on Google and decided to sign up. I'm a little worried about getting a travel trailer due to formaldehyde. I will be traveling with family for a long extended period of time and my sister has asthma as well as allergies so I am worried it will affect her. I have checked trailers made with Azdel and I have also checked Lance but each still has formaldehyde.

I believe Lance is supposed to have better material but when reading the owners manual online they mention needing to air out the smells of the trailer which is basically outgassing it. It seems like a pretty ticky way of going around mentioning formaldehyde if you ask me. (Please see the attached photo to see what Lance's owner manual says exactly.)

Is there any trailers that don't contain formaldehyde? What other advice can you give me? Thank you!

Isaac-1 · 01-23-2020, 09:42 PM

If this is a big concern for you, then consider buying a used trailer that is a couple of years old, as it will have had time to air out. There are a lot of good used trailers out there, people sell them for all sort of reasons, they bought one that is too small, too big, don't have time to use it, can't afford it, and of course those that sell for health issues.

bneukam · 01-23-2020, 10:18 PM

Formaldehyde is a pretty common chemical. Mercury is another. Even though Lance uses Azdel on both sides of their foam board walls, they use a plywood material in their floors, and roof structure. The front curved wall also has Luan as a fiberglass substrate that contains the chemical.
I can tell you ours came off the factory floor sometime in June, and we were camping in it late August of the same year. It never had any chemical smell that I picked up.
Off-gassing will be in any new material. I put new mattresses in the garage to air out for this same reason.
Lance is probably one of the more environmental friendly companies in the RV industry. But it’s nearly impossible to build anything today without it.

steve52 · 01-24-2020, 11:12 AM

My brand new 2003 Jayco off-gassed like crazy for the first 3-4 years we owned it. Wasn't noticeable when using it, but leave it closed up for a week in the summer and your eyes would burn when you entered.

My 2018 Coachmen is far better, with only a faint "new car" sort of smell when it was brand new, and no odor whatsoever now.

Reevesfamily · 01-24-2020, 12:47 PM

We have a brand new Flagstafff Classic and other than a new car smell it doesn't seem to have any issues like you discuss. My wife has allergies and I am sensitive to anything that smells like a vegetable, we have no trouble. The advice about buying a used unit is probably your best advice here, but then maybe you'll have to fight other perhaps less desirable smells than a new car smell, not to mention what may be in your carpet. Leave the doors and windows open when you can and enjoy the great outdoors! Use the vent fans to cycle the air, lots of things you can do.

Isaac-1 · 01-24-2020, 02:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by steve52

My brand new 2003 Jayco off-gassed like crazy for the first 3-4 years we owned it. Wasn't noticeable when using it, but leave it closed up for a week in the summer and your eyes would burn when you entered.

My 2018 Coachmen is far better, with only a faint "new car" sort of smell when it was brand new, and no odor whatsoever now.

A lot of attention came to his issue after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 with the FEMA trailers

bethmarie · 01-25-2020, 12:11 AM

Thank you all so much for your responses! I'm definitely going to check out all the brands mentioned. I was looking at Lance since it appeared to be at least somewhat better but now I see there might be other options. I noticed Lance is a bit too pricey for what I'm looking for so this is great news. The fact that not all trailers carry the smell so strong and that ventilation helps gives me hope that this can work out after all.

steve52 · 01-25-2020, 08:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Isaac-1

A lot of attention came to his issue after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 with the FEMA trailers

Yes, people living full time in these things were getting sick, especially kids.

keymastr · 01-25-2020, 09:08 AM

When you go to the RV shows there will be some that have a much stronger smell than others. Usually, but not always, the better brands will not only smell less but smell better. Some brands actually made my throat sore and had a more abrasive aroma. My OutdoorsRV has never done that and the new trailer odor was not unpleasant. Go to an RV show and smell the different brands. Some are awful.

bneukam · 01-25-2020, 12:30 PM

Cheaper units will off gas more due to their use of toxic glues in their lamination process. Plus OSB construction will off gas more than plywood.

Lance is higher priced, especially on the east coast, as the dealers don’t budge on price as much, due to limited stock, both new and used.
Purchased our Lance 2 1/2 years ago with 28% off MSRP, and have lost very minimal in resale value.

bethmarie · 01-29-2020, 10:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by steve52

My brand new 2003 Jayco off-gassed like crazy for the first 3-4 years we owned it. Wasn't noticeable when using it, but leave it closed up for a week in the summer and your eyes would burn when you entered.

My 2018 Coachmen is far better, with only a faint "new car" sort of smell when it was brand new, and no odor whatsoever now.

Did you have any issues using the Jayco during those 3-4 years?

I don't mind a new car smell at all, what Coachmen do you have?

bethmarie · 01-29-2020, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bneukam

Cheaper units will off gas more due to their use of toxic glues in their lamination process. Plus OSB construction will off gas more than plywood.

Lance is higher priced, especially on the east coast, as the dealers don’t budge on price as much, due to limited stock, both new and used.
Purchased our Lance 2 1/2 years ago with 28% off MSRP, and have lost very minimal in resale value.

I found a Lance I like a lot but it is very pricey from what I see. I'm thinking about going for it anyway since I've read such good things about them so far. I'm not 100% sure yet. I'm still looking at my options and shopping around. Can you tell me where you got yours? I am in South Florida and I'm looking for somewhere that sells Lance, but there's not a lot of options.

bneukam · 01-30-2020, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bethmarie

I found a Lance I like a lot but it is very pricey from what I see. I'm thinking about going for it anyway since I've read such good things about them so far. I'm not 100% sure yet. I'm still looking at my options and shopping around. Can you tell me where you got yours? I am in South Florida and I'm looking for somewhere that sells Lance, but there's not a lot of options.

We purchased ours in Bend, OR, but you could find a good deal closer to you. Lance has their own forum, so if you do decide to move forward you may want to search for it to get suggestions on dealers. I can tell you for sure you’ll want the optioned factory lift.
Lance is pricey compared to most. Really depends on how much you’ll be using it.