In a market dominated by hard- and soft-shell bed rack-mounted tents and hard mounted metal campers, ThAirCamper has introduced a new camping option: a fully inflatable camper. Offering spacious accommodations for the whole family, a one-person setup and breakdown, and a smaller storage footprint for when you need to use your truck as a truck.
In this article, I’ll cover the setup, breakdown, and my initial impressions of this niche option that fits not only a Tacoma, but a wide range of trucks on the road today.
Table Of Contents
Set Up Procedure
Setup Supplies
- ThAir Camper
- Electric Pump (Included)
- Tie Down Straps (Included)
Setting up the ThAir Camper takes about 15-30 minutes. The first time took a little longer as I was learning the process and proper air pressure for the different air chambers. The whole setup can be done with one person, but having a helping hand does make moving the uninflated camper and getting it positioned on the truck easier.
Step 1. Inflating The Unit With Electric Pump
Spread the camper out on the ground, with the ceiling side facing up. Then, locate the door opening in the back and find the first inflation port located on the floor. Starting with this section gives you some cushion to lie on while reaching some of the other ports inside.
Next, connect the supplied inflator to the inflation port with a quarter turn of the inflation hose. I start with between 1.5 and 2.5 psi. Work your way through inflating the remaining sections, most of which you can access from outside the camper door. Ceiling, back wall, entry door, left and right sides, followed by the upper bunk, and finish off with the two window covers on either side.
Keep in mind that heat and elevation gain will increase pressure in the chambers, so don’t overinflate. Once you figure it out, the inflation process should only take about 15-20 minutes.
Step 2. Loading Onto The Bed
Once all everything is fully inflated, carefully flip the camper upright with the back portion on the ground; I recommend doing this on a flat surface. Drop the tailgate on your Tacoma, and back up to the , leaving about a foot of space between your tailgate and the camper.
Slowly tip it forward onto the tailgate, then push it into the truck bed. It is a tight fit between the wheel wells, so if needed, let a little bit of air out of the front wall and the floor to persuade the camper all the way to the front of the bed. I have a Prinsu roof rack installed and had no fitment issues over the roof; in fact, I think it helps keep the section over the cab off the radio antenna mounted on the truck’s roof.
Step 3. Securing Everything Down
Secure the camper to the truck with four cam straps: two on the underside of the left and right sides, and two on the sides over the top of the bed. Utilizing the factory tie-down points in the bed, connect one clip in the front and one in the rear, and then cinch down on the strap to snug it up and repeat on the opposite side. Tie off any loose ends of the strap to the rear tie-down point to prevent flapping while traveling.
To secure the upper section, open the rear door and gently pull back the weather sealing on the upper side of the door sill. Take the provided hook attached to the camper and slip it onto the lip of the sill, pull the strap to remove any slack, and gently push the weather stripping back into place.
Alternatively, if you have a roof rack installed, you can attach the hooks to the side rails of the rack; just make sure it is tight and can’t slip off while driving. Repeat the same steps on the other side, and you’re ready to take ThAir anywhere.
Short Term Review
I was quick to judge the ThAir on the looks. It has an inflated exterior appearance (no pun intended) on a mid-size truck, but the camper’s functionality was quickly apparent. The interior is spacious and comfortably sleeps me, my wife, our two daughters (ages 8 and 2), and our Australian Shepard without feeling cramped or forcing us to fight for space as we have in other camping setups.
With bench seats on either side and an upper bunk area, everyone had space to sit and relax. Driving to camp on our first outing with the camper, I expected to notice the weight and possible drag, but neither was very apparent, even at highway speeds or while cruising through twisting mountain roads. The whole setup only weighs 180 lbs., which is super reasonable.
Our sleeping arrangements consisted of the available twin inflatable mattress from ThAir that spans both bench seats on either side of the camper, which fit me, my wife, and our two-year-old, while our oldest daughter called dibs on the upper bunk over the cab.
One standout thing about the ThAir is that the thick PVC material the camper is constructed of is not only sturdy but also wipes clean easily, which was a big bonus since we experienced rain and mud on our first outing, leaving lots of paw prints and dirt on the floor.
The walls have a slight insulating factor, so during summer camping it can get warm inside, but we easily mitigated that by pulling down the outer window section secured with Velcro, allowing airflow to circulate. We encountered condensation inside overnight, but it was to be expected and easy to remedy once we got home and left the door open to air out.
With the bed and back seats occupied, there was no shortage of space to pack up all our gear, simply toss it in the camper shut the door and hit the road, this also made packing up camp all the easier. All in all, with the minimal time we have spent using the ThAir thus far, I can see the potential of this platform and look forward to fine-tuning our setup to better meet the needs of me and our family on our adventures.
Important recommendation: When storing the ThAirCamper, make sure it is in a closed environment, secure from mice who may try to make it home.
I’ll report back on a longer term review once we’ve had the chance to use it a few more times. Stay tuned!
