Topper ventilation

Hello all!

Reaching out to the masses to come with a verdict on this cooling/heating issue with my LEER.

Just recently installed a LEER XR, so far everything’s been fine. Though a big reason why I bought the topper was to put my dog in on short trips. I’m worried that in the GA heat it is going to be too overwhelming for him. I saw this Truk-boot for sale locally and wondering if anyone has had any experience with it? Obviously I know it won’t work amazing, but make it that much more comfortable for him when it is muggy and humid in the summer time.

Any alternatives are welcomed.

 

In the same boat, biggest reason for the topper was the dog lol. I've been looking at these but I've read that they can cause a lot of paint damage somehow. Although I wonder if it was only the size of the middle/sliding window part if it would still cause problems.

Another option I was thinking about was routing one of the cabin vents into the bed somehow. Haven't seen anyone do that though so not sure how realistic that is.

 

I typically keep my pups crated in the topper, open the vented side windows and the window up front by the cab, and when it’s really hot use these battery powered fans:

 

If anything, just vinyl wrap the section around the window where paint could be marred by the inflatable tube to protect it.

 

You'll never get enough AC cooling from the cab to the cap no matter what you do. My dogs stay in front when it's hot.

That being said, here's what I did to seal my cap to my cab:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/i-sealed-my-cab-canopy-window.637965/#post-21987813

 

Yeah the AC in our trucks could never pump enough air to make any change to the temp back there. I travel with my dogs in the back a lot (I’m in Alabama so same temps as you basically)

they stay in their kennel in the back. I then have a cheapo 20” box fan plugged into the power outlet back there, with a bungee cord strapping it to the kennel. I then keep the tailgate open, glass lid shut. This pulls air from outside the truck and blows it on the dogs and keeps any extra heat from building up inside. I know it’s still plenty warm back there, but it’s the best I can do for them. Then, I keep a gallon of water in the cab and a bowl for them, and we stop every hour for a water break if we’re above 90 degrees or so. After a 3 hour trip, they’re normally not panting much.


And then, I’ll be honest, we travel late in the day or at night when possible. My home town is about 3 hours from where I’m from and we will normally wait till sunset to load up and leave.

 

I'd peddle the rigid cap and take and get a soft topper.

Sides and back can be rolled up allowing all sorts of fresh air to get to their cages.

I'm a former rigid cap fan bouy. I got a soft topper 5 years ago. I'm not going back to a rigid cap.

 

That actually looks really nice and clean. Did 1" just on the truck cab side bridge the entire gap or did you put some on the fold down window too?

Also did you use the same 1" stripping across the top as the sides?

 

The 1" stripping by itself bridged the gap all the way around for mine. The tightest fit is on the sides. I didn't need to add any on the cap side, but that might be a good idea if a single piece doesn't bridge the gap. All caps fit slightly differently and have different gaps. The best thing to do is measure the gaps and then order the best size for your set up.

 

OP, I’m almost in same boat. I didn’t buy the topper for Fido but thought he might like it back there. I’m in Florida. The air getting through the small slider didn’t override the heat. He ended up in the back seat on a dog hammock. I briefly thought about installing a solar vent as I’ve had in many sailboats. But realized it wouldn’t be enough.

 

I used your idea when the cap got put back on a couple weeks ago - thanks for the post

Seal is working like a champ, no water intrusion and less noise. Only complaint is it squeaks, but a little lube should take care of that.

 

Here’s a $1k solution
https://www.zerobreeze.com/products/zero-breeze-mark-2?variant=29542713688166