Semi Sleeper Cab Accessories to Help You Stay Cool at Night

If you have recently acquired your commercial drivers license and wish to start hauling goods across the country, then you may want to consider purchasing a semi truck of your own. This will provide you with the benefits of working for yourself. You are likely to spend between $30,000 and $80,000 for a used semi truck. Purchasing a truck with a sleeper cab is a great option for you if you intend to be on the road for weeks at a time. However, you should know that the cab can become hot and stuffy, so purchase some of the following items for the sleeper cab to make sure that you do not overheat while trying to sleep.

Gel Foam Mattress

The sleeper cab attached to your semi truck will have a small bed where you can sleep. This bed frame is generally a steel one lined with springs that pulls down from the wall. These springs act as the box spring to absorb shock. You will need to purchase a small mattress to sit over the springs. While the dimensions of the frame are similar to those of a twin bed, the frame will have its own distinct dimensions that require a specialty mattress. You will need to measure the length and width of the frame before you buy a mattress.

Once you take your measurements, look for a mattress that fits the frame and is made out of gel foam. The basic foundation of the gel foam mattress consists of viscoelastic, which is the same material that memory foam mattresses are constructed out of. This means the gel foam mattress will provide you with the comfort, durability, and pressure-point relief of a memory foam mattress. However, extremely dense memory foam will heat up as you sleep. A gel foam mattress will not. This mattress contains small gel pockets across the viscoelastic material that allows heat to escape. This keeps you and the mattress cool at night.

Once you buy a sleep cab gel mattress, also opt for cotton sheets with a loose weave or a low thread count. These types of sheets will breathe more effectively than high thread count varieties, so heat will move through the sheets and the gel mattress effectively.

Vent Fan

Most semi truck sleeper cabs will have a variety of vents around the sleeping area to allow for air movement. This can help to keep your cab cool at night, and so can the installation of heat rejection window films with low-emissivity coatings. However, these things will not assist in pulling body heat out of the sleeper cab as you doze. One thing that can do this is a vent ceiling fan installed on the top of the cab. 

A vent ceiling fan features a fan blade inside the covered vent that sits on the ceiling on the top of your sleeper cab. This fan is angled in a way that hot air is pulled up and out of the cab area. The fan can be wired to run off its own low-voltage power supply, or the device can utilize the battery-based electrical system that pulls and stores energy from your alternator while you drive. However, keep in mind that the battery system will provide a finite amount of electricity every day. While a fan will not draw that much electricity, televisions, microwaves, compact stoves, and refrigerators will. Make sure to take these appliances into account to make sure that your battery-based system will not fail overnight while your fan is on.

However, if you opt not to have any appliances in the sleeper cab space, then you may actually be able to run a small electric air conditioner. These devices typically attach to the ceiling and feature vents that blow cool air down into the sleeper compartment. 

If you haven't found yourself a used truck yet, contact a representative from a company like Arrow Truck Sales for more information.

About Me

Staying Warm This Winter

Ten years ago, I married my wonderful husband in a beautiful church ceremony. Since my wedding day, I’ve learned how much my spouse loves automobiles. He especially cherishes his nearly 20-year-old truck. Unfortunately, he can’t drive this beloved automobile right now because the heater in it is broken. Due to the cold temperatures outdoors, he would freeze if he decided to drive his truck anywhere. He's working now to get the problem fixed before winter is over. On this blog, I hope you will discover the most common solutions for broken heaters in vehicles. Enjoy!