This is my blog to document the construction of my tear drop trailer. This all started after a camping trip with my wife where she said she liked going camping but that the tent was a little uncomfortable. So, after much pondering, I notice the old folding flat trailer in the backyard that had sat unused since remodelling our basement.
So, I started exploring the web and eventually came across a web site that offered plans that would convert a 4x8 foot trailer into a tear drop camper.
May 2006 -Here are the pictures of our trailer construction in progress:
Heres the trailer with a 2x2 frame placed on it and a sheet of 1/2 inch ACX plywood attached. The bottom of the plywood is insulated with 3/4 inch foam and then waterproofed with roofing cement.
The plans call for 3/8 inch plywood on the sides, but I used 1/2 plywood and adjusted accordingly.
The wall between the sleeping area and the galley (kitchen) provides the structural stability for the sides until the spars (cross pieces) are attached.
I used poplar for the solid wood to make up the frames. Its lighter than aspen (a local wood), doesn't twist like pine, and not too expensive.
The wall is then skinned with 1/8 inch birch plywood and insulated with 3/4 inch foam.
Now came a time consuming part of putting in furring strips in the walls, filling the voids with 3/4 inch foam insulation, and running wires for the lights (reading and dome) , the overhead fan, and the outside porch lights.
June 2006 - The side walls are skinned with 1/8inch birch plywood first, then the spars (cross pieces) are attached. After this, the whole thing is VERY STRONG!
Just after this picture, we slid in a sheet of 1/8 inch birch plywood from the back, inside of the cross pieces to create the inside ceiling. The tension of bending the plywood kept it tight against the cross pieces and it was secured with polyurethane glue (Gorilla glue). So, no nail heads in the ceiling. Then the space above the ceiling was filled with a 3/4inch layer and a 1/2 inch layer of styrofoam insulation.Winter 2006 - Lots of work out of town during the winter of 2006, plus the snow got deep from December 2006 thru February 2007, so almost no work on the trailer. In May 2007, I could finally get the trailer out of the backyard and into the garage. A good friend, also by the name of Tim, found a local sheet metal shop that carried 4x12 foot aluminum and the angle pieces that connected the sides to the top. We cut one sheet roughly to size and glued it with contact cement to one side of the trailer.
August 2007 - This is my wife Karen holding the piece in place while I cut it with pneumatic shears (like electric sissors but they cut aluminum like paper). The shears work great as long as you don't hit the wood, which makes the shears stop dead.
Here is the side trimmed to fit. The door has been traced out by drilling small holes in the corners, then placing the cutout piece of wood over the metal and drawing on it. Then I used a jig saw to cut out the door opening.
Lots of masking tape to keep the jig saw from scratching the aluminum. Learned that one after scratching up side when trimming to fit.
September 2007 - Time to put the sheet metal on the top of the trailer. This is as hard to do as it looks.
I didn't cut out the other door until later. I just needed the one opening to be able to get inside.
Finishing the hatch opening took a lot of detail work.
The plans I had didn't directly tell you to put your extra aluminum on the inside wall of the galley, but it seems to make sense. If you get grease on it, its pretty easy to clean up. This is the wiring that will be inside a cabinet when done. I have just 4 circuits so far (Dome light, fan, reading lights, accessory plug). There is a 740 AMP 12-volt battery mounted on the front end to power everything.
The hatch was probably the most detailed part of the construction. This is the internals of the hatch (on its side). I am gluing a strip of aluminum to cover the 3/4 inch plywood side. The it is skinned with hardboard on the outside, followed by aluminum on the outside, then filled with 1 1/4 inch of foam insulation, then skinned with 1/8 inch birch on the inside.
December 2007 - Constructing the door. The hole in the center will hold a crank-out window.
Test fitting the door to make sure it fits.
