Foamie Build 2022: My first camper

[Evan S]

Hello Everyone!
I've been lurking on this forum for a few months now gathering ideas and plans for my foamie build. I just finished fall semester at school (yay adult education!) and have almost 3 weeks to knock as much out as I can between work and early loss of daylight here in the PNW.

The idea for this project started a few months ago when I realized a camper van was just too much of an undertaking and I needed to consider something smaller. I drive a 2014 Subaru Forester which has a rated tow capacity of ~1500 lbs which hinders the size and weight of many currently available options. On a hunch one night I googled "ultralight travel trailers" and came across the concept of a foam camper. Being someone who usually chooses to build rather than buy, my interest and imagination immediately kicked in and building a foamie has been on my mind ever since!

Some of you may recognize my original sketches from Reddit a few weeks ago where I was on the fence about which method to use. I greatly appreciate all the advice and information given there; especially the link to this forum!

IMG_0853.jpeg (87.59 KiB) Viewed 1498 times

https://www.reddit.com/r/TeardropTrailers/comments/z39a9l/square_drop_wall_options/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf

After some considerations of my needs, costs of materials, and my limitations in space/tools for a lot of carpentry work, I've decided to build a 5x8 foamie on a harbor freight trailer.

I also plan to inlay a wooden frame to build a base for external mounting of accessories like an awning and solar panels.
I'm kinda playing jazz with the execution of that idea right now; I'll post some sketches when I have more info to share

I plan to keep this thread up-to-date as I continue with the project.
Cheers!

-Evan

[Evan S]

So!
My current plans involved a few changes from my initial plans above.
- I blunted the front bump that I had drawn up. A straight wall makes more sense for both the build and gives me more space on the tongue for a utility box.
- I decided against framing the entire trailer with wood. I believe the foam is going to be more than enough with the frame I am adding for accessories, and the weight and cost savings will be nice too.

Made up a rough model with some foam board to give me a better idea of dimensions and space.

[Evan S]

Ramping up to start the build!

I decided the best place to start would be sourcing a trailer. I looked around online but local used offerings were scarce and overpriced. I chose instead to go with my original plan and put it on the classic Harbor Freight super duty trailer.
https://www.harborfreight.com/automotive/trailers-towing/1720-lb-capacity-48-in-x-96-in-super-duty-folding-trailer-62671.html

My plans became a bit rushed when my friend told me that the Harbor Freight here in Medford didn't have any in stock. After calling the store the impression I got was that they aren't expecting to get any more in stock for some time. I guess the company has been having difficulty getting shipments from their factories in China? Either way it prompted me to use the store locator on their page to see if any nearby stores had some in stock. And wouldn't you know it, there was ONE sitting in the stockroom at the Harbor Freight in Yreka, CA about an hour away.

The next morning I hopped in my car and drove down to California through a pretty rough snowstorm on the i5 corridor. Purchased my new trailer (had to pay sales tax ) and headed home in triumph! Huge shout out to the staff at the Yreka HF, they are super friendly and helpful!

When I got home my friend came over and we assembled the trailer in pieces in my living room since I don't have a garage or workshop. Having two people makes quick work, we had it assembled in about an hour!

[pchast]

Welcome!

Just a quick note FYI. I'd recommend checking that its Square and straight and level
for the most part... Use a taut string to check straight and level. Then check the
measurement in the major diagonals. It should be close. The trailer is the foundation
for the entire build. You will be happy you made sure when adding the box.

[ghcoe]

Welcome to the foamie madness.

If you are building over the wheels, I would recommend leaving enough room for 13" tires. You may want to go to a larger tire eventually. The 12" tires will work fine on pavement and forest roads but getting into rougher stuff you will probably want the extra tire to smooth things out. Going from 12" to 13" does not sound like a big deal but there is a huge difference.

12"-13" tires

12 to 13 inch wheels tires s.jpg (39.99 KiB) Viewed 1454 times

I overland with my #2 trailer, and it was really bad with the 12" tires. I wanted to go to 15" but my trailer was the lighter HF trailer with the 4 lugs. 13" was as big a tire I could go with. I installed the 13" tires to get me by till I could get a larger axle for 15" tires. 3 years later I was still running the 13" tires since they worked just fine for what I was doing. I finally bent the axle, so I upgraded to a 3000# axle and 15" tires just this year.

13"-15" tires

20220619_085634_HDR s.jpg (316.98 KiB) Viewed 1454 times

Good luck with the build! George.

[Evan S]

Welcome!

Just a quick note FYI. I'd recommend checking that its Square and straight and level
for the most part... Use a taut string to check straight and level. Then check the
measurement in the major diagonals. It should be close. The trailer is the foundation
for the entire build. You will be happy you made sure when adding the box.

I appreciate that reminder!
I wired the lights on it today and thought it would be a good idea to go around check the tightness of the bolts. I will make sure to double check the alignment when I do that!

If you are building over the wheels, I would recommend leaving enough room for 13" tires. You may want to go to a larger tire eventually. The 12" tires will work fine on pavement and forest roads but getting into rougher stuff you will probably want the extra tire to smooth things out. Going from 12" to 13" does not sound like a big deal but there is a huge difference.

Did you have to do any modifications to the wheel wells when you sized up? This is the first trailer I've owned so anything that will make the driving/riding easier is something I'm interested in!


Thank you both! I'm excited to continue receiving wisdom as I move into the build!

[twisted lines]

If you are building over the wheels, I would recommend leaving enough room for 13" tires. You may want to go to a larger tire eventually. The 12" tires will work fine on pavement and forest roads but getting into rougher stuff you will probably want the extra tire to smooth things out. Going from 12" to 13" does not sound like a big deal but there is a huge difference.

Did you have to do any modifications to the wheel wells when you sized up? This is the first trailer I've owned so anything that will make the driving/riding easier is something I'm interested in!


I'm excited to continue receiving wisdom as I move into the build!

Spend a bit of time checking out this guys build's
I will bring up axle placement, should it be moved back?

[ghcoe]

Did you have to do any modifications to the wheel wells when you sized up? This is the first trailer I've owned so anything that will make the driving/riding easier is something I'm interested in!

My build is 4' wide so I don't have wheel wells. I was just giving you a heads up that if you do go 5' you might want to leave room for a wheel/tire upgrade later.

You will need to add a wheel spacer between the hub and wheel to allow enough room for the tire to clear the trailer frame. On my 13" wheel upgrade I did have to move the fender up 2". It was easy to do, just drill two holes 2" above the stock holes.

[ghcoe]

I will bring up axle placement, should it be moved back?

I used the 12" and 13" wheel/tires at the stock location. I had to move the axle back a bit for the 15" wheels, to clear the door.

Axle placement is not too critical on lighter weight trailers. It comes down to really what the tow vehicle can handle as tongue weight. As long as you don't overload the tongue weight of the tow vehicle the axle can be moved pretty far back. The farther back the axle the more stable the trailer will be. But, with that said, the trailer frame also has to be strong enough to take the load placed between the span of the axle and the hitch. Harbor Freight trailers are a little weak in the tongue design to be adding tongue weight.

Knowing of this weak link in the trailer design and knowing how I was going to be using this trailer I opted to strengthen the frame with a piece of 2" box steel. I had two Harbor Freight 2" receivers welded to the ends of the 2" tube. I then bolted the tube to the bottom of the trailer. I extended the tongue a bit so I can change out from a 2" ball to a pintle hitch if needed. I can also remove the hitch all together for security from people hooking up to it and stealing it. The other receiver comes out the back of the trailer and allows for carrying bike carriers, cargo carriers, ect.

2" box steel with receivers

20190503_103051 s.jpg (441.42 KiB) Viewed 1372 times

Removable Hitch

20190503_111124 s.jpg (306.85 KiB) Viewed 1372 times

Bolted to frame

20190503_115621 s.jpg (265.41 KiB) Viewed 1372 times