Thrifty Alternatives ..Building Foam Campers

[chartle]

1. CH, the ply goes on the inside and serves to spread the load across a large area of the surface...

2. Norm I can see the necessity on a larger trailer for stabilizers... On these small ones , it may not be needed ... Maybe !!! Or maybe just one ... if you’re trying to save weight ... and you’re planning on unhitching the Trailer ..

1. I'm thinking I would route out 2 1/2" channels maybe 3" wide inside the foam going from the cabinet to the floor to transfer the load down with a 1/2" piece of plywood.

Now I may be over thinking this, but I have a concern about shearing forces as the trailer is towed stopping and starting particularly if there is window AC unit up there. Maybe I could use a full piece of ply under it or add a cross brace of some sort.

2. Well the trailer will be unhooked. Maybe I can make lighter ones out of aluminum stock instead of the off the shelf ones that are designed for much larger trailers.

[GPW]

You mean like insetting /flush mounting the ply ?? That would be very Nice ,and you could cover over it with the inner fabric ... Thinner ply might work well as the foam does assume some of the load , but deforms around high stress areas left unsupported ..
Example ,if you just drilled a hole in the foam , glued in a dowel and put a load on it , it would eventually sag around the hole and fail ... Supported with some thin ply in the area , it would be able to take Much higher loads safely ... Here’s a pic of my “hard point “ attachments , you can see how the ply spreads out the load at the surface where it receives the most downward force...

Thinking for the AC , just mount it on a slide attached securely to the floor ... no stress on the walls that way ... or just carry it along in the TV and stick it in there when you need it ... No use dragging around a permanently mounted AC around half the year ... A small “door “ the exact size of the AC fit would be perfect ...

[chartle]

Thinking for the AC , just mount it on a slide attached securely to the floor ... no stress on the walls that way ... or just carry it along in the TV and stick it in there when you need it ... No use dragging around a permanently mounted AC around half the year ... A small “door “ the exact size of the AC fit would be perfect ...

Where on the floor? the sleeping area is one big mattress.

As for a door that would open like a shelf, the only open wall area is in the front. Which means I would have to have a super sealed door and also have the thing 6 " from my head.

[Miriam C.]

You can put the air conditioner on the tongue and add some hoses to carry the air in and out. Plumbing fixtures will make good water tight openings.

[eaglesdare]

Thinking for the AC , just mount it on a slide attached securely to the floor ... no stress on the walls that way ... or just carry it along in the TV and stick it in there when you need it ... No use dragging around a permanently mounted AC around half the year ... A small “door “ the exact size of the AC fit would be perfect ...

i added a piece of foam inside my passenger side door. cut a hole in that for the a/c. worked perfectly.
now with the weather getting cooler, i can take that piece of foam out and store the a/c til next year. no need to carry that extra weight.
and i did not have to modify the foamie for the a/c.

i will be buying a different heater this year i think. when i go by myself, the heater i have is ok. but with more than 1 in there, the heater is in the way, so i need a smaller unit.

[GPW]

Eagle , Shouldn’t need much of a heater with all that insulation and body heat huh ? .. Maybe an itty bitty one ... I have several 1500watt “milkhouseâ€

[chartle]

[quote="GPW"]CH, With the bed taking up All of the TD space , it would seem possible to reinforce the wall with a plywood “plate" with the appropriate cutout for the AC , and maybe better , a small platform to support it , with angled shelf braces transferring the load to the floor/wall , the bed space un affected ... Just another “alternativeâ€

[tinksdad]

[quote="GPW"]Eagle , Shouldn’t need much of a heater with all that insulation and body heat huh ? .. Maybe an itty bitty one ... I have several 1500watt “milkhouseâ€

[GPW]

Dad , that’s what I was thinking too ... It’s not going to take much to heat or cool inside these virtually "ice chestâ€

[chartle]

1. Ch , Hotel ??? Dude , where there’s a need , there’ll be a way to fulfill it ... But a Hotel ?

2. There’s gotta’ be some place to mount it ... i don’t think you’ll be happy with the ducting business ...

1. At the campground at Walt Disney World during certain times of the year a when they offer free dining its cheaper to stay in their on site value hotel rooms then it is to stay at their standard campsite (because they don't offer the promo to campsites)

2. As for ducting it solves two problems.

a. The unit is outside so less noise.

b. I can place on the tongue and run the output up a chase built into the front of the TD and since my bed platform is elevated above the trailer chassis I can run the return duct under the bed platform and have it at my feet for good circulation.

[GPW]

Ch, Just have to do what’s Best for you !!! No rules eh !!
Good Luck with that , and of course we‘ll want to see the pics too ...

[eaglesdare]

disney, did someone mention disney?

but chartle is 100% correct, sometimes it is way cheaper to stay at the value resort hotels than at the campgrounds. they can be very expensive.

i did ask hubby is he wanted to camp out while we were there, but he did not like that idea. so we will just stay at the hote. and with the military discounts, its really not bad at all.

[GPW]

OK, if there’s nothing else to say about Foamies (and we’ve said a LOT! ) Then lets have that Apple Butter recipe ...

[eaglesdare]

well not too sure you want it. it still taste llike applesauce. i did not have any cloves, so perhaps that is the spice that is missing? i did not use a receipe though. winged it. taste good however, just something is missing.

[GPW]

No cloves !!! That may be what’s missing ... Nothing wrong with Applesauce though ... I use it frequently as a replacement for Butter in low fat recipes/baking ... old folks diet ..

Just a side project ... the wife brought home a small foam cooler (ice chest) Perfectly rectangular , just a box with a good fitting lid ... Freebie

Foam is the more common beaded foam , so I thought , why not cover it (skin) ...canvas and T2 ... same process... Good chance to further test the bead foam/skin and if I can find a cool fabric , will have an attractive little cooler for the Foamie TD ...