Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

what kind of screws should i use to fasten the roof to the walls, walls to the floor, just a regular decking screw? they will be under rhino liner when its all said and done but whats strongest.

I hope the answer is decking screws because that is what I used on most of my build.

As far as strength, the deck screws provide some strength, but is really the glue bond that provides the most strength once the glue sets.

Along with the deck screws, I also used a few galvanized staples. But, like your example, these are coated with epoxy or CPES, or are beneath the outer plywood skin.

I did the same thing as aggie.... #6 coarse deck screws and Titebond III wood glue. I have used about 500 screws so far and i predrilled and countersunk all of them...

FYI a #6 deck screw with about 1-1.5" of engagement into the end grain of good quality plywood has a pullout strength of about 50-60 lbs....

not really under the thread title and also there is many variables of customization that go into these trailers but what are average build costs

It depends on your build, quality, and features.

Minimum for a decent build is $1500 or so, and it just goes from there.

With your build, I'd imagine you'll spend at least $300 on bedliner, at least $300 on the trailer, at least $300 on wood, and at least $300 on the interior -- shooting for $1500 is the low end.

ya i will be spending about 240 bucks to build the whole camper (got a nice discount from one of my clients the are builders i do their IT work)
own the trailer already.
the bed liner will be costly in this build yea.
then there is the mater of fixtures and customization stuff

stove and lights and solar panels , plumbing, water tanks etc

I planned on $1200-$1500. I am about halfway through, and now my projection is $2000.00.

Greg (and Laurie)

any pic's of your build i am just south of milwaukee

Decking screws should be fine. I used SS screws but I tended to over-do everything.

I used deck screws for the structural part and stainless to keep the roof on. I also used Tightbond III. The attachment to the bottom sides is done with deck screws and pl construction glue from a tube.

Grid Runner Adventures wrote:any pic's of your build i am just south of milwaukee

It is in the build journals, and in my album. I Have scouted out some suppliers in the area. If you want to know where let me know. And if you found some, you could share your info.

http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=34844

Greg (and Laurie)

I used 1" drywall screws to attach my 1/4" luaun to the 1x3 "frame" and 2" gold screws to do all the 2x2 framing, spars, etc.

For glue and screw construction where the screws are acting as clamps while the glue dries and normally left in place, I like #6 trim head screws. Trim head screws reduce labor in a few ways, they will self-countersink even in Baltic Birch and leave a smaller hole to fill.



As others have noted the screws play a part in the strength of the joint but a good glue joint plays the big part.

claw73 wrote:I used 1" drywall screws

I wouldn't use any drywall screws -- they'll split wood spars with ease.

Inside my walls, I'm using self-tapping pocket screws. They hold together the framing extremely well. The roof will be held on by deck screws at the edges (predrilled to prevent splitting) and 1" wood screws in the middle. The luaun is held to my walls using 1" wood screws and a crapton of liquid nails.

I used Deck Screws where it doesn't show. I used stainless pan head screws to hold down the corner trim.