Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

My new (old) teardrop has an aluminum skin with no interior walls. I fear that condensation will be an issue, since my tent already has such.

I've seen a couple of TDs that have carpet on the interior walls, a couple with paneling (beyond my skill level) and a couple with some sort of plastic/ tileboard??

I know almost nothing about TD construction, having purchased this trailer this week

I'm reading everything I can find, so pointers are in order also.

Thanks

<Chas>

I know there's alot of chat on the site about insulating the walls and that seems to help with the condensation issue as well as some decent airflow. I'm probably going to build mine with insulated walls and ceilings with carpeting on the interior walls and a headliner material on the ceiling. this should help with any acoustic issues due to hard interior surfaces. I plan on a pretty nice audio system system inside my TD so soft walls will help with the sound.

I must confess however, this might change prior to the start of the build since I keep finding great ideas as I keep going through topics on this forum.

You could always insulate between the ribs on the ceiling and walls with some sheet styrofoam or similar insulating material that is the same thickness as the existing ribs. Use a water based adhesive, fill the panels in as best as possible, with no voids, then cover with the carpeting, same adhesive. I'd recommend a marine grade carpeting, low pile type.

A ceiling vent is a big + in reducing any interior condensation, and make sure that you don't have any leaks in the exterior aluminum/trim, prior to any interior insulating. If after it is all said and done and you get any moisture inside...make sure you open the doors and dry/air it out well to prevent any mold/moisture issues. It will just hang in on the carpet and you may not see it.

There is nothing worse than waking up in a damp clammy trailer in the middle of the night, or having to go to sleep in one that has leftover moisture from the night before. Make sure you always crack the door windows when inside. The ceiling vent, cracked a bit will help since the warm damp air will rise. How much moisture you encounter will depend on where and what temps you camp in. Doug

What they said. I can imagine an all aluminum trailer being a furnace in summer. Needs insulation and softness never hurts.

You might be able to find somewhere to spray insulation on the inside and then cover that with carpet or something else. The insulation that I am talking about is used for insulating houses.

doug hodder wrote:You could always insulate between the ribs on the ceiling and walls with some sheet styrofoam or similar insulating material that is the same thickness as the existing ribs. Use a water based adhesive, fill the panels in as best as possible, with no voids, then cover with the carpeting, same adhesive. I'd recommend a marine grade carpeting, low pile type.

That's what I would recommend. I used a marine hull liner for the walls and it works great.

http://www.yourautotrim.com/sigrmahu.html

planovet wrote:

doug hodder wrote:You could always insulate between the ribs on the ceiling and walls with some sheet styrofoam or similar insulating material that is the same thickness as the existing ribs. Use a water based adhesive, fill the panels in as best as possible, with no voids, then cover with the carpeting, same adhesive. I'd recommend a marine grade carpeting, low pile type.

That's what I would recommend. I used a marine hull liner for the walls and it works great.

http://www.yourautotrim.com/sigrmahu.html

I agree, Marine Headliner.. thats what I use.

Classic Finn wrote:Marine Headliner.

...and it wakes you up with a pleasant little motivational speech in the morning!

Yep, Marine Hull-liner over sheet insulation, or the more readily available automotive Trunk-liner (thinner & stretchier than Hull-liner, shorter "knap", and less likely to hold dust & dirt) ... I've used it several times with great results ...

CHEERS!

Grant

Is that Marine Hull Liner backed with foam or something?

I think I need more than just a layer of fabric 'tween me and the aluminum

<Chas>