Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Hello, I am finally moving forward with my teardrop, a 9 footer, plywood sides with custom steel tubing frame and tubing structure for the cabin itself. I have opened the plywood for the full sized door and realize that now is the time to start getting ready for the galley, which will have a full sized door with gas struts for opening. I know about a hurricane hinge, although I have never seen one.
I am concerned about creating a water tight fit on the galley door. I will be building just one of these and want to get this door enclosure right the first time. How much wood do you need to mount the hurricane hinge really securely? Width and depth? How is the door fitted to the sides so it does not leak? I plan to weld 1/2" tubing for this door so it is not bulky, yet very rigid? Using weight as the paradigm what size gas struts match up to make the door open properly? Obviously I have no idea as to what the overall weight will be so far for this galley door. Any ideas on the proper seals and hinges? The people on this site have been absolutely marvelous helping me with this trailer I am building by myself. I know when I get to some campers get together, I will be seeing ideas I wish I had when building this camper, and after studying how to do this for years, I can live with that.

Thank You,

Gene So

Gene,

Go to a gathering and look and some other hatches and galleries. You'll get lots of valuable ideas.

Where do you get hurricane hinges now a days, since Grant has retired?

Mike...

I used 3/4" x 2 1/2" red oak for the attachment points on the hatch & at the galley bulkhead, plenty strong & fasteners hold well in the oak. On the other questions, I would look at other build logs, gatherings & different designs to see what other people have done before committing to a specific build technique. You will need to sift through a lot of data prior to making the decisions which are right for your design.

Make a 9' long "layout stick" for your overall dimensions on length, height & width, so you can take measurements from a single source & refer back to it when necessary. Use one face for the length, another for the width & the third one for the height.