Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Hello Everyone!

I'm fairly new to the forum and to teardrop campers in general. I really like the idea of being able to design and build my own- and I already have questions haha. Some background first though - I want to build a trailer to take camping across the country with two friends. I originally started looking into premade teardrops, but then I quickly got hooked seeing all the cool custom made ones- and their price tags. Plus, to sleep three comfortably in a premade budget trailer for ~ two weeks would be crazy.

From my research, building a "foamie" is the easiest, cheapest, and lightest build. I don't own a vehicle that can tow very heavy capacity, so this all around seems the best option. With the extra money from not having to buy a ton of wood or metal, I thought I would upgrade to a 5x8 utility trailer (either a steel kit or a aluminum prebuilt from northern tool) instead of a cheaper 4x8, upon which I would build over to create a 5x10 foamie covered in PMF. For extra sleeping room, I sketched out this design (58x38 accounting for 2" foam - might be optimistic):


How feasible would this design be? I would probably build the supports and mattress frame out of plywood mounted into the hardwood floor - I don't know if the foam could support the weight of the bed and a person.

Also, I need to learn a CAD program - google drawings is not going to cut it for this

It is feasible, provided your floor is reasonably well made and you have legs for the diagonal twin that are strongly attached to that floor. I wouldn't expect the foam walls (or foam floor) to support it. Make your floor/deck with plywood and a wood framework. Do think about where you will place your entrance/exit. You wouldn't need a twin width. A cot width would be enough and would give you more room for your doors. A twin width is 38 inches. A cot width is usually around 24 inches. That buys more than a foot in your design. PS. A submarine cot used by grown men is usually 22 inches wide.

Thanks for the suggestions! I was planning on making my floor out of plywood and then using adhesive to connect the foam to it. I'm very much a woodworking novice as well, so I'm not entirely sure what a wood framwork/frame is- is it just adding support to the plywood by connecting it with nails or wood glue? Probably a dumb question but I'd like to not have the bunk collapse on me haha. Thanks TravelJunkie99 for the suggestions about SketchUp and S. Heisley for the suggestion about the cot size mattress- I'll definitley check both out!

I've begun designing my trailer in Sketchup! I didn't feel like following a tutorial so I just kind of guessed - I think it worked out ok. All I've done so far is the interior. I couldn't figure out how to add thickness to walls in the free version, so I just made the model the shape the interior will be once the foam and galley are in place.



I chose to add two doors, although this may be too much and get cut it down to one. I have three support beams running from the floor of the trailer to the sealing to support the bunk and the roof. I may add more to further support the doors. I know the closer door looks like it has no support on one side, but the galley will go there.

I also began desigining the bunk supports - I got lazy and didn't want to add them the whole way in CAD, but this gives the general idea


The bunk is raised 13 inches from the queen mattress.

I designed the interior with the assumption that it would be 100 inches long (10ft - foam and galley) and 5ft wide (by building over the sides by 1in on each side) to fit a full size queen. I'm not sure if I will be able to build over the sides of my trailer - in that case I'd probably just cut two inches off of the bunk bed design and shave a few inches off the queen mattress

How does it look? I'm excited to get this on the road

Take a look at how they do beds in the bow of a boat. You'll have to get the foam mattress custom cut but it might let you get more open space above the queen. It the bunk is for a child, maybe it could be shorter, less angle.

Either way, mock this up full sized and lay in it. 13in above the lower bed doesn't seem like enough.

Either way, mock this up full sized and lay in it.

I agree. I don't know how easy it will be to get in and out of the upper bunk. It may be a slither.

Tony

Thanks for the suggestions! The bunk isn't for a small(er) child - it's going to be for someone who is currently 63 inches tall and I'm pretty sure they will grow by the time this trailer is finished so I don't really want to shrink the bed. I'll have to mock up the foot room with some cardboard or something - I'm thinking that it might be fine especially because the majority of the bed will have open air above it. I could always move it up a few more inches because I haven't decided yet if I will have the front be rounded or have sharper corners - it'd be really easy to make it a few inches higher up if I did change the rounding, I'll have to look at some designs. Also, is it feasible to cut a foam mattress yourself? For the bunk I was planning on buying a normal cot mattress and then just cutting off part of one side and gluing it to the other

Thanks again for all the help!

Will Forsberg wrote:Thanks for the suggestions! The bunk isn't for a small(er) child - it's going to be for someone who is currently 63 inches tall and I'm pretty sure they will grow by the time this trailer is finished so I don't really want to shrink the bed. I'll have to mock up the foot room with some cardboard or something - I'm thinking that it might be fine especially because the majority of the bed will have open air above it. I could always move it up a few more inches because I haven't decided yet if I will have the front be rounded or have sharper corners - it'd be really easy to make it a few inches higher up if I did change the rounding, I'll have to look at some designs. Also, is it feasible to cut a foam mattress yourself? For the bunk I was planning on buying a normal cot mattress and then just cutting off part of one side and gluing it to the other

Thanks again for all the help!

You are wise in your thinking. Yes, a 63" person who is young will probably grow more. However, I suspect Tony is referring to the distance between the upper cot and the ceiling and not the wider bottom bed. You will need enough space so the person in the upper bunk can turn and sleep on his side. I would measure the width that you are across shoulder to shoulder and also side hip to side hip add a couple inches. Computer programs like Sketchup may be good but they are only as good as what is being fed into them.

As an alternative idea, consider stringing a hammock from corner to corner. Those are sometimes made to be used as a bed. Also, the hammock could be removed when not needed. If you do this, you would need good wall and ceiling support beams for the two corner hooks, rather than as much support in the floor. A hammock is easy to crawl in and out of and much softer on the body when a head or shoulder from the bottom bed accidentally bumps into it. A hammock needs less ceiling space at the corners while still accommodating the smaller parts of the body, the feet and head. The center body mass is what needs the most room and that is the way a hammock is made. Perhaps there is a store near you where you could look at some and try them out?

If you don't have enough cardboard to mock up what you want, look around your home. Lay down on the floor next to and along the length of your couch. Put some cardboard or other such substance on the cushions so that they are above you like a ceiling and see if you bump the cardboard 'ceiling' when you switch from a side to a back sleeping position. Or, try the height of your bed, doing this. Get a pack of 3x5" cards, the kind that have printed squares on them. Each square can equal one foot. Play with these and see what you can do. Cut out your 'furniture' and try placing it on your 3x5" floor mock-up. Tape cards together if you need a longer or wider piece. These types of comparisons work. I've done it.

As far as mattresses go, if you purchase a foam mattress, it can be trimmed to size using an electric carving knife. However, the bottom mattress will probably squish in, widthwise, to accommodate the cabin's missing two inches, side-to-side.

Why diagonal? I'd think a 24 to 28" wide "loft" along one side would be simpler and as effective, with just one door on opposite side. You could even make galley asymmetrical, allowing a little more length. In either case, it's the low loft over main floor that would be my consideration.

I also might think wider and 3 on the floor. Not having to support the weight of an elevated loft in a foamie greatly simplifies construction.

Just some other thoughts.

QueticoBill wrote:Why diagonal? I'd think a 24 to 28" wide "loft" along one side would be simpler and as effective, with just one door on opposite side. You could even make galley asymmetrical, allowing a little more length. In either case, it's the low loft over main floor that would be my consideration.

I also might think wider and 3 on the floor. Not having to support the weight of an elevated loft in a foamie greatly simplifies construction.

Just some other thoughts.

Loft on the side? Good idea, Bill!

Hey everyone! Thanks for all the replies and sorry for the late response- I didn't get the email notification.

S. Heisley - I don't think I want to do a hammock purely because of how long I want the trip to be- around two weeks- although that would be a fantastic idea for a weekend camper.

Bill - And then for the straight loft suggestion- since its going to be a foamie I think it would be hard to have enough support for the bunk, and more of the support would obstruct the bunk.

S. Heisley - For the testing, I found a bed that just so happens to have around 13inches of space raised from the floor and I could comfortably roll over. For the loft I'm not sure and will have to do more testing once I get back from vacation. Also, could you elaborate on the cards more? Is it supposed to be a full sized mock up or just a scale model?

Thanks again for all the help!

P.S. Here's revision 2 I made before seeing all these comments with 15inches of leg room from the queen as I thought that was the problem. This is raised from what would've actually been closer to 11 inches with supports on revision 1. I got this by changing the curvature

Will Forsberg wrote:Hey everyone! Thanks for all the replies and sorry for the late response- I didn't get the email notification.

S. Heisley - I don't think I want to do a hammock purely because of how long I want the trip to be- around two weeks- although that would be a fantastic idea for a weekend camper.

Bill - And then for the straight loft suggestion- since its going to be a foamie I think it would be hard to have enough support for the bunk, and more of the support would obstruct the bunk.

S. Heisley - For the testing, I found a bed that just so happens to have around 13inches of space raised from the floor and I could comfortably roll over. For the loft I'm not sure and will have to do more testing once I get back from vacation. Also, could you elaborate on the cards more? Is it supposed to be a full sized mock up or just a scale model?

Thanks again for all the help!

P.S. Here's revision 2 I made before seeing all these comments with 15inches of leg room from the queen as I thought that was the problem. This is raised from what would've actually been closer to 11 inches with supports on revision 1. I got this by changing the curvature

This sketch makes what you are planning a bit more clear to me. One thing that strikes me is that the upper left corner (in this picture) in the "loft" looks like it may be wasted space. Would a trapazoidel loft and mattress be better, offering a little bit on the upper bunk for a spare pillow or blanket or something? Just a thought.

Tom

You should look up Woodbutcher's stand drop. While it was a single bed, he did it crosswise with a kind of bump out and drawer to extend sleeping space. IIRC the opening was a kind of box that hinged out.