Search & Rescue CTC

[svu3r93]

I have succeeded in getting a lot more completed with the weather warming up. The counter top was a freebie from a friend who was remodeling his kitchen.

I added some corner shelving to hold some small items that need to be easily accessible from the side door. I also found that I needed something to put the iTouch on when it was attached to the stereo.

Speaking of the stereo, that has been installed.

Front counter top area.

I had some extra counter top, so I decided that a fold down table would work perfectly in this area.

My original plan was to have the table free standing...supported by flip-out supports. I used 10" concrete anchor bolts that pivoted out from the wall. I still think the plan was a good one, but the weight of the counter top made the clamps flex a bit, which allowed the table to sag slightly.

I had some 1 1/4" PVC pipe laying around, so I cut a support piece, attached a wooden receptacle on the underside of the table, and now have a well-supported table. For now, I think I have accomplished everything (and a bit more) that I set out to do with this trailer. However, as most of you know, new ideas seem to pop into your head as you work on a project like this. A fold down bed to replace the Aerobed is now being toyed with. New ceiling panels - wood wainscoating from HD will be added sometime...hopefully this summer. Painting the roof white to decrease the inside temperature during the summer is another goal.

[pappaw]

Looking good!

Super idea on the fold down table.

Jeff

[droid_ca]

So how is this setup working for you ? Have you tested it out yet?
[img][http://www.tnttt.com/gallery/image.php?mode=thumbnail&album_id=284&image_id=95284/img]

[svu3r93]

The last time I used the trailer to camp in was on Memorial Day weekend, and it worked quite well. I didn't have the fold-down table installed, but Labor Day weekend will be a good test. I did have one minor issue with the electrical, but I had a very knowledgeable friend that was camping with us take a look, and he traced the problem (L.E.D. lights were flickering, and would pulsate when I had the stereo on) back to the wire coming from the positive terminal of the battery. I had installed a ring connector to the wire so that it would attach to the positive terminal. It sure looked good when I was done, but the connector was not quite big enough, and it wasn't getting a good connection with the wire....so I was getting some bleed-off. New, bigger gauge connector, problem solved.

[svu3r93]

I recently renovated the renovation....the trailer needed some updating since the cabinets had been completed. For the past six years, I have been using an Aerobed to sleep on. There have been a few times when a very small leak appeared, so by morning, you are sleeping on a very soft bed. This past Spring, during a four day search & rescue mission, my main battery had not been recharged for awhile, so I had to rely on a back-up battery system to get the bed inflated. I had been kicking around a few ideas for a more permanent bed system, then, during this past summer, a friend had gutted his cargo trailer and gave me a bed platform that attaches to the wall. I purchased a 6" memory foam mattress, and the blow-up bed issue was now history. I had originally attached the bed frame to the wall, and strapped the mattress to the outside of the frame, but that just wasn't cutting it...and it didn't look very good. I constructed a frame support out of 2" x 6", so now the bed folds up with the mattress on the inside...works real slick, and looks much cleaner. I will most likely end up placing doors on the bed support frame and turn that area into some narrow cabinets. My second issue was dealing with the floor decking in the trailer. Over the years, due to the weight of the ATV that is kept inside, along with getting the floor wet at times after SAR missions in snow, the floor was bowing downward slightly - mainly under the rear tires, and was opening up the seams between the sheets of plywood on the floor....not much, but enough to allow dust to enter. I would caulk the seams, but that was only a temporary fix. I considered removing all of the decking (which I should have done when I did the last renovation), but I would have had to remove all the walls, and I could see that it was going to be a major pain. What was suggested to me by a friend who had the same problem, was to put down a second layer of plywood. This is the direction I decided to go with. With this solution, I was able to reposition the tie-downs as well. The new floor, the bed frame, and bed frame support were all painted, and one wall received a gray coat of paint on the bottom 12", which is where my boots usually brush against the wall. In the pictures, the tie-downs have not been installed yet.

[rebapuck]

Looks great.

Do the bed legs fold against the frame?

[svu3r93]

No, they actually have holes drilled through them that match the holes on tabs that are welded to the bed frame. The legs are then attached using hitch pins. When the bed is placed in the up position, the legs are stored in a cabinet.