7x16x6.5 Featherlite Build

[featherliteCT1]

[quote="Padilen"]Is your TSP a liquid or a powder?

I bought the powder, but will be using vinegar solution as McDave recommended.

[featherliteCT1]

Well, you do want a clean surface to paint, so your gonna have to wash it anyways. Get a bucket and maybe 25% white vinegar/water, and maybe a scrub brush and just give it the once over. Rinse the roof and the whole trailer down. Let that baby dry while you get your poop in a group for the painting op. If you feel like you need to mask off, this would be the time. Stir up that paint, go to the liquor cabinet and get the bottle marked "jack Daniels", Put 2 oz. of Jack into a large glass of ice, add lemonade. ...and get to work.

McDave

With much thanks ... Will do.

[rebar]

Yesterday I noticed that I could see daylight coming through one of the seams where the exterior aluminum panel was riveted to the rear corner of the trailer, near the ramp door.
I went to bed stewing in my mind weather it was an isolated manufacturing mistake where someone forgot to caulk or use sealing tape or whether the entire trailer was built this way. If the latter, what kind of a piece of &^%$#@! did I buy?

If I had known this in advance of buying the trailer, I would not have bought it. I would have bought a trailer with glued on exterior panels.

Ron

Im sorry to hear that but as a previous featherlite owner, mine didn't have VHB tape on the back corners either. You would think such a expensive and renown trailer would have all panels sealed to the studs and I hate to say Iv come to the conclusion all trailer manufactures try to save money on anything you cant see.

[featherliteCT1]

per tube pewr tube
Im sorry to hear that but as a previous featherlite owner, mine didn't have VHB tape on the back corners either. You would think such a expensive and renown trailer would have all panels sealed to the studs and I hate to say Iv come to the conclusion all trailer manufactures try to save money on anything you cant see. [/quote]

10-4 on that conclusion .... here is the caulk I am using, inside and outside all the seams: TremPro® 644 RTV, a one-part, general purpose, acetoxy silicone sealant.
This is what my Featherlite dealer uses. I bought 3 tubes at the local RV center for $3.79 per tube. It applied nicely and dried to a very flexible consistency ... when dry, it also stuck to the aluminum quite well. We shall see how it holds up.
I have not used it on the outside yet as i am waiting for the manufacturer to call me back to confirm the acetoxy will not harm the exterior paint .

[featherliteCT1]

This morning I bought 9 more sheets of 3/4 inch polyiso ($11.88 per sheet) and 10 sheets of 1 inch polyiso ($13.88) per sheet) for the walls … totaled $275 with tax ... plus another sheet of 3/4 inch BCX plywood for furring ($23 per sheet), plus $30 for more screws.

I previously installed about $150 in insulation plus $25 in screws plus $30 for furring.

I also bought a bucket of Henry’s 587 for about $90.

So, a grand total of $625 … so far, just to insulate.

[rebar]

10-4 on that conclusion .... here is the caulk I am using, inside and outside all the seams: TremPro® 644 RTV, a one-part, general purpose, acetoxy silicone sealant.
This is what my Featherlite dealer uses. I bought 3 tubes at the local RV center for $3.79 per tube. It applied nicely and dried to a very flexible consistency ... when dry, it also stuck to the aluminum quite well. We shall see how it holds up.
I have not used it on the outside yet as i am waiting for the manufacturer to call me back to confirm the acetoxy will not harm the exterior paint .

After reading about the nasty properties of silicone caulk (wont stick to itself, and almost impossible to remove) all over the RV forums, I wont use silicone caulk on anything..

[Padilen]

10-4 on that conclusion .... here is the caulk I am using, inside and outside all the seams: TremPro 644 RTV, a one-part, general purpose, acetoxy silicone sealant.
This is what my Featherlite dealer uses. I bought 3 tubes at the local RV center for $3.79 per tube. It applied nicely and dried to a very flexible consistency ... when dry, it also stuck to the aluminum quite well. We shall see how it holds up.
I have not used it on the outside yet as i am waiting for the manufacturer to call me back to confirm the acetoxy will not harm the exterior paint .

After reading about the nasty properties of silicone caulk (wont stick to itself, and almost impossible to remove) all over the RV forums, I wont use silicone caulk on anything..

I want say never ever but I avoid it !
I like Lexel.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Padilen]

10-4 on that conclusion .... here is the caulk I am using, inside and outside all the seams: TremPro 644 RTV, a one-part, general purpose, acetoxy silicone sealant.
This is what my Featherlite dealer uses. I bought 3 tubes at the local RV center for $3.79 per tube. It applied nicely and dried to a very flexible consistency ... when dry, it also stuck to the aluminum quite well. We shall see how it holds up.
I have not used it on the outside yet as i am waiting for the manufacturer to call me back to confirm the acetoxy will not harm the exterior paint .

After reading about the nasty properties of silicone caulk (wont stick to itself, and almost impossible to remove) all over the RV forums, I wont use silicone caulk on anything..

I want say never ever but I avoid it !
I like Lexel.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[featherliteCT1]

After reading about the nasty properties of silicone caulk (wont stick to itself, and almost impossible to remove) all over the RV forums, I wont use silicone caulk on anything..

I want say never ever but I avoid it !
I like Lexel.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks Padilen,

I very much appreciate you heads up.


Unless someone has an opinion to the contrary, I will buy some Lexel tomorrow at the local hardware store. So far, I only caulked four interior studs with the silicone stuff.

[featherliteCT1]

Today, I worked on installing insulation for one of the walls. The side wall studs are U shaped with a 3/4 inch lip overhanging the side of each cavity into which I was trying to install the 1 inch foam. However, the depth behind each lip is only 15/16th, which happens to be the thickness of the studs, including the lips. Consequently, I could not get the 1 inch foam board wedged behind the lips. If I forced the fit, I was afraid I would bulge the sides of the aluminum panels out and also possibly separate the panels from the VHB tape between the panels and the studs.

So, not only did I have to rip each foam board in half so I could get the foam to fit into the cavity, but I had to figure out a way to squeeze the panels under the lips.

At first I tried to compress a 3/4 inch strip on the sides of each board. That did not work because not only did I shred the foil backing, but the foam had too much memory and would not stay compressed. Then I cut off the whole 3/4 inch strip about 1/8 inch thick. What a time consuming mess. I screwed around for hours. Finally, I spent about 5 minutes grinding down an old table saw blade and used my table saw.

Eureka! The saw blade makes a very, very small quantity of foam dust. Now with the table saw fence, I can set the blade height at a little less than 3/4 inch and cut a kerf into each edge of the board so that the edge will compress under the lips of the studs, without disturbing the facing on both sides of the boards. I can also cut my foam boards with a straight cut for an absolutely perfect fit.

When I installed foam in the ceiling, I had to use the jig saw because within the same cavity there were multiple irregular widths.

However, the side studs have regular dimensions. Now I can use the table saw for straight cuts the entire length of the board. This is a huge time saver. With no mess, … I am EXTREMELY happy!

In due course, I will post some photos.

[McDave]

That a boy! Adapt and overcome, Endeavour to persevere. That's the name of the game here. Try to put standard stuff into a nonstandard container.

So, a grand total of $625 … so far, just to insulate.

So, Ya say you want to build a CT conversion do ya'? Any Idea why? Just kidding, But I'm pretty sure there are not too many factory toy haulers with 650.00 of insulation. At least it's a one time investment. You'll save on heat and the Ac wont have to work so hard. Oh wait............

McDave

[featherliteCT1]

So, a grand total of $625 … so far, just to insulate. McDave

[/quote]

The factory quote for 3/4 inch styrofoam insulation was $531, with none in the ramp door, RV door or floor. I can only imagine how poorly this would have been installed, let alone the 4 inch gaps that would have remained in the cove areas and the point of the V nose.

[McDave]

Your cost = 650 Materials only.... Men can't work for free. 200 per man/day is about right, Don't forget to pay yourself. So, more like a 1200-1500.00 Insulation job. That gives you a gauge of the quality of the factory insulation job...just sayin'

McDave

[featherliteCT1]

Here is the first layer of 1 inch polyiso on the curbside wall, in the rear. I screwed 3/4 x 7 inch pieces of plywood onto the studs to screw the e-track into later on. I will have to mount the bottom of the e-track about 46 inch from the floor because the top of the fairing on my motorcycle is about that height and I do not want the fairing to get nicked up by the e-track.

Rear Curb Wall insulation (480x640).jpg (199.21 KiB) Viewed 4196 times

I used pan head screws. The heads protrude a bit more than I like. I was originally thinking that the outer layer of 1 inch polyiso would compress around the heads and not cause excessive protrusion. I may swap these screws out for a taper head that will not protrude out from the wood.

Etrack fur (480x640).jpg (176.71 KiB) Viewed 4196 times

[featherliteCT1]

Here is the curbside window with the retaining ring removed. You can also see the aluminum window framing the factory installed into which the window is installed.

Curb Window inside (640x480).jpg (134.17 KiB) Viewed 4192 times

Here is the window retaining ring. It is 1/2 inch thick, which is the same thickness as the factory inner lining of OSB plywood. I have not yet figured out how to secure the window given that I am installing 1 3/4 inch of insulation plus whatever thickness of inner plywood lining I intend to install. I am currently thinking about cutting a matching window hole into some thin plywood and screwing the plywood frame onto the factory aluminum wall framing, then installing the retainer ring, then installing the 1 3/4 inch polyiso on top of the plywood framing. The effect would be that 1 3/4 inch of raw foam would be visible inside the opening which would need to be dealt with. Maybe I could fabricate some kind of oval window garnish to fill the void. I would appreciate any advice you could give me.

Curb Window frame (480x640).jpg (269.01 KiB) Viewed 4192 times

I put some duct tape around the window to keep it from falling out when I removed the retaining ring from the inside wall.

Curb Window outside (480x640).jpg (99.19 KiB) Viewed 4192 times