Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Article in the NY Times about the Amish electric space heater. I had a giggle imagining putting one of these inside a TTT/cargo camper, and sitting inside the trailer at the campsite staring at the electric flames, the fire ring outside unlit...

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/12/garden/12amish.html?pagewanted=all



Put this on your list of inappropriate devices for a cargo camper. I think the idea came to me after reading the "kozy heater" topic. Or from this:

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That's what I did (Sorta) and it's fun! (not inappropriate)

Me and Gruber and Gretta were trying to avoid the poisonist grid and the tenticals of the electrical Companies. In so doing we were trying to find a heater we could feed on the dung piles of our prize Goats with out the aid of the outsiders. The little wood stove works great and we have been able to extend our camping season into January even here in Ind I Ana.

Duh !!!!!!

Now that your narrow minded ways have been exposed. I will allow you to heat your trailer any way you wish please do not put your limitations on us.

We camped at -17 wind chill and The trailer with theElectric fireplace was 82 degrees. Good goin' Jeff.

I was experimenting with " what if " and it worked. What if I had no electrical hookup and was stranded in a snow drifted road 20 mile from no where. What if my propane gave out. What if we were warm and safe and you were stuck in the same snowy blizzard and needing a safe haven to survive the night. Would you turn your nose up at the source of heat if you were freezing to death. DO NOT THROW ROCKS

we have arms and can throw back. I have heated my homes since the oil embargo of 73 with wood as a primary and later a secondary source. My kids have learned how to get along in hard times gathering wood to keep warm. I am not real proud of being a lousey provider at times in my life but if your kids are freezing I hope they pass by my children's home because mine have learned the values of sharing and helping others and will allow them to warm by their fire.

Gruber ( Bob Henry )

I love the little wood stove "Gruber" as long as you can agree to appreciate my fake fire.

Hey Gruber, Gustaf and Gretel were over to da barn this past weekend admiring my new fire box and they told me about a great A+ Concert coming up in your neck of the woods. If your interested hook up yer Big Ol' Horse & Buggy and load up the Black Bonnet Girls and let's go!




Oh what the heck

I'm there if the wood stove don't catch my world on fire. I cut 2 cords today with the help of my oldest boy Tim and we are still staying warm. The cow has given up providing milk I am not sure if I should give up and go overto the dark side and thaw out her utter with a electric heater or just building a fire and cooking her down for a bar-be-que for the concert. We could probably make 30 or 40 dollars on the food concessioms with her what do ya think.


Greuber

Sorry, didn't mean to offend. I just thought having anything more than simple heat in a trailer was an oxymoron, given that the goal for camping is to enjoy things like a real roaring fire. Of course some folks don't use these cargo conversions strictly for camping...

Different strokes for different folks, but I'm not sure I'd be all that comfortable with an hot iron stove within roll-over distance while sleeping at night.

EDIT (Monday night): My first post was rude. I wasn't thinking. No excuses. A failure of my imagination - your pot-belly stove *is* ingenious even if its not for me. I was trying to jump-start a conversation since the CTC sub-forum seemed slow, and I did, but not the conversation I would have wanted.

I jumped the gun a bit too. I see your post was directed at those cargo people.

The only way I can roll over into my TEARDROP wood stove is to stick my foot out the window opening and as it is located just below my hips I would have to contort a bit to even get that done. I will admit it is not real practical but the forum was curious about wood heat in a tear and I simply chose to investigate and see if it would be possible. The neich is "outside " the tear and can quickly be jetisoned in the case of an extreme emergency. The opening is 12" above the surface of the mattress. The neich has a ceramic tile floor and a corregated steel inner liner.


You want inappropriate try a lexan see thru roof.

Hotter than hell in the summer sun and all the insulation value of saran wrap in the cold. But if you have ever laid awake camping and watched an electrical storm overhead or have seen a giant snow flake land on your see thru roof you will decide while inappropriate at times there are others that will take your breath away.

bobhenry wrote:...

You want inappropriate try a lexan see thru roof.

Hotter than hell in the summer sun and all the insulation value of saran wrap in the cold...

Sorry for this digression from the stove thing...

Have you considered a double-glazed Lexan roof? I mean inner and outer layers, inside and outside of the roof framing. It should substantially improve thermal performance, and as long as the enclosed space is sealed well enough to avoid dust and condensation issues, it would still be good to look through.

I have a large commercially-produced RV trailer with dual skylights, which are acrylic domed things just like people put on their houses. They have dual domes for the double-glazed effect, and work well. The interior is much brighter during the day than it would be with just the windows, and it also provides that cool sky view.

I like the acrylic roof!

My entire build was designed as an ongoing experiment.
Just how many features an you cram in 57 sq feet of trailer.
9 feet of kitchen counter space in a 5' + wide trailer
on and off grid lighting and power
relieve claustraphobia with a see thru roof
telescopic pull out changing room
leveling system (electric with manual backup) with indicators
primary and secondary tail lights and turnsignals (Yes a full backup set)
on and off grid heating electric and wood
(propane is another option yet explored for heat)
on board water with 12 volt and 120 volt pumping
hot water on board for dishes or sponge bathing
sink on board (some say they are a waste of counterspace we use ours.)
dual voltage tv and radio emergency announcements or just a little soft music.
Food preparation over a propane cook top or charcoal in the grill or with the use of a dutch oven or cooking directly over a campfire. And yes we could make a small meal on the pot belly stove inside while inconvenient if it is a worm drownding rain outside that would be an option A simple can of hot soup and a cup of nice warm tea might just taste like a good steak dinner when you are hungry and soaked to the bone and shivering.
By keeping your options open and useing the "What if" logic you can survive where ever you are if it were absolutely necessary.

Some inappropriate maybe some down right redundant but
I have to blame it on the Boys Scouts of America and their motto
" BE PREPARED"

The above post has proven me to be an idiot but I'm havin' fun

I have camped side by side with "electric fireplace Jeff". In fact he asked my thoughts on the idea of an electric fireplace.

Now bare in mind Jeff is a good lookin young man late 20's who's greatest hobbies are Scuba diving and camping.

Now if I were 20 something again and had the good fortune of bring a date camping and after setting by the crackling campfire for hours we would finally retreat to the confines of my trailer. Where we are immediatly relieved of the chill of the late night air by the warmth of the electric fireplace. The ambiance of the faux fire and a chilled bottle of wine ..........

Oh for God sakes are we reall that old.

inappropriate my butt it would be a necessity in my book

bobhenry wrote:I see your post was directed at those cargo people.

HEY NOW!!!

digimark wrote:Article in the NY Times about the Amish electric space heater. I had a giggle imagining putting one of these inside a TTT/cargo camper, and sitting inside the trailer at the campsite staring at the electric flames, the fire ring outside unlit...

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/12/garden/12amish.html?pagewanted=all



Put this on your list of inappropriate devices for a cargo camper. I think the idea came to me after reading the "kozy heater" topic. Or from this:

.

I didn't start it really I didn't

I have been in Jeff's cargo conversion and in a lot of ways I am jealous.
The shear cubic volumn while only slightly larger than my tear, seem so spacious.
Full back wall is screened in with an operating screen door. Protected in transit by the cargo doors. Entry doors front and rear. I am trying to get him to let me help him install a full galley on the swinging doors of the cargo but he likes ol what's her names cooking too well so we see a lot of him at the gatherings.

To each his own. Hell I know some nut that has a pot belly wood stove in his trailer