I already owned a 6x12 V Horton Hauler so the hard decision was already made. We tent camp often but I needed a little more weather protection and somewhere to knock the chill off for winter camping. I put together a program that I wanted for an end result to start with and then just got on with it.
1. Has to sleep 2 adults and 3 kids. I see many posts for 2-3 people but could not find any 5 conversions.
2. Low side on the budget. It will be muddy boots, fishing and hunting gear.
3. Completely dry camp. No hook ups or facilities.
4. Excluding the "V" area, back to cargo trailer in 10 minutes.
5. 3 season, no summers.
6. Daytime heat source and sleeping heat source.
7. 12v DC power on lights and accessories.
8. 20 -30 gallons of potable water.
9. Sink, and portable shower. Maybe hot water in the future.
10. All cooking outside under an EZ Up which can have sides installed if the weather demands it.
11. Cross ventilation.
12. Portable toilet.
13. Limited seating as most will be outside in the EZ Up.
14. 1 week start to finish.
I had already moved the jack as I have a rear spare tire and the vertical jack was too tight. Pushed the spare tire outside and put the battery on the cross frame. I will add a propane (20#) tank holder on the wall above the spare. Horse trailer rack style.
I insulated the walls and ceiling with 2 layers of 1/2" RMax and used HVAC cold weather foil tape to seal the seams and edges. No finish on the ceiling. If the board gets nicked, just taped it up.
I insulated the floor and doors with ceramic insulating paint (Hytech) and porch enamel paint. There is lots of controversy about these paints but in my experience, they work and work well. At 31* outside temp and 68* inside the floor was very comfortable in bare feet where as before it felt like a freezer door blast furnace radiating up.
The RV door handles look more substantial, but for $10 I went with the screen door handle and it appears to be holding up well to the kids abuse.
Put the RX cover over the roof vent for wet weather vent protection.
The trailer already had some etrack so I raised it up and ran a second run lower. The upper bed is 5'9"x 75" and the lower bunks are 28" x 75". I used the 2x4 etrack brackets and just dropped the studs in. The upper bunk is split into two widths for handling and it could also be converted to rear bunk beds for only 2 people. With the etrack, I can move and flip to 10 or more sleeping configurations. I left the pass thru on the bottom so that I would not have to Superman into bed. Fine for the kids but not me. It also allows access to stored items under the bunks from inside.
The mats are 4" open cell foam from the army navy store. I really did not want open cell, but the money was right and going to memory foam was 4X.
12V switch panel and ground bus. There is room to expand if required.
The shelf sizes were driven by the leftover cuts of wood from the bunks. A 36" counter and then high shelf. The sink now drains thru the floor and the bucket can go under the trailer for collection if needed.
I looked at pumps and tanks and for the money, an ATV spot sprayer from Northern Tool was the best value($150). 26 gallons with a 2.2 gpm, 70 psi pump @ 7.5 amps. A sink sprayer was added in place of the wand. There is enough slack in the power and supply lines to slide the tank to the door for filling or draining without disconnecting anything. This thing has plenty of power.
The Mr Buddy stores on top and sits on the floor for use. The shower folds into the corner.
The floor vent gives cross ventilation and make up air for the heater.
I put a cable pass thru in the corner for running electric heat at night off of a Honda EU 2000. Early tests show that I only need 500 watts(1750 btu) to hold 68* with 30* outside temps. The future may be the Empire direct vent propane wall heater that need no electricity(8000 btu)
The shower is a 24" hot water heater drain pan that drains into the floor vent. A hula hoop on top and 1/4" pvc on the bottom give support and keep the curtain in the pan. The hoop just bungees up to the roof and then loop the sprayer in for a nice cold shower. There is enough hose to just stand outside also.
The test run slept well with the kids and we will be hunting soon for a real application. Camp chairs will be used for seating inside for the time being.
It seems to have come together well and should be much more comfortable in freezing weather over the tent.
it is way overbuilt for sleeping.
One last question. I was concerned that if I hang the tankless system on the outside of the trailer, the exhaust would discolor the trailer skin. Any issues with that?
