Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

I want to use my CT during the fall months because that is the best time to go because it is not to hot and not to cold yet. But I notice when I used it last the floor gets colder and I have carpet for the floor but I need to think of a way to insualte under the trailer but make it safe enough to be able to drive down the road on trips and not worry of it falling out. So any ideas out there for me?

I can heat the CT very fast with the Climate Aire system but when I walk on the floor with socks on I can feel the chill from that. : (

We will camp in the dead of winter. I used the same rigid foam under the trailer as I did in the walls.. I painted the floor with roof sealant first then cut the foam to fit between the floor joists.. I then used deck screws with fender washers to hold the panels in place. So far it has worked very well. The floor still won't be warm, But it did help knock a lot of the chill off. An added bonus is it cuts way down on the outsid noise.. I didn't really think about it till after I did it. You would besurprised how much sound you get up through the floor.

Do you think if I get in sprayed with foam it would hold under there and then seal it off with pressure treated plywood or waterproof panel material? I never would of thought of that as well with the Noise reduction. When I am inside and when it rains with the insulate on the ceiling I dont hear the rain so I guess that is a good point for the reduction in sound from the floor.


Also the other thing I need to figure out is how to create a awning over the side rv door because when it rains a easy up tent wont work because the easy up tent is not tall enough and the door hits it. So any ideas on a awning idea for over the rv side door so when it rains I am protected from the rain so the inside doesnt get wet each time i open the door.

Spray foam is great. As mentioned by someone in another post here, open cell foam will retain moisture and cause rot and rust over time. It needs to be well ventilated. There is another that is closed cell that does not hold moisture. The floor of the trailer does not need to be sealed off on both sides. This will cause rot over time due to lack of ventilation. It needs air circulation to remove it.

As far as a canopy over the door, if you don't have a canopy channel on your trailer they are fairly cheap. One person used coax cable sewn into the fold that goes down the channel. To keep the door from rubbing on it as it opens and closes, rv stores sell a door attachment for this. Its a pretty simple fix. It mounts to the top non-hinge corner and has a small wheel that sticks up above the door. It rolls along the canopy raising the canopy away from the door as it opens and closes. My idea also is to have the canopy/tarp also run straight down or at an angle to below the top of the door a ways so to stop any side draft rain out also.

Earnest

If you can swing it I would buy an RV awning.. It will cost you more then a tarp and some homemade poles.. But they are SO much easier to use. My first cargo trailer did not have an awning on my second I spent the 500 bucks to have the factory install one. Its night and day.. I will not own another trailer with out one... There is a reason why pretty much every single RV made comes with them..

8ball_99 wrote:If you can swing it I would buy an RV awning.. It will cost you more then a tarp and some homemade poles.. But they are SO much easier to use. My first cargo trailer did not have an awning on my second I spent the 500 bucks to have the factory install one. Its night and day.. I will not own another trailer with out one... There is a reason why pretty much every single RV made comes with them..

I agree with you on that one. Because when it rain it was no fun to open the door and get dumped on with rain,. I would love to get a full awning but what holds it back for some is part of the top I have anchors in there that hold the side table and the awning would be in the way for that. So I was hoping to find a 6 foot size or shorter so I will lookaround.

Bkcreation34 wrote:I agree with you on that one. Because when it rain it was no fun to open the door and get dumped on with rain,. I would love to get a full awning but what holds it back for some is part of the top I have anchors in there that hold the side table and the awning would be in the way for that. So I was hoping to find a 6 foot size or shorter so I will lookaround.

Bkcreation34,

You might look into window awnings. They make them the length you want but I am not sure how far they extend out.

Earnest

Bkcreation34 wrote:Also the other thing I need to figure out is how to create a awning over the side rv door because when it rains a easy up tent wont work because the easy up tent is not tall enough and the door hits it. So any ideas on a awning idea for over the rv side door so when it rains I am protected from the rain so the inside doesnt get wet each time i open the door.

Here in Greenville, SC we have a place called Garden Ridge. They sell 8'x7' roll-up awnings that might be good for your needs. I don't know if they're nationwide, but it might be worth a look. If you don't find one, perhaps I can take some pictures of one and post it here. The price was great, from what I can remember.

on awnings : )

I've wondered how one of the Foxwing Awnings would fit into a CTC build. I originally saw them mentioned over at expeditionportal forums during my van build. They are quite the awning! You could cover both the side and rear of the CT under a single awning. Pretty cool idea from Ozland : )
(here is a link to a video review of the Foxwing Awning)


Cheers,
Thom

PS as a silly aside, i'm thinking the Over-The-Top Trailer Conversion wouldn't be "over the top" without one of these!

Bkcreation34 wrote:I want to use my CT during the fall months because that is the best time to go because it is not to hot and not to cold yet. But I notice when I used it last the floor gets colder and I have carpet for the floor but I need to think of a way to insualte under the trailer but make it safe enough to be able to drive down the road on trips and not worry of it falling out. So any ideas out there for me?

We used foam puzzle mats on the inside to insulate the floor. It made it much warmer (and softer) and avoided any of the concerns related to external insulation. It's held up well to wear and tear too. I do suggest cutting off the "interlocking" sections at the external borders.

I plan on adding some to our "real" toy hauler as well.

Here's an example - http://www.amazon.com/We-Sell-Mats-Anti-Fatigue-Interlocking/dp/B001EJPGPA/ref=pd_sim_sg_1

accrete wrote:on awnings : )

I've wondered how one of the Foxwing Awnings would fit into a CTC build. I originally saw them mentioned over at expeditionportal forums during my van build. They are quite the awning! You could cover both the side and rear of the CT under a single awning. Pretty cool idea from Ozland : )
(here is a link to a video review of the Foxwing Awning)


Cheers,
Thom

PS as a silly aside, i'm thinking the Over-The-Top Trailer Conversion wouldn't be "over the top" without one of these!

Nice idea but way to expensive for something so simple. It is really just on a platform with a hinge system. But I wonder how it would hold up with strong winds or rains. I would think it would be a large pocket for rain to collapse the inside. But I like the idea but I think I am old school and just stick with the regular awning system.

And with the strong winds I wonder what would happen if the wind got under it and lifted it up I would think it would rip it right off the vehicle and cause damge all over from that.

: ) on the foam floor tiles... Those work well for insulating rigs, we used them on a floor in a conversion and it really helped with deadening sound and taking the chill/heat off from the floor. We purchased ours from a local Costco so you might find them locally at a retailer for about the same price.

On the foxwing awning... i agree with your pondering with severe weather. In my native Pacific Northwest we pull in the awnings at the first sign of inclement weather and/or high winds, which is just about a daily occurrence!

Cheers,
Thom

tba02 wrote:

Bkcreation34 wrote:I want to use my CT during the fall months because that is the best time to go because it is not to hot and not to cold yet. But I notice when I used it last the floor gets colder and I have carpet for the floor but I need to think of a way to insualte under the trailer but make it safe enough to be able to drive down the road on trips and not worry of it falling out. So any ideas out there for me?

We used foam puzzle mats on the inside to insulate the floor. It made it much warmer (and softer) and avoided any of the concerns related to external insulation. It's held up well to wear and tear too. I do suggest cutting off the "interlocking" sections at the external borders.

I plan on adding some to our "real" toy hauler as well.

Here's an example - http://www.amazon.com/We-Sell-Mats-Anti-Fatigue-Interlocking/dp/B001EJPGPA/ref=pd_sim_sg_1

I second the foam puzzle mats - we got our at RONA and they were grey carpet backed

can you add extensions to the legs of the eze-up?
some years back I had a scamp 16' trailer and a way to big eze-up it would cover the camper if only I could
make it 12" taller, I made some extension legs out of flat stock and metal pipe.
the extensions's top plates with holes matched the eze-up's bottom leg plates holes I used small bolts and nuts
to hold them together
when ever I wanted to camp with the eze-up over my trailer i would attach the extension and cover the trailer
it made the trailer cooler I only used it when we stayed longer than a couple of days.


pete

we have a cheap ($86) 10' x 20' six leg A-frame awning that was a foot to short to go over our CT. I made extensions from schedule 40 plumbing pipe that slipped over the legs. I cut them 24" long and drilled thru holes at various heights for a stop bolt that could be moved up or down for uneven ground. We replaced the side middle pole with a plumbing tee that rests on the CT roof. A small cleat attached to the CT enables tie down.