Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Okay, so give us a list of things you wish you had done or that you will do in your "next" conversion! We know "go bigger" and "insulate more" but what else??

make sure the ground clearance is what I want at purchase and not try and figure out how to lift or re axle it latter.

Make it fly so I don't need TV

OverTheTopCargoTrailer wrote:Make it fly so I don't need TV

Those are called "experimental aircrafts". Perhaps that can be your next project.

I built a fancy saltwater aquarium and have remodeled several houses. I always walk away with..."if I had to do it over I would..." And those bits of advice are what I am looking for...

Having bought my trailer used, there were compromises I made based on price and availability. I am not sure I would do it over, but if money were no object, there are things I would have wanted.

- LED running lights
- V-Nose
- Drop Axle (I installed one myself)
- Flat roof
- Side vents instead of top vent (keep in mind my goal is getting my trailer in the garage)
- Dual axle
- Studs on 16" center

As far as the build itself, I did a lot of reading, both here and on road racing and rc car racing forums to see what others had done. I still made my share of mistakes though.

- I would box around the electrical outlets so they are truer and more sturdy
- Still up in the air on the interior lighting, the LED bars I got are not as bright as I would like, but DC options are more limited unless you are willing to pay through the nose
- I would box in reinforcement around the power inlet I installed, it just feels a little wobbly
- For my application, I would have probably only done one upper cabinet, and left the other side open or put in a higher shelf so I could fit a TV in between the upper and lower (my interior height is 5.5'
- I would have diagramed everything before starting the process to safe myself 50 trips to Lowes, this also would have helped me get the correct length of wire and outlets and the like
- I went with the square type outlets instead of the double round style, it was extra expense for no real reason and prevents me from using some of the wall plates I would like
- I would plan out my finishes better, as I tended to go with what was on sale and not what went together
- I think I would have built in a refrigerator if i had to do it over

The things I did that worked.

- Very happy with my WFCO 9755 Converter Box, works great, plenty of circuits, easy to wire
- Marine 30A intlet, I know that some others are not fans, but I like the water resistant locking connector and while it is overkill, it is an area i am happy to over-engineer
- Running seperate GFCI protected circuits and heavier gauge romex, again overengineering but in a critical area for me
- Installed a special outlet with 2 USB ports (2A) along with the normal AC outlets which is great for cell phones/tablets
- Drop axle conversion has been great, tow's better, and much easier to get in and out of the side door (smaller step up)
- WAGO push in wire connectors are AWESOME for wiring in AC outlets (or anything with solid core wires)
- IKEA cabinets have been great so far for the trailer, great fit and finish, and very pleased with how they turned out (as I am not skilled enough to craft my own)

Will see more as I finish it up and begin to use it. It has definitely been a process, but it has been a fun learning experience and I am really enjoying it.

I only had one factory window installed, I later installed another on the opposite wall. I should have just ordered it with two windows. It was only $80 to have H&H add in a 24x15 window which included the cost of the window...

I also didn't have any roof vents or roof AC holes made into the roof. Let me tell you, it was a pita to weld in reinforcements to the roof with the aluminum still on there to put in my roof AC and powered vent...Those AC units are pretty heavy and need a lot of reinforcement.

Also I think I will eventually reinforce the floor in my trailer, but I carry more weight than most since I use my trailer for a hobby business and might have 2-3k lbs of inventory with me in carts with point loads on the floor. I have a 3/4" thick floor with cross members every 2 ft, I'm going to add in some in between each of them eventually so they are every foot.


Things I'm glad I did...
1. I exterior blue to match my truck
2. Camper style door latch factory installed and one window factory installed
3. Extended Aluminum rock guard on the front
4. V front
5. I painted the interior and floor early in the build
6. Bought new instead of used (and I'm the type of guy that never buys new cars and usually looks for used stuff to save a little)

Cornfused and orcadigital,

Y'all rock!! Thank you, thank you!!!

Cornfused,

I was also thinking IKEA cabinets because they come in slim profiles and are lighter weight. I will look forward to hearing how they hold up.

I am going to print out your lists. I am buying new (which is totally AGAINST what i normally do) because there are things I want from day ONE.

Thanks again!

Not ordered a luan ceiling-I will have to destroy it to get it down to insulate.Put that money into vent fans and better vent covers.Did not like the windows I ordered or where they are.Had a building plan I and the hubby BOTH agreed on Like my ramp,drop axels,and window in the door.

For the most part I like what I have but I did waste money on some things that I wasn't expecting,
one was the portable AC they don't work so I now have a 8000 btu and it works great but I wasn't comfortable with redesigning my layout and putting in in the wall in the front of the trailer so I built a false wall that has wheels that I can open and close so it worked out, the only thing is I have to have the ramp down to run the AC not to big a deal unless it's raining then I have to put up a canopy.
I also waste money on my flooring I stated with peal and stick and it lasted a year tore that out and put down that big roll of vinyl flooring and didn't like that so I went with the snap in place engineered flooring and really like it but I had to lay it down with what I had in place would have been better to put it down in the trailer and build on top.
I also wish I had built my bathroom better, I thought I could make a tile basin and it looked good but would not drain so I tore that out and ordered a RV base and lucky I thought I may need one in the future so I made it the same size so it fit in place, but the drain wound up right on top of half of the frame so I had to deal with that.
I was letting the water run out on the ground but decided it would be better to catch the water so I built a homemade holding tank from a battery box so I can let the water out when I want instead of when I take the shower.
I also did not like empting the portable toilet so I put in a drain so I could empty it from the outside = In other words I would liked to have a better bathroom and holding tanks from the start than patching it together after it was built.
.Those are the main things I learned, I am now thinking about building a metal frame on the front of the trailer for my Honda 2000 generator so I don't have to haul it out with the drop cords to be able to have power on demand, it would be nice just crank it up and leave it in one spot and have the power cord plugged right in to the trailer.
It's not to bad now I have a golf cart and I keep the generator and gas tank and drop cords on it so I back it out and run it around to the front of the truck and the same to load it back up but it is a pain sometimes when I have lock it to the wheel with a bike cable I could do away with all that with a lockable frame on the front.?

Awesome responses! Great info for those about to pull the plug out of their bank account. Thanks for being so generous in your responses!

I would of not bought it with the ramp back door. Would of done a 7' wide instead of 6' and 6" taller. Should of put the fresh water tank inside. Done a bigger bathroom. A closet. A closet. Single axel instead of tandem. Retractable awning instead of the bag style. A portable refrigerator instead of compact. I would of installed the windows higher. The floor insulation would be inside instead of underneath

Hey PaulS,

What is your tow vehicle? I am curious as to why you would do a 7' and single axel. What do you not like about the double axel? Why would you want a portable refrig? Well, back up, what is a portable refrig? Hehe. As for exterior floor insulation did yours fall out? Just a little curious. Thanks so much for sharing!!

Chevy silverado, 7wide so the bed length could be accosed the trailer and be able to use a futon. Single axel just because of better fuel economy it's just not really needed for my use as only a camper. But I do like the electric brakes. The floor insulation: even though I put 1.5 thick foam under there in between the metal floor joist the cold creeps right thru the floor joist. I would of been better off creating a thermo break by having a no gaps of insulation

Oops I forgot about the portable refrigerator it is a cooler that plugs in. Runs on either 12 volts DC or 110 AC. It has a compressor. It can make ice. They are not cheap. Oh I can could remove it to clean it or load it. The 12 volt operation is nice for longer trips.

PaulS,

That has me pondering...I had intended on skipping the floor insulation (I don't mind cold floors and in Georgia it rarely gets THAT cold to have to deal with the impact of raising the floor and fixing door and ramp thresholds. Hmmmm.

How much does your trailer weigh stocked? I am doing single axel and upgrading to have brakes. I will be pulling with a Jeep and so I need the reduced weight. I REALLY wanted to do 7' wide but given the vehicle and wind resistance I believe I am gonna have to just deal with 6' to be safe.

Do you remember the name/model on the fridge? I would love to check it out.