Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Well after months of reading this forum, fantasizing and staring at SketchUp I've made the leap. I placed the order for my trailer a couple weeks ago. I'm getting a Mirage/TNT 8.5x16 v-nose with a 7.5 foot interior height. I opted for the side by side package as several of the options I wanted were included. Spare tire, radial, roof vent, re-enforced ramp door, 6" additional height and a plus a 2 tone exterior was included in the package. I only needed to add an additional 6" of height to get the 7.5 interior. I ordered a 12" extended tongue for additional turning clearance.

Mirage uses the faux phillips ring shank "hell nails" as the stock attachment method for the interior plywood. I had the option to pay $100 more to substitute real screws. It was a last minute add and I think it will be money well spent.

At this point here is my list of goals

Keep the trailer size as small as possible yet functional for our needs.
Sleep 2 adults and 2 kids
Haul a family's worth of motorcycles and/or sidecar rig
Toilet when needed, but primary with be any other available facility
Ability to pull in late and set for sleeping without needing to unload motorcycles
Fresh water capacity for at least 4 days of dry camping. No planned gray or black tanks
Exterior kitchen under awning
Enough windows and lighting so it doesn't feel cave like
Electrical system designed with forethought of adding solar down the road

Sleeping arrangements will be a disc-o-bed bunk set for the kids and a queen or full xl elevator bed for us.
I'm 6'6" which is the main reason for the 7.5' height. I don't want to have to duck to load/unload while passing under the raised bed. I'm trying to design the bed so the overall stack height is around 10" leaving at least 79" clearance





I'll be doing my best to keep this updated dated as things develop.

Outstanding! I like the kitchen/bathroom in the nose. I am plotting a foamie build on a popup frame that will end up around 7-8 feet wide and 14-16 feet long and I find myself very interested in the layout ideas you cargo trailer guys are coming up with.

Looking forward to more updates.

Not much happening on this right now. I'm fortunate enough to have some basement space where I can do a full scale tape mock up. I've been able to determine my cabinet/bathroom layout is big enough to be functional .




I also was able to score some free cabinets from my neighborhood facebook group. The are all wall depth, but I can save the faces and door to make base cabinets. This should speed up the build and save a few hundred bucks.



How have other made interior walls? I need to make a bathroom wall. I'm guessing 2x2's or 2x3's and cross brace where needed. Is it work using the insulation foam inside the wall for some extra stiffness? I'm thinking 3/8 ply on the cabinet side to make it easier to mount things to and luan on the bathroom side.

I've also thought of a more functional solution to the sink grey water. I really don't want to take up cabinet space with a jerry can to catch the gray water under the sink. It looks like there will be enough room between the toilet and the wall I could run a the drain line through the wall into a small jerry can strapped to the wall. I have visions of recycling the gray water to flush the portable toilet. Depending on the toilet configuration I might be able to drain the sink directly to the built in fresh tank on the toilet, but I don't know if there will be a way to monitor fill level. I really don't want an overflow since the grey tank will be so small with a 30 gallon fresh tank. The out door kitchen will have a 5 gallon grey bucket.

Well I had a false start today. My trailer showed up a couple weeks early and I went to pick it up today before we the a shelter in place order. Trailer looks great! There were a few surprises.



The plywood was all attached by screw like I had ordered, but not the ramp
The 12" extended tongue I ordered had an adjustable height hitch and it looks like it was built on a 10k frame. Well worth the $287
The tongue jack is not the typical A-frame type and it is welded in place. I was planning on an electric jack. We will see how that changes



I started signing paperwork and had the thought "I better double check in interior height". Pulled out the tape measure and it was 84".
I walked back into the office and confirmed that I had ordered 90' interior height. Thankfully the order sheet I had signed said 7'6" interior height.
Being 6'6" and planning an elevator type bed system that extra 6" is important to me. I hate having to duck under things. I want to load up without having to hunch over while carrying or pushing crap.

Now I get to wait and see what's going to happen. They sales manager said that they will want to build another one correctly. Which would be nice as the annoying things could be changed. I also planted the seed that I would be open to the possibility of buying it as, if it was cheap enough. I don't know if I'd get a 50% discount though. That would make the build out more or less free.

brianjonesphoto, Howdy;

If, ya go with the re-do have them install a swing-away trailer jack where that
stationary one is. Keeps it out of the way when not in use. Just a thought.

What was wrong with the back ramp???


hank

hankaye wrote:What was wrong with the back ramp???


hank

I had paid an extra $100 for screws to be used to attach the interior plywood. The shot ring shank nails to attach the ramp. Not a huge deal, but will have that fix if it's a rebuild.

I would love a fold away tongue, but I don't think it can be done with a tri beam tongue set up.

So sorry to hear the trailer mfg. messed up. That 6 inches will make a big difference for the loft bed. That is why my CTC is 7.5 feet tall. Also just makes the whole trailer feel bigger with the higher roof.

If they sell it cheap enough as is, you can make it work, but will just have to duck a bit on the back. I finally put my bed lift in and raised to the roof, I can walk under with no ducking. I am 6ft tall. It is nice.

Good luck with your negotiations.

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Well a new hopefully correct order has been placed on a rush. Barring a shelter in place situation in Idaho I should see the new build in 2-4 weeks. The annoyances have been addressed and the two tone adjusted to be 2/3 white 1/3 silver vs half and half.

I think I’ll be happier this way vs saving some
money on something I don’t really want.


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My trailer reorder is still held up due to lock down so I have plenty of time to plan every out. I wanted to ask what is the most effective order of construction?


Here is my though:
0 confirm the planned widow, cabinet, e-track, bed lift, plumbing and electrical locations in actual trailer.
1 strip interior plywood (thank god I upgraded to real screws)
2 correct/redo stock trailer wiring
3 patch any holes/voids in exterior walls, spray paint bare studs
4 high pressure (not pressure washer) hose down to check for leaks
5 build/install window framing
5.5 figure out any needed reinforcement for bed lift
6 insulate walls/ceiling
7 run electrical/plumbing
8 prime and 1st coat plywood and luan while out of trailer
8.1 rehang plywood
8.2 hang ceiling Luan
8.3 final coat of wall ceiling paint
9 add layer of 1/2” plywood on floor in bathroom/cabinet area for recessed e-track
10 build bathroom walls and install base cabinets/counter top
11 finish plumbing/electrical
12 hang upper cabinets
13 bed lift construction
14 go camping




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I’ve been full time parenting a 4 & 7 year old for 7 weeks now. My trailer is still tied up with stay at home orders. It’s supposedly in transit, but it’s unknown if the deal will be open to receive it. The Sales pow an I’ve been dealing with has been laid off and the location most convenient to me has been permanently closed. Now the dealer is an hour farther away from me.

In an effort to keep some sanity and feel like I’m doing something I took sometime to draw up plumbing and electrical systems yesterday. Please take a look and see if I missed anything major.

Thanks.

It all looks good to me. Nothing sticks out as an issue. Now you just have to implement!

The only thing I don't see on the plumbing is a connection to hookup to city water and bypass 12VDC pump system. I have been in situations where a hose was available and it is nice. Just two valves and a backflow preventer and cut in in after the accumulator and I think that would be good. Maybe you already thought of that and don't ever anticipate hooking to City Water?

I am assuming the Block for Solar is a place holder as there are cells and the controller. The solar panel negative will be closed loop with the controller which has its output connected to the ground bus.

You may or may not want to add inlet for street pressure water. That way if you are at a park, resort or just at home you wouldn't need to have a full fresh tank all the time or run the pump. The water inlet/fill door unit has a opening large enough to stuff a garden hose in to fill tank and a female hose fitting to attach trailer to street pressure. It's a good idea to use a pressure regulator at the hose bib. I think you can just "tee" into the water line on the pressure side of the pump. I believe the pump has a check valve.

McDave

Thanks for the input. I refined the schematics to include the city water. I doubt we would ever need it, but for $25 it worth adding now.



I've also decided on an ElectroDucas BMS system. I like that it's well thought out and simple. It uses external controls to manage both charge and load so things can be upgraded or replaced as needed. It also eliminates the need for a conventional solar controller.

brianjonesphoto, Howdy;

You can get a single unit that has BOTH Gravity and City water inlets.
You then only need to cut one hole. This link has the check-valve for
the City water. Some do NOT, so be careful when you order one.
https://www.amazon.com/Valterra-A01-200 ... 9CDXQ?th=1

Some have locks, some don't. Some have doors some don't. Up to you as
to how simple or complex ya want to go.

hank

A correctly built trailer showed up today! Since this whole process has been a fuster cluck they delivered it to my house. Which is a plus.