Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

by **swampjeep** » Mon May 23, 2011 8:39 am

WOW, finally caught up on the reading, lots of new post over the weekend...

I'm also thinking of the swamp cooler idea, I'm thinking a large computer fan, a battery and a solar panel... and have a foam seat/bench across teh front inside with 4" thick foam and a small drain hole in the bottom.

by **Ratkity** » Mon May 23, 2011 9:05 am

Very nice GPW. That would work great!

I like the front set up with the support underneath. You could put a foam box over it to protect it while you drive if you wanted.

Hugs,
Ratkity

by **GPW** » Mon May 23, 2011 10:12 am

Eagle , slide out seems to be the best idea ... I think ... When it rains , slide it in and close the hatch ...
Wasps ...

They're everywhere here ... You need a Velcro screen door ... Easy to run up on the machine ... Just sew some of that canvas left over as an edging to some plastic window screen (cheap) Sew on some Velcro ... glue the other Velcro around the door ... With a little ingenuity and some cord and some small screw eyes , you could even rig it to roll up ... No wasps, flies , no see ums' , etc.

Pat ... Good reason to not camp here !!! :lol:

That's why we usually try to go somewhere else ..

SJ, You going to make your own ???

Rat , That was the plan , a cover much like your Solar panel cover... Maybe Paisley ....

Or just a door ???

Anybody ever made a slide out AC before??? .... can't be That difficult ... Have to remember to keep it tilted to drain properly , lest we drown in our sleep ... :thinking:

by **GPW** » Mon May 23, 2011 10:39 am

Made an exploratory drawing of an AC slide out .... (shown) ... Then I had the thought the drip pan should be mounted on the sliding base the AC sitting inside that ...

by **Wobbly Wheels** » Mon May 23, 2011 11:31 am

I too am a bit boggled by how fast this thread grows...you folks sure are a gabby lot :lol:

Having a tendency toward verbosity myself, I have a couple questions.

Pat mentioned this a bit above and I think Eagle's got some first hand knowledge...
Does body heat make a difference inside these things ?
My trailer will be a bit bigger than most here, but I'll also have two people and two dogs as furnaces.

GPW - it seems to me that you wouldn't need the drip tray with a slide-out AC. If the only time it would drip is when it's running, it would be slid out. Would a couple drain holes in the 'shelf' not solve the problem ?

Lastly, what do you folks think about using one of these portable AC units instead of a fixed-mount wall hung unit ?
It *should* be easier to design a spot for it, right ?
Also, since I'm pretty well committed to a 2kW genset to give 'Mrs Wheels' some creature comforts, so powering it or the IR heater wouldn't be an issue.

by **Ratkity** » Mon May 23, 2011 2:17 pm

GPW wrote:Eagle , slide out seems to be the best idea ... I think ... When it rains , slide it in and close the hatch ...
Wasps ... They're everywhere here ... You need a Velcro screen door ... Easy to run up on the machine ... Just sew some of that canvas left over as an edging to some plastic window screen (cheap) Sew on some Velcro ... glue the other Velcro around the door ... With a little ingenuity and some cord and some small screw eyes , you could even rig it to roll up ... No wasps, flies , no see ums' , etc.

Pat ... Good reason to not camp here !!! That's why we usually try to go somewhere else ..

SJ, You going to make your own ???

Rat , That was the plan , a cover much like your Solar panel cover... Maybe Paisley .... Or just a door ???

Anybody ever made a slide out AC before??? .... can't be That difficult ... Have to remember to keep it tilted to drain properly , lest we drown in our sleep ...

I have seen the slide out drawer rails used this past weekend for a cooler that was full and it did great. Would easily work for a small AC.

Hugs,
Ratkity

by **GPW** » Mon May 23, 2011 2:24 pm

Gabby !!!

well maybe ... a bit ... :roll:

W2, no drip tray ... OK !! Works for me ... :thumbsup:

Body heat should count for something ... you'd think ... Like cows in the barn in Winter... where it gets quite warm ... Shouldn't take very much at all to heat or cool these... especially with a dog or two (heat) ... No matter what AC we use it has to fit the budget ... whatever that is ... Varies eh ? ..anything's possible ... :thinking:

Rat ... got a pic of that? ... just want to know if I'm on the right page...

Putting in my interior reinforcing canvas...

by **Ratkity** » Mon May 23, 2011 2:26 pm

Wobbly Wheels wrote:I too am a bit boggled by how fast this thread grows...you folks sure are a gabby lot

Having a tendency toward verbosity myself, I have a couple questions.

Pat mentioned this a bit above and I think Eagle's got some first hand knowledge...
Does body heat make a difference inside these things ?
My trailer will be a bit bigger than most here, but I'll also have two people and two dogs as furnaces.

GPW - it seems to me that you wouldn't need the drip tray with a slide-out AC. If the only time it would drip is when it's running, it would be slid out. Would a couple drain holes in the 'shelf' not solve the problem ?

Lastly, what do you folks think about using one of these portable AC units instead of a fixed-mount wall hung unit ?
It *should* be easier to design a spot for it, right ?
Also, since I'm pretty well committed to a 2kW genset to give 'Mrs Wheels' some creature comforts, so powering it or the IR heater wouldn't be an issue.

Here's the deal on those rolling inside boxes.. I have 3 of them in my house because the cheapo vinyl windows the last homeowner put in makes cheaper AC window units drip between the walls.

The boxes don't last very long and are expensive ($400-$500 each). They are also heavy! For the size of the monsters, they are surprisingly inefficient. If the box is inside, use as little dryer hose as possible to vent air outside. The hose gets hot. The unit has to be drained as well and a hose usually has to be purchased for that. I had one unit flood the inside of the house when something clogged inside (oiy).

If you still want to try it, I think putting the unit outside and using some sort of vent into the window would be best, still need a hose to route water away from the TD. You'd have to protect the electronics somehow.

One advantage of the unit is that you wouldn't need a shelf to hold the unit up off the ground!

edited to add: The air exchange is usually in the back of the unit. Humid cold air would be blowing out the front if the unit is outside.

Hugs,
Ratkity

by **GPW** » Mon May 23, 2011 2:34 pm

Rat , I'm still liking the idea of Eagle's 25 dollar AC ...

Got my door hung ... need a couple more hinges , but it fits ... (amazingly)

by **Ratkity** » Mon May 23, 2011 2:37 pm

GPW wrote:Gabby !!! well maybe ... a bit ...

W2, no drip tray ... OK !! Works for me ...

Body heat should count for something ... you'd think ... Like cows in the barn in Winter... where it gets quite warm ... Shouldn't take very much at all to heat or cool these... especially with a dog or two (heat) ... No matter what AC we use it has to fit the budget ... whatever that is ... Varies eh ? ..anything's possible ...
Rat ... got a pic of that? ... just want to know if I'm on the right page...

Putting in my interior reinforcing canvas...

I don't have a pict of the slide set up, but found that Lowe's posts the ratings on these drawer slides. Surprisingly strong.

http://tinyurl.com/3pxmdf8

About heat during the summer... I sleep with 2 golden retrievers and a fantastic fan moves the air nicely during the hottest days. I was up in Shenandoah and it was 80s there while 100s by the house in DC. Nights were cooler, but humid. Still quite bearable with 2x 85lb doggies. Yes, amongst the 3 of us, we take up the entire queen bed!!

Hugs,
Ratkity

by **Ratkity** » Mon May 23, 2011 2:41 pm

GPW wrote:Rat , I'm still liking the idea of Eagle's 25 dollar AC ...

Got my door hung ... need a couple more hinges , but it fits ... (amazingly)

I totally love the color scheme, GPW. The tiny window AC unit is the way to go. Eagle told me she got that deal as a returned unit in perfectly good condition at Sears. That was the best deal!! Still can get new cheapo units at big box stores for 89 to 99 dollars.

There's an AC thread around this forum somewhere with how people have set up the little window units, I'll try to find it. Had the best ideas.

Hugs,
Ratkity

by **GPW** » Mon May 23, 2011 2:43 pm

Funny how dogs, once in the bed sorta' take over , head right for the middle ...

by **Ratkity** » Mon May 23, 2011 2:48 pm

by **GPW** » Mon May 23, 2011 2:50 pm

Rat, Thanks , and Thanks !!!! Holy mackerel ... that's a lot of info .... I'll be back in a month when I finish reading all that :lol:

I'll have to shop around.... did have a 5K btu Kenmore (<100USD) in the 6X12X5 , got pretty Cold , and only the roof was insulated ...

by **eaglesdare** » Mon May 23, 2011 2:58 pm

i just want to comment on the heating issue. the maiden voyage was cold! we had 2 adults in the bed, then we had the grandchild in the bunk. did i mention that it was cold? and stayed cold! however, it was still warmer than the outside. but i had the shakes and was cold!!!!!!!!!
the second night we were there, my son joined us in the tear (the first night he slept in the car). now with him also in the bed, it was too darn hot, i had to keep the door open. it actually go to the point of suffocating, it was too hot, so i kicked him out and had him go back to the car. hehehe

now a small heater would have been perfect. depending on where that heater is placed, you might need a fan to circulate that heat.

on the second trip it was cold. it was a solo trip, just the gals. i used my heater, it is a taller unit, so the heat was all at the top of the tear and of course i was on the floor, and again, i was pretty cold for a long time. eventually it warmed up and i could shut the heater off.

so i think you are going to have to play a while to get things right. but if you have a heater and/or a/c, you should be good to go. oh and don't forget the fan for circulation.

Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Thrifty Alternatives ..Building Foam Campers

Who is online