Thrifty Alternatives ..Building Foam Campers

[linuxmanxxx]

Yeah old days it was called luan but actually now the stores label it as underlayment. Yes lowes has it not quite as good as the home depot versions but I've used it in most of my campers so far and it has worked decently. I have some pics on my phone and I'll have to put them on here from tapatalk and see if they aren't too big to load. I'm only 3 days into it and have the inner walls already going on and side and front walls framed and up so it's going fast. Funny how easy it gets when you have a 4x8 which matches all the standard sizes and reduces cutting and framing down a lot.

[linuxmanxxx]

Here are a couple from 2 days ago. I'll take some fresh ones today and post tonight.

uploadfromtaptalk1331745558878.jpg (254.35 KiB) Viewed 937 times

uploadfromtaptalk1331745521204.jpg (244.96 KiB) Viewed 937 times

[eaglesdare]

[pete42]

Eagle said "my mind says get r done, but my back says something totally different, and its not rated pg.",
I've heard those non-PG rated words come from my lips too......................

[eaglesdare]

Eagle said "my mind says get r done, but my back says something totally different, and its not rated pg.",
I've heard those non-PG rated words come from my lips too......................

yeah, don't you wished we never had to say those things because of our bodies (at least). i've had a bad back for many years, haven't had trouble with it though for a long time. but right now, gosh, standing any longer than just a few minutes and i about drop like a brick. its really bad right now. trying to just work thru it, but its hard when your dropping like a brick so yeah, must go see the doc about it.

[atahoekid]

Wow Steve, 3 days and you're that far along.... that's awesome. I guess it does help to work in that standard 4 x 8 format. I know from experience what a PITA it is to have to cut and measure every dimension since mine is all non-standard. But I suspect your building skills have a lot to do with that progress.

I really want to see the underlayment you're using. I'm using lauan underlayment for the inside skin of my road foamie. It's only 5 mm thick. You said yours come in .5 thickness (Am I right in assuming 1/2 inch?). I'm using 1/2 inch ply for my floor covered with the black goo underneath and GPW's waterproofing formula on top, but it's still wood and I'm still worried. I don't have any worries about wood for the inner skin or any other components of the trailer but that wood in the floor keeps me thinking. In my mind, the next evolutionary step in building these trailers is something other than wood in the floor structure. And although GPW is staying away from plywood, which is a good idea, he's still using wood. It didn't bother me so much as I started building, but as I realize what labor of love and time and materials this is, I'm thinking of some newer type material. Maybe fiberglass, maybe aluminum skin, maybe a plastic composite, maybe.... It's making me crazy. I'm pretty sure it would be a structural panel of some sort. Even at the stage I'm at right now, if someone said here's the newest and best floor, it is structurally strong, water and rot proof and it's reasonably priced, I think I'd be tempted to take my build back down to the frame and redo the floor. I'm haunted by the old saying about a foundation being the strength of any building project and yet the worst material in my trailer is the floor (the foundation).

[atahoekid]

Eagle said "my mind says get r done, but my back says something totally different, and its not rated pg.",
I've heard those non-PG rated words come from my lips too......................

yeah, don't you wished we never had to say those things because of our bodies (at least). i've had a bad back for many years, haven't had trouble with it though for a long time. but right now, gosh, standing any longer than just a few minutes and i about drop like a brick. its really bad right now. trying to just work thru it, but its hard when your dropping like a brick so yeah, must go see the doc about it.

Yup, sounds like time for a doctor visit. Luckily I don't have any back issues any more. I used to get back spasms but was never sure why (too much tonnage for my frame?) but they've gone away. I know how you feel about being betrayed by your body. I had to go in for re-surgery on my shoulder the day before yesterday to break up all the scar tissue that formed when my shoulder was trying to heal the first time. I'm in intensive daily physical therapy to get my range of motion back before my shoulder decides to scar over again. So far, not a lot of fun, a few non PG words and a few tears of pain but I am determined to get my shoulder back and continue on with the build despite the discomfort and limited range of motion. I think it's gonna work this time. I can force my shoulder into better movement than before surgery, but it's still early and time will tell.

[eaglesdare]

your description has me cringing!

[SteveW]

I'd bet those panels come in predetermined sizes and you could probably buy some and cut them to fit. Not a bad idea. Let us know when you get a price on those. If it can stand the live load, those panels just might be the right thing for getting rid of the weakest point of the build.

The sheets they have are 4x8 to 4x24 in varying thicknesses. Baked enamel rather than powdercoated. I tried to get a call into them today, but of course got held up at work and wasn't able to call until 5 minutes after they closed. Will try again tomorrow.

[wagondude]

I wonder how bonding a sheet of FRP to the bottom would work out. That would eliminate the wood on the bottom side. you would probably need a strip of rubber between the metal frame and the FRP. Then there is always aluminum.

Bill

[linuxmanxxx]

Sorry im getting old and meant 5 mm not. 5. If you do the sandwich with 5 mm. each side with black goo with foam inside and waterproof glue there is little chance of rotting as the foam never will and the 1x2 are between the foam see where I'm headed? Use the sandwich never ever use straight plywood and it won't happen. If upper layer has issues replace it by overlaying another sheet at 5 mm you don't lose space ever. For longevity strength and weight ask thee plans should be altered to be sandwich builds imho.

[GPW]

Somehow I can’t trust any plywood at the moment ... Just me ... Cedar fence boards seem so “affordable", and CAN be waterproofed.... That , and I’ve had these kind of fences before that lasted a good 10-15 years with nothing on them and fully exposed to the elements ... Imagine how long they would last once waterproofed and Not exposed to the elements .... almost seems like “overbuilding" huh ?

Here’s something to ponder ... " beam stiffness varies with cube of height “ ....

[linuxmanxxx]

Thats all good and well but the issue is stiffness and deflection. Straight fence boards would give too much and flex while moving around on a floor but the sandwich doesn't do that. Remember the video with the simple paper over the foam tripling the load before deflection? That is exactly how I have a floor only 3/4" foam 1x2 and strong enough to support the whole camper weight resting on its edges. If you seal the exterior correctly rot won't happen and the only problems have been using wood on the exterior without going to the very elaborate and expensive processes of protecting it correctly. I use aluminum light and strong and ultra waterproof and will not deteriorate over time.

[KCStudly]

Hate to be a stickler on this, but aluminum (...aluminium, for our English speaking friends ) can and will oxidize. Bimetallic corrosion can also be a concern if in contact with other metals with moisture (including steel and steel fasteners).

Just to clarify, no material is perfect. Aluminum is a great material, don't get me wrong, but every engineering exercise is a juggling act between the complexity or simplicity of the design, the steps necessary to execute the design, the materials envolved, and the cost of these factors (...and probably many other factors, too). Making these decisions is the definition of engineering.

Aluminum is about 1/3 the weight of steel, but is also only about 1/3 as strong. Although easy to fabricate, it is much more difficult to weld, especially for the average home user with little to no experience, and it costs more. When welded, common heat treatments, such as T6, are lost due to annealing and the strength goes down considerably.

You can have it "Good", "Fast", "Cheap"; pick two.

[atahoekid]

When aluminum oxidizes, does it fail to the same degree that ply does? I don't think it does... But does it oxidize to a degree that it fails as a structural member? I don't know. With my limited knowledge of the stuff, I think that it is still probably a better material for a floor than wood but it is not cheaper and may be harder to work with.