Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

I was in lowes tonight and they had several different types of foam. They had the regular white styrofoam, blue foam in 1/2" and 3/4", they had the white stuff with a foil covering. Which one would work for a foamy? I had read on here about something called Poly-boo-swan-say or something like that foam.

The blue stuff in 1/2 had nice square edges, the 3/4 had grooved edges.

Would I be wrong in framing the foam with 1" x 2" cedar or pine boards? I haven't made up my mind yet.

I'm interested in doing an extended weekenderish design with some modications. A 10' x 5' or there abouts on a 5x8 northern trailer. Right now, I'm still in thinking/planning mode.

What if I want to go a little taller? Anyone done a standy in foam?

Titebond/canvas/paint for my skin.

I could use all the pointers and advice I can get.

Most of us used what you called the blue stuff. I think Dow makes that one, Owens Corning makes the same stuff in pink. I used the two inch stuff. The white foam was used by Glen but for the necessary strength he went much thicker. I'm not sure if anyone used the foiled backed foam. You talked about edging in wood, which to a degree defeats one of the purposes in building in foam. Wood and water don't mix, so you'll need to make sure the wood stays dry or you'll have a rot issue. Hope that gets you started, let us hear any other questions you might have. Welcome to the world of foamlings....

2" thick? I didn't see any that thick.

Without a wood frame, how would it hold together? Just glue and then depend on the canvas to hold everything together?

2" might be hard to find depending om where you live. I live in Northern Nevada where it can get cold so 2" insulation is pretty common. The key to holding everything together is glue and canvas ( I used fiberglass, but it's the same concept). I know it's really long, but look at the long thread and you'll see where we batted around that idea of holding it all together. My body has no structural wood to hold it together. I used interior cabinetry as bulkheads and some spars for the roof span but not everybody does that either. My Road Foamie is nearly 7' wide and 14' long, so I needed to add a bit of structural integrity but there's no wood in the walls except for window and door framing.

Thanks for your help Mel. It appears I need to read a little more before diving in. I'm gonna build something even if we find a Casita. I've got the building bug.

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It’s really worthwhile seeking out the 2” Blue or Pink foams ... they work the best ... Also worthwhile posting your location , so others in the area may direct you to a source...
The box stores don’t seem to be very consistent about handling foam.... and roofing, lumberyards or insulating businesses also stock it , usually cheaper than the Box stores... We stay away from the HD & L lately ...

if you can't find 2" foam, it is possible to laminate 1" together with Gorilla glue, something you would need to do anyway to make a standy, or the weekender. look for the big pink thread, for how mike created a standy in foam. the foil faced foam would not work well as you would need to removed the facing, if you can't find 2" board at the local borg, try insulation contractors.
I wasn't so sure about foam strength after doing some testing, so I'm building a couple small foam boats to get used to the strength and construction methods viewtopic.php?f=55&t=58623

Sometimes it is so hard to convince people that foam glued and covered with TBII and canvas and paint will hold together. I just say that I used 1x2's to put around my doors and frame in my windows. Grits, my foamie, is very hard and sturdy. I know it sounds just too easy but it works. Try Home Depot for the two inch or places GPW suggested. I used two inch for the sides and Two pieces of 1/2 inch laminated for the roof. I used wood skewers to keep the pieces of foam in place while the glue was drying. I used Great stuff to fill any gaps and to fill in areas messed up. I sanded and covered with canvas. and no I did not scuff the surface of the foam to help the canvas stick, It stuck fine. My work with the Boy Scouts taught me one very important thing ..........KISS. I built Wiley windows and used my brain to just make regular little screens like used on houses. I learned the piano hinges you get from the box stores rust so go ahead and order on line. When cutting the canvas cut a little bigger and and trim after it dries. You can sculpt little things with the foam like drip edges and round the edges out to make it smooth and blendable. Vinyl spackling works great to fill areas and smooths out to make that finish look great! and to top it off you can sand and smooth all the surfaces paint then sand again making a really smooth surface. I am here to tell you it works.

Mary C.

rowerwet wrote:if you can't find 2" foam, it is possible to laminate 1" together with Gorilla glue, something you would need to do anyway to make a standy, or the weekender.

That's the exact method I used to make my roof. Much easier to bend, and no kerfs needed. You'll have to get creative with the clamping forces until the glue dries (sandbags are great) but it worked well for me. Two years and several storms later, no problems; the panels ain't coming apart from one another.

As for the blue stuff or pink stuff, I used both depending on which was on sale at the time. Not really much difference between them. As for the white stuff with the foam backing, I tried it and it's definitely squishy, even after you apply the canvas. I eventually just used it to insulate the inside of my doors, but don't recommend it for anything structural unless you get the 3" stuff used to build concrete foundations.

Someone asked where I was earlier. I'm pretty close to Dallas/Fort Worth.

I do appreciate everyone's opinions.

I think I'm starting to understand that wood is used sparingly for doors/windows.

What about the roof and floor areas? I was kind of hoping to put my AC on the roof, but I don't think that would be a good idea without some type of support. I don't mind it in other areas, I was just gonna get a regular RV Ac and put on top. I think it would look good with what I have in mind.

I'm assuming you still do a solid plywood floor. Correct? I guess I need to read/research more.

As I was writing this, me and wify came up with a cool idea to test our skills. We are going to build a cover for my pickup. If that goes well, then it will be off to the races.

Name: F150 Foamular 2in Board
SKU:409926
Length: 96.000
Width: 48.000
Thickness: 2.000
R-Value: 0.00
Description:
FOAMULAR 150 Rigid Foam Insulation is a premium insulating panel. Boards are 96 inches long, 48 inches wide and 2 inches thick.


Is this what I need?

HMK wrote:Name: F150 Foamular 2in Board
SKU:409926
Length: 96.000
Width: 48.000
Thickness: 2.000
R-Value: 0.00
Description:
FOAMULAR 150 Rigid Foam Insulation is a premium insulating panel. Boards are 96 inches long, 48 inches wide and 2 inches thick.


Is this what I need?

that is the stuff!

Post pics of the truck camper shell, as that is likely my next project! And yes, most of us have wooden floors, either plywood, ply-foam-ply sandwiches, or some combination. I think it was GPW that first mentioned it, but I used 3/4 ply for the floor of mine, and I waterproofed it with a 3:1 mix of mineral spirits and polyurethane varnish. 4 coats on the bottom and outside, 2 coats on the inside. It basically turns the ply into plastic. Good luck! Lots of pics!

HMK wrote:Without a wood frame, how would it hold together? Just glue and then depend on the canvas to hold everything together?

I went with a PVC frame and fit the pink foam between it then calked around it seems to work good. I plan to canvas cover after next weekends gathering, right now it's duct tape covered. Sort of a joke but I camped all last summer covered in duct tape

http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=55&t=56828