Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Hello Everyone!

I'm new here. I work desk jobs and I'm always happier if I'm doing a fun project just for me that involves physical labor. Last year it was a stitch-and-glue plywood canoe.

I love camping, and we don't often have money for mini vacations, but my younger son (7) is terrified of bugs and my wife wants a comfy place to take naps and read away from the mosquitoes. My dream has been a teardrop. We don't drive large vehicles, so I always thought a heavy camper was out, and I want to spend most of my camping time in nature. My vision is a teardrop in which we can store all our camping gear and a tent for the boys. If we decide we want to get away on a weekend, we just have to grab clothes and food and go to a nearby park. My wife can have indoor comfort, we can have nights away from the boys, and we can have a comfortable camping setup.

My design is 6X8, 4' tall at the highest, squaredrop. I'm framing everything out with 2x2s and filling the spaces with foam, then doing PMF inside and out. I want to put it on skids, so I can winch it onto a utility trailer and strap it down, but also take it off when I want to use the trailer for gardening projects.

The front edge is 3' tall from the base, it tapers up to 4' over the next 18 inches, then stays 4' for the length of the trailer. Galley hatch lifts up for a 4' (ish) overhang giving plenty of covered space. Doors on both sides, screw on bucket tops with screens for windows, 1 commercial RV vent on top. I plan to use a solar generator to recharge USB fans and magnetic puck lights that we can move around the camper.

The first weekend went really quickly. My boys were more helpful than I expected in building the base. We've got a 6'x8' base with a layer of plywood, 2x2 framing and 2" EPS foam in the gaps and another layer of plywood (will eventually put adhesive wood-look flooring on the interior).

The boys were taking turns taking the 2x2s, laying them in the frame and marking them while I cut them on my chop saw. They would then lay them down with a bead of TBII and I came along behind them screwing them down. They both had a lot of fun using the handheld hot wire to cut the EPS foam to fit the gaps between the frames, then helped me paint the bottom with bed liner. Yesterday my older son (10) helped me install the base of the walls.

Sounds like you are on a roll! Keep up the good work