Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Hello Everyone,

I have become an aficionado of the Tyne Home Movement, and enjoy viewing Tiny House Nation. They make great house, and provide great tips, Zack is a mad Genius. Recently, I noticed that they have used corrugated metal as siding on some houses exterior and shower areas.
My question is has anyone ever used corrugated metal as siding, or Metal roofing?
http://www.fabral.com/residential/panel-systems/exposed-fastener/5v-crimp/

Does not look bad, and comes in many colors. I would appreciate any comments form you guys.

Just Google "teardrops corrugated" and click images.

I actually was googling corrugated roofing products last week for my still in design tear's roof. Steel, aluminum, plastic, asphalt. May be others. I liked the aluminum that I found in 1/2" sine wave profile for roof, though wondering if I would occasionally have to tip it sideways to get every valley to drain. Haven't figured out hatch hinge either but sketching to find that ever ellusive most elegant solution.

(Thinking of pairing with cedar t&g I have around for siding....)

Bill,

Thank you for the suggestion, I have done many searching, but never occurred to me to do that one. I know what you are worried on the ridges. My trailer originatelly had a piece of trim up front, and I had to make sure the trailer was inclined forward to ensure water drained. Will continue my search for the best material. My problem is that most of the material comes on 5 feet width, and my trailer roof is almost 80 inches wide, and I want to avoid seems as much as I can.

Amen on seams. Ditto avoiding penetrations. Roofs rarely leak, but flashing always does.

I found metal varieties in standard lengths of 6, 8, 10, and 12'. Would seem not too much waste with 8' sheets. I was looking at Ondura today - an asphalt corrugated roofing - and its 79".

This is the one I was most drawn to after a quick look - https://www.corrugatedmetal.com/roofing-and-siding/ - especially their 2 1/2" X 1/2' and their 1 1/4" X 1/4" - and steel, galvanized steel, aluminum, and some even in stainless steel. How cool would that be? (Well, not necessarily literally and I'm sure there are issues to be confronted.)

Bill,

Yes that looks like a possibility. I need to go to a shop a friend recommended to see if they can do the outside for me in Painted Aluminum.

bushido41 wrote:Hello Everyone,

I have become an aficionado of the Tyne Home Movement, and enjoy viewing Tiny House Nation. They make great house, and provide great tips, Zack is a mad Genius. Recently, I noticed that they have used corrugated metal as siding on some houses exterior and shower areas.
My question is has anyone ever used corrugated metal as siding, or Metal roofing?
http://www.fabral.com/residential/panel-systems/exposed-fastener/5v-crimp/

I used the 5V-crimp for the gable roof on my log cabin trailer, but modified to form standing seam panels. Most metal roofing other than standing seam (i.e., corrugated, v-crimp, r panel, etc.,) requires external fasteners which penetrate the roof material. The standing seam panels are fastened to the roof deck with clips which are then covered by the next panel. The panels are held together with a u-shaped cap which snaps and/or slides on depending on the design.

On a previous trailer I used steel siding with a board and batten pattern for the roof and sidewalls - it installs similarly to the standing seam without any external fasteners or penetration.

M C Toyer wrote:

bushido41 wrote:Hello Everyone,

I have become an aficionado of the Tyne Home Movement, and enjoy viewing Tiny House Nation. They make great house, and provide great tips, Zack is a mad Genius. Recently, I noticed that they have used corrugated metal as siding on some houses exterior and shower areas.
My question is has anyone ever used corrugated metal as siding, or Metal roofing?
http://www.fabral.com/residential/panel-systems/exposed-fastener/5v-crimp/

I used the 5V-crimp for the gable roof on my log cabin trailer, but modified to form standing seam panels. Most metal roofing other than standing seam (i.e., corrugated, v-crimp, r panel, etc.,) requires external fasteners which penetrate the roof material. The standing seam panels are fastened to the roof deck with clips which are then covered by the next panel. The panels are held together with a u-shaped cap which snaps and/or slides on depending on the design.

On a previous trailer I used steel siding with a board and batten pattern for the roof and sidewalls - it installs similarly to the standing seam without any external fasteners or penetration.

Did water stand on the down hill side of the panel between standing seams? I worry about that with plain corrugated.

Hello Everyone,

MC, I have been admiring your cabin for a long time. I love the log shape of your aluminum siding, and I truly agree with you on using the standing seem panels, but I did not know you could modify the clips to accept the the 5 V design. The other problem I will have is my design, your is a cabin a the two pitch roof is natural, my design is similar to a Benroy, and aside from making one side higher than the other I do not know what else I can do. Didd you bent the shape of your siding yourself?

Fellows,

I'll preface my comments that I'm pretty sure a highly skilled craftsman could build a viable teardrop out of duct tape and soda straws And so if the need strikes you to experiment with corrugated siding, I say full steam ahead! ...

... with that said, I think it does pose several challenges, especially when used on a traditional teardrop shape like a Benroy. None that can't be overcome, but challenges nonetheless. MC has overcome them very elegantly.

1. Corrugated panels get all their strength from the rib pattern. The metal itself is extremely thin - about half of the 0.040-inch teardrop standard. That means less strength and hail resistance. Also, I wonder how much that rib pattern is going to affect fuel efficiency ... it might have a pretty large effect if the ribs are oriented perpendicularly to the airflow.

2. Now, mainstream travel trailer manufacturers have been using corrugated siding for years. However, most have had difficult adequately waterproofing the overlap S-lock seams, fenestration openings and roof corner seams. Higher-quality manufacturers have expanded into using closed-cell foams, I think. Cheaper ones just use gobs of putty tape, which may shrink and crack as years go by.

3. I know Frank Bear of Vintage Technologies uses corrugated siding for the sidewalls (not the roof, though). I think it's aluminum, but you'd have to confirm ...

P.S. Bushido41, if you have a semi-truck manufacturer in your area, they have giant rolls of aluminum up to 8'-6" wide. You might be able to snag some.

With all due respect Andrew, the products I was finding came in a wide variety of thickness: Aluminum from .015 to .100; Steel from 29 to 12 gauge (.0172 to .1084"); Stainless Steel 24-12 gauge (.0239 to .1046"); and and ASTM 606 weathering steel (aka Cor-ten) 22-12 guage (.0299 to .1048"). This from http://www.corrugated-metals.com/

I don't know about mileage but hard to believe its a significant from a 1/2" or 3/4" sine wave shape, considering I see more ribs in the Ford Flex. Could have some effect.

And I was looking at the load tables - in some thicknesses it can span 5' with normal roof loads (as on a house) so it does indeed get some strength from the ribs.

Waterproofing is an issue to be carefully worked out. I felt fairly confident that with ribs across the roof (wouldn't bend the other way very well) - one piece - and maybe another rib or two overlap from the standard one or two - butyl tape perhaps but still thinking about that - it could be pretty waterproof. It does, after all, work in very rainy and hurricane prone areas on buildings. Hatch hinge would be a challenge but they must always be to some degree anyways. I see possibly more problems with walls than the roof (including front and back walls if you refer to them that way) especially at the "top" if vertical - just needs and eave detail that isn't so common on tears.

QueticoBill wrote:With all due respect Andrew, the products I was finding came in a wide variety of thickness: Aluminum from .015 to .100; Steel from 29 to 12 gauge (.0172 to .1084"); Stainless Steel 24-12 gauge (.0239 to .1046"); and and ASTM 606 weathering steel (aka Cor-ten) 22-12 guage (.0299 to .1048"). This from http://www.corrugated-metals.com/

I don't know about mileage but hard to believe its a significant from a 1/2" or 3/4" sine wave shape, considering I see more ribs in the Ford Flex. Could have some effect.

And I was looking at the load tables - in some thicknesses it can span 5' with normal roof loads (as on a house) so it does indeed get some strength from the ribs.

Waterproofing is an issue to be carefully worked out. I felt fairly confident that with ribs across the roof (wouldn't bend the other way very well) - one piece - and maybe another rib or two overlap from the standard one or two - butyl tape perhaps but still thinking about that - it could be pretty waterproof. It does, after all, work in very rainy and hurricane prone areas on buildings. Hatch hinge would be a challenge but they must always be to some degree anyways. I see possibly more problems with walls than the roof (including front and back walls if you refer to them that way) especially at the "top" if vertical - just needs and eave detail that isn't so common on tears.

Hello QueticoBill! Thanks for the reply.

Thank you for pointing out that if you shop around, you'll find various thicknesses. I was more referring to you if walk into your local Lowe's or Home Depot. The industry standard for metal roofing is 26-gauge, which is roughly 0.020 inches; like I said, about half that of the teardrop standard 0.040. I'm not claiming it isn't strong; I'm saying that the ribs, in particular, will be more prone to hail and rock damage. There's nothing backing them, like a flat aluminum panel on a teardrop wall, see.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding the orientation of the ribs ... if the corrugated metal was used on the roof, it would have to be oriented with the ribs perpendicular to the wall face. Wouldn't that interrupt the airflow along the entire roof and cause turbulence? But, teardrops being as small as they are and in the slip stream of the tow vehicle, you're probably right that fuel efficiency wouldn't be more of a theoretical concern.

I like the rib overlap idea. I hate to be a commercial for EternaBond, but they have a double-sided tape that might work well for sealing the hatch hinge? Or, if you get a shallow corrugated profile, you could do what Bighorn does: Seal it with a closed-cell compressible foam. No shortage of that stuff online

I just wish the inevitable sticker shock of the stainless steel want so.

Yes, not a big box store item. But even smaller communities usually have a roofing dealer who can get products like this. Roofing is kind of like shoe making and undertaking - always a need.

I believe someone has used this on here but they used a roofing company that provided the sheets before crimping and in the color of their choice.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=68010
Did you look at this?