"Phoenix" 5'x11' Build

[western traveler]

Cody, what great progress. It’s looking good!

[cjlangellier]

Cody, what great progress. It’s looking good!

Thanks! Today was a very productive and rewarding day. I was able to get the walls, headboard and rear bulkhead installed. The install went extremely smooth and everything lined up very well. I was very pleased that all the planning and prep work paid off today. On to the interior cabinetry this week!

[GarthB]

Nice work getting it all mounted up successfully! It's a great motivation booster after all of the the monotonous wall work that has to be completed beforehand.

[cjlangellier]

2021-06-09

Spent the last two days building out the interior cabinets and electronics closet. I dry fit the whole assembly to ensure everything lined up properly. I mounted the PD4045 where it would be out of site but accessible inside the cabin. The open area underneath the overhead cabinets will be the dogs bed. We designed nearly the entire trailer around having dedicated floor space for our dog. I’ll spend tomorrow evening sanding and finishing the individual pieces. This whole structure will be assembled and slid into place down the dado’s on the interior walls once it’s finished.

[cjlangellier]

I’m working on dry fitting my cabinetry inside of the cabin before final installation and I started thinking about my electronics closet. I set the battery, converter and dc/dc mppt controller in the closet in the locations I’m considering installing them.

Do any of you think I’ll have an issue with overheating inside this closet? I’m going to install a pass through vent behind the fridge slide out but the more I think about it, that will be one more heat source when it’s running. I think having this closet vented to the galley should be sufficient but it does make me a little nervous. There will be a baggage door installed in the opening. We won’t store much in the closet. Probably just a few setup items like our shore power whip, wheel chocks etc. I intentionally left the cabinet on the larger size to hopefully allow for some air exchange, but I’m second guessing myself a little bit.

[cjlangellier]

2021-06-12

Got the interior cabinets fully installed. The headliner is glued, sanded, and had two coats of poly on it. Will be doing a final sand and coat of poly this afternoon. Hoping to get the headliner installed and the roof spars in by end of day tomorrow.

[Bezoar]

You are making quick progress! It is looking great!

[cjlangellier]

You are making quick progress! It is looking great!

Thanks! I’ve been pulling a lot of late nights to try to keep my timeline intact. Today was very productive. I got the headliner installed and most of the spars cut for tomorrow. I’m very happy with how the progress so far.

[cjlangellier]

Finished off the weekend with a final push to get the framing done. We were able to get the roof spars cut to length, dados cut for wiring. The skylight and fan were framed in. Finally everything was glued and screwed in place. I had some major difficulty with my crown stapler. It seemed to dry fire repeatedly and had trouble holding the headliner in place on a few of the spars that had a gap to the headliner. Eventually I switched up to a trim nailer and things seemed to go smoother. I have a number of staple holes to fill now unfortunately. Next up will be finishing the roof blocking and then rough wiring followed by roof insulation and framing of the hatch.

[Capebuild]

Enjoyed seeing your progress and photos.... looking really great!

[cjlangellier]

Enjoyed seeing your progress and photos.... looking really great!

Thanks! I'm following along with your build as well! It's really fun seeing your vision come to life in front of you.

[cjlangellier]

Roof spar blocking was completed tonight. First pic shows my apt shelf cut off clamped to the trailer to mark for the locations between the spars. Once cut the blocking was glued and screwed from the exterior. I also worked on some interior blocking in the headboard storage area and started routing a few wires tonight. Hoping to get the rough wiring done by Wednesday evening.

[tony.latham]

It's really looking great! Your craftsmanship is showing.

You asked a question about overheating in your electrical compartment. I don't think those components should produce much heat. But... I'm speculating, not speaking from experience with those components.



Tony

[cjlangellier]

It's really looking great! Your craftsmanship is showing.

You asked a question about overheating in your electrical compartment. I don't think those components should produce much heat. But... I'm speculating, not speaking from experience with those components.



Tony

Thanks for the kind words Tony!

I think I'll be okay on the electronics cabinet. The PD4045 vents out of the front of the panel and with a vent in the bulkhead to the galley, I think there will be plenty of air flow to keep the temps down. It's just one of the few unknowns variables I have in my design I've been trying to wrap my brain around.

[pchast]

Why don't you pick up an inexpensive indoor/outdoor thermometer and test things?
Maybe like: https://smile.amazon.com/Indoor-Outdoor ... 98&sr=8-29