Anyone do a 'grunge trailer'?

[MegC]

It may take me a couple years to get that far, but... I'm slowly gathering ideas for a small cargo conversion "funhog camping wagon" for me, husband, 1 kidlet, 3 dogs, mountain/road bikes, dog cart/scooter/sled, skis, too many kites to count, etc etc etc. Obviously the toy kaleidoscope varies by season and destination.

The main issue is that a lot of the toys are 1. bulky and/or 2. REALLY dirty. We have to leave everything pretty flexible in terms of toy hauling space of course. Cohabiting with crud is obviously part of our lifestyle and hasn't killed any of us yet so that's fine... however, it means that a lot of the very beautiful mods I'm seeing on here are totally out of the question.

Has anyone else taken on something like this? Maybe a dirt bike hauler/camper? Just looking for more clever tricks I should consider. I'm already thinking fold-down bunks of some kind, plastic totes that can be filled/removed/added at will, a portable chuck box setup, and some hanging net storage off the walls/ceiling for bedding et al that we want to keep clean and tied down. Maybe some kind of lightweight rubber mat on the floor?

THANK YOU!

[Kixwy2]

Ever heard of Burning Man?



I am planning mine to be easy clean/replace. So the floor will be pretty utilitarian, I'll use stainless steel for countertops and shelving that can take a beating, and I'm not going to bother with outfitting it with a microwave or fridge. Some of the folks here and off forum have had some really good ideas on flip down and fold out bedding, which I'm working on incorporating into my build.

Mostly I think I want a hard sided tent with an air conditioner!

[Ageless]

I saw a flatbed about 16' long used like that. He simply built an aluminum box on one end for sleeping and used the remainder for for bikes, ATVs and snowmobiles

[Prem]

Meg,

Something like this? http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=29658

Prem

[MegC]

...Mostly I think I want a hard sided tent with an air conditioner!

I'm with you 100%, only with heat instead of AC.

On that note... anyone w/ advice on designing for cold weather? It's rare to get below 0F here but definately possible.

Something like this? http://tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=29658

THANK YOU Prem... yeah, like that, only without the building-from-scratch factor- lol. I think I'd prefer something w/ larger wheels and more ground clearance also as it might get drug into some 'interesting' snow parks.

Looks like you had a cool little heater in another thread. I was eyeballing something a little bigger in BiMart the other day that said it was OK for inside use.

[Gonefishin]

anyone w/ advice on designing for cold weather? It's rare to get below 0F here but definately possible.

Insulate your walls and/or ceiling for better efficiency.
Prem and I have settled on the Coleman portable propane heaters. See our threads, made recently, on both. Mine is http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=33924
His is famous. I'm sure you've read it!

Others have installed forced-air and other higher-tech stuff. Some have bought Propane Mr. Heaters.

[Ageless]

WARNING!!!!

Safe for inside use only means it doesn't put out nasty poisonous fumes. It will consume oxygen and give off CO2. Provide both yourself and the heater a source of fresh air.

[Prem]

Meg,

It's simple: You just get a cheap, beater cargo trailer, regrease the bearings, throw in a sofa bed, some down comforters, add another vent for more oxygen, get a couple of Coleman Black Cat heaters (0 degrees in central WA), some small propane bottles, your cooking gear, food, water, clothes and kites and go for a single overnight. The next morning when you wake up slowly you will realize what you need to do to optimize your rig. You go home and optimize it, then go camping again and tweak it some more.

That happens to most of us almost every trip. We find new tweaks to make it better. A few teardrop people have made all their tweaks and have it totally dialed in. (Not me, yet. I'm still coming up with small stuff for my trailer at the AS-IS Goodwill, ACE Hardware, Fred Meyer's, Bi-Mart, Ebay and ReStore.)

During the process, you post your photos here... ...and you get "famous." (Helps to use emoticons.)



Prem

[dreadcptflint]

Howdy, I have seen more than a couple of reasonably priced enclosed trailers in our area.

The slickest that I have seen was a converted Harley hauler a couple of years ago in the Spokane area. The rear dropped down and became a ramp while the rest was designed in a very Kampmaster manner.

The cold is pretty easy to deal with. We did 18 degrees up in Tumwater with our Uninsolated Teardrop and sleeping bags rated at 30 degrees. The biggest trick is don't try to heat up the entire trailer, partition the sleeping area off and you will be surpised how well body heat will help out.

Matt

[Gonefishin]

WARNING!!!!

Safe for inside use only means it doesn't put out nasty poisonous fumes. It will consume oxygen and give off CO2. Provide both yourself and the heater a source of fresh air.

Absolutely! I have a CO2 detector, and will NEVER run a portable propane heater unless I'm out of bed, awake, and paying attention to it. They kill people every year, those who make a mistake.

[BC Dave]

Check out what people have done to there CT's and youll quiclky get a list of things you can use in a conversion; firstly think of size and what you'll be carrying; 2 is ok camping in my 6X10, but we have to be well coordinated when setting things up and moving around; check my album I just uploaded some pics; its totally modular and can be reconfigured to do watever; haul motorcycles; camp with removable beds; heat insulation and finishes ... shower outside by pulling the sink sprayer hose out the window ...

It was designed and finished to be robust and durable so I can take a hose out and spray out the interior if needed ... to clean so far I've used an electric leaf blower; it takes 30 seconds to clean with the back doors open.