Thrifty Alternatives ..Building Foam Campers

[GPW]

Eagle , given any thought as to how you're going to build your floor ??? The extra crossbars mentioned ^ , may be an asset in bolting down a "joined " floor ... The shell is going to be So Light , a little extra weight wouldn't matter much on the floor eh ... I'll be using OSB for my floor ... heavier than ply , but weather tested , and inexpensive ...
From my rough calculations , I believe the shell will weigh somewhere in the neighborhood of 150 lbs... Finished , save any extras we decide to install inside ... (like a siren to scare away Bears ... )



Ps. we'll be Glad to help as much as possible .... Many much more knowledgable/experienced folk here to consult too !!!!

[eaglesdare]

well now that you mention it. i have no idea how i should do the floor. i wasn't sure if i should go lengthwise, or widthwise. since i probably can't find the proper lenght, i was leaning more towards the width way. but if it comes in 4 foot wides, then i would have 3 sections, if i stay with my idea of more than 8 feet. [did that make sense?]

osb? i for some reason thought that was not good stuff? is there a name to it? i was pretty much going with ply. but who am i? remember i have never built anything. i was going to build a dog house one time but hubby couldn't stand it anylonger and took over. hehehe

so as much detail as possible for that floor will be welcomed!

[GPW]

Eagle , with those extra cross members on your trailer , you can cut pieces side to side as to fall out on those for attachment ... Maybe a bit wasteful of ply , but you can always use the scraps for another project...
I'm just using OSB , because it's CHEAP ( I'm Cheap) , and I have a sheet waiting ... But the stuff I built my house with (sheathing,upstairs flooring) was pretty Tough !!! (11 years and no troubles) I figure once I get the shell built , I'll flip it over and liberally coat the bottom with the black nasty stuff .. That's Cheap too, and works Super !!! Once dry , flip it over onto the trailer . line up the pre drilled holes and bolt it down ... Should be simple ... measuring is critical ... get a small notebook , write everything down for later referral ... that helps !!
Technically , the floor should be fit to the trailer first for exact alignment ... , drilled for attachment , then removed to make the shell ... (floor or spacers )

[GPW]

Another idea might be you could re-locate the cross members to better suit the width of your ply ... Best consult our trailer Experts on this first !!!

Your trailer is almost 2K GVW... with the trailer weight of roughly 265 lbs and a 150 lb shell ... that's still gonna' be pretty light ... May get a bit "bouncy" if you don't "ballast " ... apparently just load it up with all your gear for a better "ride" ...
I'll be using an old boat trailer (54" W) with a similar HD suspension ... crumbs for thought ... more gear !!!

[Rlowell]

I went 5 wide and can fit the queen size mattress with some room to spare
I also used 1/2 ply with 1x3 cross members and framing to attach the walls.
Not sure how that will work with the foam.

I definitely over built on my first one. If there is a second one, the foam is the way to go I think.
Rod

[eaglesdare]

Eagle , with those extra cross members on your trailer , you can cut pieces side to side as to fall out on those for attachment ... Maybe a bit wasteful of ply , but you can always use the scraps for another project...
I'm just using OSB , because it's CHEAP ( I'm Cheap) , and I have a sheet waiting ... But the stuff I built my house with (sheathing,upstairs flooring) was pretty Tough !!! (11 years and no troubles) I figure once I get the shell built , I'll flip it over and liberally coat the bottom with the black nasty stuff .. That's Cheap too, and works Super !!! Once dry , flip it over onto the trailer . line up the pre drilled holes and bolt it down ... Should be simple ... measuring is critical ... get a small notebook , write everything down for later referral ... that helps !!
Technically , the floor should be fit to the trailer first for exact alignment ... , drilled for attachment , then removed to make the shell ... (floor or spacers )

hubby will never let the extra wood go to waste! he builds stuff here all the time with scraps. so i think that is the way i am going side to side and give left overs to him.

[eaglesdare]

i am thinking i won't have a problem loading it with weight. i have an a/c and a heater, the cooler, cooking stuff, well you know how all that adds up. this way i won't have to worry about all the little added weight, in this case it will be a good thing.

so if i use osb, i can put that black goo on the bottom? i will be checking for the floor when i get back from cruise.

i am excited about this!

[eaglesdare]

I went 5 wide and can fit the queen size mattress with some room to spare
I also used 1/2 ply with 1x3 cross members and framing to attach the walls.
Not sure how that will work with the foam.

I definitely over built on my first one. If there is a second one, the foam is the way to go I think.
Rod

if hubby has anything to do with it, he will be "over" building also. but i am in charge, so he has to do what i say. you should see the stuff he builds here, i think seriously you could run a truck into our ponies run-in and it won't budge at all. way overbuild.
..we had rather pooh sized relattives come over one time that stood on his deck frame. hubby in the back of his mind decided then he needed to add more to the deck.. so our deck is now overbuilt also. and its all scrape wood.

[Wolffarmer]

i am thinking i won't have a problem loading it with weight. i have an a/c and a heater, the cooler, cooking stuff, well you know how all that adds up. this way i won't have to worry about all the little added weight, in this case it will be a good thing.

so if i use osb, i can put that black goo on the bottom? i will be checking for the floor when i get back from cruise.

i am excited about this!

I have questioned why we use that black goo? Is it only because it sort of looks like the black fiber board the mass market trailer builders use?

I am thinking why not just varnish the crap out of it for a few days and be done with the mess of black goo? It will weigh less, maybe not a lot but sometimes onces add up. Use the thinned down varnish GPW talked about for 1-2 coats then full strength for #3. Black goo is hard to get in corners properly, wears off, is messy for many days/weeks/months until fully cured, cracks. As you can see I am not a big fan of it

Randy

[GPW]

Eagle , glad to hear you have a little helper !!!

You can easily use ply for the floor ... It's all what you can get ... and afford... I'm going really thrifty ... I bought the trailer after Katrina (50 bucks from a friend)... a floor (had it already ) ... scrounged the foam a couple weeks ago (Luck there!!!) , and being an Artist I have Plenty of canvas and Paint ... Only thing I have to buy now is the adhesives...

[GPW]

Wolf, Maybe you have a point there ... What about rocks and stuff ??? Guess we'd have to soak it Good !!!

[Wolffarmer]

And black goo does not penetrate the wood like varnish. And unless I get a good reason to use black goo I am going to varnish my next one.

Rocks and stuff knock black goo off real easily and you are left with wood with nothing soaked into it. Around the wheels put some thin metal/plastic or something. Same with leading edges and such.

Also black goo will not flow into anything, you have to push it as best you can. Thinned varnish will flow into cracks and crevasses to some extent.

Randy

[GPW]

Well it was planned to use a reinforcing strip around all the edges ... pinked , aircraft style ... perhaps a really Heavy canvas type of fabric on those areas susceptible to rock damage ...
Wolf, you're quickly talking me out of the black goo .... and I only have a little left so would have to buy some more , thus saving a few more bucks ... and the hassle ...

[Rlowell]

Eaglesdare, What part of the country are you in?
Rod

[eaglesdare]

to goo or not to goo that is the question

we are on the eastern shore of va. about 2 hours north of norfolk va. extremely close to chincoteague island va.

now back to the goo issue, i thought one of the main reason for using goo was the water proofing powers? isn't this a roofing tar?