Hmmm, Stove in a foamie standie?

[Anita Rae]

I am building a full foamie standie and I am thinking about putting one of those little camp stoves in it that has a small oven attached. Now I know that I can't build the cabinets that this unit sits in out of foam...that wouldn't be purty at all. And I know that I have to offset it from the exteior walls. But I am wondering about steam and heat rising. I'm not gonna be doing a lot of cooking but this still has me wondering. So is there a way to protect what I am building? Any ideas?

[Anita Rae]

Another thought on this same line...What about things like microwaves? They put out a lot of heat if you need to cook something for 4 or 5 minutes.

I can just see this now. I go camping with a full camper and I just have a pile of melted foam and fabric after the first meal.

[GPW]

There are some limitations of a Foamie ' but constructed properly (and vented) should be no problem with a small microwave, toaster oven , coffee maker... If you want to build a fire , best BBQ outside ... My plan is to Solar cook and supplement with a small Hibachi for the Bear steaks ...

[eaglesdare]

i was thinking the same as bear (aka gpw). i personally would not put a fire insde my foamies.

[GPW]

No Smoking either ...

[Wobbly Wheels]

I was thinking about a small (marine) pellet stove for mine but walked away from the idea because of overheating concerns. This is also a pretty small space and you'd have to be continually conscious of the carbon monoxide hazard - for me, that's not what camping is about.

[Anita Rae]

Yepper. I've thought and thought and there just doesn't seem to be a way to make that work. I might just have to move the cooking outside. There isn't a way that I can think of to insulate without adding a huge amout of weight. I think venting could be worked out but heat/ fire would be a biggie.

I'll bet this is why comercial trailer builders don't make foamies. When you make a product for the public, you have to take steps to insure safety.

[GPW]

AR, it might be unfair to compare a foamie' to a commercial trailer ... Foamies' are more "specialized"... Somewhat like , for lack of better words , a Hard Tent !!! Not intended to provide the home-like atmosphere of a commercial unit . Just a place to sleep, change clothes , huddle in the rain , etc. More like Real camping ...
Being "The cook" at home , last thing I want to do camping is cook ... Being Old , we mostly "graze" anyway ... so cooking traditional meals isn't necessary ... a side benefit is no cooking odors/grease in the trailer ... and besides , food cooked outside over a campfire just tastes so much better ...


And considering the way commercial trailers are made , I don't care to cook in them either ... The cheap foam and paneling they use , burns like tinder... tested a piece of paneling out of my Jayco (scary how Fast it was consumed)

On the other hand , don't see why a small microwave , toaster oven, electric hotplate coffee machine wouldn't work just fine in a Foamie ... just no open fires /flames .... for me anyway ...

[Anita Rae]

You know GPW. I hadn't even thought about a toaster oven. hmmmm. That could be a real maybe to make it work. I'm not going to do any major cooking either so that will probably be all I would need. And a really good generator.

I didn't mean anything bad by the commercial comment. It was just a random thought.

So why can't a foamie be more than just a hard tent? Let's push the limits a little and see what we come up with.

[Ratkity]

Just FYI, for 14 yrs I had a full loaded Coleman Williamsburg popup with a cool 3 burner stove, shower, hot water heater, furnance, AC, etc.. right? I can count on one hand the times I cooked inside and it was only a couple of eggs I think (or a grilled cheese sandwich).

When it's really cold outside, I make tea at night and put it in a thermos so I have something warm in the morning to drink before getting out.

An electric kettle for cup of soup mixes, tea, instant coffee, etc is a safe alternative for inside any camper. The new ones don't have bottoms that get hot and they cut off as soon as the water boils.

Hugs,
Ratkity

[Anita Rae]

Good thoughts Ratkity....except for the instant coffee. Gag! This might be doable after all. I just need to switch my thinking from gas to electric.

[GPW]

AR, for our particular method of camping lately , we found Propane in short supply , long lines , and the usual price gouging ... but Everybody had electricity ...

You may also want to consider Solar cooking ... Very efficient , no fire, no flame , no clean up ... Since discovering this site www.solarcooking.org I made several solar cookers and use them all the time ... especially in the summer , just because it doesn't heat the house up ... Very easy , no burning , no stirring ... sorta' like a Crock Pot ... Doesn't brown , but I've cooked and baked in them many many times ... Makes super cookies too ... Faster than you'd think too ... I can cook a pot of beans in a couple hours ... walk away , forget about it , get back , ready to eat ... The Joy of Cooking !!!


NO FUEL to buy store , maintain ... FREE!!!! The windshield shade solar cooker is my favorite , because everything 's there in the truck already .. mostly ...

Ps . Heats water for REAL coffee too ...

[Tx River Rat]

There are a lot of commercial trailers that have tubing and foam panels for walls in there trailers.
Ron

[Anita Rae]

There are a lot of commercial trailers that have tubing and foam panels for walls in there trailers.
Ron

OH!?!? I didn not know that. Can you tell me more?

GPW that solar cooking sounds cool and I might give it a try sometime.

Around here, when the huricanes hit (yep I'm in FL), it is the electricity that we loose for weeks at a time. it would be nice to have another way to cook and shower and the basics at those times.

And my plans are to stay in places without hookup at times. We used to drag our old camper to a lake in the middle of the Ocala National Forrest. I would like to start doing some of that kind of thing again. Hubby really isn't in too "roughing" it these days so we gotta do what we gotta do.

[Tx River Rat]

Most of your fiberglass sided commercial trailer are built in panels, aluminum tubing outside frame and a few uprights .
When I was in elkhart I watched them prefab and build trailers this way at the keystone plant.
Ron