Newbie From South AL

[Kurt301]

Hi Everyone,

So this weekend we went camping and the weather during the day was in the 90's and at night in the low 70's perfect weather but it isnt always that way now is it.

We recently aquired a Honda Element and for any of you familiar with these things you will know this. The Element is a Motorhome version of the tear drop camper. None the less it is severly lacking a few areas such as no stove sink etc etc and on one all powerful area, that being air circulation. Even with the low temps and a tent fan inside we quickly realized that it can become stuffy pretty fast.

My first Idea was to make a cooling box out of a window unit that would be placed on my tow rack and somehow duct it to inside the cabin. This turned into looking at building a tear drop with the luxurious wood interior queen sized bed. and all important in the south, AIR CONDITIONING.

So With that in mind I will be looking at some pretty simple designs as this is my first build, perhaps something like the flat nosed weekender perhaps.

I do have a few questions I will be posting in the different groups but will compile the list here incase someone runs across them and just wants to have a go at them all.

For Starters, What do people use to trim the edges where the walls meet the top that makes it waterproof? I have seen some that are metal and some that are wood so I know that there are different materials out there but what are they and where do you find them?

Next: Why the double wall construction on the floor and walls? Is insulation really that important? isnt it possible to simply overpower the cooling and or heating source to compensate for the lack of insulation?

I know these are probably some very very basic newbie questions but if you wouldnt mind shedding a bit of light I would sincerely appreciate it.

Thank you all for such a wonderful forum.

[pjsauls]

Welcome to the madness; we're in the Jackson, MS area and built a Weekender in 2009.

I overlaped the sidewalls with the top plywood and used plenty of glue and sealant. I did not add outside corner pieces. There has been no leakage so far( the TD is stored inside when not camping).

There is a wealth of info in the construction, electrical, etc sections on just about any topic - make sure you can use the search function.

I would recommend taking a look at the TearJerkers site; last January Sweet Tear Alabama camped near Gulf Shores and had a great time.

Good luck with choosing your design and building.

John & Mary Sauls

[Kurt301]

Thanks John and Mary,

I will check out that site. Next I think I will try to find a few members around my area who might let me ogle at thier build just a bit so I can figure a few things out. That would probably be the most sensible thing to do.