Boxy off-road camper build thread
- Thread starter kzam
- Start date
The doors arrived and I've added insulation and wiring for AC and DC. After some consideration and consultation with the wife, we decided not to install the two side windows. I can write up the thought process if anyone is interested.
Here's a shot with the 1.5" rigid insulation installed.
And here's how it looks with one of the interior walls back in place.
My doors are from Challenger door and they're well made. Unfortunately, my interior door trim pieces are too short for 2" walls. I'm going to need to order some taller trim pieces.
For DC wiring, I went with 12-2 marine wiring. There's a circuit for my fan and a circuit for two interior lights, one in the cabin near the fan and one in the back by the galley.
My AC wiring is 12-2 Romex running to a single outlet near the galley. I have an open floorplan rather than a solid bulkhead wall so I'll be able to use the same outlet for the whole trailer.
The window for the front is supposed to arrive tomorrow.
I'm glad I didn't fasten down the roof sections for the front yet. I have plenty of light from the garage lights to see what I'm doing inside and it will be much easier to install the front window if I can stand up.
Here's a shot with the 1.5" rigid insulation installed.
And here's how it looks with one of the interior walls back in place.
My doors are from Challenger door and they're well made. Unfortunately, my interior door trim pieces are too short for 2" walls. I'm going to need to order some taller trim pieces.
For DC wiring, I went with 12-2 marine wiring. There's a circuit for my fan and a circuit for two interior lights, one in the cabin near the fan and one in the back by the galley.
My AC wiring is 12-2 Romex running to a single outlet near the galley. I have an open floorplan rather than a solid bulkhead wall so I'll be able to use the same outlet for the whole trailer.
The window for the front is supposed to arrive tomorrow.
I'm glad I didn't fasten down the roof sections for the front yet. I have plenty of light from the garage lights to see what I'm doing inside and it will be much easier to install the front window if I can stand up.
I've installed some sliding shelves for the galley.
The walls and wiring are finished inside and I'm waiting for the lights and the fan to arrive in the mail.
I'm also planning to pick up the aluminum skin for the exterior this week. I found a place here in town that sells 5x12 sheets so I'll be able to skin the front and the top in a single run without any seams.
I realize this build has been pretty basic but it should meet our needs of a simple basecamp for backpacking, mountain biking, and kayaking adventures. Best of all, the whole thing will cost less than half than having someone else build it for me.
The walls and wiring are finished inside and I'm waiting for the lights and the fan to arrive in the mail.
I'm also planning to pick up the aluminum skin for the exterior this week. I found a place here in town that sells 5x12 sheets so I'll be able to skin the front and the top in a single run without any seams.
I realize this build has been pretty basic but it should meet our needs of a simple basecamp for backpacking, mountain biking, and kayaking adventures. Best of all, the whole thing will cost less than half than having someone else build it for me.
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Project update
I’ve glued the aluminum skin to my exterior walls and I’m waiting for a local sheet metal shop to bend a 5 x 12 foot aluminum sheet into the shape that will fit my front and roof. The shop said it would cost $40 and I’m sure they’ll do a better job with it than I could do on my own.
While I’m waiting, I framed my rear hatch. Like the rest of the trailer, it’s made from 1/2 inch exterior-grade plywood, 2 x 2 framing, 1 ½ inch insulation, and 1/4 inch laminate on the inside. I wasn’t sure how to keep the edges waterproof until I stumbled upon some galvanized steel roof and window flashings in various sizes and shapes. This is probably easier to explain with a picture so here you go.
The side facing the garage is the hatch exterior. It’s flat and will have a sheet of aluminum on it from edge to edge. The side facing away from the garage is will be my hatch interior. The smaller center section will be filled with insulation and covered with laminate. The interior sides’ edges will be covered by the galvanized steel flashing shown in the photo and the outer edges of the hatch will be encased with aluminum C channel.
I’ve glued the aluminum skin to my exterior walls and I’m waiting for a local sheet metal shop to bend a 5 x 12 foot aluminum sheet into the shape that will fit my front and roof. The shop said it would cost $40 and I’m sure they’ll do a better job with it than I could do on my own.
While I’m waiting, I framed my rear hatch. Like the rest of the trailer, it’s made from 1/2 inch exterior-grade plywood, 2 x 2 framing, 1 ½ inch insulation, and 1/4 inch laminate on the inside. I wasn’t sure how to keep the edges waterproof until I stumbled upon some galvanized steel roof and window flashings in various sizes and shapes. This is probably easier to explain with a picture so here you go.
The side facing the garage is the hatch exterior. It’s flat and will have a sheet of aluminum on it from edge to edge. The side facing away from the garage is will be my hatch interior. The smaller center section will be filled with insulation and covered with laminate. The interior sides’ edges will be covered by the galvanized steel flashing shown in the photo and the outer edges of the hatch will be encased with aluminum C channel.
I’ve made a bit more progress so here are some more photos.
Aluminum skin installed on front, top, and sides.
Rear hatch (temporarily) hanging on hurricane hinge on back.
Interior lights and fan work. (These run on DC and are just hooked up to an old motorcycle battery for now.)
I decided to use aluminum on both sides of the galley hatch. I’m still working on how I’m going to lock the rear hatch once it’s closed and so I haven’t glued and screwed down the skin and edge strips yet.
Next steps:
• Add corner molding to edges
• Install tongue box and sort out the battery, inverter, and other wiring for AC and DC circuits
• Install some fenders
• Add diamond plate trim to bottom edges between trailer frame and aluminum skin
Aluminum skin installed on front, top, and sides.
Rear hatch (temporarily) hanging on hurricane hinge on back.
Interior lights and fan work. (These run on DC and are just hooked up to an old motorcycle battery for now.)
I decided to use aluminum on both sides of the galley hatch. I’m still working on how I’m going to lock the rear hatch once it’s closed and so I haven’t glued and screwed down the skin and edge strips yet.
Next steps:
• Add corner molding to edges
• Install tongue box and sort out the battery, inverter, and other wiring for AC and DC circuits
• Install some fenders
• Add diamond plate trim to bottom edges between trailer frame and aluminum skin
How much did that thing cost to build?
When my wife and I started this project, I was planning to weld my own frame. But then we found a trailer frame on Craigslist instead. The sellers were planning to build a more traditional teardrop trailer and they wanted a beefed-up 5x8 frame they could take offroad with their Toyota Tacoma. As part of the sale, they included a 3-ring binder with step-by-step plans for a teardrop trailer as well as some square, crank-out windows, some flooring material, an unopened gallon of waterproofing varithane, a hurricane hinge for the rear hatch, and some other random hardware.
The previous owners were saving all their receipts and keeping a running tally of all their expenses and all their time spent working on the project. Even though I didn't use their plans to build a teardrop, I kept right on documenting where they left off.
So just in case any of you are contemplating building something similar and you want to see where all the money was spent, here's a breakdown of my costs by category. (I have much more accurate totals in the binder but these totals are very close.)
An overbuilt 5x8 trailer frame with random hardware pieces = $1,100
2 (new) doors and a (new) window = $846
Electrical = $522 (so far)
(Includes a Mighty Mini electrical panel, a shore cable, battery disconnect switch, inline fuse, 12-2 romex for AC wiring, 12-2 marine grade DC wiring, an AC outlet with USB charging ports, a Fantastic vent fan, LED dome lights, and LED trailer lights.)
Wood = $383
(Includes 2x4s ripped in half for framing, interior paneling, exterior grade half-inch plywood, galley drawers, quarter-round trim for interior.)
Exterior aluminum skin and trim pieces = $379
(The aluminum sheets were about $140. It was $40 to have a shop bend the front panel to fit my profile. The rest was spent on trim pieces to keep my corners and edges sealed.)
Misc expenses = $140
(This includes screws, finish nails, wood glue, polyurethane glue in caulking tubes, paint brushes, sand paper, a flush-trim router bit, heavy-duty drawer sliders, etc.)
Insulation = $90
(2-inch insulation between frame rails, 1.5-inch insulation inside walls and roof.)
Total cost = $3,460.
I still need to buy a deep cycle marine battery and a battery box along with some diamond plate for the bottom edges. I also need to mount my fenders and maybe weld up a cargo rack for the roof. But I hope these figures help somebody else get an idea what it might cost to build something similar.
I'm happy to answer questions if anyone is curious about anything.
When my wife and I started this project, I was planning to weld my own frame. But then we found a trailer frame on Craigslist instead. The sellers were planning to build a more traditional teardrop trailer and they wanted a beefed-up 5x8 frame they could take offroad with their Toyota Tacoma. As part of the sale, they included a 3-ring binder with step-by-step plans for a teardrop trailer as well as some square, crank-out windows, some flooring material, an unopened gallon of waterproofing varithane, a hurricane hinge for the rear hatch, and some other random hardware.
The previous owners were saving all their receipts and keeping a running tally of all their expenses and all their time spent working on the project. Even though I didn't use their plans to build a teardrop, I kept right on documenting where they left off.
So just in case any of you are contemplating building something similar and you want to see where all the money was spent, here's a breakdown of my costs by category. (I have much more accurate totals in the binder but these totals are very close.)
An overbuilt 5x8 trailer frame with random hardware pieces = $1,100
2 (new) doors and a (new) window = $846
Electrical = $522 (so far)
(Includes a Mighty Mini electrical panel, a shore cable, battery disconnect switch, inline fuse, 12-2 romex for AC wiring, 12-2 marine grade DC wiring, an AC outlet with USB charging ports, a Fantastic vent fan, LED dome lights, and LED trailer lights.)
Wood = $383
(Includes 2x4s ripped in half for framing, interior paneling, exterior grade half-inch plywood, galley drawers, quarter-round trim for interior.)
Exterior aluminum skin and trim pieces = $379
(The aluminum sheets were about $140. It was $40 to have a shop bend the front panel to fit my profile. The rest was spent on trim pieces to keep my corners and edges sealed.)
Misc expenses = $140
(This includes screws, finish nails, wood glue, polyurethane glue in caulking tubes, paint brushes, sand paper, a flush-trim router bit, heavy-duty drawer sliders, etc.)
Insulation = $90
(2-inch insulation between frame rails, 1.5-inch insulation inside walls and roof.)
Total cost = $3,460.
I still need to buy a deep cycle marine battery and a battery box along with some diamond plate for the bottom edges. I also need to mount my fenders and maybe weld up a cargo rack for the roof. But I hope these figures help somebody else get an idea what it might cost to build something similar.
I'm happy to answer questions if anyone is curious about anything.
Yes, I paid $1,100 for the trailer and yes, it's a bit expensive. I looked at the receipts and the previous owners spent $330 for just the metal alone. They used 2x3 square tubes that are 1/4 inch thick. Way more strength and weight than is necessary.
brand new tires and wheels were another $300 and then the 3500# axle, hubs, and leaf springs were another $290. Then add in a jack, coupler, and safety chains and you're likely over $1,000 already. But they also included some laminate flooring material, two windows (that I didn't end up using), a hatch hinge, a detailed set of plans (that I didn't end up using), and other hardware so it ended up being a pretty good deal.
If I build another one of these at some point, I will definitely use thinner metal for the frame.
ottsville
Observer
OK, that makes sense.
I was trying to remember what I paid when I had my overbuilt 5'x8.5' trailer built and I thought it was about half that price but I also got it at basically wholesale.
Project is looking good so far. I'm curious how it works out for you because I'm thinking about turning my utility trailer into a camper for when just my son and I go out.
I was trying to remember what I paid when I had my overbuilt 5'x8.5' trailer built and I thought it was about half that price but I also got it at basically wholesale.
Project is looking good so far. I'm curious how it works out for you because I'm thinking about turning my utility trailer into a camper for when just my son and I go out.
I'm finished for now and ready to take this out for a shake-down run.
I am still planning to weld some fenders with a step that can handle some weight. I'm also planning to add some aluminum diamond plate trim on the bottom. Eventually, I'll add some solar panels too but that may not happen until next year.
I am still planning to weld some fenders with a step that can handle some weight. I'm also planning to add some aluminum diamond plate trim on the bottom. Eventually, I'll add some solar panels too but that may not happen until next year.
I used aluminum edge trim from here: http://www.teardroptrailerparts.com/Hinges___Aluminum_Trim.html
It comes in 8 foot lengths and your can hit it with a torch to soften it if you need to bend it around a curve.
