Plan to make an enclosed trailer

[CrawlinMike]

Got this last summer. Was previously a camper made flatbed by whoever had it in the past. They did a good job actually and made a welded steel base for the floor to be on. Currently the floor measures 96x76in. I think I'd get a lot more use out of it taking the box off and enclosing it for camping and stuff. Year round that is. I think making it a v nose would the best use of space. Not sure the best way to heat n cool it. I am good at carpentry but what materials would you use for the exterior you think? I am thinking using 1x3 boards for the "stud walls" and of course a bunch of insulation crammed between the outside and inside layers. This is a good opportunity for me to make it custom as possible since it's going to be handbuilt. Looking for tips and tricks that I wouldn't normally think of. I think this'll be a great budget build summer project. Also I don't see a lot of trailers with that style tire on the road. Why?

[djjiz]

The door is definitely the hardest part. If you figure that out the rest should be easy.

[Duuuuuuuude]

Trailers don't use that size tire because at highway speeds they are spinning really, really fast. Its hard on the bearings (especially if you don't service them properly) and dangerous should you blow out a tire. They also don't carry squat for weight. If I were you I would crawl underneath and see if there is a weight rating on the axle. What you are planning to do could easily exceed that rating.


Many campers are built with 2x2 wall framing. If you are going to have a flat roof that you aren't going to store anything on, or walk on, you can make that out of 2x2's as well, though I would recommend a roof with a crown on it, which is easy to do using 2x4's. Deck it according to usage. If you aren't going to put anything up top, 3/16 marine grade plywood is plenty. If you are going to put stuff on top, 3/8" plywood would be ideal.

Custom RV Parts, RV Parts Manufacturer, and RV Accessories at All-Rite has a lot of siding/roofing supplies.

For heating/cooling, you can get small propane fired, 12v powered furnaces, but you'll have to plumb it in. Cooling such a small area could easily be done with a little $100 window unit, or you could spend $800 on a regular rv rooftop unit that will chill that little camper so much that you could hang meat in it.

I've been an rv tech for 20 years. Got a question? Ask it.

[hotrodsonoma]

Originally Posted by CrawlinMike

Got this last summer. Was previously a camper made flatbed by whoever had it in the past. They did a good job actually and made a welded steel base for the floor to be on. Currently the floor measures 96x76in. I think I'd get a lot more use out of it taking the box off and enclosing it for camping and stuff. Year round that is. I think making it a v nose would the best use of space. Not sure the best way to heat n cool it. I am good at carpentry but what materials would you use for the exterior you think? I am thinking using 1x3 boards for the "stud walls" and of course a bunch of insulation crammed between the outside and inside layers. This is a good opportunity for me to make it custom as possible since it's going to be handbuilt. Looking for tips and tricks that I wouldn't normally think of. I think this'll be a great budget build summer project. Also I don't see a lot of trailers with that style tire on the road. Why?

You could always use T-111 siding.or maybe cedar 1x6 for siding as well.also if you do a v nose it will help with drag while hauling down the road and could use that section for shelving and such.

[CrawlinMike]

Originally Posted by hotrodsonoma

You could always use T-111 siding.or maybe cedar 1x6 for siding as well.also if you do a v nose it will help with drag while hauling down the road and could use that section for shelving and such.

That is exactly my thinking about the nose. Big questions were materials. Duuuude put up an awesome link and advice. This'll be drawn out but it's going to be nice to have a plan and materials. A bowed roof will really be best thanks. Getting more ideas too like putting in electric outlets and running them to the nose section. Where an extension cord can be plugged into

[Duuuuuuuude]

Here's a video showing a good lightweight truss design. Don't let the sales pitch fool you though, their design is not special. I've been rebuilding them that way for years...rebuilding one now actually...

[jetboat]

That looks like a snowmobile trailer. Be careful of those little tires, they usually have a real low load carrying capacity and they are squirrely as heck.

[GRIMGREG]

I would use light gauge metal for the framing, rigid foam for insulation, and sheet metal for the exterior.