Father and Son's Off Road Expedition Trailer build

[lacofdfireman]

Jeeper it's been a busy day for me today. Going to try and explain how I have this A/C mounted. I have a frigidaire window unit and built a box on the front exterior of my trailer. You can see it here.

It's the small box above my generator/battery box that sits on the frame. I constructed the box out of 3/8 osb and 1x1" wood for the frame. To seal the box on the outside I used short strand bondo and put it on like caulk all around the box where it contacts the main trailer box. I used long hair Bondo on most my holes but this short strand I actually liked better. Also I was putting the bondo on with a putty knife but found using my fingers to be a lot better and required less sanding once through. Also make sure to wear latex gloves or something. Here is a photo of the Bondo I used.

After the bondo dries and hardened which doesn't take to long that's when I applied my epoxy resin. I used an epoxy resin from Duck works and loved it. It doesn't stink like the others and was super easy to work with and you actually had some time to work with it. I could mix a batch and had about 45-60 minutes to work with it. All the others you have like 5-10 minutes. I rolled it on with a foam roller and it worked great. I did about 3 heavy layers and it seemed to penetrate the wood well. My only complaint was it literally took about 12-16hrs for it to completely dry. It's called DWX epoxy.

Here are a few photos of the box for the A/C. Still haven't painted the inside yet. Been to busy using it to work on it.

You will need some sort of hinge on it because when you run it the A/C needs fresh air to vent out to. Other wise it won't cool down very good. I just open the hatch when running the A/C. Works like a dream. On the inside I just have the frame screwed into the trailer frame studs with 1 5/8" wood screws and it's not going anywhere. We've been on some crappy bumpy washboard roads and this hasn't budged. Let me know if you have any other questions.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[jeeper92]

Thank you!!

Exactly what I was looking for. I'm going to use cpes on mine as well but Ill also be covering it in Durabak bedliner. Should be water tight. Thoughts?

Also did you build the box separately and just screw it onto the trailer or did you build it after the walls were already up?

Could you post some more info about the battery box as well?? More pics on that build?

Looks great by the way!

 

[lacofdfireman]

Sorry it's taking me so long to get you the info you want. We have been out camping again. We have 12 nights in the trailer so far. I also have a 36ft Class A Motorhome. I actually like this better than the Class A. So much fun and I can take it places I could never dream of taking the Class A. May just consider selling the Class A. Then again I'll most likely sell this one at the end of the year and build another one. This has been so much fun. I've already had a few people say they would be interested in my trailer as is and I'm not even done with it. But then again they could be all talk to. Not selling right now though. Having to much fun.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[jeeper92]

Pics

Pictures of the trip or it never happened!!

 

[lacofdfireman]

All cleaned up and headed out camping.

Ok here are a few Camping pics for those of you who care out there. Also I must say that originally when I decided I was going to build an off road trailer I was dead set on a small military type trailer with an RTT. My son kept hounding me to build an fully enclosed and so we did. My idea was the RTT on top so we could sleep more people. On our trip to the Overland West Expo my 2 boys and I spent a Couple nights inside the trailer. So 3 can fit inside but it's pretty tight. 2 adults is no problem though. I have to admit I'm glad my son talked me into doing the OffRoad teardrop style trailer. I have no desire to own the other type now myself. Even after seeing all the cool ones at the expo. Guess I just prefer the hard side campers.

Pulled off the road at about 1am to catch a few hours of sleep near Lee's Ferry, Marble Canyon before heading into Flagstaff then on to the Overland West Expo at Mormon Lake.

I procrastinated in buying my weekend camping pass for the Expo only to find out the camping was sold out by the time I decided to get our tickets. I was bummed until I found offsite camping within 1/2mile and in the trees. Much nicer camping than the Expo Camping. It was a dust bowl at the expo campground it looked like. And they didn't have trees like we did.

Setting up camp.

My youngest son just hanging out on top of the trailer.

We ended up with 5 total nights of camping for this trip with the drive down and back to the expo and all.

On the way back we spent the night up on the Kiabab Mountain which is the Entrance to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. I've lived within 3hrsnof this place my entire life and never gone to the North Rim. To be honest I was disappointed with the view compared to Toroweap view. They don't even compare in my book. Here we are on the Kiabab. Didn't take a camp pic but we stayed In a campground which was kinda lame. But we did get to take some coin operated showers which were needed..

When we got home we were home for about 3 days and packed back up to head to Moab for 5 days of Mountain biking and Jeeping. I just Love Moab.

Here is my son and his friend getting ready to head out on the Mountain Bikes.

Did a little off roading and the trailer did better than my lifted Jeep. Got a little twisted on this trail and popped a spring out of the front of the Jeep. Thankfully we had a high lift Jack or we would still be sitting there.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[lacofdfireman]

Ok Jeeper I have some pics and details about my Battery and generator box. So with the A/C unit I need a generator and found this Champion 2kw generator for under $400. It's quiet as my Honda and less than half the price and more KWs. Really like this thing. I put all my electrical up front and wired everything to a Blue Seas fuse block. Works great. I've used them in many Motorcycles before so I knew how to use it. Also have one in my Jeep GC. The box again is just OSB treated with Epoxy Resin. The inside still hasn't been painted but will be eventually. I had visions of this nice dual fold up front that would make accessing the fuel in the generator super easy. So I piano hinged part way back on the top,of the box and also the front of the box so the lid could open more than just the flap on the front. This has turned out to be a big mistake and I will end up removing the piano hinge and screwing down the top and putting bondo over the top where the hinge was and then epoxy resin and paint and only keep the front hinged piece. The piano hinged piece never worked like I thought it would and leaks water, alot. Here is a photo of the box.

Here is a photo of the generator

Here is a photo,of the Battery and the Blue Seas fuse block

This is what the hinge was supposed to allow me to do. I've found its just easier to pull the generator out to fill it. It's light enough that it's not an issue.

If anyone wants to see anything else let me know.



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[jim65wagon]

Why is there no"like" button on expo?
Why is there no jelly smiley?
So very jealous of your camping time! We've managed all of four nights in our teardrop so far this year. It's been so wet here.

You can cover the piano hinge with a piece of rubber. Seal it down with sealant along it's edges. Make sure it overhangs the side of the box on each side to shelter the ends of the hinge. That's what we had to do on our tongue box piano hinge.

 

[lacofdfireman]

Photo from this morning. My son took it out to the lake last night. Did some paddle boarding and kayaking. Ground was a little uneven as you can tell from the wheel being off the ground.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[lacofdfireman]

Headed back out tomorrow night for another night of camping before I go back to work. Should be fun.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[GI_Jeepin"]

There is this thing called parenting.


and you are doing it right.

 

[JCDriller]

Great build. Any photos of your kitchen? I like the design but that angle makes the kitchen build out a little tricky as you can't have your typical fridge slides.

 

[Rutdigger]

I really like this build. You did a great job! Hows the A/C holding up? Any issues with the movement of the trailer, angles, pot holes, bumps, jiggles, road etc? I am thinking of putting one in my trailer but was curious of the vibration and all the movement and how normal A/C units hold up. Thoughts??

 

[biskit]

Don't you just love this build thread.:wings: Everything about it, ( perhaps not the front window) job well done.:drool::drool:

 

[lacofdfireman]

Great build. Any photos of your kitchen? I like the design but that angle makes the kitchen build out a little tricky as you can't have your typical fridge slides.

Mine is still a work in progress. I'd like to do some cabinets in it eventually but the camping season is upon us and my kids out of school so this is going to be getting a lot of time spent "IN" it and not a lot of time building. I'll save that for winter. What I have now in the kitchen is just a basic counter and a shelf above it. The counter Is split in 2 sides and both lift up. I have a sink on one side with a switch on the shelf face above to activate the water pump. You can store a lot under the counter. For now I have my side jacks, camp chairs, 2 burner stove when traveling and also my water supply line for the outside EcoTemp shower. Even with that there is room for more. Here are a few pics.

Also with there being no room for a fridge you are correct. I want the fridge in my Jeep. That way if I head out wheeling for the day I have cold beverages and food. Didn't really think I needed one in the trailer if I put it in the Jeep. That's just my opinion though.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[lacofdfireman]

I really like this build. You did a great job! Hows the A/C holding up? Any issues with the movement of the trailer, angles, pot holes, bumps, jiggles, road etc? I am thinking of putting one in my trailer but was curious of the vibration and all the movement and how normal A/C units hold up. Thoughts??

The A/C has been rock solid. Never moved an inch. I've been on some extended dirt roads that were washboarded out without issue. My trailer is only about a month old though so time will tell. I don't expect issues though. Seems solid and works great.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk