Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

On TD #1 I took what I thought was a unique approach to venting from the cabin ceiling out above the "footboard" cabinets and into the galley area. Some photos to give you some idea of what I mean...

In this image I hope you can see there is a gap between the cabinet top frame and the ceiling. Then the "duct" will continue and exhaust out the two 4" holes in the galley/cabin bulkhead.


Here I am closing off the "duct" from the cabinets. Essentailly I an creating a false ceiling/back in the cabinet.


And this shot shows the duct space created that will eventually be closed off with a removable panel in the event my fans need replacement.


And the fan installed exhausting into the galley.



So, I want to do something similar with the duct above the cabinets (either headboard cabinets or footboard as in TD #1). I don't want to exhaust into the galley on TD #2 since the galley will be practically air tight. I had to add side vents on TD #1 to allow air to move when the hatch was closed for the night. I'm looking for some ideas on how to exhaust the air down through the floor. I just don't want to loose too much space in the cabin for a mattress. Has anyone run venting forward into a tongue box? And what kind of exhaust port did you use under the TD to keep water from running into the duct from underneath? I expect with a longer winding duct I will have to use fans with higher CFM than in TD #1 (44CFM each x 2).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions or links to builds with ducts through the floor. I really want to avoid the ceiling ducts at all costs.

Tim

http://www.etrailer.com/RV-Vents-and-Fa ... oC3zDw_wcB

maybe a cover like this will give you the ability to secure from weather when necessary but let you place the vent on the side, roof, or floor depending on what works best. another option is to vent through a cabinet on the floor of the sleep compartment. I am building a "headboard" type cabinet from floor to ceiling at the front of my tear.

http://www.etrailer.com/RV-Vents-and-Fa ... 543SP.html

here is another option complete with 100cfm fan

This was done to draw air in from under trailer,but could be done in reverse to vent air out.Used 2 inch PVC pipes.Caps are removable.

Thanks yrock and Steve. I'm still working on the floor base right now. Getting in a few late season trips with TD #1 before I get real busy building again.

I'm pretty sure I don't want to cut any holes in the roof. I like the clean look of a smooth roof. Those fans yrock shows just may be workable on a side wall or maybe even floor exhaust point. And coupled with some PVC ducts it may be the ticket. I like the idea of removable caps at the exhaust end. Very simple and will definitely keep out the critters.

I built in a 6" x 24" duct in the front of mine, behind my forward cabinets and exiting at the very top of the cabin. This duct is divided into two sections, one for intake, the other for exhaust. They both exit under the trailer, directly behind a trailer frame crossmember. They have screened, rear-facing louvers and have been designed so I can attach a DIY portable 5k btu AC to them. They each hold two 150mm computer fans, individually controlled, one for exhaust, one for intake. 3 or 4" PVC pipe with single computer fans mounted would work fine too.

I have no roof vents or other holes or splices in my roofing area, everything either goes out the bottom or out the back of the trailer. Works great. Oh, and also have 4 wiley windows that I love!

dave

I think it was oakinteriors who did a neat built in duct behind is rear cabinets to bring air from an under floor slung portable A/C unit. Very crafty and didn't take up much interior space due to being wide and flat-ish.

Also, another builder (can't recall at the moment, the build has a lot of steam bent construction and was not completed due to health issues) used aluminum gutter downspouts as duct work built into his floor to circulate cold air away from his A/C return.

KCStudly wrote:I think it was oakinteriors who did a neat built in duct behind is rear cabinets to bring air from an under floor slung portable A/C unit. Very crafty and didn't take up much interior space due to being wide and flat-ish.

Also, another builder (can't recall at the moment, the build has a lot of steam bent construction and was not completed due to health issues) used aluminum gutter downspouts as duct work built into his floor to circulate cold air away from his A/C return.

I think I am leaning toward the skinny full width duct like you described. On my TD #1 that is basically what I have, a skinny, wide duct above the cabinets. I think it would be very doable to run the duct all the way to the floor with 1/8" lauan creating the skinny space all the way to the floor. A few small vertical studs inside would beef up the lauan in the event somebody has unfortunate leg spasms and kicks the wall.

That could work well, but you might not have to go all the way across and could save room for cabinet space. Also need to think about moisture proofing and keeping lint/dust/moisture from collecting in potentially stagnant corners.

I looked up Oakinterior's build, in case you have not seen it.

KCStudly wrote:That could work well, but you might not have to go all the way across and could save room for cabinet space. Also need to think about moisture proofing and keeping lint/dust/moisture from collecting in potentially stagnant corners.

I looked up Oakinterior's build, in case you have not seen it.

Thanks again KC... Wow! Oakinteriors did a fantastic job. That headboard is very clever. I'm going to have to go back and study that again when I'm closer to designing the walls and roof. Thanks for the link. I did try to find him but my search skills are suspect. Tim

Well, I totally get not wanting to chop a hole in the roof. I preferred that, too ... but I wound up doing it anyway for the following reasons:

- With a roof vent, the only thing you have to be concerned about is water. And with putty tape, water-sealing tape and sealant, that shouldn't even be an issue.
- Wall vents are obtrusive and take up valuable wall real estate.
- Floor vents may have issues with moisture, bugs, grime, and just general maintenance ... not much fun to crawl under a dirty trailer.
- Roof vents can double as skylights. Gets ya some extra light inside.

I think floor vents are a fine DIY solution, but they seem pretty labor intensive: PVC ducting, plywood chases, 12-volt wiring, computer fans ... not saying they don't work! But I promise you, it's more work than the 45 minutes required to install a roof vent. Have you checked out waterproof wind-driven rain storm louvers? I haven't used them, but they seem like a good low-maintenance solution ...

And Steve, kudos to your creativity, but do you get any meaningful airflow out of those computer fans over the PVC pipes?? I mean, I'm sure they circulate enough air to replenish the oxygen, but can you tell they're running? Enough to get a breeze across the face, I mean. What size fans are those? 140mm?

Deleted

Okay you can't have your cake and eat it too. The Maxxair Deluxe is a big sucker (pun intended) of an exhaust fan due to its integrated rain shroud, but it has a lot of nice features. I'm sure some will think that it is a mini rooftop A/C!

Fantastic Vent has a few models that have a rain sensor built in and will automatically close if it gets wet. Here's one: http://www.fantasticvent.com/fan-tastic-vent-s-retail-12-volt-fans.html#model3350.