Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

There is a theme that some builders have to not using wood to reduce the chance of rot. Foamies are pretty dang intriguing.

Instead of using 2x2 lumber I wonder if there are PVC fencing parts that could be used. With a careful design there could be one horizontal tube that can be the chase for wiring. It would be simple to add holes at joints to run the wires.

What about welding the plastic parts? I have seen plastic welders but I haven't researched them.

If the tubing is going to be inside the walls plumbing pipe could be used too. Easy to use T's to connect pieces.

Tom

look above in heading area you will find sdtripper2's index
you will find many answers there
below came from that.

PVC Plastic pipe structures
Camping useful plans and Dish washing stand plans
http://www.salsaholics.com/trailer/gall ... pPlans.pdf
Other PVC Plans
http://www.pvcplans.com/pvc-pipe.htm
Furniture grade PVC
http://www.candsplastics.com/

There is a guy who built his of PVC but I can not find anything about him.

maybe another member will remember. I do not know if it held up or not every one was interested in the idea as I remember???
maybe if you ask under the General site someone will tell you where to look.
Ron

Thanks Ron, I'm still looking for feedback from anyone who might have used plastic for frame work.

I suspect you are looking for Daddiozz PVC TTT, found here:

http://tnttt.com/viewto ... ht=#621844

The pictures of it have been removed; but, here is what he had to say about it:

...One year later ....the question was raised for updates on the PVC TTT...hows the saying go...no news is good news ?...that about sums it up ....following the purchase of a more conventional teardrop,...the PVC TTT has reverted back to its original designed for purpose as a lightweight utility trailer ,...no new issues have occurred other than a few popped rivets that were easil;y replaced .There has been some fading from the sun on the roof,but no other issues .Its held up exceptionally well .We moved from Ga to WV this past summer ,the trailer saw a couple roundtrips as a utility trailer to that end as well as several side trips to different flying events we've attended locally The PVC TTT has appx 3500 miles under its tires....and still going strong.

Sorry ,album pics for the PVC TTT have been removed so that they wouldn't be confused with another trailer I'm presently trying to sell(yes you would think most folk would know better..)

I imagine you could PM Daddiozz for more information.

I sure hope Daddioz gets my PM.

I think this is a viable build for a slide on camper I'm thinking about!

.

PVC is pretty heavy in comparison to wood, no?

In equal dimensions.

The sheeting wouldn't have to be as thick. I think that the tubing is wayyyy strong so it could be smaller diameter.

I think that less material could be used and still have good strenth.

the best part...no rot! Waterproofing would be less problematic. The seams can be glued or welded.

Read the build thread on the PVC trailer...sounds lighter

jstrubberg wrote:PVC is pretty heavy in comparison to wood, no?

Its heavy and if you look at a PVC fence section they sag in the middle.

that might be, but I wouldn't ever be making those long spans. Besides the tubing would be glued/pop-riveted to the paneling with insulation glued on.

Wringing the last ounce of weight from a build isn't a criteria for me. I'm not going to drag this up a mountain using my spindly legs

Hi Treeview/Tom,

I came across another posting here that may be of interest for you. In the
Build Journals thread:

"Advice 4 ladder mount, trapezoid toolbox, hitch rack, solar,"

forum member bobhenry posts on Dec 1 & 2 about combining EMT
[galvanized metal electrical conduit] and PVC, which results in a much
higher strength when combined that either has separately.

In his last Dec 2 post bobhenry gives a link to another forum that discusses this more :

http://camp-cook.com/forum/viewtopic.ph ... c&start=30

Starting at the 4th post down, that forum member jimqpublic and
bobhenry have an interesting discussion for a few posts about combining
EMT tubing as a core for PVC piping and the benefits such a combination
seems to have.

That seems to be a good possible answer for your query. For my tastes,
having used PVC pipe for plumbing purposes and outdoor electrical
conduit, I think the PVC is not strong enough for any framing purposes.
It sags too much. If you follow the discussion I referred you to, the combo
of PVC and EMT gives you the non-rusting feature you want with the
framing strength that'd meet needed use requirements with smaller
dimensioned PVC and EMT sizes - and therefore lower costs.

Hope this can be of use.

Cheers,
Norm/mezmo

Hi Norm,

Funny thing...Jim know of me in our shared profession...I know some of his teachers! We're both arborists!

I read that thread too.

Right now I'm in 'vacuum stage' taking it all in!

There is a lot of great info and help here. by the time I start my build I'll have things sorted out.

Tom

Here is a reply from a wood working forum that I frequent:

I have worked with plastics for many years - most of the plastics were used to produce interior components for the automotive and appliance industries, but several were used in exposed automotive interior applications.
However, I can state that I have never ever seen any plastic that does not degrade with exposure to the sun. The degrading can be slowed by coating with a metalized or paint coating that restricts or eliminates the UV radiation penetrating the coating. The other method is to use pigments in the molding process that inhibit the depth the UV can penetrate. The fences you speak of normally are made from recycled plastics that no longer meet the strength or other molding specifications of more critical applications (we sold tons of regrind that could not be used in our applications). To verify what I am saying take a look at the automotive junkyards - most of the autos that are over 20 years old have plastic dashes, bumpers, etc that are "brittle" cracked or broken - some have spent most of their lives in garages so that extends the life. I do think you could be successful making such a trailer, however to extend its life you would need to coat the plastic with a high pigment UV resistant paint. I'm not sure a properly designed wood framed trailer maintained to eliminate leaks (and vented properly to promote drying when water does enter the closed spaces) wouldn't outlast a plastic version.

I was wondering if anyone has thought of using composite decking?