Approx. weight and cost vs traditional

[NMMarauder]

How much lighter is foam than a traditional build? Let's take the Wanderer 10 that is in the design library. That uses a single skin and comes in around 1400 lbs. How much would you guess it would weigh in foam?

I realize that you can spend as much as you want on a build. I also realize that some people get lucky with scrounging up parts and manage to get many things free (trailers, windows, wood, etc). Let's avoid either one of those scenarios. Assuming that you have to buy the vast majority of materials at retail prices, what is a ballpark figure for building a foamie Wanderer?

[GPW]

NMM, That’s really a difficult question as everyone builds differently , and with a Foamie , there are so many choices to be made... so we’ll just say ... Much lighter , and much cheaper , especially “long term” considering there’s less maintenance and Much less chance of ROT ( a real problem with wooden trailers) ...

[NMMarauder]

I'l take a stab at answering my own question. Maybe others can chime in on the numbers.

Trailer: Let's say $800 for the trailer. I know you can get the HF trailer for $400. For the sake of argument let's say that you use the 2,000 lbs. Torsion Axle Trailer Kit $427 from utilitytrailerkit.com, an upgrade to the bulldog hitch and jack +$72, shipping +$92, and $200 in steel to build the trailer. That puts you close to $800 assuming you already have the welder and metal working equipment.

Wood: Let's say $100 for the deck and wood for the the windows and doors. I have no idea how reasonable that assumption is???? it might be low.

Foam: 11 sheets of foam @ $34 a sheet = $375. This is a ballpark guess (3 each side and 5 for the top) just looking at the plans for the wanderer. Sound low or high?

Glue: TB2 - 5 gallons for $110. Is 5 gallons enough to cover the foamie with canvas? Do I need 10 gallons? 2 bottles of Great stuff @ $20 a bottle. Is 2 bottles enough? Total of $150

Canvas 10oz (Too thin?) 60" Cotton Canvas, 25 yards long ( Not enough?) from bigduckcanvas.com @ 4.20/ yd = $105 + shipping. Let's guess 25$ shipping so $130 in canvas. Let's round to $150.

Trim, hinges, handles, lexan for windows, etc $300. This is a wild guess. I could be way off either way.

Paint and primer: I don't have a clue. $100 sounds like it should buy you some decent paint.

Misc consumables: Sand paper, welding rod, paint brushes, etc. $100

Misc stuff and fudge factor: $200

Let's tally
Trailer: $800
Wood: $100
Foam: $375
Glue: $150
Canvas: $150
Trim: $300
Paint: $100
Consume: $100
Misc: $200

Total: $2275 so round up to $2300. Some really good at scrounging might get it down to $1500 and others might spend $3000. So I'm going to guess 2-3K for building a wanderer 10 in foam before you start outfitting it with goodies. Provided that you are having to buy the vast majority of your material at retail prices.

My wild guess on weight is 300 lbs lighter than the wood version. I have absolutely no data to back that up.

[rowerwet]

you will find this on page 167 of the big thrifty thread

"Just a Final count .... With scavenging and using things I had , I’ve only had to spend about $300 to make the Foamie ... The addition of the HF trailer will Double this figure, and registration here will add another $100.00 to that ... So in the neighborhood of $700 total ... Ready to Roll (No AC yet) ... That seems Thrifty eh ? ...
And it’s light .. enough that I can still manhandle the cabin by myself ... The other day , I backed the trailer into the studio , tilted it and just pushed the cabin onto two furniture dollies ... for the finish work ... I’m calculating about 250lb. with all the stuff presently inside ... so add the weight of the HF trailer and we have a ballpark figure of the tow weight ... Should be like towing nothing behind my old 6 cyl Silverado ... Looking forward to the “shakedown cruise “ ... about a 50 mile trip( both ways) to the State Police office for my numbers and title ... Last time I made this trip was with the Big TD , (much Heavier ) driven on the Interstate@ 65 MPH , and that was No problem , so this should be a piece of cake ...


Now I have noticed one small problem ... 3 tiny bubbles on the roof , all over some holes in the Foam that I didn’t bother (missed ) to fill in before canvasing .. ... smaller than dime size , I plan on drilling a tiny hole through the skin and injecting a little GG ... That will take care of those ... Not bad after sitting out in our Brutal summer sun and storms all this time ... and really my fault for not making sure I filled in all the gouges in the the recycled foam The foam I used was pretty beat up , but Free... store bought foam will be in much better shape ... Just something to be aware of ... Where I completely filled the sides , etc. with spackle and sanded , there are NO problems whatsoever... I didn’t pay as much attention to the roof ... My bad !!! Just FYI ...'

find the thread here viewtopic.php?f=55&t=39373&start=2490

this is for a bare bones sleeper GPW built, it has the proven, cheap, light weight, canvas and paint finish, but no galley. It is also 4x8 with only one door.
for perspective compare it the the foam stream viewtopic.php?f=55&t=45027

[Jst83]

Not really sure how big the wanderer is but mine is 6'6"x11'6" and I'm know where near those numbers you quited I'd have to say those numbers are on the high side. I built a wooden tear on my frame and had it rot I tore it down and went foam same size, wooden one was pretty heavy when I picked the front up foam one I can walk around with one hand as a matter of fact it tipped backwards when I slid the cooler out of the galley and had to tie the front down. As for price It's been a lot cheaper on the foamy one. Yes I've scrounged up some parts but as for the main shell it's all new. The wife and I are both sold on foam her cause she can move it without me me for the no rot aspect

[Jst83]

Where I completely filled the sides , etc. with spackle and sanded , there are NO problems whatsoever

What spakle did you use is it good for sub 0 weather?

[rowerwet]

it is light weight vinyl spackle, it has been used on foamies for a while (the big pink, uses it and plastic corner molding for drywall, to make sharp great looking edges)
built correctly a foamie should be almost half of a wood tear, and cost almost half. of course that leaves a lot up in the air, as far as I know most wood tears come in at 2-3 K, or that is what we will admit to. (I stopped counting after 2K on my wood tear) average weight for a wood tear can fall into the 800 for a very small light weight 4x8, up to some over the top builds (crows wing) that need a full size truck to pull them. (over 2K lbs)
my 5x8 (wish it was 10) benroy could weigh much less in foam. of course if you skin the foam with fiberglass, aluminum, or make an inner plywood wall, the weight idea gets kind of fuzzy to predict.
you are really working with the "cutting edge" and beyond in the foamie world, while we all can recomend what will be lighter or cost less, so many different ideas have been tried giving you a "wood will be this and foam will be that" answer is not really possible.
there are some real numbers about the weight of foam per square foot, verses wood per square foot, after that the possibilities branch out like crazy

[atahoekid]

I swear that one of these days I'm gonna get the Road Foamie weighed in it's actual use mode which includes the mattress, clothes, camp gear, kitchen gear, water, electrical, all the stuff my wife has crammed in it, etc., etc., etc. Keep in mind that I think I have the largest foamie currently in use and I'd be surprised if it's over 1200#. The Road Foamie measures 14' from the very tip of the cabin to the very tail. Almost 6' tall at the roof line and just under 7' wide. So a 4 x 8 should weigh proportionately a lot less. In building the Road Foamie, I never watched weight a lot since I've got a 3/4 ton diesel pickup. I could easily tow 3 or 4 Road Foamies and not strain the truck The point is if weight is a factor and you watch every fraction of a pound here and there, I think you could easily get in for under 800# or so fully loaded. Just my educated guess...
As far as $$$ the cash ledger seemed to be all over the place. I got the frame real cheap, paid a young fortune for windows, didn't mind paying retail for all the foam and lumber, got the bed linens at a yard sale, used all the same camp and cooking gear that we had when tent camping, so I am not the one to ask about the expense of it all. I was able to pay for it a little here, a little there, some birthday and Christmas money there, some credit card purchases here. I must admit I hate accounting and so I didn't do it.

[jseyfert3]

I'l take a stab at answering my own question. Maybe others can chime in on the numbers.

Trailer: Let's say $800 for the trailer. I know you can get the HF trailer for $400. For the sake of argument let's say that you use the 2,000 lbs. Torsion Axle Trailer Kit $427 from utilitytrailerkit.com, an upgrade to the bulldog hitch and jack +$72, shipping +$92, and $200 in steel to build the trailer. That puts you close to $800 assuming you already have the welder and metal working equipment.

Actually with a 25% off coupon, I got a HF 1720 lb trailer for $290, including sales tax. I added nothing to it, and I know others have used it without adding anything to it.

I started to make a list of my Teardrop prices, you can take a look if you'd like. Please note this is my running total, but you can take a look at what I've already bought on it, which may help you price some of the stuff on your list. Here is a link to my build thread, so you can see where I'm at.

The No-Read method of where I am:


1x4 Framing Complete (1) by jseyfert3, on Flickr

I still need some things, but canvas, glue, paint are the rest of my "big ticket" items. I'll need some hinges and other small things, but otherwise a lot has already been purchased. According to my running total spreadsheet, my required building materials are now at $521 not including Illinois trailer registration (because that varies wildly by state). A few small things have not been added. Once I add in those "big ticket" items, I expect the required materials cost (no AC, no battery, no non-stock signal lights, etc) to be in the neighborhood of $700-$800 or so.

Your foam estimate sounds really high. Assuming an 8' length it would require less then 2 sheets per side, 1.5 sheets per side (3 whole sheets to complete both sides), looks like it would give an inside height of 6'. That's 4' height for one sheet, 2' from half of a 2nd sheet, then use that other 2' section for the other side for a total of 3 sheets to finish both sides. Roof looks like 8' (or 10') long, 6 feet wide, so another sheet and a half, then the front and back, depending how you can cut and join the foam, say another 3-4 sheets. Total, ballpark figure, perhaps 9 sheets max? $36 also sounds pricey, unless you've looked at prices in your area and are not just coming up with a number. For 2" thick 4x8 sheets I paid $26 at HD. Menards and Lowe's were the same or very close.

Please note I'm still in the build progress of my first TD, so take it for what it's worth. Just trying to help out a little bit.

[kudzu]

$26 for 4'x3'x2"? That'd be nice. Last I looked, months ago, it was $32 per sheet around here.

[GPW]

Foam prices seem to vary Wildly !!! Best shop around for the best deal ...

[atahoekid]

True Dat!!

[GPW]

Really !!! I got my 2” Blue foam at Taylor Seidenbach inc, which is a roofing supply co. here... for 27 Bucks a sheet ... The Loews and HD here didn’t even stock it , and their prices were much more ...

[atahoekid]

I was just thinking the other day since I've heard from someone that the local HD that did stock the 2"- 4'x8' foam was going to stop carrying it, that gluing up of smaller panels was going to be a pain but I think I came up with a simpler way of doing it. On the Road Foamie, I glued the panels side to side to create a longer sheet, then I lined the interior with the 5mm underlayment ply. I think it would be easier to do the two concurrently. Glue the foam sheets to the underlayment and glue the seams at the same time. I think it would save time and limit the fear of mishandling the large unskinned panel. I would then clamp the two sides together, rough cut both panels with a sabre saw and finish by belt sanding to a cut line. That should minimize having to handle panels (awkward not heavy) and get you two identical sides. Just thinking for when I get the go sign from the wife to build another. She's making noise about wanting a larger standy with bath and dinette, queen size bed and mini kitchen. Thankfully, that's not high on her list of "must have now". I think it's at least 5 years down the road. Until then I'm gonna enjoy taking out the Road Foamie. Next trip will be over moms day weekend, a 1700 mi round trip to Spokane for a college graduation

[ghcoe]

I am into my build at $742.07 at this moment. With saying that, that also includes items purchased and not used or destroyed in experiments. There is no set way to make a foamy yet so you just cant make a list and go like on a traditional. I have about another $350.00 of supplies that still need to be purchased and that should cover it. I'll have to say $1092.07 for a tiny trailer is not bad. I was shooting for under $1000.00 but, decided to splurge on real windows $174.22 extra. No recycled items in this build, bought and built all the way. I am feeling pretty good about coming in under 450lbs. Just going to depend on how heavy the windows are going to be.

Some of this build cost has to come down to what your time is worth to you too. I do not mind being out in the shop staring at a problem for hours only to walk away and find a solution days later while I am at work. Others would be so frustrated they would walk away from a half built trailer never to return. I think eventually there will be a traditional way to build a foamy. You will now that day because someone will say "Traditionally the Foamy was built......." Think about that..... how long in the future will that be? Think of the first, before traditional, teardrop trailers started to hit the streets. What is simple, what is cheap, and what works will all come out in the end and then you have traditional.

1. Find a build technique that you like. You may find more than one depending on the subject such as door/window frames one person did vs. liking foam to floor attachment someone else did.
2. Make a list of what supplies they used. I like to go to the big box store websites and get the prices right there. You don't have to run down to price everything in the store, easy.
3. Add up all the prices and it should be pretty close. Oh, remember tax.

I had already planned to build a simple "traditional" teardrop and did this price list using a known build list. Then I found out about foamies and said that is for me. I had never really put the two together, but it made sense when I saw it. The build cost was way lower. Sheet metal covering alone would buy you half a foamie. And then.........Not to have to worry about water! My biggest concern.......GONE! Three more foamies in the back yard, Just ask GPW........ And me....another standy foamy already in the workings. You lose one traditional to ROT and you just lost 5 foamies. Now how sad is that . What is your time worth?