Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

I am wondering if anyone has used landscape fabric as the cloth covering for a foamie trailer.

I am mainly interested if the landscape fabric works as well or better than canvas, and if the weight is reduced.

Not much sticks to polypropylene, so if you have any ideas for glue or paint to use with landscaping fabric, I am interested.

I may test out a foam/landscape fabric/paint panel when the weather gets a bit warmer.

pond liner is also very tough stuff

but yes low-friction PE's are notorious for not taking adhesives

Heavy duty plastic window screening?

the pet-proof stuff is strong AF

My first attempt will be to lay landscape fabric on a foam panel, then paint over it. My hope is that because the landscape fabric threads are not porous, the paint will flow through and cover the foam and cloth with the first coat. That would mean no adhesive is required.

This is just a theory.

As you know, polypropylene is slick. I'd be concerned that the cloth won't stick to the foam and the paint won't stick to it. Krylon makes a special paint for it called Fusion for plastics, but it's a rattle-can.



Sounds like a candidate for a peel test experiment.

Tony

I used this stuff over my wood roof the same way folks use the canvas.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007XJNYWC/re ... G0C5N1XH6Q

skyl4rk wrote:My first attempt will be to lay landscape fabric on a foam panel, then paint over it. My hope is that because the landscape fabric threads are not porous, the paint will flow through and cover the foam and cloth with the first coat. That would mean no adhesive is required.

This is just a theory.

Adhesive is definitely required, it's just that foamie technique uses the paint as an adhesive if not using one dedicated to the task.

That was the beauty of Glidden Gripper, but since they changed the formula, likely that the community needs to do more research on alternatives that work with the usual fabrics.

By changing to different fabrics, that research will become much closer to "from scratch", the foam element being the only constant remaining.

Of course any new research and testing of that adhesion would be most welcome

but if you are looking for confirmation of "will it work"? with new materials that is likely more going to be something we learn from you rather than other way around.

Socal Tom wrote:I used this stuff over my wood roof the same way folks use the canvas.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007XJNYWC/re ... G0C5N1XH6Q

Yes Henry is a great company specialist in the field, and polyester a much easier material to work with compared to the low-friction polyethylenes.

I will also experiment with latex cement as an adhesive.

http://velacreations.com/howto/latex-concrete-roof/

Will it stick to foam? I kind of doubt it but maybe.

skyl4rk wrote:I will also experiment with latex cement as an adhesive.

http://velacreations.com/howto/latex-concrete-roof/

Will it stick to foam? I kind of doubt it but maybe.

That would probably defeat the point of a foamy. FWIW, my TD had been painted with deck paint ( paint with sand in it for traction). I scrapped most off of the sides, but couldn't remove it from the roof. It took a lot of paint to seal the nooks and crannies and when I finally rebuild the hatch and got rid of that stuff it made a noticeable reduction in the weight

Couple thoughts
Would lay up paint, fabric and paint to ensure adhesion of top covering. In essence, fabric would become an inner layer of an acrylic coat if it was porous enough. Polypropylene fixed in an acrylic sheet. Could work thus making the adhesion of Polypropylene irrelevant if there's sufficient paint to encapsulate and bond to foam. Mistint Paint cheapest, gripper might work but allot more costly.

As for a latex cement, used something similar with floor tile adhesive and cloth for my interior and worked well on EPS. Similar to a contact cement adhesive at a lower price. Cost was $10 / gal. Could get expensive depending on area to be covered and coverage.

But in the end, what advantages would polypro give?
Cost?
Reduced weight? Couple pounds maybe? Worthwhile?
Better strength? Significant?

Polypropylene would not be At. All. porous, as in

zero, zilch

The lightweight polypro landscape fabric that I've seen was spun bond which appeared to me to have minute gap in between fiber lay.
May not be the case.
Haven't looked at it closely and depends upon the specific type.
If no porosity or nada/zero/zilch, that certainly eliminates theory of pass through bonding.

Guys , collectively we’ve tried all kinds of things over the years here and it’s hard to beat the advantages of Canvas , or Fiberglass … Although we have yet to see fiberglass repair itself … Pros and cons in either way … Pick which one you like to do …

JMHO, I’d think it would be hard to adhere anything permanently to polypropylene… Polyester , no problem , and if I can recall , wasn’t it Alligator Jack that covered his ply trailer with polyester camo fabric … it was a beauty … Some time ago now …

Yes the fibres being suspended in say a thick layer of waterproof epoxy

would provide added tensile strength

without absorption by the fibres actually required

But I personally have a hard time visualizing how it would be in line with the usual foamie goals

John61CT wrote:Yes the fibres being suspended in say a thick layer of waterproof epoxy

would provide added tensile strength

without absorption by the fibres actually required

But I personally have a hard time visualizing how it would be in line with the usual foamie goals

One advantage; It may not smell like fiberglass