Let's talk Teardrop Trailers

Use anodized aluminum, NOT milled finish, it scratches. This is why i decided to paint my teardrop. Also, use 1/8" baltic birch. I did 1/2" with a bunch of dado cuts to make the bend but it was super tricky. I would also try to integrate some kind of under carriage water storage system, instead of having the tanks under my kitchen sink. If i wanted to go big, I might invest in a propex heater or a diesel heater. You would need to think about this prior to building in order to accomodate for the mounting and duct work

 

Things I would have done different...

Figure out if you're going to use lug or hubcentric wheels for the trailer. Trailer hubs are usually lugcentric while Tacoma wheels are hubcentric. If you go with a hubcentric wheel then you'll need an adapter (spacer) to go from the lugcentric trailer hub to the hubcentric Tacoma wheel. Whether or not you need an adapter will determine the width of the axle to get the tires where you want.

You'll have to decide if plumbing is worth it to you. It wasn't to me and I've seen quite a few builders who've decided that it's not worth having a plumbed sink after the fact. Leaks suck

Some of the galleys I've seen are well thought out works of art that perfectly suit the user. Others aren't. I went with what is basically an empty galley and built a chuck box that is easily removed. I also have some storage cubbies below the counter. I wanted to get a better idea of what my camping/cooking needs were before I committed to something permanent. Now that I have a better idea of what works for my family I'll be working on a more finished galley.

I've got three hardwired interior lights; one is on the ceiling and two are on the side walls. I would only go with the ceiling one next time. I have a love/hate relationship with the ceiling light because it's a touch controlled dimmable LED that can go red or white. Bright is effing bright, dim is just enough to see by. The only downside is that it's extremely sensitive to touch. Putting on a shirt and bump it? Yeah, it's gonna do something. Might get brighter, might turn off, might switch colors... who knows. My son is still short enough to stand in the trailer and his head is constantly bumping it. I really like the dimmer aspect of it, plus having the red/white option, I just wish that it wasn't touch activated. The two wall lights are complete overkill. I wound up adding LED battery operated puck lights underneath the cabinets and bunk bed. They're great because they're not hardwired and you can twist them off of their mount and use them like a flashlight.

I would have simplified the electrical system. I went a bit fancier than I needed and created some issues using relays/solenoids. Now I've just got a master breaker for killing all electrical when the trailer is in storage. I also added a dual circuit on/off switch for the solar panel and controller. The solar panel charge controller I have uses about 0.2 amps when the solar isn't charging, which was enough to kill a battery in storage.

I did not go with an inverter. Everything that I really need electricity for is DC.

Porch lights. We don't use them all that much, but they can be handy if they're positioned with the awning room in mind. I have to sorta flip up the wall to clear the porch light to use it to light up the awning room. If you're planning on using different lighting in the awning room then I would probably skip out on the porch lights.

I purposefully kept the interior simple. I've seen some beautiful cabinets and whatnot. They're awesome and they add weight. We usually travel with duffel bags and just need a couple of shelves to toss them up out of the way when we're camping. I set them on the floor/bed and shove them as far aft as I can when travelling.

I went with a Fantastic Fan with three speeds in or out. I think that next time I would go with a Maxxair Maxxfan. The Fantastic fan is nice, but even on the lowest setting you're doing a complete air change every 45s or so. Maxxfan has slower settings. Some models of Maxxfan are a little taller than the Fantastic Fan.

We went with a Propex furnace. It's amazingly awesome on cold mornings. We sleep four in the teardrop (check my sig line or the first page of this thread for interior pics). With four people, ventilation is critical in order to keep the humidity down. Insulating the walls helps keep them from sweating, but being able to leave the windows and fan vent open while running the heater keeps it bone dry and comfortable inside. The heater cycles on/off as needed.

I have four stabilizing jacks, which is handy for leveling and making the trailer rock solid. It also lets me change a tire without needing anything more than a wrench. The front two are angled in relation to the trailer, the back two are perpendicular to the trailer. If I were redoing it I'd make them so that they looked like an X viewed from above. Right now they're kinda like ^.

Lastly, plan extra time when you're traveling. Probably 75% of my stops on the road involve talking with people about the trailer

You *might* be able to get away with 1/4" ply if you soak it. I used two layers of 1/8" flexible plywood for my 12" radius curves. Playing around with it, I was able to easily go down to a 6" radius curve without too much trouble and a 3" radius curve with a lot of care. Once the first layer was glued and attached, I glued the second layer on top. The result is rock solid, especially after it's sheathed in aluminum. You're not going to find flexible plywood at a big box store, I'd recommend asking around at local cabinet shops. I'm fortunate to have a plywood specialty store local to me that stocks it

 

I built an 5' x 8' trailer... next time I would for sure extend it to 10' long. An extra 2' for more storage and a more functional galley would certainly be welcome. I would also probably do something different for the finish... Mine is all wood with epoxy and spar varnish and while I love the look, it was kind of a pain to do, cost a little extra, and now I have to maintain it more than I would something painted.

 

Mine is 5x8. I wanted to keep it as short as possible for off-road use. Doing it again, I might opt for the additional 2 feet. I don't think the length would hamper off-road use, and the extra storage would be nice. Nice but not necessary.

Keep it light - as light as possible. For me, this is a hard-sided tent, not a small camper. To each his own, of course. Think about your use of it, to decide what you really need. Towing off road is a big use for me, so I wanted to keep the weight down.

I also opted for trailer brakes - again, not necessary, but really nice to have. Wheels match the truck, so I only carry one spare. I use spacers on the trailer axles to give me hub-centric mounting.

I run a 2nd battery in the truck, so no battery on the trailer. Fridge is also in the truck, not in the galley. Minor inconvenience sometimes - great advantage others. I can power the trailer from the truck battery when necessary, and I can also power the trailer from shore (110v) when available.

The only things on the trailer that require power are lights and USB charge ports. We camp dark, so the lights are not on very often. Red lights are nice inside to save your night vision.

For water, I use a 2 1/2 gallon Scepter water can with a hand pump added to the lid. Works great, doesn't need power.

Look at a Max-Coupler as a hitch. You will need a receiver on the front of the trailer to use one. They work great, and don't make noise.

I'm not sure if this answered your question - I seem to be rambling. However, I am currently sitting at camp on the beach in Key West...

Any more questions, just ask. I have some good details in my build thread as well.

Enjoy!

 

Thanks to everyone for their input. I'm on the same page with a lot of these comments. Between this TNTTT and a lot of reading I think I've got a pretty good idea of what I want/need. My friend that's going to help build it has started a business building them so I've got his great experience to lean on during the build. Based on that (and some of this feedback) this is where I think I'm going:

• 5x9 shell on a 14ft trailer frame. This will allow decent storage inside, an 80" bed, galley, and a tongue box big enough for a fridge and additional storage.
• Roof rack capable of a RTT, carrying a canoe, supporting awnings, etc.
• I'm totally taking the hard sided tent approach. I do think I'll insulate the top but not going to worry about the sides. We're doing doors on each side and those will be the only windows (will have a roof vent).
• 100% aluminum skin.
• Going with timbren axles, not sure about brakes but I may since I've got a brake controller. Will match wheels and tires to the Tacoma so I don't need an additional spare. I figure in a pinch I'm really carrying three at that point and can ditch the trailer and come back for it with a tire if needed.
• Scott is the second person to tell me to go with a max coupler and from a bit of research I'm sold.
• We think the total weight of everything will come in just around 2,000lbs.
• I've already got a 120w solar panel. Probably going to go cheap on the battery and just do 100ah AGM. Think I'll only do 110v when I have shore power and go without an inverter. My main use for power will be the LED lighting on the trailer, the fridge, and device charging. I am going to include 60W USB-C for MacBooks and iPads.

Some additional questions

• What's everybody doing for water? Just out of the truck right now I've been doing a 5 gallon jerry can and carrying a filtration system. This has worked great for me solo but with the whole family and the space of a trailer I've been thinking about adding a 15 gallon tank. I'll be able to mount a 6" thick tank under the trailer and still have more clearance than my Tacoma. Really torn about this.
• Has anyone mounted solar on their trailer? I like the idea of having a 100w panel permanently on the trailer and then being able to add my portable panel in parallel.
• Anyone done a shower setup?
• How off-road have you taken a trailer? I took my old Pathfinder on some pretty rough terrain, but so far on the Tacoma I've mostly done forest service roads. High clearance is fine, probably not going to do much crawling. Went over Hagerman Pass in CO earlier this fall, but I'm not sure I'd pull a trailer through that.

My wife and I used to go backcountry hiking, and we'll probably do more of that at some point in the future, but with two elementary aged kids car camping is just a lot more convenient. The option to overland, boondock, and stay away from crowded campgrounds doing day hikes is primarily what's driving this insanity. I also love the ability to shove food in a cooler/fridge, toss a bag of clothes in the trailer, and just go for a quick weekend trip.

 

Sounds like a solid plan! We're also a family of four, youngest just about to turn 4, oldest is 7.

Re: your plan

• Max Couplers are handy. I just upgraded my version from an earlier model to the current version for the vehicle side. My original version didn't have the "wings" or cradle, so it was a bit of work to connect/disconnect. The newer version is a definite improvement. Don't be shy about greasing it. The new style has zircs on both pivots (roll and yaw), the previous version only had them on the trailer side (the "roll" pivot). You can order them directly from CU Offroad, though you may be able to find them cheaper elsewhere: https://www.cuoffroad.com/product-lines/max-coupler-line/
• Go with brakes. At least, get the drums now. You don't have to wire it up but you might as well if you have the controller My trailer comes in around 1600ish lbs and I notice a huge difference when I've got the controller plugged in and when I don't. Legally, I don't need them, but I do sure like them. I recommend them to anyone on the fence, especially if the tow vehicle is already wired for a brake controller.

For your questions:

• I use 1 gallon square clear plastic jugs with the screw top. I think they run about a buck apiece at pretty much any grocery store that carries jugs of water. They're inexpensive, surprisingly durable, easy to refill, and if one fails you only lose a gallon tops. The small size makes them easy to stash wherever you've got room, and you can scale the amount you bring up or down depending on where you're going. One of my galley storage cubbies holds four of them, I usually have two in the truck as part of my walking out kit. If we're boondocking I'll add another four in the bed of the truck. I did make a bunch of canvas and flannel covers with nice nylon webbing handles for my water jugs. The jugs used to come with indestructible plastic handles that fit around the opening, now they come with what looks like Tyvek handles that are glued to the bottle and will eventually fail. The waxed canvas slows any leaks down and protects the jug. The flannel lining give a little padding, but I can flip the covers inside out to put the flannel outside, soak it with water and use evaporative cooling to cool the water down if it's hot out. It was also a good sewing project for figuring out a new machine
  
• I have a hard mounted flexible 100w panel on the back of the trailer:

I used Blue Sea Cable Clams for routing the cables inside. If I were doing it again, I'd use Scan Strut cable penetrations. I used the Scan Strut for my truck's 160w panel and I think they are easier to get to seal. I had to use a crap ton of sealant with the Cable Clams. I'll know if they leak though, since the water will drip right next to where I'm sleeping

• I have a very primitive shower setup that is still a work in progress. I'm using a telescoping tarp pole to sling a black MSR Dromedary bag up about 8' into the air. Somewhere I've got an adapter that lets you connect an airline tube to the MSR bag, then I'll figure out how to rig a hand sprayer to it. The rough plan is to put the MSR bags on the roof in the morning, let them soak in the sun all day and then hoist & shower. I have a few of the water bags. If the water isn't warm enough, I'll just heat some on the stove and add it to the bag. It won't be a nice hot pressurized shower, but it'll be better than baby wipes.
  
• How technical are you looking at for offroad? I've had zero issues on any forest road that I've tried. I played a game of follow-the-leader trying to keep up with a friend in a Unimog. I did pretty well til I high-centered the truck, but I don't think I can blame the trailer for that. You do have to pay more attention to turns. There's a rule of thumb that I've seen tossed around where if the distance between the trailer wheels and the back wheels of the truck matches the distance between the truck's front and rear wheels then the trailer will track exactly behind. I'm not entirely sure that I buy that, but I think I'm pretty close. The trailer will cut the corner if I go too sharp but it's not horrible. I did build my wheels partially under/into the trailer so that the trailer follows exactly in the truck's tracks if I'm going straight. It's handy when pulling up next to a curb too. I did practice in the back 40 of my local mall parking lot a little bit. I would drive up 90* to a parking spot, then figure out what I needed to in order to put the trailer and truck in between the lines of the stalls. I also have to turn 90* while backing in order to get the trailer into my driveway. There is definitely a learning curve, but it isn't bad. If I were planning on a more technical, switchbacky trail then I would try to run it without the truck beforehand and have another rig up the trail when I had the trailer (the other rig would be able to give me a heads up for traffic). I do carry enough recovery gear to winch myself backwards since we almost always travel as a solo vehicle, but I haven't yet had to use it.

One other thing with the trailer vs only the truck is that I do travel much slower with the trailer. I've read plenty of stories that involve flopping an offroad trailer and in almost every case it's due to excessive speed. I'm fortunate to have lots of time when I travel, but I've also caught myself with get-there-itis, especially at the end of a day of driving. We try to limit our time on the road to 3-4 hours a day with the kiddos. Going longer is doable but it makes everyone more irritable so we tend to avoid it.

There are also recent cases of people bending frames towing offroad, and I think that speed is a factor in these as well. Not to heap on more fear, but if you google "Bent Ute" you'll find lots of issues with trailers in Australia bending the frame of the truck. In many of the pictures you can see that they're towing with heavy campers that have a lot of weight behind the axle. I try to be very careful how I load the truck and shift as much of the heavy stuff to the front of the bed.

Still, we love our trailer and the adventures we've had with it

 

I love your water setup - actually makes a lot of sense to have that level of flexibility. Had any difficulties when you're refilling having to do so many containers? It had actually crossed my mind to go with a bunch of 2 gallon jugs.

Your solar setup is almost exactly what I'm thinking. Thanks for the tip on the cable penetrations. How well does it keep your battery charged? Any additional charging you use regularly?

I'm not looking for anything crazy off-road. I'm waiting on a set of sliders to put on just for some peace of mind, but I doubt I'll ever use them. I'd guess I won't be doing anything that I can't handle in stock Tacoma. My trip in September I tapped a skid plate once, a few tight switchbacks over the divide but nothing that I wouldn't be comfortable doing with a trailer. I'm pretty cautious when towing in general so speed shouldn't be a factor. I do think I'll go with brakes, looking at the setup I'd need for the Timbren axle it's only a few hundred dollars difference. I've already got a P3 controller I need to get installed, this will give me the excuse to do it.

 

Have you considered a pump sprayer shower? Pick up a new 1 or 2 gallon weed sprayer from HD or other, cut off the mister, and use a hose clamp to connect a small sink/hand faucet. Easy way to get a simple pressurized shower, and you can paint it black if you need. Lots of examples on youtube, but here's one for an idea:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9eBK6xM9ok

Awesome camper!

 

No major issues with filling the water, I refill them whenever there's an opportunity. It's the kid's job when we're at a developed campground. So far, they love carrying the jugs over and holding the spigot on. I try not to get it to the point to where we have to do all of the jugs at the same time, though the carrying bags have longer handles so it's relatively easy to carry three or four jugs per hand.

Speaking of kid's jobs, it's their job to put the wheel chocks on. I've got four cheapo plastic ones that are pretty light weight weight and easily managed by them. If we have loose firewood, their job is to unload that as well. Usually though, our firewood is in an action packer in the back of the truck.

The panel does a decent job when we have enough sunlight. It is convenient having it permanently mounted, but that convenience comes with a loss of efficiency. I don't usually bother trying to keep it pointed at the sun since I'd have to move the entire trailer. I think that a temporary portable panel would yield better results but it would also increase the odds of theft and entail more setup. My fridge is plugged in the bed of the truck (which has a separate 160w panel), so really I'm just topping the battery up from running the lights and fans, plus whatever is used charging phones. The only other draws on the electrical are the propane/co leak detector and the solar panel charge controller. The controller is actually a bigger draw than I'd expected, pulling about 0.2 amps. It's enough to run the battery down in storage over time, so I've added a switch that disconnects the panel and controller from the battery.

For additional charging, I've got a 10a NOCO in the battery compartment with an external plug that I can use as a poor man's shore power. My battery compartment is on the aft driver side corner of the trailer, under the galley counter. You can see the silver clamshell vent I'm using to vent the space. The small black fitting is a 12v cigarette lighter style socket that I originally used for connecting a battery tender. It's no longer connected, though I keep thinking I'll wire it up for external power. In reality, I haven't had a need for power in the galley, so right now it just seals the hole. The bigger black fitting is the NOCO socket. I'll use the NOCO for a day or two after a trip to top off the battery before it sits, then I'll throw it on again the night before hitting the road to make sure it's topped up.




On your brake controller, someone makes a really clean mounting plate for the P3 and the 3rd gen. I thought it was @MESO but I don't see it on his website. Here's an image I found online (ha! it's on TW somewhere...) I'm going to try and print up something similar for the 2nd gen, though it's going to be a while before I get to it.

Thanks! The nice thing about the MSR bags is that they take up about as much space as a pair of socks when they're empty and I had almost everything lying around the garage to make it
If we decide to go pressurized I think I'll go with a home brewed version of a Road Shower out of ABS pipe. I can run the piping alongside one of the awnings on the roof:


The solar panel was added after this picture, but I don't think I'll have an issue making a system that doesn't interfere with it Oh, and I've also painted much of the roof white after a couple of hot & sunny trips. It's white from the aft L track mounts all the way forward now.

 

Also, @kerner my sig line doesn't always show up depending on your device, but take a look at my build thread over on TNTTT. I go over a lot of the issues that I ran into, plus how/why I did things. It also has decent coverage of the evolution of the trailer from first use to current state:

http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=50&t=68563

 

Solar panels are flexible self stick variety from Amazon


Water heater on side connects to propane tank and water tank. Lights instantly with water flow, heats quickly. Hatch under bedroom is the basement that stores all the camp gear for a base camp. Chairs, tables, ez up, awnings.


Full kitchen with fridge, oven, stove, and wine cabinet.

Yes, we're more than most want in a trailer but we live comfortably anywhere we can tow it. We've got 30,000 miles on this set up, nearly 10,000 miles since June.

Build thread is on Expedition Portal ( CrowsWing) and TNTTT ( so long and thanks for all the fish )

*in my short sightedness I edited the quotes with answers. You'll need to expand the quotes to read those

 

Couldn’t find it on the web page, what is the entry price point?

 

Per their post over on ExPo, base price is $47,990

https://expeditionportal.com/forum/...-built-boreas-xt12.217639/page-4#post-2829677

 

Thanks. That is a bit outside of my budget.

 

Mine too. I have no doubt that they're a quality product, I have a hard and fast rule that I don't finance toys

 

That top picture looks like Craters of the Moon You've also reminded me that I need to go get caught up on your blog. So much for early bed time tonight

 

100% agree.

 

We've had a couple of posts since Craters of the Moon..... enjoy

 

Does the white make that much of a difference? My friend typically does white on all his trailer roofs but can match the skins on the side. I was thinking about doing the whole thing in the natural aluminum color.

 

I think that it does. The bare aluminum can get very hot if you're somewhere hot and the trailer isn't in the shade. I haven't noticed a huge difference inside the trailer but the roof isn't too hot to touch now on a hot & sunny day. I really prefer the natural/bare aluminum look, even though it does scratch easily. I like how it wears and the scratches show that it's being used I did opt to add Raptor Liner to the front. I'm not super thrilled with how it came out, it lifted up in a few spots, but it looks good from a distance and does help protect from rock dings. The front of the trailer was getting blasted pretty good by gravel despite the stock mudflaps on the truck. If my tongue were longer I'd look at bending up a hoop and making one of those canvas rock guards like you see on the Australian trailers.