The (failed) Moonshine Camper

[GLTHFJ60]

Amazon product ASIN B01GL78U8O
Here's the dehumidifier. Your question about being too dry? Not that I noticed. Typically I wake up covered in moisture from the air when I camp and its hot in the tent or camper. With that little guy in my 50 sq ft it was great.

And you can set the humidity level you're happy with - so if it's too dry just bump it up with the little digital thingy... Only drawback, it's water capacity is tiny. But it has a hose attachment too.

The AC:
Amazon product ASIN B01DLPUWL2
It's about 250 now - the reviews aren't great, but it's the smallest btu I could find for a reasonable price.

The dehumidifier is nice and compace versus a shorter, wider one which is nice for tucking in a corner. If I were you, I'd get both of these and build a little corner for them to fit into and strap down.

For the AC output hole, I used one of these: (not this one specifically - if you end up going this route, I'll search some more and find you the exact one I used.

Seasense Waterproof Deck Plate

Open it when you use the AC, close it when you don't. nice and water tight.

Crap, no clue why those amazon links went bye bye... lmk if you need me to get you them.

If you could link me to something at least similar to what you have, that would be awesome

I'd really reconsider osh. It wont like the vibration of road travel, as well as all the extra glue involved in making it will offgas for a while.

Ply or marine ply is your friend. Do it right once, so you dont have to do it over later

I have put significant time and expense into doing it right, but I appreciate your willingness to help. What evidence do you have that OSB won't like the vibration of road travel?

The OSB is sealed on both sides with epoxy/fiberglass, so offgassing is not a concern. People have built boats out of OSB, I doubt this will see more abuse than in a boat.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Nice. Yay nascar. See you are making lots of use of a kreg jig? I love how well they work.

Yessir. Couldn't come up with a better/faster way to join boards in this type of layout. Camper used staples to join all the wood, and many of the side wall structure pieces don't even touch

 

[jamesurq]

@jamesurq Starboard? Do you know of any retailers in this area?

Never used any - but I'm sure there are some. You can buy it online in 4x8 sheets and have it delivered....

 

[jamesurq]

If you could link me to something at least similar to what you have, that would be awesome



I have put significant time and expense into doing it right, but I appreciate your willingness to help. What evidence do you have that OSB won't like the vibration of road travel?

The OSB is sealed on both sides with epoxy/fiberglass, so offgassing is not a concern. People have built boats out of OSB, I doubt this will see more abuse than in a boat.

Yeah - I did. No clue why the thing didn't come through. Trying again, there's something wrong with the amazon links on the board. Hokey solution but it'll work:

 

[stevezero]

David, I went to alro metals in greensboro. They have starboard, genuine King Starboard. It is stupid expensive for it there, even with a bioil canning. Even with a deep discount, was still going to be $200.00 per 4x4 ft sheet.

The downside to starboard (other than the cost locally), is that it will have a little bit of heat sagging or possibly oilcanning on very hot days.

 

[stevezero]

If you could link me to something at least similar to what you have, that would be awesome



I have put significant time and expense into doing it right, but I appreciate your willingness to help. What evidence do you have that OSB won't like the vibration of road travel?

The OSB is sealed on both sides with epoxy/fiberglass, so offgassing is not a concern. People have built boats out of OSB, I doubt this will see more abuse than in a boat.

You may be ok with the epoxy sealed osb. Osb and water dont mix. It will separate in a very short time period when exposed to water.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

You may be ok with the epoxy sealed osb. Osb and water dont mix. It will separate in a very short time period when exposed to water.

PT ply will be used in the roof, but the walls will be sufficiently waterproofed. If OSB is good enough for a house, it's perfectly fine for a camper trailer. I see your point though, why pinch $8 a sheet when spending hundreds on other stuff.

 

[mtweller]

just make sure you seal any drilled holes or fasteners. 3M 5200 marine sealant is the bomb.

ETA - I've used Starboard on boat projects and it's a really good product for wet environments for sure. I usually tried to find it on ebay and could find some pretty good deals that way if you are patient and flexible on size needs.

 

[jamesurq]

Starboard being a brand name will be more. HDPE is the name of the material. Generic cutting board material basically.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

@stevezero got in my head. Back to plywood for the roof and sides (epoxied and glassed). The two coated OSB sheets will be used as sheeting underneath the cabover and on the front bottom panel.

Huge thanks to @Fort Knox for coming over on Saturday and Sunday to give me a hand with the camper. Got a huge amount of work done on the cabover, repaired ALL of the rot. In doing so, we eliminated the front window, and the front eyebrow, both to modernize the camper and also to reduce the chance of leaks in the future. SUPER STOKED on the progress. One month to GSMTR!

Started by replacing the floor framing. Bottom side wall framing on both sides was replaced with 3/4" ply that was cut to size. Main front floor rail was replaced with a custom ripped piece, as were two floor purlins (joists?) that were completely rotten. Floor plywood was fine, as was the side wall interior plywood, so the new framing was built to that.

Once that was done, I could cut the roof open and remove the rest of the rot, then put framing in place to change the pitch of the roof. My battery circular saw was used to trim the original plywood side wall.

The open roof camper!

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Finally, built the front walls up from there. Thin interior sheeting first, then plywood framing. Super solid structure now. 2" square wood you see providing support was to keep the floor flat and square while the walls were built up.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Can't be happier with the progress. Thanks again for your help Allen

 

[stevezero]

I think ya made the right call on the ply. Look at home roofs, and you can see the rippled or ribbed [for mutual pleasure] rooflines that OSB yields.

Camper is lookin great!

 

[GLTHFJ60]

I'm still not convinced, given the epoxy and fiberglass, but I can't justify saving $8 per sheet for ~12 sheets considering the other costs.

More to come.

 

[mtweller]

I absolutely love it when people practice what they preach. Probably the right call JC!!

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Also, credit to @Fort Knox for the name, The Moonshine Motel

 

[weejub]

Probably better than Mayhem Motel.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Probably better than Mayhem Motel.

Yes, but that is also a great name.

 

[S4Cruiser]

Tons of progress!

 

[Fort Knox]

Glad to help out bro! I loved being able to see the progress. Sooooo much more sturdy than when we started!!