Wannabee FT in Cargo Trailer

[trailer-t]

I concur on not cutting corners when ordering. They did finance through Sheffield if that is an issue (or at least in 2016)

The hard part is trying to figure what you really need to have down the road when ordering/building.. A possible the roof upgrade or heavier aluminum outside? Bracing/wiring for roof AC?
Door locations? Maybe having just a 3 foot RV Door in the back instead of the traditional ramp vs Barn doors? The list is endless and one of the reasons I love the blank slate of a CT. Pay particular attention to the internal dimensions you have to work with. 7 feet width does not necessarily mean 7 feet of inside space (at least on mine)--like 6' 7" or something. t

 

[kygreg]

As far as design goes, use a couple of sheets of graph paper, the ones with 1/4" squares. Draw the trailer's dimensions at 1/2" = 1'-0", Each square is 6"x6", just add them up. On a second sheet of graph paper draw up the thing you want to have, like a bed, kitchen counter composting toilet, etc. draw them to scale and cut them out. Now you can arrange them on your trailer base plan to see how they fit. I will suggest that you get the smallest trailer that meets your needs, it will be easier to haul, especially on BLM roads.

Instead of trying to shrink your house onto a trailer, try thinking about how a long distance hiker might outfit a trailer. They have a 20 lbs backpack that holds everything they need for a grand adventure. A trailer home will be like a luxury condo compared to what they live with now. Every decision the hiker makes Is a grand luxury they didn't have before. This is more of an additive process instead of subtractive.

Anyway, this approach helped me with my design, and it might help you, good luck!

 

[jwhite]

Something else I would add is to think ahead when designing your trailer incase you have to remove or remodel it.
this happened to me I did alot of planning around useing one of the portable ac units that has a hose I cut like 3 holes in the floor trying to figure how ti make it work only to find out they don't, complete waiste of money, having to go back and try to fix the floor after the kitchen a shower was installed was a real pain to fix.
another mistake I made was putting my murphy bed across the back from wall to wall instead of against the wall front to rear before it was almost impossible to put the sheets on the bed and lifting and lowering was really heavy
the other way gave me about 2 feet of space to walk around the bed and putting on the sheets and lowering and raising the bed is easier now so that was another remodel after the fact.

 

[trailer-t]

^^^^^^^These are good points to raise and exactly why I just put together a largely "no-build" layout to begin that could be removed (or just moved around) if you forget something or discover something does not work out as expected. Ultimately I will probably build more permanent bed frames, but for now --just a futon in my trailer and a camping cot in my Suburban. No cabinets --only plastic drawers (Sterilite) . a wire shelving unit (for the fridge oven and microwave etc) and several Rubbermade fasttrack wall mounted storage baskets. I will likely never do fixed cabinets. I do like tabletops that hang along the wall and pop up when needed. t

 

[izifaddag]

This is a really useful thread. Some interesting stuff here.
I did not know there was a 7 foot width trailer available. Where I live all they had was 6 ft. I had to decide and buy fast because I ended up in a really bad situation. It was 12th April 2019.Stopped work forcibly on the 1st bought the trailer on the 12th.
Managed to get the insulation, AC, flooring and painting done thru April / May and then was forced to move in. I slept on an airbed on the floor and built it around me. I do not recommend doing this. I also do not recommend an airbed of any kind. I went through 5. It doesn't matter how much you spend they leak.
It has been a year now and I have made a home on wheels. So much got done and so much still needs to be done but I got burned out back in February. I just quit then the country went into lockdown. Been stuck ever since.
I also just went with modular stuff and I failed. For example I bought a fold down futon / couch from Walmart. That was a horrible idea. It was so uncomfortable as either a bed or seat I gave it to goodwill. My old microwave got ditched too - it was great but just a tad too big. Got a 700 watt replacement. I did a really good job on a combo lengthways murphy bed and cabinets but it is heavy. I am rethinking that now.
It really is a never ending process.
I now need to move. I am on SS and watch the pennies. So it means breaking away from the cheap hook up I have been relying on and switching to full time on my Honda 2000. I am so concerned about this. Solar would be great but that is going to be a massive expense and upheaval. I am also concerned about a rack for panels on the roof creating a lot of drag further reducing gas mpg.
So many questions so little time to answer them.
Great thread Just what I needed.

 

[user 423]

I am also concerned about a rack for panels on the roof creating a lot of drag further reducing gas mpg.

Unless you do a lot of traveling it wouldn't make that much difference.

If you stay camped at one spot for a while you could use portable panels and wouldn't need to mount them on the roof.

A basic system doesn't have to be a massive expense.

 

[trailer-t]

^^^^^^^^^^^ izifaddag

My two Futons from Big Lots --the medium quality (Light Brown)-- seem comfortable to me but that is all very subjective.
link: https://www.biglots.com/search/?Ntt=camel futon

I sleep on one at home about half the time t

 

[izifaddag]

Unless you do a lot of traveling it wouldn't make that much difference.

If you stay camped at one spot for a while you could use portable panels and wouldn't need to mount them on the roof.

A basic system doesn't have to be a massive expense.

Yes you are right it isn't as bad as it used to be but 1 x Mighty Max = $675. 2 x Newpowa 100w panels is $170 or 300w Dokio portable is $325. Then an MPPT controller maybe $125. Various cables connectors etc etc it is starting to get up there. Maybe $1250 total tops. Not bad for sure but just a little scary. Just a little. I'll probably do it.
Yes the idea is to do 14 nights in one spot move down the road a little and then rinse and repeat. Unless I can find a PT job. That is a whole other subject.

 

[izifaddag]

^^^^^^^^^^^ izifaddag

My two Futons from Big Lots --the medium quality (Light Brown)-- seem comfortable to me but that is all very subjective.
link:    https://www.biglots.com/search/?Ntt=camel futon

I sleep on one at home about half the time      t

I think I could deal with a futon actually because my foam mattress is not that great. I took the recommendation of Lee Blake on one of Nomadic dot dot dot's videos and tbh it is not that great and was expensive. I'll bet comfort wise it is the same as your futon. It is ok but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. The frame of my futon was the problem. Like a torture device

 

[trailer-t]

izifaddag, I'm no solar expert here, But I personally would be looking at some cheaper battery alternatives if on a tight budget. I have two 6 volt Duracell golf cart batteries (gc-2?) wired in parallel to 12v --225 amp hours that cost about 100-125 each from Sams. Half of your budget above is just the battery as I read the post. I'm sure that the battery has a lot of advantages--but .... if on a tight budget, you can upgrade them down the road when you don't have to buy everything at once--plus you have also have a Honda generator as back up and gas is cheap for now. t

 

[trailer-t]

^^^^^^^^^

Oops correction. I typed "wired parallel" in above post and meant two 6 volt batteries wired in Series to 12 volts.

 

[traceyinwd]

Well it's been over a year since I moved into my custom made 7 x 14 V-nose cargo trailer (Oct. 2019). The custom part was 2 windows and a door, and added insulation from the factory in NC. The cost was $6K. It has seamless outside panels, and 2 small vents - one high and one low on opposite sides. I did not have them put in an a/c which would've cost $1k - huge mistake. I tried using a floor a/c and that was an epic fail and wasted $200+. I ended up paying $1,500 to add one 3 days after arriving in FL. I had a local carpenter build out the V-Nose with upper and lower cabinets, and a little round sink I bought off Amazon. I painted the inside - doesn't look so great but oh well. I am using a clear plastic water container with spigot to use as non-drinking water. I put a plastic 6 gallon container underneath with a hose connected to sink for drainage. I empty that by hand into a septic pipe in the ground that's near my trailer. I also had the carpenter put up a side table that folded down, and stick on wood looking flooring. It's still doing well. I bought a Berkey water filter for drinking water which I love.

I bought a used day bed that I love because it's plenty of sleeping room and also I use as my "couch". While traveling my first time to FL, it moved around. I got a little too cocky at the end of my drive and started driving faster and that really made it move forward and ended up moving the bottom of the built in cabinet a little of which I could just readjust by hand.

I put a TV in on a swivel. I use a portable MIFI for streaming on TV and my computer. Later I bought on Amazon these poles for my hanging clothes that they use in stores. Recently I bought metal shelving so I could organize more, but now it looks more crowded. I have a bucket with toilet seat on it and use cat litter whenever I need to use it. And then I double or triple bag it from grocery store bags and throw it in the garbage.

I cook using a NuWave oven and a convection one burner cooktop. It works great for me.

With all that being said, I know it sounds a little much but what happened is I went to FL where I used to live and have friends and ended up renting a spot in someone's yard that sits on a creek and ended up staying there. It's a gorgeous spot and there's lots of wild life. The house on the property is being renovated so I was able to use the bathroom and shower in there. At first I had to shower outside, which I actually loved doing. I just put up a tarp and showered under the stars. The water was warm coming out of the hose and I just opened up my barn doors and attached the tarp with those heavy clamps. I did this for probably 3 months give or take. At some point I had to shower at the gym because it got too cold. It was a little inconvenient but I was ok with it.

I'm still living in it, but have recently decided to buy a used travel trailer to live in. I am growing out of the cargo trailer. My goal was to live in the cargo trailer for at least a year. I am thinking of keeping the cargo trailer for actual camping trips. I have a good friend that has a cargo trailer and she thought I was going to go camping with her and her husband when I got down there. But I live in my cargo trailer and it's not as easy to pick up and go. But that's what I want to do - be able to go places to go camping.

Although I've learned a lot about minimalistic living, I've started accumulating too much stuff. I am constantly getting rid of things. I am attaching pictures. It doesn't show the metal "stand alone" shelving unit that is to the left of the kitchen/counter space. In the end, I am happy with the decision to live in the cargo trailer. Many people were almost aghast that I lived in such a small area, but I have been quite happy in it other than not having room to do my painting or yoga - stuff like that. I've had to improvise, but I prefer to be able to do things inside like that. Because of my wanderlust nature, I prefer this kind of living at least for now until I change my mind. My email is [email protected] if anyone wants to communicate by email. Thank you all for all the feedback and help! ~ Tracey

 

[traceyinwd]

It doesn't look like all of the pictures uploaded....Here they are.

 

[bullfrog]

Thanks for the follow up! Many of us end up with several base camps we travel from! LOL!!! After 20 years of this we have collected an old motorhome, an old truck and topper, a tent and a newer travel trailer and old Suburban to tow it with spread out all over the southwest. It really is hard to simplify our lives!