Trailer Time!

It took two days, but I managed to pull the wires up through my conduit and back into the electrical box in the back of the trailer.  It took a lot of manipulating and maneuvering, but I managed to get all the right wires into the right spots. 

I ended up taking the wheels off; something I thought would be a lot harder than to do. 

Thankfully I had bought a lug nut wrench that had the four typical sizes.  The lug nut wrench from the Honda did not fit the teardrop's.  With the wheels popped off, I could wiggle my arm up into the well and fish the wiring through. 

The lug nut wrench I bought from Harbor Freight folds up so that it can fit in the storage bin of the teardrop.  What a genius design!

This time, I decided to 'fix' some of my mistakes from wiring the trailer the first time.  I had used butt joint connectors, which worked fine, but did not keep out moisture if it worked its way up and under the electrical tape.  So, I purchased butt connectors that were 'heat shrinkable.'  When the joints are connected, heating them with a lighter 'seals' them and makes a water-tight connection.  I should have done it this way the first time.  There are a few connections on the trailer that still need to be 'switched,' but they were good enough at this time.

I also used zip ties to snug all the wires into place.  I must say, they look particularly nice and neat. You can see in the image that there is now a two-stage battery charger that is 'in-line.'  This is to keep the battery from 'over charging' when on the road. 

The piece of this puzzle that I'll need to keep in mind is that whenever the teardrop is connected to the Honda Civic, I'm essentially sharing the charge of the tow vehicle.  The battery charger will stop the charge when the battery is full, but I'll have to be careful of leaving the car plugged in because even the tiny LED battery meter will draw some power and could possibly pull down the car's battery too.  I'll just have to either disconnect the charging circuit or use the master kill switch.

I'm Glad I'm Not An Electrician All The Time...

I spent a couple of days crawling around under both the car and the trailer.  I spent an hour on the phone over the course of a couple of days debating different approaches to wiring the Civic for the trailer and the charger. 

I was directed to find a circuit that was 'only on' when the ignition was keyed.  I didn't even know that there was a fuse box under the hood, but it turns out there are two fuse boxes.  I tested each of the circuits under the hood to see if one of them was 'switchable.'  No dice.  So, I learned that I was going to have to tap into the interior fuse box and drill a hole through the firewall.  I was very anxious about doing that.  So, I decided on another approach.

 I was going to use a fuse tap to avoid having to splice into the actual wiring in the car.  This was a pretty cool device that I had never seen before.  You just insert the pulled fuse with another fuse of the same amperage.  The wire that went out of the tap was your 'hot' wire.  This wire would then go out to the teardrop in order to 'charge' the battery when on the road.  The only problem would be that the 'always on' circuit has the potential to draw down the battery of the tow vehicle when the trailer is connected.

 Here was my solution for getting into the watertight fuse box.  I was going to drill a tiny hole and insert a rubber grommet which would secure the hole and allow the hot wire to pass through.

Here is the wire and the rubber grommet.  This worked pretty well.

I learned that there are at least three different size fuses of the same amperage.  All three of these fuses are 15 amp fuses.  However, only the middle one would fit in the fuse tap so I needed to run to the hardware store and get some extras.

Here is the fuse tap with the two 15 amp fuses in place. I pulled the wire through the grommet and then snapped the fuse box lid into place.  Next I ran 12 gauge wire down past the engine and back along the bottom of the vehicle and out to the hitch.  That was all I could do today

Wiring Nuts

The hitch went on without a 'hitch!'  However, the electrical was quite another story.  I didn't know what exactly I needed and so I relied a bit too fervently on etrailer.com to help me decide.  In hindsight, I should have spoken with a person rather than using their automated online services.  I ordered a wiring kit for my Honda Civic, but ended up ordering one that required splicing into the car's electrical system.  I thought I ordered this:

So, I spoke with the very helpful staff at etrailer.com and purchased the above wire harness that has 'clips' that connect directly into the manufacturers connections.  This means I do not have to splice or interfere with the vehicle's stock wiring.  To me, an electrical novice, there was no question which I preferred.

The connections couldn't have been simpler.  Click the different units.  It was even easier than I thought; the clips were made to ONLY fit on one particular wire harness; it would almost be impossible to do it incorrectly.  Almost.  We'll see when I plug it in to the trailer to test it. 

All the ground wires were secured to this ground post on the interior of the trunk.

That was about all I got accomplished today.  I plan to run the wiring on both the vehicle and the trailer in the next couple of days. 

Etrailer.com Success Story

I decided to put a hitch on my other vehicle.  It gets considerably better gas mileage than our CRV and I am planning to take it on my first really big road trip out west.  By all reports, it's pretty easy to install.  I'm looking at it as an adventure.

I ordered it and all the wiring I need from etrailer.com.  The whole process was efficient and very pleasant.  I ended up ordering online, but realized I had forgotten a few key pieces, like the tow ball!  So, I needed to call and adjust my order.  The sales staff was incredibly helpful and knowledgeable.  They knew everything about what my vehicle needed.

Because my order was over $99, I earned free shipping, which would have been considerable since the hitch itself was quite heavy and large.  It arrived within a few days with no issues at all!

A few days later, I realized that I needed to come up with a solution for charging my teardrop's battery while on my upcoming road trip.  Most camping facilities in National Parks or Bureau of Land Management/National Forests out west do not have water or electric hook ups available.  So, I was going to need a way to charge the batteries while on the road to each new spot.

I had done a lot of reading on the Teardrops and Tiny Trailers Forum, but being a visual learner, none of those discussion threads really helped me visualize it.  That's when I came upon the Q & A on etrailer.com.  Someone had the same situation and there was an excellent answer posted online.  This seemed like the solution I needed.  It was a battery isolator that cut off the power to the teardrop's battery when the ignition was switched off.  This would ensure that both batteries would not run down when using lights/fan/CPAP machines in the teardrop.

While this solved the charging situation, it did not prevent the teardrop's battery from overcharging.  I'm glad I thought of this because the potential for overcharging could be very possible on long road trips.  That's when the knowledgeable sales staff at etrailer.com came through for me again.  The salesperson queried me about what I was using the isolator for.  He had no idea what a teardrop was, but when I explained how the power system in the teardrop worked, he came up with a Tekonsha Two Stage 12 Volt DC Battery Charger.

This charger will prevent overcharging and is small enough to neatly fit into my electrical cabinet.  I plan to mount it opposite the AC charger I have for when I'm plugged into shore power.  I'm amazed at how 'complicated' the 'super simple' electrical system I've built has become.  Another way to do this would be to add a solar panel to the teardrop.  A solar panel would allow a trickle charge to the battery but would require a whole lot of other devices along the way; maybe at some point that will become a viable option.  For now, I think my system will work well.

"She's Done!"

I can't believe it, but I think I can say that 'She's Done!'

I had a few of last touches that I wanted to do today.  Two of them were merely cosmetic, one was going to be very useful.  I have been waiting for weeks to be able to finally put my Carpe Diem decal on the hatch.  I think it looks incredible!

Moving to the front of the teardrop, I needed to apply my foam rock guard.  I decided against the steel diamond plate due to cost and weight.  I think the neoprene will work well for many years.  And, if it gets too messed up, I can switch it out for a very low cost.

After installing the rock guard, I carefully drilled the holes for my cargo basket.  The best part is that I've kept the tongue piece on so that if I wanted to, I could remove it and insert it on the hitch of our car quite easily.

I installed the 120 volt inverter under the shelf in the cabin.  Now we can use either 12 volt or 120 if we ever need it in the cabin.

The indoor/outdoor thermometer is easy to move about; it's simply velcroed to the side wall.  I also did a bunch of little things in the cabin:  I installed a few pieces of trim molding and put in a cedar floor in the bulkhead. 

My terrific daughter helped me finish these simple orange polka dot curtains.  They provide just the right amount of privacy while still allowing the air to move in and out.

And that's about it!  I have just a couple of small details to finish; one in the galley and one under the trailer.  Those two things will be finished easily tomorrow and then we can start planning the first road trip!  

I had the chance to show off the Carpe Diem today to a couple of friends who came by.  They were quite impressed!

Cabinets or No Cabinets? That is the Question.

So, I'm finally inside the cabin doing something besides pulling wires and installing fixtures.  I'm thinking about how I want the interior to work for me.  As you can see from the picture below, the teardrop has a very sturdy shelf over the wheel wells.  Believe it or not, my nearly 5' 11 year old fits perfectly there!  This brings me to the topic of today's post: to build cabinets or not?

The shelf/cabinet area of my teardrop.

I spent the night in the teardrop for the first time this past weekend.  I found myself using the front of the shelf as a 'foot rest' while reading at one point.  Another time I used the shelf to hold my regular glass of water I go to bed with each night.  This got me thinking.  Do I really want to build cabinets above the shelf or not?  

A really good friend of mine argues for not building cabinets.  He says that one can keep suitcases, bags, etc in the tow vehicle and there is really no 'need' for lots of storage in the cabin.  Pretty much you are only going to keep additional clothing, toiletries, etc. inside the cabin.  Because you can't stand up to change, you probably are going to be using some version of a 'side screen room' or shelter to do that in.  

A fellow teardrop enthusiast, Stacie, made a great suggestion on the TNTTT forum.  She suggested that I construct wooden bins to slide into the space above the wells.  This would allow one to store things out of sight, but still retain the ability to use the space as a shelf, bunk, etc.  I think that is brilliant.  I will think that over a bit.  In order to customize them even more, one could make them 'slant' from front to back.  this would further maximize the amount of storage in each bin.  

Another member of the TNTTT forum, Becky, shared that she decided on making a shelf too.  She wished she had made her shelf bigger.  She shared that she built a small cabinet below the shelf to hide her electrical work.  This got me thinking.  I need a place to 'hide' the 12 and 120 volt outlets.  I could make a small 'cabinet' below the shelf where I could hide these.  This would retain the shelf, but would solve the problem of getting the power into the cabin.  

I'm sure others will share fantastic ideas; that is what most amazes me about the teardrop community; they are always helping one another!

Electrical Success and Beginning Insulation

It was a good weekend of work on the Carpe Diem.  I finished all of the electrical in the galley and even figured out what I had done wrong on the switch for the porch lights!

I cleaned up all the wiring an then, still not sure if this is the best idea or not, I used the hot glue gun to anchor the wires.  I would have used wire clamps, but I couldn't screw them into the aluminum because there was nothing behind it.

Jack helped me cut and fit the pieces of insulation for the ceiling and the storage shelf area.  We just used friction to hold them into place now.  I still want to figure out how I'm going to cover the insulation.

Even the ceiling is coming along.  This is a really cool view of the teardrop; you can see how it is all coming together.

The weatherstripping on the doors is not quite thick enough.  It is a little hard to see in this image, but there is tiny gap near the floor.  I got another package of the thicker stuff and will try it when I have some more time.

These 27 LED lights were on sale at Harbor Freight for $3.00.  They have the adjustable hook and a magnet on the back.  They hang from the hinge on the door and will be great for when you have to go to the restroom or the shower.

The AC power system is still not working.  I am going to try re-stripping the wires and reconnect.

I suppose, even though I was very careful in the process, that I could have switched the two ends.  Someone noticed in one of my pictures that I could have accidentally sliced the wires when I was stripping the insulation.  I'll try re-doing the wires first to see if that might be the problem.  

One thing I thought about after climbing around inside the cabin is what to do with the storage shelf area.  I had planned to build cabinets there.  Now I'm not sure.  I'll have to figure out how to arrange the 12 volt and 120 volt plugs if I don't build the cabinets.  I'll think about it a bit more this week.

Undercoating and Re-wiring the Underside of the Trailer

Well, I can't wait any longer.  I need to get the bottom of my teardrop protected.  I've been thinking that I would take it to a place that does underbody spraying, like Line-X.  Unfortunately that has proven to be a lot more expensive than anticipated.  I've also read a lot of conflicting information on whether or not I even need to do anything to the pressure treated plywood bottom.  Personally, I'm all about over-engineering when and if I can.  It seems pretty easy to apply the spray on undercoating.

I purchased two different types of Rustoleum spray; one cost $4 and one cost $11.

 I'll give each a try and see which seems to work best.  The area I'm mostly concerned about is the wheel well; I replaced the aluminum wheel wells, when I replaced the galley, with plywood.  I treated the plywood with Thompson's Water Sealer and then painted over that, however, I think adding the undercoating on top of that will be a little bit of extra protection for very little investment.


I also want to cover the storage boxes.  Even though those are also treated and painted, the rubber coating will add additional weather resistance.

I will jack the teardrop up and then put it on the jack stands to allow me a bit more access underneath.

In addition to applying the undercoating, I'll re-do the marker lights and LED fixture wiring.  I tried using some wiring that I had and it turned out to be WAY TOO thick.  This was great for getting through my improvised conduit, but it made it very tough to pull through the holes I added for connections.  I purchased some auto wire that will work perfectly for these two applications.  Additionally, I purchased some water tight connectors for the wiring that will be under the trailer.  This will make the connections last a lot longer.  I don't want to have to climb under the teardrop more than I have to!

In addition to using the conduit for under the teardrop, I'm thinking that I can improvise a water tight connection through the wheel well; the wheel wells are super 'tall' on this model.  If I were to use a small junction box in the 'hidden' bottom part of the interior teardrop shelf, I could safely bring in the wires and then use plumber's caulk or a rubber washer or two to 'close up' the opening both in the well and in the hidden shelf area.  I think this will work well.

Electric and Other Stuff

So today was a mixture of many small projects.  I started wiring the trailer for electric.  I was a little intimidated by the idea of doing this.  I've had some negative experiences with electric in my house and have always ended up having the electricians come in and do it.  It just scares me too much.

So, today I started by testing out the various fixtures while connected to the battery.

Here are the two main interior fixtures, the dome light and the reading lights.  The first thing I had to remember is that sometimes fixtures come with different color wires.  Both of the above fixtures had white and black wires.  I just had to remember that black was hot on those fixtures.  I then connected the red wires to these terminals and all was good.  I was so happy to see both light fixtures actually light up!  Then I decided to wire the interior lights together to put them on one circuit.

The reading lights have a recessed connection, so they had to be installed onto a block of wood.  This then was screwed to a piece of hardboard, which was glued to the foam.  It all should work out smoothly for me when it comes time to cover it with the headliner.  I'm hopeful that I can put that section on in one large piece.

Here you can see how I braced the foam to the roof.  Using these planks of wood worked pretty well.  I used Gorilla Glue for the first time.  That stuff is interesting.  It's kind of like working with the extruded foam; it actually looks like that when it dries.  It also 'expands,' which regular glue does not do in the same way.

Here you can see the small pieces of hardwood that are glued to the foam.  This gave me something to 'screw' into for each fixture.

Here are the fixtures mounted onto the hardboard and foam.  You can see the channels I cut for the wires.

You can see the hole coming in from the cabin.  I just got plain lucky that the shelf in the cabin was at the same height of the counter top in the galley.  I was able to tuck the wires into the power center area very easily.

This is the hole going into the power center.

You can see how the fuse panel will fit into the side wall there.

Here you can see the two 12 volt power port holes and the small square hole is where the 12 volt battery meter will be placed.  I decided to use two steel boxes.  One will potect the back side of the 12 volt outlets and the other will be for the one 120 volt outlet that I will install after I put the power port entry hole on the outside of the teardrop.

Another big task was putting the original hinge back on.  You can see on the image above that I used the butyl tape to seal the top part of the hinge.  I then screwed into a 1" by 1".  This gave the hinge something to 'bite' into and I think allowed me to really tighten the hinge.

These clamps worked well to hold everything where I wanted it while I was screwing it in place.

Here is the 'porch light.'  These will be tied into the four small LED lights, one on each corner too. 

They will all come to a central switch on the shelf area.  I can't wait to see how these are going to look at night!

Everything worked!  I shouldn't have been surprised, but given my history with electricity, I was!  I had not had the chance to 'sit up' and use the reading lights before.  I found that leaning against the bulkhead, which is headliner covered foam, was very comfortable and the lights will work perfectly!

I thought I had done something wrong with the vent.  I couldn't get it to turn on.  Then I realized that you have to have the vent hood open for it to turn on.  It is quiet and truly moves a ton of air around.  It isn't too noisy, but just noisy enough to work for us as a white noise creator.

I also was able to fix up the drawers and doors.  I had done a poor job on their fronts.  I routed the edges of the doors and sanded their fronts properly.  

One of the last projects was installing the new screw/bolts that hold the struts in place.  These struts hold up the hatch.  It was amazing to me how much a small bag of stainless steel hardware can cost.  

Tomorrow I have to get the second half of the hinge installed and the vent and doors sealed up so that the teardrop can go out onto the concrete patio.