Since I now have an enclosed trailer, 30 ft v-nose and only one car, considering putting a very basic living quarters in the front. I'm looking for some good grassroots ideals and possibilities for low cost RV parts. I have some plans from the trailer sites which show their layouts for living quarters. It would be nice to have a shower and toilet onboard (or at least an outdoor shower setup), but not sure I want to deal with the water and waste tanks. Probably may be easier to just stay in hotels, but where's the fun in that. Bed would be a portable setup, not built in to the trailer.
I may just forgo the living quarters and make a workshop setup instead. Cheapest thing would be to do nothing of course.
Picts of the trailer, outside only, inside is empty front to back:
RossD
SuperDork
3/12/12 9:16 a.m.
Slide in camper for the truck with a workshop in the trailer?
www.tnttt.com and look for the forum on Cargo Trailer conversions.
Most of the trailers and designs are for very small campers, but it should still give you a bunch of good ideas on how to set things up. I've got a 6x12 that I use for my son's karting and have been slowing converting it to a small toy hauler since it's only he and I at the track.
-Rob
jrw1621
SuperDork
3/12/12 9:38 a.m.
Put an entire camper (like a pop up) into the trailer and remove it to use it.
Sample:
Ross, I have looked into slide-ins. Most are too long and would interfere with the trailer. Not to mention even used, people seem to think they are worth quite a bit, some more than I paid for the trailer. The other concern is not getting too much weight on the truck, slide-in plus trailer gets close to GVWR for the truck.
Rob, thanks for the link, plenty of good ideas there. Pretty creative bunch, but I guess you have to be with such small trailers.
jrw1621 wrote:
Put an entire camper (like a pop up) into the trailer and remove it to use it.
Sample:
Hmm, I wonder how wide that trailer is? Enclosed is 84" between wheel wells, a bit wider otherwise. I could always put a tent in the bed of the truck. Sleeping isn't much of an issue, it is the facilities that I am wondering more about. Most venues have bathrooms, but not showers. I will be getting a portable generator so I can have a/c and stuff. Already have a grille so I can get by with it and a microwave.
jrw1621
SuperDork
3/12/12 9:54 a.m.
http://atlanta.craigslist.org/nat/rvs/2885674452.html
Buy or build similar to assist for the ins and outs with a couple of friends pushing.
http://www.harborfreight.com/heavy-duty-trailer-dolly-37510.html
Everywhere you go you are better off using the showers and/or bathroom IMO.
So... amenities ( a collective of awesome I have seen in the paddock):
A counter and cabinets in the nose with built-ins for fridge, coffee pot, fold out range/hotplate, microwave, 5g Igloo jug of water and dry goods. Save weight using diamond plate aluminum for all the doors. A "closet" for hanging clothes and shoes on the driver side wall up front. Add some drawers to one side at the bottom for socks and skivvies.
E-track rails up high over the car hood to support a removable bunk bed (2 2x4s, crossbraced w/ mattress on top). AC unit on heavy drawer slides that can be pulled out.
Push/pull roof vents w/ fans.
240v RV wiring and outlets everywhere.
20k BTU home AC unit on drawer slides to be pushed out of the wall on arrival. They are cheap and more powerful than the roof mounts costing 5x more.
Outside - pass side - retractable awning and lighting. Fold out grill.
Wired in generator and propane bottle on the tongue.
Do the floor with light gray bedliner spray and put cove base down so when you drop beer or diff oil you can spray it out with a pressure washer.
Someday, I'll do all of this. Right now, I'm at about 30%.
In reply to jrw1621:
I have done that with an open trailer - but I'd be surprised if you could move a 2.5 ton 30' box around with that and not crap your guts into your socks.
GPS, thanks for the laugh. I think jrw1621 was talking about using that to move the pop-up trailer. At least I hope he was. 
Some good ideas there. As for a shower, it is mainly at Nationals in Lincoln that they would be needed. There are porta pottys on site but no showers. Maybe just an outdoor shower setup like campers use with the hangup bag and forgo the toilet and water tanks all together. Might be an idea to find a used pop-up and at least take the stuff out of it for use in the trailer. Needs to be cheap though, my budget is done for now.
Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:
Wired in generator and propane bottle on the tongue.
Unfortunately there isn't any room on the tongue with the v-nose for either, that is one reason for using a portable generator.
not sure I would want to carry a propane bottle out in the open anyway. A lot of bridges and tunnels do not like to see them and ban them outright
Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:
So... amenities ( a collective of awesome I have seen in the paddock):
A counter and cabinets in the nose with built-ins for fridge, coffee pot, fold out range/hotplate, microwave, 5g Igloo jug of water and dry goods. Save weight using diamond plate aluminum for all the doors. A "closet" for hanging clothes and shoes on the driver side wall up front. Add some drawers to one side at the bottom for socks and skivvies.
I've never found diamond plate particularly light. I'd go with a wood laminate or just plain aluminum if you need manly metal.
Seems to me you could make something pretty cool in the V. I like that.
Buy an old Scottie trailer, and gut it. Use what you need, burn the rest.
81cpcamaro wrote:
Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:
Wired in generator and propane bottle on the tongue.
Unfortunately there isn't any room on the tongue with the v-nose for either, that is one reason for using a portable generator.
How about making a well in the dead space in the nose (like RV's do in the side compartments) sealed to the inside with a louvered door for heat and plumbing the exhaust out the bottom to the driver-side?
I have a portable wheeled one too - it is a PIA. I want a remote start that comes on at the flick of a wall switch like the guys with pro rigs have.
You could do the poor-man's shower and rig a head onto PVC with clamps to the trailer wall (fold out shower ring, hang curtain). If you do it outside... you waste water. If you do it inside... you clean the floor! Feed it from a big jug and power it with a bilge pump. ($19 at Walmart... I use one to run my cool suit!)
Lesley
SuperDork
3/12/12 10:53 a.m.
Wow, nice trailer!
A lot of the tracks I've been to have showers/bathrooms. Used to travel a lot with horses and sleep in the trailer but we'd rely on where we were camping to do our washing up.
Ian F
SuperDork
3/12/12 10:56 a.m.
Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:
20k BTU home AC unit on drawer slides to be pushed out of the wall on arrival. They are cheap and more powerful than the roof mounts costing 5x more.
I love this idea. A gasketed door could be used to cover the opening during trasnport and then the a/c unit could have a gasketed flange to seal against the wall when slid into position for use. Brilliant. You win a cookie. 
I've been day-dreaming about this sort of stuff for years - since I was mtn bike racing. Personally, a shower is the #1 reason for having such a set-up and I could make do with ad-hock solutions for other amenities. The trick, of course, is the water tanks. In theory, you may be able to hang tanks in the space under the trailer, but that is dependant on available space, which I would assume isn't much. I would design only for fresh and gray (shower) water, since realistically, you can dump gray water just about anywhere. Black water (sewage) really needs to be dumped into a proper sewage receptacle. Besides, toilets are usually available, so having one inside can be considered a luxury. Showers are often not available or there is a line to use them and/or they get used by so many people they're nasty.
Ian F wrote:
The trick, of course, is the water tanks. In theory, you may be able to hang tanks in the space under the trailer, but that is dependant on available space, which I would assume isn't much.
I see plastic/PTFE 275g off-road diesel tanks in the front bed of trucks all the time... if it holds fuel, it holds water. Plus... easier to fill in the truck bed and it won't make the trailer nose heavy. You can drive to a hose in the middle of a weekend.
Elkhart, IN is the cottage industry home of the RV industry. There are a bunch of parts sellers with the cast-offs and left overs from the manufacturers, including things like holding tanks. Lots of cheap stuff. They are probably Googleable for the non-locals.
Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:
I see plastic/PTFE 275g off-road diesel tanks in the front bed of trucks all the time... if it holds fuel, it holds water. Plus... easier to fill in the truck bed and it won't make the trailer nose heavy. You can drive to a hose in the middle of a weekend.
Not a bad idea. 275 gallons is a lot though, could get by on a smaller tank and refill locally like you said.
Here is one option for a shower that is simple and cheap: http://www.rei.com/product/752797/seattle-sports-camp-shower-5-gallon?cm_mmc=cse_froogle--datafeed--product-_-752797&mr:trackingCode=50834FFE-FB85-DE11-B7F3-0019B9C043EB&mr:referralID=NA
I do like using a home a/c unit on a slide in the side, will check into that. Heck I could always just take the one out of the garage when traveling, and use it in the garage when home.
jrw1621
SuperDork
3/12/12 12:17 p.m.
What about the new portable style AC units that only need a hole about the size of a dryer vent.
Ian F
UltraDork
3/12/12 12:27 p.m.
In reply to jrw1621:
Ooo... that's a good idea too... and since we have one of those, I should have thought of that (Doh!).
I agree about using an in-trailer tank for fresh water, the drain, on the other hand... generally needs to be below the base of the shower. Of course, if you go with an outdoor shower, then that may not be an issue. But those aren't always practical or desired.
Most toy-haulers have larger fresh and gray water tanks than a similar sized RV (likely for the remote showering needs) and even those tend to be well under 100 gallons each. Bare in mind, water is 8 lbs/gallon. 275 gallons is over 2000 lbs, which is not chump-weight...
jrw1621 wrote:
What about the new portable style AC units that only need a hole about the size of a dryer vent.
One of the guys I paddock with has one - it is only about 8K BTUs and it struggles to keep the air lukewarm in direct sunlight. It would be worthwhile if it was a little more powerful and it could be hung up out of the way though.
Don49
Reader
3/12/12 12:39 p.m.
Older slide-ins used a shallow (6"D)water tank mounted on the roof, painted black and you have solar hot water and gravity feed for the shower/small sink. If you mount a shower base in the nose and get a portable port-a-potti, you can have a dual purpose area in a small (36'x36") space. I had a step van that I used to carry the race car and made a bed that went over the nose of the car (permanently mounted). It worked very well and served as storage for my personal gear while I was traveling. Once you have your own shower at the track, you'll wonder how you did without it.
Ian F
UltraDork
3/12/12 12:51 p.m.
Don49 wrote:
Once you have your own shower at the track, you'll wonder how you did without it.
That's what I'm thinking. Sort of like all those years I used my conversion van as my tent when camping... and then having to go back to a real tent... and being rudely reminded of how much tents suck.
