O.k. I want an awning. I don't want to pay no $400 for one either, besides I understand my old Scamp roof probably couldn't take it. Anyhow, I figured that maybe I could do it on the cheap. For instance, what would be wrong with riveting a dozen or so snaps in a row along the roof. Snaps, as in, well... snaps, you know like the kind Jeeps used to use to hold down their tops with. I could then buy some plastic tarp material and a step stool, put in the corresponding female part of the snap in the tarp and put it on, when we stop. I have some old fiberglass, folding, tent poles and some cord. It would be a "snap" to install, literally. Any thoughts?

:m

I bought a $10 free-standing awning from K-Mart. One side I laid against the top of the trailer (I tied the corners down to a pair of eye bolts that are mounted in my belly-band - well... in my trailer's belly band anyway.)

The opposite side was set up with poles and lines as intended.

What I'm planning on picking up when spring comes closer is a large (14x12) free standing screen room ($60 at WalMart). I'll set it up NEXT to the Boler having one side resting on top similar to the way I did the awning. My intention is to have this screen room serve as our 'living room/kitchen' That's where we'll set up our little table & stove and sit around most of the time. Since it connects directly to the Boler however - we'll be able to go directly from there into the Boler, which will serve as changing room and bedroom.

Here's a shot of the $10 awning in-use.

(Couldn't resist beating a dead horse!)

Don, any shelter is better than no shelter when it comes to camping. Go ahead and use your imagination and let us know the results.

I'm not sure I would drill holes to install 20 or 30 snap ... but then again, your idea sounds like it would work!

Don
Would it not be easier to just buy a rail wth slot down middle and attach that then put awning end in and roll up to side when moving.

I've been mulling this one over for quite some time. I still haven't gotten it quite perfected, but getting there.

It's very hard for me to describe, but I will try. It should be easily removed and put up. I don't know the true name for them, but they are used to hold down conduit. The ones I am refering to are aluminum and have the one side that screws in (the one with two might be better...less likely to pull out of the figerglass if when catches it). I'm thinking of painting those white and riveting about 4 or 5 of them up. I'm going to order canvas (Sunbrella) and sew it to length. Then I will make a casing on one end with areas cut out to fit over the clamps. Use a piece of PVC as the base. It will slide through the clamp, casing, clamp, etc. It will make a solid base for the awning. You can put the other end up with tent poles or whatever.

I am still working on the design. I did something similar when I made awnings for my home many years ago (8-ish) and they have been sleeted on, snowed on, blown to bits, etc, and have yet to come down.

As I said, I haven't perfected it, but getting close.

Oh - depending on how that works - I might even try rigging some drop-down walls onto the side of the screen room so it can double as a privacy room.

BTW: No, it has not escaped my attention that I could park the entire Boler INSIDE the intended screen room... :)

mkw

Snaps and rivets are related. Might work. This one uses loops so you can move it from to truck to fence post or whatever.



http://www.sportsshade.com

Don
That post of yours sure got some fast response.







Hope this helps.:)

Cheap replaceable plastic tarp; home made from conduit.




works well, although not as much room as a screen porch....also
lower one corner when it rains !!! Don't stand near that corner if water has already accumulated. :umb

what holds it to the tt, Noel?

They make an aluminum strip that a lot of the stick built trailers have on them that would work. It would be easy to pop rivet along the trailer. The awning has a rope in the edge that slides in the track on it. Would be very easy to take down and fold up for moving. Lex showed some brackets on one of his posting that would help hold some roof supports through the center.

I saw an awning kit a couple weeks ago I believe on the Camper World site. I believe it was made for a pop up tent camper. I had planned on installing one but just couldn't do it on a new trailer. Broke over and paid $585 for the stock one.

I just don't know if I can put holes in the roof of my TT. maybe I could super glue the strip on. I put holes in the old aluminum one and it doesn't leak, but that wasn't Buttercup. She might not like it. Mikes bungie to the middle might be a thought. :r

Ron, that awning sounds like the same principle as the way the bikini top is kept on the Jeep. This sounds easy enough to make.

Noel, same question, show the mount :E

You too Chester! :E

Benita, that link is bad. Bad Link, bad, bad link! :)

Suz, your idea sounds like another I had. Back in the day, some hot rod cars had their hoods pinned down. That pin, along with a cotter pin through it, would work with the gommets on a tarp. Several pins bolted through the roof would hold a tarp easily. Trouble with my plan was where to find the right pins. If I made them the would have to be stainless or aluminum... too much trouble.

As for the add-a-rooms, I'll already be carrying enough crap around with me, I don't want another bulky thing to stuff into the TT. Fishing poles and caving gear is enough. Hell, I already want to chunk out the folding chairs. :u

Thanks all, you are helping tremendously!

The link seems to be working fine for me, so you might try again.

I hadn't thought about the hood pins, but that would be a possibility also. Do I dare admit that I know what those hood pins are because I :o - - oh, geeze - - had them on one of my vehicles?

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Yep. Exploder, er.. Explorer worked.

5x9 for $150!

8x10 with snaps (maybe $5), poles (have these), cord (this too), and tarp ($25?).

Nothing personal, but I'm too cheap for the recreational recreation business! :o

Browsers, etc

I don't know anything about this kind of stuff. Mary and Michael will be on later and one of them can explain it.

Ever so often, my computer does whacko stuff. Thought it was the website in the early days, but had everyone else scratching their head as theirs was fine. I think it is just the way the planets line up over my computer once in a while.;)

Here, I'll repost.;)

Yep. Exploder, er.. Explorer worked.

5x9 for $150!

8x10 with snaps (maybe $5), poles (have these), cord (this too), and tarp ($25?).

Nothing personal, but I'm too cheap for the recreational recreation business!

$150 for an "awning" isn't really all that half bad - Take a peek over at one of the RV supply places (or JC Whitney for that matter) and price out RV Awnings, screen rooms or add-a-rooms. If I wanted to stick a conventional add-a-room onto the Boler, I'd be out roughly $500! If I ever get the impulse to go that far, I think I'll just find a cheap cabin tent, cut off the back wall and rig an attachment to the Boler.

Awning rails:
Adding one of these to assist in connecting something isn't really all that bad. I haven't bothered, but I've done enough other rivetted repairs though the outer wall of our little wonder that I don't think it would be too bad. I'm just very generous with the caulk as I'm inserting the rivet. I personally prefer the idea of a free standing awning because I don't HAVE to set it up next to the Boler. Going free-standing also will easily allow me to set up a screen room much larger than the width of the Boler.

mkw

cut a hole in the back of a cabin tent.!!!!! what a great idea. wonder if they have one of those spring ones tall enough to be taller then the door of the TT. I just love those. where's all those catalogs my kid keeps trying to throw away. (Mom, you need all of these? :yep)

The first is pretty small, but I think it would make a great ''front room.'' Believe it could easily be adapted for use with our trailers.

Check around for pricing. This website is the highest I found at $229. I think Camping World has it for $189. Even saw it on e-bay once.
http://www.buytack.com/products/ranch/nen/.../sportz-suv.htm

Here's another somewhat pricey option, but it does set up in a about 2 minutes. It is a screen room with flaps.
http://www.camptents.com/SpecPages/Shelter...eenHouse682.htm

snaps/hood pins---- try Cabelas on line- they sell snaps for boat tops that rivet on and have a little swivel cam built in to lock the tarp/top down also any marine or awning supply place should have them. Cabelas also sells a tent that can be free standing or attached to the back end of a pick-up with straps(over a truck cap and around tailgate) it would probably suck up to an egg's doorway

OK....sorry about how long it took but finally went over to storage and took a couple of pictures of the home made awning's brackets on the roof.



Tubing is standard 1 inch conduit about 54 inches long and plastic tarp about 51 or 52 inches wide and can be 96 or 120 inches deep.

Pretty much, what you see is what you get, obviously not finished enough for most people but meets your criteria of cheap and functional. It was done by the previous owner and so far I haven't seen fit to replace it.

See the awning extended earlier in this thread.

:sunny

Noel, that seems like just the ticket. I'm not so afraid to try it now, or something like it. Thanks for your trouble!

Thanks, Noel, for the pictures. Those are the clips that I was talking about. Made to hold down conduit, right? Glad to know they work!

Noel, that is very ingenious. Not meaning to be a fuss bucket, but I have never seen conduit like that. I'm guessing you have some type of insulation around them?

Jana

Actually the ends of the conduit and bracket have been painted, I guess for weatherproofing. The piece on the TT has rubber end caps like you have on canes and walking sticks to protect the fiberglass. Brackets are times two (one on each end) and the tarp has a fold over, making a loop, with the conduit going through it; just like a cutain rod. The pull out end of the tarp (also folded over to form a loop, with the conduit going through like a curtain rod has eye bolts wedged in with washers. The poles (which can be seen in the picture earlier in this thread) have home made spike wedged into the ends that fit into the eye bolts and hold the looped end of the nylon rope on the top and screw in tent stakes go into the ground.

WHEW !!!

If ncessary I could take more pictures but it is currently raining here in Mesa, AZ and may rain for the next several days.

Hope that helps a little :o

conduit can be bought cheaply at any home store like Home Depot or Lowes etc

There are three types of conduit. 1) PVC, gray 2) Metal 3) Metal, spiral wound, flexible.

Nope, that's great Noel. now just answer which conduit, and I'll know enough to do it - maybe. :)
I still so impressed. simple, but works well.

FWIW, there use-ta-be two kinds of metal electrical conduit. Rigid (like gas pipe), and EMT (bendable thin wall tubing).

Rigid.....metal....one inch diameter.

:thumb

pick up conduit at home depot or any electrical supplier- use emt- also called thinwall, it weighs half what rigid does, and looks the same as the old tent poles

Joe

:E :E I don't know how heavy this is. But, it's 56" coverage and less than $100 - at the moment.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...item=2403284364

Benita, interesting awning, However I installed the snaps last night. I'll install the tarp snaps tonight. I'm taking my boy fishing this weekend. Gonna need the shelter, I'll bet, rain expected.:reyes

Dang, dude. You work fast!

Not always!:L

I not sure how well snaps or a rod attached at either end would work when it rains. I say this because our Trillium didn't come with the awning rail and we had to install one ourselves (which is cheap and easy). First time it rained the water followed the curve of the trailer, ran under the rail and poured down the wall of the trailer:crying The door had to be kept shut or it dripped inside. We caulked along the whole top of the rail and then no more leaks.

These curved roofed trailers especially need a waterproof seal between the awning and roof.
Nancy

good point, Nancy

Nancy, this had occurred to me. Whether I can make it work...
:o

Our little trailer is old and the roof sags just a bit. I followed the upper contour instead of the lower one with the snaps. Also I hope the water that runs down the side will hit the rain gutter above the door. Also, the snaps let me take the whole thing off and fold it up to put away for travel. Right now there are nine snaps across the top, I ran out. When the new ones arrive from JC Whitney I'll double them to 18 or 20 for good measure.

>>when they arrive from JC Whitney

This has absolutely nothing to do with nothing, but I live about 40 miles from the JC Whitney warehouse and distribution center. I stop everytime I go by it (on I-80), because they always have great deals on stuff, such as close-outs, returns, etc ... and, of course, you can order anything from the catalog and have it delivered while you wait.

If you're ever driving through Illinois on I-80 ... and enjoy the JC Whitney kind of stuff ... consider stopping in LaSalle, at the distribution center.

Give me a shout and maybe I'll meet you there!

I used a length of co-axiel cable (flea market) fed it through a hem I made on the tarp and slid it through the track on the Boler,2 extensible tent poles for corners 1 for centre. I can add sides if needed.

(I already posted this on the Care & Feeding site before I realized this one is more to the point.) I'm in the process of cobbling up an awning for my Bigfoot 11.5 slide-in. Thinking about materials, I remembered a good source from my boat cruising days: www.sailrite.com. They're an outfit in Indiana that sells supplies to boaters and boatbuilders, including a variety of awning yardgoods, most of which are UV protected; a selection of rustproof snaps and twist type fasteners, fibreglas battens for stiffening, and even heavy-duty 12v sewing machines. Many geegaws made for yachts would work very well for campers. There are generally more expensive, but if you want stuff that will last, e.g. parts made of stainless steel and heavy plastic rather than potmetal, then marine is the way to go. West Marine stores are a good place to check out.

Mike,

I bought one of those screen rooms at Wal-Mart. I took it back after reading the instruction booklet. That thing had 63 (count 'em) individual, unmarked pieces for the frame. I figured it would take 3 or 4 hours to sort all that out and assemble it. I bought one the same size at Target and it has shock corded poles and everything is marked. It also has fine no-see-um mesh.

See a picture:

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/read.php...?TID=596&page=3

**That thing had 63 (count 'em) individual, unmarked pieces for the frame**
3 or 4 hours?? I don't think so. it helps if you read the instructions before you start. :duck :lol

I've been putting up one like this for ohhh?? 8 years all by my little lonesome. it was quick and stayed up during heavy rain, not like it's predecessor which collapsed first down pour. I have not tried the screened one yet, but it's in the box ready and waiting. :) I watched a couple put up one the wrong way, and they fought it and took twice as long as I did by myself. The next year they ran over to help me...and was surprised when I showed them the correct way. (ego boost for me :lol) Okay so I admit mine only had 42 pieces. :nope

I have made a couple small concrete blocks with bolts embedded so I can secure the base of my awning arms, which hold the outside carpet down and also allows a tie down for my dogs which always accompany us.

I have learned to keep a roll of tape with me when setting up a screen house by myself.

My biggest problem - the poles coming apart while I was trying to set the darn thing up.

I started taping the joints where the poles go together with masking or duct tape. Issue resolved.

Having had quite a few different tents & screen rooms and providing great entertainment for all our camping neighbors':r', Jim and I finally figured out to take colored electrician's tape and color code all the pole joints (blue with blue, red with red, black with black).

Yeah, it's pretty simple, but then we're pretty..... Never mind!:laugh

Well I wanted a cheap solution to an awning for my 16' 86 casita. I also didn't want to drill holes in the top because I wasn't sure my cheap awning idea would work.
It, however, worked remarkably well on its first trip. Went up and packed easily. I bought a plastic tarp from Lowes. I mounted a 10' piece of 3/4inch PVC pipe to one end with screws and washers. I drilled holes in the PVC and put the screws through the reinforced holes in the tarp using small fender washers. The tarp rolls up on the PVC and the PVC bends to conform to the curve of the Casita top. I put 90 degree elbows on each end of the PVC and drilled a hole big enough for the spike at the end of a tent pole to fit through so the pole would go into the open end of the elbow and the spike would stick through the top.
I had a couple of old tent poles, stakes and rope to finish off the job.

The tarp is held in place on the Casita by three pieces of 1 1/2 inch nylon webbing and bungee cords which attached to small eye screws I set into the aluminum molding that runs around the sides of the shell. It doesn't look tight or secure in my attempt at drawing the configuration but was, and traveled fine.

Wow, that's great. I tried paint, but it came off. tape, I can do tape,:yep no mater how simple.

Very professional, Lanny. I've got see if I can do one.