Rough Stuff Casita?

[ShelbyM]

Several years ago a member was having a Casita modified for back road/off road use. The frame and running gear were being done by a firm in Texas. Four season use may have been part of the plan as well, windows were mentioned, lots of other mods. This was surely finished long ago but I can't find it via search and can't remember the user name. I'd like to see how it turned out! Links?

[Dave Fish]

I remember that project and some of the pictures, maybe a video. I think it was about 10 years ago because, if memory serves me right, we still had our Casita at the time. I don't remember whether it was on this forum or one of the Casita forums where it was discussed.

[ShelbyM]

Yes, I've seen some pics and a video of one a TV fishing(?) guy had modified by some folks in TX. The one I'm thinking of was a member here on FGRV and last I heard his Casita was in TX being worked on by that same crew. IIRC. I don't think he posted any pics at the time. Just curious how it's working for him.

[Raspy]

Is this the one you are referring to?

The McHitch and the Bulldog jack, set back to allow the tailgate to open are a couple of nice touches.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkfa...l=BillHillmann

[ShelbyM]

Yes, that's the TV guy. I just can't recall our member who went several steps beyond that one.

[ShelbyM]

IIRC he related that the frame and suspension mods were undergoing "high speed testing." Got to be a trailer worthy of it's own thread.

[Stephen_Albers]

Thanks for remembering my project. It has turned into a several-year effort as I discovered more defects and limitations that need correction. For starters, virtually every improvement of Little House Customs and ideas appearing on this blog that have proven themselves in the field have been incorporated.

As an airline pilot, I admit to being spoiled and used to functional products tested to the highest standard. To be clear, it has two easy-to-state, yet challenging-to-achieve goals:
1. Four-season capability to eliminate the loss of use "winterizing" nightmare.
2. Unimproved road navigation capability to open up 185,000 miles of unimproved USA forest service roads.

Here is a BRIEF taste of completed projects:
An entirely new frame that is frame-welded onto the existing frame, vacuum-sealed and corrosion-proofed to provide the durability, strength, and insulation needed to survive the CONSTANT POUNDING, FLYING DEBRIS, UNDERCARRIAGE IMPACTS and WATER EXPOSURE of unimproved roads. Shock absorber suspension features sealed maintenance-free bearings for 100,000 miles. The new unit will thrive wallowing in (the mud, the blood and the beer". No more popped rivets, window and door leaks/jams from shell stress due to a twisting frame.

Double-pane, glazed windows throughout and 4" insulated floor. Our temperature range target is -20F to +130F. which will accommodate 98% of real-world temperature extremes in America and Europe. Comfortable camping in extreme temperatures and remote areas is the goal.

Rear window awning designed with 3-D printing technology to accept a full span awning to completely shade the large rear window.

Toilet converted to composting after careful testing. The blackwater tank has been converted to freshwater. Pressure water capacity is now +40 gallons in two separate tanks.

All propane open flame appliances replaced with electrical ones so that it operates underway and parked from onboard power or from the tow vehicle pretty much like the climate-control system in a car - set it and forget it. No more babysitting the batteries. A CAN network runs throughout the trailer to coordinate appliances.

I've hired an independent lab to certify the operation of critical electrical components to -20F. So far, limited testing shows the shell easily maintains 70F internal temperature with OAT of 108F in the blazing sun.

To achieve these results, parts contributions from vendors in 5 countries - some of them custom fabricated - have been incorporated.

Our present hangup is the onboard power pack support electronics which has worked in prototype and failed in production testing. Back to the drawing board for the third time.

I've assigned an unlimited budget to the project which is now estimated to double the all-in cost from $17,000 to $34,000 (while quadrupling the performance).

I'm anticipating another six months before we start on-road testing. (Aviators LOVE testing.) Our target speed is 100 mph and 8% road grade. More details will be published when available. Any improvement suggestions gratefully accepted.

[ShelbyM]

Thanks for the update! Hope you'll post some pics and details at some point. I'd be especially interested in learning about the windows and maintenance free bearings. Those sound like things we could all benefit from even if we aren't going off-road.

[parmm]

" The blackwater tank has been converted to freshwater."

Don't think I want to convert it to freshwater! Much better to replace it!!!

[Defenestrator]

Quite a setup!

What'd you use for wall insulation?

I'd love to know more about the electrical setup. The solar and batteries in particular seem a bit small for something that's replaced appliances with electric. Or did you keep the furnace?

[BDRoorda]

I'd be very interested in seeing more on the electrical side of your build. I'm working on our U-Haul CT-13 and upgrading it to all 12v DC, including AC, for boondocking.

The axle has been upgraded to a 3500 lb HSI Duratek torsion axle with 10" electric brakes, and the frame has been somewhat modified. I chose to keep the ground clearance to 12.5" as we do not expect to go completely off road with it.

[Burro1]

Many years ago we upgraded our Burro for BackCountry access. After removing the stock suspension and 12 inch wheels we welded 3 x 2 by quarter inch channel to the existing box tubing frame an allowed it to extend both front and back with a new hitch. We had a 26 more gallons of fresh water 4 lead acid batteries and a rack for a 250 mL dirtbike. The new heavy duty leaf spring axle with 13 inch wheels gives 12 inches of ground clearance.

[Motoboss]

I too am interested in the electrical set up to convert everything to 12 vdc for long term boondocking.

[Raspy]

Stephen,

I'm curious why an "independent lab" was needed to test the trailer for you. Are you ever planning to go camping after all this work?

Please expand on the black water tank conversion. Do you mean a new tank was installed?

The "composting toilet", to me, is the way of the future. In my case, a separating toilet would be a more correct description, as using a bunch of composting media to simply dry the solids is not really composting and it is cumbersome. I'm converting right now to a system that sends the pee to the gray tank and the rest into a biodegradable bag that can be thrown away when full. No black tank and no water use associated with a black tank. Much better.

I'm hoping you go out and enjoy the product of all your work and expense.

[Glenn Baglo]

Originally Posted by Raspy

I'm converting right now to a system that sends the pee to the gray tank and the rest into a biodegradable bag that can be thrown away when full.

Interesting concept. Throw crap out when you're done with it.

[Raspy]

Originally Posted by Glenn Baglo

Interesting concept. Throw crap out when you're done with it.

Just like the other method of getting rid of it, except it doesn't require a fresh water infrastructure or treatment plant to process it. And unlike diapers, it has a simple biodegradable bag. Not as easy as pushing a button to flush, but no water use from the trailer either. And no trips to the dump station just for that purpose. If you get rid of the black tank, there is room for another fresh water tank.

[Glenn Baglo]

Look it up.
While biodegradable items refer to just any material which breaks down and decomposes in the environment, compostable goods are specifically organic matter which breaks down, the end product having many beneficial uses which include fertilizing and improving soil health.Jun. 27, 2018


What's the Difference: Biodegradable and Compostable

[Raspy]

Glenn, I don't understand what you are asking.

[Glenn Baglo]

Everything is biodegradable. Everything breaks down eventually. There is a difference between biodegradable and compostable. Waste material that goes through a treatment plant can become potable water ( look up California ). Biodegradable bags of waste tossed into a landfill can take decades to decompose and emit methane ( a greenhouse gas ).

[Raspy]

My interest is in not having a black tank. Or using water I have to carry with me to flush the toilet. I suppose you could debate which is more environmentally sound, flushing waste down a toilet, or dropping it in a landfill. It would be more accurate to say that waste can be removed from water, and the water sterilized, than to say waste can become drinking water. And once removed, the material still has to be discarded or turned into another product.

It might be better to not have to make drinking water from sewage if possible. The enormous infrastructure required with settling ponds, chemical treatments, constant pumping, large crews of people managing the system and the sewer pipe infrastructure from every toilet, all add up to an enormous cost and energy use. Not to mention the drinking water standards required to treat the fresh water even before it was pumped to the toilet in question in the first place. A few campers dropping some waste into a landfill seems less of a problem and more like a drop in the bucket. Last I checked, it doesn't take decades to compost, but I might be wrong. Tires, sheetrock, plastics, lumber, and roofing materials are more of a long term problem than some solid human waste. But I'm not doing this to improve the environment as much as I'm trying to simplify my own camping experience, while not being a public nuisance, and while not being tied to organized campgrounds with bathrooms.