Notes From the Shop and the Trail.
Gear we trust, tools we reach for, tips from the build floor, and places worth towing to — everything here comes from actually building and using teardrop campers in East Tennessee. New posts go up as we've got something worth saying.
Carrying Water When There's No Spigot
Every campground in the Smokies is dry camping. Water is the heaviest thing I carry, and running out ends a trip quicker than a dead battery.
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Building the Fridge Slide
A chest fridge in a cabinet is useless until it's out of the cabinet. Here's my slide, tray, clearances, and cable, in the order that doesn't cut anything twice.
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Bears, and a Galley Full of Food
An outdoor kitchen with a fridge in it, parked in the busiest bear country in the East. What the park requires, why a latched teardrop meets it, and what I do after every meal.
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Flexible vs Rigid Solar on a Curved Roof
On a teardrop the curved roof shapes the choice: rigid panels go on a rack, flexible ones go straight on the curve. Here's what each gives up, and how we mounted ours.
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The Galley Decisions You Can't Undo
Everything in a galley is cut into a structural panel, plumbed, or wired. By the time you find the drawer fouls the fridge slide, the panels are finished.
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Tongue Weight, and Why Teardrops Forgive You
A short trailer hides loading mistakes that would have a bigger one swaying — until the margin runs out. How to measure it, and what actually moves the number.
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Propex HeatSource, One Winter In
A cheap air heater burns cabin air and trusts your exhaust seals. A room-sealed heater never touches the air you're breathing. That difference is why this one is in the trailer.
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Insulating a Box This Small
Roof only on this one, and the floor is storage instead. Why the galley hatch is outside the envelope on purpose, and why condensation — not cold — is the thing worth designing around.
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How Many Amp-Hours Do You Actually Need?
Battery sizing isn't a matter of taste — there's a number. Start from the fridge, add the small loads, and match usable amp-hours rather than the label.
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Dometic CFX3 35 After a Few Seasons
A long-term look at the 12V compressor fridge in our galley — the biggest power draw in the whole build. What it does well, what annoys us, why the CFX3 line is gone, and how the CFX5, ICECO, BougeRV, and rotomolded ice coolers compare.
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Our Teardrop Electrical System, Component by Component
Every part in the power bay and the job it does — 12V DC and 120V AC, MPPT solar, a shore power inverter/charger, lithium storage, bus bars and fuse sizing, and what a weekend actually costs in amp-hours.
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Water vs Oil-Based Polyurethane
Water-based for quick-drying interior panels, oil-based for galley tops and exterior tables that see moisture — plus how to make your own wipe-on poly.
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Elkmont Campground
The largest campground in the Smokies — historic district walks, Little River access, and what to know about camping fully self-contained with no hookups.
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Wheel Spacers for Teardrop Towing
Hub-centric spacers keep your tires off the side wall and widen your tow stance — material, bolt pattern, torque specs, and sizing to get right.
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DeWalt 20V MAX XR Cordless Router Review
Why this cordless compact router earns its keep in the build toolbox — side walls, doors, wiring channels, round-overs, and cutouts.
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