Hand-Built Teardrop Camper Trailer with Solar Power & Running Water - Perfect Mini RV
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- Опубліковано 6 вер 2024
- In this video, we take a tour of a 5'x8' teardrop travel trailer that was built by a family-run business in Ontario, Canada called The Teardrop Trailer. The founder, Steve, found out about teardrop trailers when he was searching online for hotdog carts he could buy to become a beach bum but he fell in love with teardrop trailers instead. Since they were so expensive to buy, he decided to build one for himself and his wife, Mandy. But when he lost his job shortly afterwards, he was forced to sell his teardrop trailer and in doing so, ended up generating enough interest in his design that he started building them in his own backyard, and just a year later, they've moved to a shop so they can build their tiny trailers on demand.
Their teardrop trailers have a 100 Watt solar panel on the roof to power electronics, fans, an electric cooler, and a water pump. The interior is cozy and comfortable and has ventilation from the side door screens, and the screen at the back to keep fresh air flowing in. In the back of the trailer, there's a full kitchen with a sink, cooler, dishes & cutlery, a cooking element, kettle, and more.
These mini RV trailers are so lightweight that they can be pulled with most small cars which is pretty neat because not everyone has a big truck or SUV to tow a camper behind them. While most people would probably be interested in a teardrop trailer for their vintage cachet, or for shorter camping trips, Mat and I had fun imagining if we'd be able to live in a small space like this for an extended period of time and I think we could probably make it work for a few months at least :)
Steve, Mandy, and his Mom build these trailers by hand and they really inspired us with their passion for these tiny hand-built structures, and for the outdoors that they're always exploring in their own trailer.
To find out more about Steve's trailers, and to follow their day-to-day production, check out:
www.theteardrop...
/ theteardroptrailer
Thanks for watching!
Mat & Danielle
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STAY IN TOUCH!
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Blog: www.exploringalternatives.ca
Facebook: /exploringalternativesblog
Instagram: @exploringalternatives
Music & Song Credits:
All music in this video was composed, performed, and recorded by Mat Dubé of Exploring Alternatives.
Danielle and Matt. Thank you so much for showcasing our little teardrop
shop. We had an awesome day with you guys that day and welcome you back
anytime. Video editing and video quality is amazing. Keep on "exploring
Alternatives".
We look forward to seeing your next video on minimalist living, Happy trails...
5The Teardrop Trailer
That's like being a turtle - bringing your house to wherever you go! I love the idea of being so mobile and having all you need in one concentrated space. Well done for the video quality too.
With the storms increasing power I beleive humans one day will maybe have to stay mobile, we're the pioneers! Loll
Love the idea of having a smaller space and being able to tow it with a smaller car!
Yeah for sure the fact that it's so lightweight is pretty fantastic! Being able to pull it with a small car would definitely save tons of gas money compared to driving a bigger motorhome :)
we have had mazda miata,chevy spark,toyota echo,volkswagon golf, volkswagon bettle (new) and a hybrid prius pull our trailers from Newfoundland to Alberta and BC. Remember in the 1930's cars were only 100 horsepower back then, so these trailers were all they could pull....
I love teardrops. So easy to pull, park, store. These are lovely.
I'm taking one of these tear drops camping next week... can't wait!
Glad to meet you here Lucy
Very cool! This makes trailer camper possible for anyone with any kind of vehicle. I could see my younger brother owning one to come up and camp with us in our Airstream. I also LOVE that there is so much love in each one.
Steve and Mandy built my custom teardrop trailer and it is just perfect for me and my Mom. It's just beautiful and welll made
What a fantastic story. To build your dream and get more and more orders have to be fun. The Teardrop gives you the freedom to stop and sleep were you want :)
Great little trailer. To be true to TD styling of the past you should move your axle 32" from the rear of the trailer and use full-size tires. I have built quite a few since 1994. :)
Funny you just posted this teardrop company. I was just on their web site this morning looking at the trailers. I've been thinking about building one for quite some time now. They are neat little trailers.
Gas springs on rear hatch are installed up-side-down in the video. Make sure the barrel end is up, and the rod end is down. This allows the damper feature to work properly, and allows gravity to keep the lubricant working against the rubber seal, so gas strut keeps its charge.
Great build(s) guys! I'm currently 85% done with my own DIY teardrop and totally borrowed your passthrough idea. I changed it slightly in that I made my cabinets all pass throughs with easily removable doors but the initial inspiration for a passthrough was because of your video and it's one of my favorite features of my trailer!
hello, yes it's very perfect for the week-end
I particularly like the doors on both sides. They make it seem a lot less claustrophobic.
I live in Alberta and after seeing this I need one
Sooooo cute! A travel trailer that can be stored in a standard size garage. Sweet!
Thanks, I just found my next little dream, I have a Prius Hybrid so it's perfect for me. :)
Having a new Hyandai Elantra that gets almost 40mpg's, the teardrop is my best option :) Love these trailers!
Thumbs up.
ENJOY....THE SIMPLE LIFE
Awesome story. Perhaps you can make a trailer with all the accommodations you would have with a hot dog cart and conquer that dream as well?
Looks like a well built and well thought out trailer. I like the idea of using the Velcro straps to store the plates on the overhead door. I think I might do something similar with mine.
Fall in love with these things
so cute it brings a tear drop to my eye!
Awesome idea and a really cool design. Might have to get me one of those when I stop living on a boat!
Very cool. I'd love to travel around the country with one of those.
hi that's so cool I like camping too I like enjoying the nature and thank you for showing me travel trailers
Very cool little trailer! Thanks for sharing.
Another great feature. I just realised you guys are on the cusp of hitting 100,000 subscribers and deservedly so.
Thanks so much Phresh :) :)
Two years later, 400K more subscribers!
Love it... we saw a few teardrops at the Outer Banks this past week while camping....Love the idea of them for a single person or even a couple...makes us want too consider one when our last child flies the coup...
Super bien fait et très invitant...C'est pas grand est-ce qu'une grande personne s'y sentirait à l'aise? J'adore cependant!
That's so awesome
Thanks for watching :)
My pleasure. I always end up learning. That's the best part.
Wow great video. This is exactly what I want to build. Ill have to reach out to these guys.
Can't wait to buy one
wish i could get one of these but i have 3 med/large dogs. so my truck camper will have to do for now!
Nice Teardrop, thanks for sharing! I have a little 4x8 and LOVE it! :)
That sneak peek at the sun was just so cool
I want one so bad!
Nice build man great job
Awesome craftsmanship. Would love to apprentice with you for a few months. LOL. Id work for free.
Love it! Thanks for sharing!
Very cool. In NV that might become an oven ...
thats really cool
lovely as always best regards bro !
so cool and innovative
This is brilliant, subscribed to your channel, love the editing, content and production of your videos. I'll be back! Thanks Roy in Spain on a plot in the middle of the desert in a little house trying to live off the land. Thanks for your hard work and effort. ;-)
Thanks so much for subscribing Roy. Hope you enjoy all the content we have coming up!
REALLY NICE CAMPERS..
Love IT !
Tremendous!
i read that teardrops are more like tents. instead of camping with a tent you use a teardrop. now i see their purpose.
They were expensive, so i made my own. Now i make them and sell them super expensive. lol i get its quality work and worth the money i just found that funny
love them!
hey I dont know if you'll read this but you can fashion a method to have the wheels turn a generator for storing electricity
Ive heard about it before, never really looked into it too much though. Great idea as an alternative to solar
could improve sales
That’s broken thinking. It already charges through the car connector when running down the road. If you ran the charge off the turning wheels the load would cost same in gas as the added load on the vehicle’s alternator. There’s just no point!
The Teardrop Trailer
no it isn’t
I love teardrop trailers! I love it even more that it's a Canadian family business!!! :D Do you know what their price range is?
$5000-$9000 :-)
I NEED ONE
Love it!!! Perfect :-)
THIS IS A GRILL HOUSE
Question how do you get your camera to focus on the sun that's so cool. That is great how you turn out such nice trailers I would like to buy one, but I don't have enough cash so I am building my own. But as soon as I save up I'm getting one of those beauties and give mine away.
I want one!!! :D
On your web page you say these trailers do not exceed 900 pounds. Does this include the weight of the 2 batteries and a spare tire?
i would like to build one.
My question is deciding on a Pre made trailer with a above average axel.
Tires can be up graded.
Your choice of trailers brands?
Am I making this too difficult?
I like the idea a lot but my question to EA is would you get one and tow it with your van?
Is the quality of this enough to live out of full time? can it take a beating?
Too bad people can't volunteer their muscle to help build one they purchased and get a discount. The real criminality for just about everything is this evil government and their property taxes.
What does it weigh? And what is the price range because I cannot afford the ones I have seen.
💙💙💙
Really love this trailer, please tell us how much they cost😎
like it
Where are you located?nice teardrop.,
How CAN I make IT ? Please explenation !
I sold my class C Rv and built me a teardrop but it's not round in the back took out the kitchen galls and built a shower & porta potty roof rack 25 gallon fresh water tank pump 24"X 24" kitchen inside and I pull it with a Nissan Xterra pro 4X
Video?
I would love to see some pics/video!
Does anyone know of a teardrop with a potty? I'd love that!
canadian tire has a bucket with a seat, just slides it under the teardrop and back out for those big emergencies
We use a pop-up bathroom and a 5-gal bucket for our bathroom. We also use an electric pump with a pullout sprayer that goes from the sink to the pop-up bathroom for a shower. Works for us.
Do you guys ship to the yukon
Do you sell these in the States, I don't feel like do all the paper work from Canada to the U.S. ?
What legal stuff goes into a home made trailer like this? I'd love to make my own but i'm clueless on legalities of these things
I don't *think* it's possible, but could these be made light enough to be towed by a smart car? :D
Smart cars actually have a decent sized engine (1.6l or 1.8l, I can't remember) that wouldn't have a problem pulling one of these at all. I think Curt makes a class one receiver hitch for Smart cars, which would be plenty strong enough to pull such a lightweight trailer. You would definitely lose some MPGs and drive a bit slower, but outside of that it probably wouldn't be a problem.
Wonder if one could be pulled by a motorcycle......that does sound good.
There are Teardrop Trailers which are allows to be pulled by motorbikes, i saw some passing by
Bet they can but I would try to get a narrower RV like this one.The awesome thing about towing with a bike is you pay $75 a year insurance whereas I pay $1200 a year for insurance for a car. Granted I have a much better ride and safety in the car and I get about the same MPG since I Prius but I have to car since I have a lot of damage from tornado I have to have the arm rest back support and the works. www.jhblueroad.com/
We were at Blue Ridge Motorcycle Campground outside of Waynesville, NC a few years ago. We saw a Honda Goldwing with a great little pop-up camper in tow. There's a channel here on UA-cam of a company that makes motorcycle pop-up campers.
how much that unit costs?
very nice! however, 3,000 watt inverter...? seems like overkill to me.
Yes, especially with a 100 watt solar setup!!
jMon seems like awesomeness to me
ofc not ? it is MURIKAAAAAAA ! Bigger is better in crazy land, just look at the people and the meals, disgusting :P
I found a 1200W inverter more then enough and i use a gaminglaptop and other stuff :)
Lets you run induction cookers, vitamix blenders, refrigerators, and microwaves. Some people don't want to give up the comforts of home. I say it's a good thing to give them an option to explore nature. You could probably get a less powerful inverter if you didn't want those comforts.
While it may not be overkill in a consumer sense, two batteries won’t support 3000W for more than 25 minutes-ish. A 4-cup coffee maker is ~600W
Basically not s well thought-out system and the inverter probably isn’t pure sine
do you have a light weight version for single sleeping?
How much does this affect mileage?
I wanted to buy one of these until I called my dealer and asked what the towing capacity was for my car. Their answer (in the for of a question) was, "what towing capacity?" I drive a standard transmission, Mazda2. 😂
Jen Shea all 4 cylinder cars can to a teardrop trailer, even old vw beetles! A prius only has 100 horse power. I'm sure your mazda can pull it. Although it may void the warranty, so take off the hitch before you go in for repairs.
Also, monitor your transmission fluid temperature and make sure it doesn't go above boiling. You can buy an aftermarket thermometer to put on the transmission
You’ll be fine
can I tow this with my mazda miata ?
What about the sealing gaskets at 01:49 ? Are these North American manufacturing standards?? Weird.
Jeez... so cheap too!
How much?
I bought instruction from Avasva and I build it very very cheap.
Does it have a porter potty when nature calls?
Nature herself
Do you have a Porta-potty? Then yes
is the 9000.00 figure for a fully equipped one or a bare trailer?
Fully equipped. I just got mine. :)
I literally seen ur Instagram an hour ago...
You wouldn't sell one in or around Lima, Ohio.
Where can I buy this?
Am I missing the company name/where to order?
The tear drop trailer.com
spoiler alert yes you do get to see the sun
that sure id puurty.
Super cute but really only for 1 person. Don't think you actually live in it.
how much for one ? any one know - TIA
$5000 Canadian for a basic 4x8 woody, the one showcased 5x8 diamond in the rough about $9000 Canadian,
and yes we deliver across north america. All trailers come with a vin and are DOT compliant and come with all the proper paperwork for Canadian and American customers
not bad cost wise :O
Susie Mac
100w solar panel and a 3kw inverter? why that powerful??
🌴🌴💗💗💗💗💗💗💗🌴🌴
Where's the head?
luggable loo bucket....