sprayfoam

I cannot feel my body.

Strike that. I CAN in fact feel my body. Every single muscle. They’re all yelling at me for not getting off my butt and keeping active on a regular! Three days ago I woke up and decided it’s been awhile since I’ve jogged, so I went. I totaled 2 miles, and this elevation was a big adjustment! Then two days ago I went to work with Ben 🙂

Another free day came up on Thursday, so we decided to use this beautiful weather and put it to use!

Originally, when we foamed the trailer, we only put about 3/4 inch of foam on the roof, and it seemed to do the trick… that is until the cold front started creeping in. It really needed more, so we added another 2 inches or so, coated with silicone and threw some gray granules on top. Again, foam is Ben’s profession, it’s what he wakes up to go do every day, so I was his “helper”. I basically tailed the hose and carried it behind (it’s a rather large hose… you’ll see below), cleaned up the job-site, taped up wind blockers and back spray, blew off the roof etc etc. Like an assistant.

The rather large snake on the ground is the foam hose and on the end of it obviously is the spray gun. It’s nice to have someone tail the hose and keep it out of the way, especially on a small surface. *Below* Boots are wrapped and taped so I don’t have to buy new ones 😉 and my dusk mask is on to breathe the clean air while sanding the walls inside down.

We really did end up getting a lot done on Thursday. It was a full working day, from about 10 AM or so, until 6:30 PM. We finished the roof which was the most important on the list. We will need to foam the bottom just a little more but that can be saved for another day.

Almost only counts with horseshoes and hand grenades, but we ALMOST finished the drywall. I am getting MUCH better at drywalling 🙂 We still had the front of the trailer, the ‘V’, to mud and tape still, and we had to frame the door and put in the bull nose and trim it up a bit. We were SO close… but we ran out of drywall mud. I HATE having to stop a project due to lack of supplies! But alas, such is life and all things are never ideal. Good news is I have the mud now, and after I finish the drywall up, I already have the painting supplies ready to go next!

At FIRST, I was very nervous on the roof. I didn’t go up last time but this time I wanted to get even more involved. I wouldn’t say have I have a fear of heights, cause I don’t, but I DO have a healthy respect for high surfaces that doesn’t have a railing on it.

The paper you see taped around the perimeter of the trailer in the first of these above three pictures is to help block the foam from spraying over the side etc. Last time I taped the paper around the top perimeter with both feet on the ground. (I’m kinda tall). THIS time I did it with both knees on the roof! Yipee! And THEN — by the end right before we coated the roof with the silicone, I went back up top and I was able to blow it off and walk around with confidence.. The extra foam did help as it made it more of a sturdy surface too 🙂 In between I had to also work around and trim the sides with a knife after the foam set in. No wonder my back hurt.

But seriously. . . I am really REALLY enjoying this process. It’s also nice not being on a timeline and worrying about a budget and a deadline. This way, we are able to work as we can afford it, and still live comfortably in it in the meantime. The work itself is very enjoyable, like I said, I am getting better at drywall! This third time I do it I may be just perfect. HA! It’s not easy, and this really does have a learning curve, but we are winging it and so far its working! I can’t wait to start our next project and we’re not even close to finishing this one!

It’s been a little over a month and I would recommend it over and over again if someone had asked my two cents. After moving twice (one across country) in less than 4/5 months, it’s taking a bit of time to bounce back up on our feet– as you can imagine– but bouncing we are and it’s great! 🙂

On that note, I’m going to get ready to go out and enjoy my Halloween! I love Halloween and all of the scares 🙂

One of the first major things that had to get done on the trailer was insulation, we just needed the time to do it. It worked out rather nicely that spray foam happens to be Ben’s profession so gaining access to it was rather easy and convenient, not to mention a major cost saver, and clearly the best option for the job.

So yesterday started with hauling everything out of the trailer, and we started with the ramp door. Screw by screw we took it apart and moved onto the walls and interior, we weren’t quite sure if we would end up spraying that day but were prepared to sleep in the trailer stripped if needed. This project will continue to progress as time and money allows, all the while having it for our permanent living quarters, so my standards have lowered drastically.

The ramp door came apart rather easily… I couldn’t imagine before we dove in how it would work etc when Ben would explain what we would need to do. But a few You Tube videos and 5 minutes in I had no problem working my way around that trailer.

This is really my first major project of anything construction related, so I’m asking Ben all the why’s, how’s, and why comes constantly. Once we got started everything just became common sense more or less and it flowed pretty easily. AND it was a lot quicker once he found the power drill for taking down the walls!

Here you can see the ceiling of the trailer, and in the process of the interior being stripped. I think I am going to leave the ceiling as is (meaning no drywall or ceiling cover). I like the strip of wood the way it is, so I think I am just going to get some darker stain for the wood, stain it and paint the metal, leaving the bars black. I have a few other things that I will plan to tie in with the ceiling wood strip, but I’ll save that for when the time comes.

Empty and ready for foam! 🙂

I did spray one tiny spot myself, but I didn’t want to make too big of a mess so I left it to Ben 🙂

Almost finished with the roof, just getting a coating on the foam. We decided to foam the roof and not the inside ceiling for a few reasons. One I just liked the look of the ceiling… Two, the black bars had a space between them and the sheet of metal above it, and its working out to be a great use for various gadgets, nets, and hooks. I want to make every space count in this small trailer so we thought this would be beneficial to keep.

I also want to reuse and recycle as many products and pieces as possible. (There is something we took off the trailer and I’m not sure WHAT I am going to do with it but it will be SOMETHING cool!) So anyways, above you see what the manufacturer used as a “trim” of sorts for the wooden interior. We ripped all of that out and some of it we cut up into small strips. We then put them above the beams and under the metal sheet that is the ceiling, between 2-3 pieces stacked for each spot. The reason we did this was so that when we foamed the roof it would still keep that space available for hooks etc.

Figuring out how to insulate the underside of the trailer was looking to be the biggest struggle but it actually didn’t turn into that much of an issue. Not sure whether to use foam board or spray foam (the preferred choice) we saved that decision for last. It was really an issue of HOW we were going to get under the beast — Ben managed to get a small fork lift to lift the trailer and create between 3-4 feet under it, foamed within a few minutes and presto! 😀

Next step is drywall! That might be a few days but I am a patient girl! My biggest struggle right now is deciding what to paint the interior…

PS. the insulation is making a WORLD of a difference.

Oh, and I am also exhausted from yesterdays work! BUT it feels amazing because I did it!

dynomadic life

Dynamic Design. Nomadic Nature.

Happy Halloween!

Working day — 1.