May Day 2020 Update on Sew Shiny

Creepy mood lighting as we installed the center section of aluminum. That meant we had to drop our Harbor Freight lights to the floor until we got the cut outs for the vents/air conditioner and could hang them back up there.

It's been a month since our last blog and video update, and we have been working on the interior walls this month.

I am going to interrupt this post for this important public announcement: I am going to say "we" a lot in this blog. Please assume that is the royal we, and that Dennis did 99% of the actual work I mention in any description that follows. I am excellent when told "hold that right there" or "de-burr the holes on this piece" or even following behind him inserting Cleco clamps as he drills. Sometimes he let me do a little math to make me feel useful.

Water Inlet installed next to the Outdoor Shower box that Dennis built

Dennis finished all the wiring, installed the water inlet, the smart plug, and finished up all the insulation. We found aluminum at a local supplier, so Dennis was able to cut all the pieces to perfectly fit the walls, end caps, and around the door and windows. We used 14 sheets of 4'x10' 032 mill finish aluminum for the walls, and airplane rivets to install. We carefully marked and hit every rib, so our Airstream is as strong as we could make it. I was especially impressed by the custom window surrounds he was able to build. He built himself a template, and then made all the window sashings to allow for the Airstream window hardware.

We built our end caps a little differently from most. We used 16" segments, and started with a 24" piece centered in the end on the rib.

Front End Caps fitted

Installing the walls is a lot of fidgety work. It is a bit like designing your own jigsaw puzzle. Some pieces slide under others, some have to go on top, and there are some partial ribs (that were just stiffeners, and had never been drilled before) that we had to work to hit with rivets.

Now, on May 1, we have what Dennis calls a "blank tiny house." I have a few ideas of where I want the big features to go (rear bedroom, small composting toilet, all the plumbing on one side), but we haven't actually nailed down the cabinet design or storage options. We are not putting water under our trailer (no black tank, no underneath grey tank), so our water and grey tank will be in our heated (and cooled) space. No winterizing required...or very little winterizing required.

Insulation is two thicknesses and cut to fit the curves

Marking the ribs and carefully spacing rivets

Every part of the original trailer was gross.

Immediately after fitting the center section, we had to pull each panel down and cut out for the vents, air conditioning, and light drops.

In case you haven't figured it out...it was one hole at a time. And a lot of clecos.

Next steps: We have to choose our air conditioner unit--with or without a heat pump?--and order the two MaxxAir fans we will install fore and aft. We dropped the lines for our ceiling lights, but we need to order fixtures. There's space for four down the center section, plus a bathroom light. We are hoping to use the old kitchen sink, which is the only part of the original Airstream interior we could rescue. (We both think it's funny to say that we threw out everything but the kitchen sink!) I think we are really just a few days from pulling the Airstream outdoors where she will have to live forever once we get the fans and AC installed. She'll be too tall for the garage door!

Oh, and I ordered a professional polishing kit from Eastwood this week. I have tried numerous less expensive polishes, and I can get some shininess in areas, but nothing that seems to work consistently. So, I can either run the polisher for the rest of the summer, or I can try something else. (Actually, I'll probably still run the polisher for the rest of the summer.) So, I'm going to try the Eastwood product, and then if that doesn't work, there are a couple of other options I can try. As a friend pointed out this week, I have to polish her since she has to live up to her name.

Enjoy this video from Dennis!