Evolution E1
What happened?
A growing boy, washing dishes in the friends camper, A truck camper that followed us through some pretty rough terrain, neighbors watching us set up, a truck with power to haul more.
All of the above and the fact that we had been considering a larger camper for a little while now. I had eyed other options and our last trip we decided to do a little looking.
Some research revealed an option of which I was unaware. Fleetwood had built some "offroad" ready pop up campers. Nothing "hardcore", but great out of the way base camp ready.
A quick Crazedlist.org search of the northwest revealed one. A few emails later and his bottom dollar matched my top dollar.
A whirlwind 700 mile round trip and we Have a 2007 Fleetwood Evolution E1
Curb weight loaded: 3070# Tongue weight: 500# Axle: 2570#
It will sleep six on King , queen and fullsize beds. I can not say it is a step up. It is a side step. I am making a few changes , adding a few items. It will not be as heavily modified as the last.
The BLT Offroad trailer goes to a good home. On our last trip , my brother-in-law said, "If you ever want to sell it...". I brushed off the idea as a bit of a joke.
He called to say they made it home safe , just after we found the E1. I asked if he was serious about buying our trailer. His response, "In a heartbeat!"
I feel a little sad that we are moving out of it, but happy it goes to a good home.
E1 received the BLT Offroad shovel and new mounts across the back.
I wired in a battery disconnect switch
battery condition meter
and power port for the solar panel suitcase.
The fridge received a baffle and fan for the condenser as well as a little battery operated fan inside and a temperature gauge on the door.
Finally took the time to install the thermostatic switch for my interior fans:
This switch will run the fans down to 40°F. Part 2570F110 (065 F-669 Close 65ºF, Open 40ºF (+/-5))Item# 1313 $9.75
The conductive end of the switch is down against the fins. My fans are attached to those plastic pieces across the top of the cooling fins. That made for an easy install. They just snap in place. The switch is just the right height to slide in up top with the plastic button up top to keep it snug.
I added a switch outside to cancel the fans.
I did do the fan baffle and fan mod too: (not a great picture)
Four cans of spray foam to seal out dust, a pair of new rubber mats, interior vent fans adapted to work with the "audio jack" 12 volt plugs.
For our shower floor I used 1.3x1.3 redwood fencing material purchased from Home depot. It is already the perfect length. I sorted through and picked out the best pieces of wood. A bag of large wood beads. A pack of cord locks and some 3/16" or 1/4" rope/cord. Three holes drilled in each piece of wood. Strung with cord and separated with the beads. Thread one bead over the cord and double it through each, separating them with a bead. Cords are left long enough to roll up the mat. Once laid down and the cord tightened with the locks it makes a great mat and much easier on the feet.
We use a PUP privacy tent enclosure for showering.
To aid in backing up at night and to act as a rear flood light I added an LED light strip across the back.
The sealed toggle above the left rear tail lamp turns it on. I decided that this method would force me to check behind before backing in the dark. The 96 white LED strip throws lots of light. Pretty handy when you stow stuff under the back for the night.
The center mount tongue jack did not allow the tailgate to drop, so now we have a SeaSense Mighty Jack:
Test run to Pilot rock complete.
Everything worked pretty well. We forgot a few things and found a few things. I ordered a BAL leveler when we returned and raised the hitch one inch.
I decided that we might find a gray water tank useful. A suitable place to carry it out of the way was needed.
Hanging it underneath seems like a good idea. We won't need it all the time and it will be handy when we do. The aluminum diamond plate tray hangs down an inch lower than the fresh water tank. No lower than the stabilizers or the accessory tube that we mounted just in front of it.
The final piece was to add a couple Rubber Tee handle draw / hood latches
The fresh water fill cap tether was long gone. Fallen to the UV I suspect. I replaced it with a wire and heat shrunk terminals tether
The center cap screw has a stainless steel nylon locking nut inside.
We have quick disconnect mounts for our dune flags on all the BLT Offroad vehicles. simple airline couplers act as quick disconnects.
The rod is a tent pole repair kit inserted into a compression fitting.
The flag is located on the pole with a rubber o-ring and the top with a rubber line cap. The whole thing breaks down into a nice package for transport.
I had another LED light strip. Under counter lights help light that dark hole that is our floor.
The light mounts using zip-ties slipped under the counter top and tightened to pinch them in place. No drilling! The switch for them is beside the radio. They wrap around that corner to light the entry too. You can also see that we installed a triple power port. It is switched and blends well. That gives us a place to plug in the TV, DVD, Ipod, or cell phone charger.
Folding organizer
Installed a DuPont faucet mounted water filter. We now have a rail mounted basket to sit beside the RVQ.
Just realized that I had not shown a picture of the retractable cable we have for the dog:
Last night I completed the build and install of the twin receiver tube hitch for the back:
I filled the top of the frame with expanded steel to make a handy storage area between the rear bumper and forward crossmember.
The cargo tray is light weight built from a recycled aluminum tool box lid. U channel bars attach with standard 5/8" hitch pins.
The tray is at a nice height for opening with the beds deployed. It should be much nicer than reaching over the front deck to get into the cooler.
I will have to remove the cargo tray to crank the camper up, but that should not be too bad. The convenience of a cooler that is accessible, weight to the back to relieve some of the tongue weight and a good recovery point on the rear will serve to offset any inconvenience.
I had to move the license plate up so that it is visible with a cooler on the rack. It adds about 6" to the length beyond the back of the spare tire. Just a couple inches behind the Trasharoo.
I just converted all my interior and exterior campsite lights to LED. Quite a learning experience.
First lesson learned: I will not likely order from dealextreme.com again. It took five weeks to receive my order and that was after waiting ten days and asking their support why there had been no activity. At that time I was assured they had expedited my order and it would arrive in a few days. That did not happen. It took twenty two days from the order to the post mark on the package. The rest of the time in transit. Customer service was nice, but did nothing to expedite the package from what I can see.
Next: I ordered the "universal" 20-LED Cabin/Dome/Door/Glove box lights. They do not include a base that fits the cargo/ step or interior overhead lights. An 1156 style base is needed.
The LED panel is sized correctly to fit in the housings. The exterior lights are flat in the back of the housing and the double side adhesive works just fine for mounting those. The interior lights have a curved rear reflector and needed some thicker foam adhesive to mount those.
My solution for the lack of an appropriate base adapter was to break some 1156 bulbs and use the female socket from one of the included adapters. Once soldered in place I filled the base with silicone and let it dry. I was sure to check polarity before they were completed.
Once those were done everything else was pretty much plug-n-play. The LED lights that I used were a plug-n-play fit for the "optional" fan-light. The backing in that one is flat so everything worked just great.
At $40 to do five lights (fan, two overhead, step and front deck cargo) The price was acceptable. My time retrofitting was not too bad.
This should significantly cut 12 volt power consumption.
Today a new 35 gallon fresh water tank. The stock E1 tank was 20 gallons. A few short of what we had become acustomed.
The first step was removal...
Once out I measured the depth of the channel between which it is mounted. Those extend down 3.25" I reused the lower channel as stiff support for the bottom of the tank and fabricated new one piece straps to cradle them.
The stock tank was held up by four 1/4" bolts. My new straps use all of the existing holes on the crossmember to attach the straps with eight 5/16" bolts.
I found the fill hose to be a bit short and mine had a leak in it a couple inches up from the end. Adding a schedule 40 elbow and short piece of braided hose I was able to reattach it. The water pump line required elimination of the 90 degree fitting and cutting a couple inches off. The vent line was just right as is.
A heat gun helped with both removal and installation.
Once all back together it was filled and tested leak free. Drained and parked , ready for spring weather.
Fast forward to end of the season. The bigger tank helped but another 6 gallons will be riding on the front deck in a jug as a reserve. I also added a thrid strap under the tank on the left side. It was sagging the bottom and retained some usable water volume. That extra support was needed.
We use a PETT enclosure For our potty and showering. I wanted to have the door to the rear of the trailer and the side have access to the shower hose and controls. Took the time to do this mod today.
We went to Joann's fabric and picked up a water resistant closed end zipper and some iron on striping.
14" was the longest zipper they had available. We had been looking for 16"-18", but that was not an option here for a closed end zipper. This will work just fine.
I wanted backing to reinforce the tent material. Iron on made it simple to keep inner, outer, and the zipper all lined up on the slick nylon. I would have liked it a couple inches higher, but the bottom of the window is about centered on the access door for the controls, so this will work out OK, I hope.
I ironed the outer strip in place then lined up the zipper and marked it to be cut for the opening. Once that was done I laid the zipper in place and the inner strip over it. Once all that was ironed and held in place firmly, I stitched the perimeter and along the zipper. A little trimming of the reinforcement for zipper clearance, and I was done.
Exterior:
Interior (Just below the window):
Open:
What should I have done? Tabs or loops at each end of the zipper to use as grabs for its operation. I can grab the window ties to hold it for opening and closing, but a tab of webbing would have been nice.
I did add a nice big loop of webbing on the inside at the top. This should work to hang our shower wand.
Works great!
The new long crank for raising and lowering is fantastic. No more moving the cooler and rack on the back. I used a Crank Handle For Stromberg Carlson Landing Gear $20. Great investment.
We also added a propane fire. The CampChef campfire was purchased at Sportsmanswarehouse for $69 and the Lite Propane cylinder online at Amazon for $90. Another great addition.
Don't trust the factory roof rack! More correctly, what it is mounted to.
I learned last week that the aluminum corners that run the length of the top are glued on. Two thin strips of a hardened glue. That is all that hold the rails. It sticks fairly well to the fiberglass top, but not well at all to the aluminum.
My roof rack, rails , awning and Canoe came off the trailer suddenly at 65 mph. Thank goodness no one was hurt and all appear to be salvageable with minimal damage.
I did not think the rails were cosmetic covers for the ends. That sure seems backward.
Had I known the rails were so poorly retained, I would not have attached the canoe to that rack. Those with bikes or cargo boxes up there should be afraid, very afraid. I am really surprised that there was nothing attaching those rails to the sides. even a little of that crappy glue would have been helpful.
I will be re-installing mine. Rest assured it will be done much more securely than the factory install. I used a gasket scraper to knock off those two little beads of glue and it is ready to go for this weekends project.
All fixed now. There is some structure along the sides. I drilled and installed five stainless steel screws. Installed low on the outside of the rails they penetrate the wood support. I generously applied SikaFlex structural adhesive before snapping the rails back over the end caps. A screw through the top at each end inside the track groove. All the screws enter in the adhesive applied to seal them. Tightening the crossbars holds tension to keep the rails together. With the screws along the out sides and the liberal use of adhesive, I don't see this rack coming off without major damage.
I will be re-installing mine this weekend. Rest assured it will be done much more securely than the factory install. I used a gasket scraper to knock off those two little beads of glue and it is ready to go for this weekends project.
I can not show the structure , as I never did reveal it. I did strike wood while drilling the sides. Nothing but plastic and fiberglass on the top. I did not want to create holes for water intrusion along the top, nor did I want to impede adjustment for the towers.
These rails have an inverted lip. This snaps over the plastic end caps. You must stay away from the edge far enough to miss that. You do need to stay far enough down to catch the underlying wood structure on the sides. As you can see in the previous pictures there is a void at the corner of the top where the sealing mastic is attached.
I spaced the screws evenly. 8" from each end of the aluminum channel. 54" to the center and 31" to split the difference, as measured from the ends (23" from the screw located at 8" from the end).
BTW , you can see where that rails is tweaked a little in the center. I straightened it as best I could. The red end caps are to keep the wasps from nesting until I can grab some black caps to finish the bars.
I used an 1/8" drill for the holes and then installed 1" long #10 stainless steel screws. Don't over torque. These will act more as a resistance to shear loads rather than offer a clamping force. Some "teeth biting in" to hold them on and resisting the lifting forces. I am sure clamping them down helps to hold them on the end caps where the lips snap over. I did have one corner cap that I had to remove and repair. It had cracked where it had stayed snapped to the rail as it lifted off. SikaFlexed the heck out of that and reinstalled.
Missing the old 43qt Edgestar 12V freezer/fridge from the last trailer, we finally found a deal on another one
$220 delivered. Works Great!
A GoalZero 13w solar panel was acquired and will supplement the added demands of the 12V fridge. Picked up a insulated travel cover for it too.
June 1st 2013
Opened up for the season. A few quick fixes:
We are on about the third revision for towel holders. This one is looking good.
Found it while looking through Homedepot for some better drawer and door latches. I heated a "cow magnet" and melted it into the center. A little double stick adhesive foam for the bracket to attach it to the ceiling in stowed position.
Those roller drawer and door latches never did work quite right. I changed them out for some magnetic catches. I had to straighten the plates to mount on the back side of the wall. Seems to work better so far.
I had noticed that some trailers had a storage compartment under the heater. Our E1 did not. The void was still there. I opened it up and added some trim.
Nice place to stow some small items. We picked up a couple small totes to keep things in place. The extra space should be valuable.
Update August 2014:
Installed a new battery box and switch. I had intended to clean up the original install and finally did it.
This is fits the two 6 volt golf cart batteries nicely with room for the bluesea marine battery switch. I reused the battery condition meter and the power port off the old set-up.
This will be indeed easier to maintain, as well as cleaner and more secure.
July 2016
Joined the ranks of the "Soggy Deck Club". The linered front deck is made from OSB. Where the bottom side is linered the moisture traps and can not dry. Moisture usually enters at the attachment bolts or side rail rivets.
I thought about using fiberglass decking much like our sand ladders, however I had some extruded aluminum 12"x16' available. No cost...I'll give it a shot .
"T" helped remove the stock rail. Underneath the framework was in good shape and lacking the expected rust.
Bolted together the two pieces were a little wider than the stock front deck.
All back together and fully loaded.
Next up is to replace the failed furnace thermostat, and upgrade the tongue jack to a very robust "Ark Pak" jack :)
December 2018 long overdue update on additions:
I did install the new Ark Pak tongue jack. Awesome jack, Extremely heavy duty. Very nice!
The handle is held in place with a very strong magnet. Easily removed to be stored. This is robust enough to winch the trailer out disconnected.
Next up is air conditioning...
The weak roof does not lend itself to survival on rough roads. This portable spot cooler is not cheap but works well. It took a while to figure out what works and what doesn't but I now have a combination that is working for me. The Champion dual fuel generator and Mobile spot cooler air conditioner.
UPDATE July 2024: New awning, radio and tabletop. Old awning was not in great shape. New one is better match and easier. Radio gets Bluetooth and USB ports. Tabletop is longer taller and narrower.
