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We did, indeed! The engine seized while we had the van severely overloaded while driving through some mountainous areas! We are still traveling in different builds, though!

hahah 🤣That would have been pretty impressive! I hope you got some rest!

This is one of the new camper options we've built out! These ones are a bit stealthier and a tad easier to city camp with!

This thing has plenty of structural integrity, actually! Laminating the panels made this thing tough. It can hold up at 80MPH on the freeway as well as in some pretty turbulent storms, so far!

Thank you! All of our joints are staggered and have a "stepped" design to them to increase the surface area of each joint. The wall "steps" join with the floor "steps" and are adhered using low-expansion pressure spray foam before being wrapped on the outside with PMF (poor-man's fiberglass). We using some 3/4-inch subflooring as anchors for our carriage bolts, which run through the floor and fasten to the frame of the Astro!

Glad you think so! It allows for some pretty awesome views!

Thank you! It really was quite the unique build!

I'm glad it was helpful! You're welcome 🙂

@@JaredBernardy ruclips.net/video/qiBt_pXbXmQ/видео.htmlsi=uMhgI1dpi5HVSvw2 🤣🤣

@@user-xr9zd8hq6y hey there! The weight of the foam structure or the flooring?

@@user-xr9zd8hq6y we just used paint 🎨 😅 The walls were obviously very susceptible to scratches and punctures, but it was quick and simple!

That's for sure! I came to realize the value of help as the project progressed! 😅

Thank you! We used 100% cotton fabric from Joann's Fabric online order, but it was too low of quality. I would recommend heavier!

I believe we used around 2.5 gallons of Titebond II.

Hello James, our foamie's structure gets its strength from layers of laminated and staggered panels. Our roof is 6 inches thick (3 layers of XPS foam boards laminated together with their seams staggered). Our walls are 4 inches thick (2 layers of XPS foam boards with the same construction method). Is your foamie a single layer of foam on the roof? If so, I do not have much knowledge on the strength of a single panel. If it has at least two layers of panels, I would be pretty confident in its strength in holding solar panels.

Glad you think so! haha

If a space cadet can do it I might actually have a chance completing a similar project

@@iczer01 get after it! 😅

@MrHatetheplayer The foam board is very easily damaged during transport, unfortunately. Much of the boards at Home Depot even have damage to them. With ordering online, it kind of traps a person into buying the damaged ones. Let me know if you figure out a solution!

@@robhamilton4736 what is the point of your comment?

Haha that's our microphone 😅 We have a windscreen attachment on the end, and it grabs people's attention.

The H3 has also been retired 😳

Oh no! Was everyone alright?

Sounds like a great tip for foamie builders in the future! I want to use epoxy resin and fiberglass matting next time and see how that method goes. If I do try PMF again, I'll definitely consider your recommendation!

@@AstroLanderRVwhat material sheeting is that

@johnle231 the material used here is a roll of cotton sheet fabric. It was much too light of duty, though. It was easily punctured, unfortunately.

@@AstroLanderRV thx for feedback

Astros are such a great platform for these cool RVs! They get impressingly good fuel economy. How long have you owned your Astro Allegro for?

@@AstroLanderRV I've had the Astro Allegro for 13 years. I typically keep my vehicles for 20+ years.

@@feathermerchant that's a good chunk of time! I start with the intention of keeping a vehicle for a very long time but inevitably end up changing directions for one reason or another.

The prices sure did sky rocket!

Yes, we used it for about a year before the engine seized. We sold the chassis and box separately to avoid any worry of it falling apart on someone.

Holy smokes! That is scary. Was everyone alright?

No one in the video had a wired shut mouth.

Hello! I think we've put around 5,000 miles on it. The engine spun a bearing and seized while the van was overloaded during a move. I was pushing into the passing gear for too long climbing into the mountains, which caused the issue. Since then, we separated the chassis from the box and sold each separately. Over a year of use with nearly constant traveling, the engine and transmission held up great (until I overloaded and pushed it). The staggered and laminated XPS method worked super well. There were countless people who didn't believe there was not traditional "framing". People ofte. Seemed to think I just didn't understand what they were asking when they would ask if I used aluminum or wood for framing (we used neither). It held up through some pretty high storm winds, walking on the roof, driving on the freeway, and to light hail. Some inch and a half hail broke through the PMF coating, however. Fiberglass and epoxy resin on the exterior would have been a major upgrade. Also, having designed it to be shorter and skinner would have been wise. The size of this thing is gigantic. The roof was 12 feet from the ground and it was a little over 7 feet wide. That really impacted how much it would get pushed around on the road.

I think your idea would be great for strengthening the exterior and protecting it from punctures. Tree branches and large hail have punctured some spots on our shell, unfortunately.

Hey there, it is low expansion spray foam intended for window and door frames to prevent bowing. It keeps the laminated panels closer together and is sticky as could be!

looks like they used an adhesive foam, like for sticking up plasterboard. but "foam fusion" is apparently the best glue for adhering these foam boards to each other.

Hello Phil! We used low expansion pressure spray foam intended for window and door frames. It worked great for us. I'm excited to see more of your houseboat. I sometimes imagine having secured our box to a pontoon boat haha. Sounds like "foam fusion" is a good recommendation, too!

We ended up using masking tape to contain overflow and then applied a good amount of spray foam between the cab and the box to fill the void. A long knife was effective in timing excess and the end result looked pretty good.

Hello David, the old girl's engine failed and we decided to downsize instead of repairing it. I was too hard on the accelerator climbing some mountains and I think the engine spun a bearing.

Hey Joe, I appreciate your encouraging words! We used rolls of cotton fabric from a craft store. It was not rugged at all, unfortunately. The fabric was punctured by tree branches and hail. Using fiberglass fabric and epoxy resin would have yielded a much stronger shell. The overall box held up incredibly well, anyway.

It's great to hear from you! and thank you! I believe I had used around 3 gallons of Titebond II diluted with water. Having not diluted the glue would have probably yielded a better result.

@@AstroLanderRV I am working on a DIY camper trailer 16 x 7 feet. Considering foam walls like you. Trying to decide on whether to use PMF or other options for exterior. Based on your experience with PMF, any suggestions? Thank you so much.

@knightdetroja very nice on building your camp trailer! I found the PMF was much too soft for my liking. Using fiberglass and epoxy resin would have been a good improvement over PMF for strength. A concern I would have with fiberglass is the different expansion rate between foam and the epoxy resin fiberglass. The foam expands and contracts quite a bit, so any exterior coating that is ridged could be of concern (such as aluminum, plastic, etc.).

We used cotton sheet fabric on a massive roll from the fabric store. It stretched a lot once wet, which caused some difficulty. Saturating the sheet in the glue and water mixture would have helped a lot, I think. I would probably go the fiberglass and epoxy resin route in the future, though.

Hello there! Yes, our only way in and out is via the cab. It is by design to deter break-ins. Having a side door would be a great quality of life upgrade.

Hello there! The box works great for controlling temperature. While outside temperatures were freezing, the interior remained right around 70°F (due to body heat, batteries, and refrigerator). During the summer, having the window fully covered and trapping cool "night-time air" in the van, temperatures stayed decently low during the day, but sometimes got up to 80°F. While in the hot desert sun, we had to run an air conditioner to stay cool. Our solar and battery system was adequate for using A/C continuously, as needed. After a lot of attention to eliminating small squeaks, the road noise was quite minimal. While off-roading, there was a ton of movement and interior objects flung all over. The overall strength of our build was extremely impressive (in my opinion). The roof could support several grown adults without issue and with no "bracing." The van held up at freeways speeds (80mph) and survived many tropical storms. If we were to build another, I would want to coat the exterior with something more resistant to puncturing, such as rubber, very thin sheet aluminum, or epoxy resin. We sustained external damage from some tree branches and then some golf ball sized hail. I would also prefer to have a gap between the roof and our solar panels. Our flexible panels were adhered directly to the roof and ended up melting the foam down about two inches underneath. It still held together fine, but the panels began sagging into the voids. The foamie is so strong because of how many layers of laminated and staggered foam we used. Our roof was three layers of staggered 2-inch panels (6-inches thick in total), two layers on the walls, and three layers on the floor. The van could be lifted by just the box, which speaks to the box's strength.

@@AstroLanderRV Thank you for taking your time to answer my question!

Thank you very much for your encouraging words. The Astro certainly has a ton of character!

Thank you! Our construction method did not use any bracing or wood. Your project might require some methods different from ours. The Astro box is solely held together by staggered and laminated foam panels adhered to one another by low-expansion spray foam and wrapped in poor-man's fiberglass.

@@AstroLanderRV What is low expansion spray foam? You have a product name? I will probably use some bracing either wood or angle aluminum. I won’t be walking on it. Bed cover. Just snow load.

@@gregroth4696 amzn.to/3TWYcKW by the brand 'Great Stuff' and is intended for windows and doors to prevent bowing often caused by high expansion pressures in standard spray foam. Let me know how your truck topper turns out!

@@AstroLanderRV Ok thanks so much! I’ll try it!

Thank you!