I spent weeks and weeks searching for a chemical-free trailer suitable for people with MCS. I finally came across a trailer made almost entirely of aluminum. I had it made based on the suggestions in this EI Wellspring article. This post is an update on that article and I will add some suggestions for improvements.
Camplite no longer makes these trailers with all-aluminum interiors however you can custom make a trailer from scratch along these lines and you will have a long-lasting trailer.
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The 2014 Camplite travel trailer comes with no wood, no steel, and can be made without any vinyl or toxic upholstery.
The walls, (inside and out), and the cabinets and benches are aluminum with a baked-on finish. The insulation is foam but is sealed off by the aluminum (aluminum is a VOC barrier).
I chose the 11FDB (11 x 7-foot interior) which still feels very spacious to me and has a washroom (toilet and shower), a kitchen (sink, fridge, room for hotplate) and is wired for 30 amps.
This still had a chemical smell when new. The amount of time it takes to offgas depends on the temperature and your sensitivities. I think after 6 months it was good but was not totally scent-free. I recommend using an ozone generator to speed up the offgassing (more on the safety of using ozone here).
Here are the specifications that I had it made to:
- NO Azdel cabinetry: Opt for aluminum cabinetry (an extra 279 USD). As of 2016 they are saying that part of the cabinets are Azdel, and they are very reluctant to leave this out.
- NO insulation under the floors – for a chemical spray-on insulation that is very thin, 1000 USD did not seem like a good deal for this option.
- Aluminum Floors – As of 2016 they will not leave bare extruded aluminum floors.
- NO Azdel interior – Replace with aluminum walls (for 1000 USD). As of 2016 they are only offering Azdel walls from what my clients have said. This is a real shame as this is the only company I knew that made all aluminum interiors.
- NO propane furnace/AC. I use an electric heater and portable AC/dehumidifier. The white exterior keeps it pretty cool inside, even in the summer sun. If I did it again I would definitely keep the propane furnace/AC. Not having it makes un-sellable to a non-MCSer. You can always remove the propane tanks off the front of the trailer and the little bit of added glue and plastic will not be significant.
- NO propane range. I put in my own 2 burner cooktop (electric). Again, leave this one in and put your own hotplate on top since it folds down underneath the counter and is good for resale. I currently cook everything in an Instant Pot and release the steam outdoors to keep humidity low.
- NO Formica (laminate): The only countertop option they had (for the 2014 model) is Formica with styrofoam on the inside. The dinette was also Formica. As of 2016, they use solid surface countertops which may be safe.
- NO blinds, valances or screens on the windows or doors. No awning. No fold-out tent.
- NO cushions – mine are custom Natural Latex (non-toxic, but see my warning here). I would have got them to leave the cushions, screens and blinds and store it somewhere else. In case you need to sell it to a non-MCSer.
- NO caulking. I asked for no caulking, but they did use it anyway. No caulk is not a good idea. You could send them a non-toxic one for them to use if they agree to this.
- YES to the propane/electric fridge which vents to the outside.
- YES to the propane water heater, like the fridge it is totally vented to the outside from what they tell me and from what the EI article suggests. Running short on amps here so if you want hot water….
If you are ordering one make sure to also specify not to put the black stuff (spray-on insulation ) under the seats, and not to glue plastic on the inside of the cabinets. They should be all aluminum.
Further modifications made by me to remove toxins:
- Replaced the vinyl shower hose with a metal shower hose. This was super easy to do and didn’t require tools.
- Wash the whole thing down to remove factory residues.
- I removed the laminate countertops and replaced with a wooden one that I had made. The wood didn’t hold up and I recently replaced it with an aluminum countertop. The cost of which was about $250.
- I removed the cabinet doors and they offgassed outside for 6 months. They don’t seem to smell when sniffed outside.
- I replaced the laminate/styrofoam table with a custom cedar table that holds up well in the humidity when the trailer is not being used.
- I placed EVA Foam over the aluminum floor. The ones with faux wood printing had a strong odor that smelled really toxic. Some EVA mats were found to give off formamide, so that may have been the problem. I removed the faux wood mats. These EVA mats are a better choice as they are formamide-free (as well as BPA, phthalate and flame retardant-free).
- I had cushions made of Natural Latex. I no longer recommend this – see my warning here.
This trailer was not cheap….coming in at around 27K with all the modifications (+ taxes). It took 13 weeks from the time I ordered it to the time it was delivered; I was told it would be 6-8 weeks, so give yourself a lot of time for the order…. and some time for offgassing.
All trailers are going to contain some amount of caulking and glue in the pipes and wiring. This trailer is the least toxic option that I know of. Older trailers with insulation tend to have problems with mold over time… Camplites are very good in this regard, they have a sandwich type of insulation: aluminum-styrofoam-aluminum, laminated, so condensation will not happen in the walls and there is nothing that can mold in the walls. They are built to last.
Corinne Segura is a Building Biologist with 8 years of experience helping others create healthy homes.
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Mia Evans says
I like that you talked about how the walls and other parts would be made of aluminum with foam insulation seals off by the barrier of the material. I will share this information with my husband since it would be helpful for us to find the right aluma trailer that we want to buy next year. We just wanted to have our own trailer to finally go on long road trips without worrying about the weather or climate in the area we plan to go to.
Heath says
Is it possible to find chemicals for the black water tank that are not fragranced?
Unknown says
I am a moldie who lives in a standard Camplite, larger than this one. It took three months for it to off gas enough to where it didn't give me a headache. I live with windows open and only close it up if it is both blowing and raining at the same time. I've been in it two years and so far so good. It is good for mold; at one point I had water running down the inside of the bathroom wall when it rained (had to seal off the running lights) and it still appears to not have molded up. The drawback is that it is a three season trailer and the pipes will freeze when it's cold enough, so this isn't going to work for someone in a cold climate. I don't use the air conditioner because of the danger of mold. so it needs to be in the shade in hot weather. I highly recommend the dealer I bought it from, which is Jack Sizemore in Amaillo, Tx. They have been extremely helpful with trying to help me solve every problem I've had, even though I and the trailer are many hundreds of miles from there now.
Corinne says
thanks for sharing your experience
Berta Fatso says
Trailer looks interesting, what is the price? house for sale
The Multiple Chemical Survivor says
I'm interested in the trailer. Let me know when I can see it.
Corinne says
Hi, just shoot me an email at [email protected]
Alvin Gul says
Thanks for writing such a good article, I stumbled onto your blog and read a few post. I like your style of writing… rockwood campers
The Multiple Chemical Survivor says
Have you thought about the propane causing the problems? Most MCSers can't do propane. Just a thought.
The Multiple Chemical Survivor says
I've been hearing about the issues with glue. This is why some MCSers are having a hard time with the Taylor trailers. I think that plastic would offgas for a while as well.
I can't imagine even having the propane venting to the outside would eliminate all propane from inside the trailer, but if it doesn't bother you, that's great. I used to live in a trailer and any time I turned it on I could smell it faintly.
So, it looks like you wrote this post six months ago? How is the trailer now? Has it offgassed much?
Corinne says
no I just wrote it, I was having trouble with blogger dates but it's fixed now. All trailers are going to have glue unless you make have someone make it from scratch. I can't smell the propane at all but you could avoid it completely – but then it wouldn't be possible to have stovetop, AC and fridge going on 30 amps.
Corinne says
with the propane totally off (the tank could be removed from the hitch as well) the 30 amps does run the fridge, heater, hotplate and lights it seems!
Anaphylaxing says
I am interested in the trailer, but sad it didn't work for you š
Anaphylaxing says
meant to ask, are the windows also vinyl? do they also smell?
Corinne says
the windows are acrylic plastic I think, and they don't have a noticeable smell.
Anaphylaxing says
Gosh, so frustrating. Sounds like lots of work ahead. Your post is very informative. Thank you so much for sharing it. I REALLY hope it works out for you.