Review: Eagle Trailer Manufacturing (Not Recommended)

Part of my intent with this blog is to document my experience with the businesses I engage with and building materials that I employ as I raise my tiny house.  Buying a trailer is a big first step for tiny house dreamers.  I talked trailer details in a few of my earlier blog posts.  Here I will give more details on the trailer manufacturer that I worked with:  Eagle Trailer Manufacturing of SE Portland (not to be confused with Iron Eagle Trailer, also of Portland).

I cannot recommend Eagle Trailer Manufacturing to future tiny house builders, and here's why:

On the day I picked up my trailer and forked over the remainder of the amount I owed, I inspected it with a novice's eye the best I could.  It was a dark and overcast day...with rain...and everything seemed to look okay.

The following day was bright, sunny, and dry.  As I took measurements of my trailer, I stooped underneath to again examine the paint job.  On a previous post, I explained that I made a special effort to emphasize that the trailer was painted with attention to detail and had paid an extra $50 for the addition of a catalyst paint hardener.  What I saw on the underside of the framing members was bare, rusty metal.  It was like the painter had not even stooped down to spray just a little paint on the underside.

So I took the trailer back with the humble request that the trailer manufacturer paint all four sides of the trailer, and especially the side that will see the most moisture, road salt, and grime (the bottom!).  Today, I went to pick it up for the second time and still found areas of bare metal and paint so thin that you could see the rust right through it.  Once again they said they would take care of it, and once again I will have to borrow my friend's truck to pick it up later today.  My suggestion to you is to either find a trailer manufacturer that pledges to adequately paint the underside or has a method of flipping the trailer over or lifting it up so that the painter can access the bottom.  Eagle Trailer does not have this ability.

A manufacturer such as Eagle who builds and sells trailers to Tumbleweed and other tiny house companies, as well as to trailer sales businesses throughout the region should have their process and quality control measures down.  This is not rocket science.  It's as simple as having a checklist that is reviewed once by the builder (or painter) and once by the supervisor before the trailer moves along to the buyer.  The mistakes they made in painting and with the gussets leave me concerned about other aspects of the trailer they may have rushed or conducted poorly.

Furthermore their customer service is lacking.  Often I felt like my time was not being respected and follow-up phone calls were promised but often not returned.  I would be stuck wondering the status of the trailer and, upon calling, I would be told "Oh, it's ready."  The manager I had been working with left on vacation without assuring me that the paint job was being done properly and giving me a time frame or a point contact for who would be managing the job in his absence.  There were no apologies offered for the lack of follow-through.  Another suggestion:  examine your trailer in detail before making your final payment.  You will retain more leverage if you notice the manufacturer didn't do something properly.

When I was first researching trailer manufacturers, I searched for reviews of Eagle Trailer's work and customer service.  Oddly, for such a busy manufacturer, I found nothing about their reputation.  I will be reviewing Eagle Trailer online and explaining my disappointing experience.  If you're a tiny house builder starting your process, contact me if you would like some suggestions of other trailer manufacturers to explore.  If I could do this all over again, I would work with one of the smaller manufacturers that seemed to be more customer service and detail-oriented (try MCI Welding in Oregon City or MS Trailer in Molalla).

What Now?

Thanks to Nate's Pa for loaning me his burly Dodge to...PICK UP MY TRAILER TODAY!  A big step for modern man!  My rusty trailer driving skills were rigorously tested when I had to back the whole lot into the narrow driveway.  I had a few inches to spare on either side and people waiting for me to get out of the road.  Yikes!  Those big Dodge diesels have some serious tension in the clutch petal and my legs ain't puny neither (Apologies for the solecisms.  The big truck brings out my redneck roots.).  My left ham was a-quiverin' by the time the maneuver was complete.

What now?  A lot of thinkin' and figurin'...figurin' and thinkin'.  Do I seek out someone with more experience to check out every one of my ideas for structural soundness?  Or can I rely on common sense, intuition, and my extensive experience with Legos.  Probably some balance of the two!  Depicted below is some scheming I've been doing on Google Sketchup.  I think this program is so helpful for me to envision things in 3-D and avoid mistakes.  It's like I'm actually building it before actually building it.  The old adage is "Measure twice, cut once."  I would like to update this saying:  "Google Sketchup first, measure twice, cut once."

  

This drawing has helped me examine my framing specs around the wheel wells, as well as the framing and attachment points of the wood foundation to the trailer.  Also, it's nice to have the trailer here to help visualize  and take real-time measurements.  Getting this foundation right and solid is pretty important.

Trailer Check-Up...Take Two

Met with the trailer manufacturer again today.  I was glad to see that they added more gussets and stitch welds to support the flange that will carry the weight of the outer walls.  They still didn't quite get the gussets right, but the outcome is acceptable.

I also asked that the supervisor emphasize attention to detail to his crew as the trailer gets painted.  I have seen trailers in the field, including a few from the manufacturer that I'm working with, that have a disappointing amount of rust on them.  In some cases, the undersides of the trailers seem to be lacking in paint.  My manufacturer does not flip the trailer over to paint the underside.  

What if I were to take up residence in my tiny house on the coast?  Would the puny finishes I've observed cause the trailer to crumble away in a few years?  The supervisor sold me on the addition of a hardener in the paint, an additional cost of about $50.  He said that they apply this tougher paint to trailers that he sells to a Canadian client because of more caustic road conditions up north.  A lot of energy went into creating my trailer at this point.  In my mind, a trailer isn't a throw-away product with an expected lifecycle of only a few years.  My hope is that $50 is a small price to pay to keep the trailer in good condition for several decades.  Why wouldn't more people choose this slightly more expensive route?

The jury is still out as to whether I would recommend this manufacturer to future tiny house builders.

Trailer Check-Up

I asked that I be informed before the trailer was painted, so that I could come down to do some quality control and ask for any last minute welding modifications.  It was easy to find because it was the only trailer of its kind on the lot.  Stubby and wide,  it was strange to see something that reflected my own Google Sketchup drawings.  I felt like I had been a part of the actual construction process.  They missed a few details that I had specified, but it still looks like a solid trailer.  Welds looked good and dimensions were pretty dead on.  It was 3/8" out of square, but I don't think that's a huge deal.  Might have it painted and ready for pick up by the end of the week!  I also took real dimensions so that I can begin getting foundation materials (see "Materials" page).

A Trailer Is Born

February 12, 2014

Or at least conceived!  I committed to a trailer today.  Wow, a little hard to believe!  Put $300 non-refundable bucks down on a $2350 trailer.  I hope I made the right choice in design and manufacturer.  The trailer manufacturer is in my neighborhood and has built several tiny-house-ready trailers.

Here are the specks:

We start with their 7,000lb GVWR, 7′x14′ standard flatbed “car-hauler" style trailer.  It’s framed with 5″x2″ tube steel with 3″ c-channel crossmembers.  No decking, stake pockets, nor tie-downs, and no fenders! (more on that later), no ramps or rails.  Trailer tires instead of the more expensive radial (I don’t plan to move this around all that much).  The manufacturer showed me previous tiny-house-ready designs they had built.  Some of them included an extension of the 7′ width, in front and behind the wheel wells.  I decided I liked this option.  It adds 10″ of width and provides a convenient method of bolting the house to the trailer frame.  The extra width is achieved by welding 5″x2″ tube steel horizontally to the outside of the main trailer frame (see picture).  I thought it looked a little cheesy and weak, so I drew up some modified plans on Google Sketchup to show to the manufacturer.  My modifications include a longer front and back frame member to support the flange, as well as gussets welded to the underside of the flange that connect it to the main trailer frame.  I also asked that the crossmembers be welded flush with the bottom of the main trailer frame in order to accommodate my foundation framing plan.  That’s about it.  I didn’t change the position of the axles, but that was an option.  Instead I’m using my best gut feelings to balance the weight of the house forward-to-backward and side-to-side.  Gut feelings seem to play a surprisingly dominant roll in both trailer and tiny house construction (as opposed to an engineer calculating out the strength of materials and expected loads and arriving at a technically correct design).

Below is one trailer manufacturer's tiny-house-ready trailer ($2800).  Observe how they have extended the width of the trailer by welding a piece of 5"x2" tube steel horizontally to the main perimeter frame.  You'll notice they then stuck a piece of angle iron onto the horizontal tube steel to extend the width even further.  I'm no engineer but this design strikes me as a little shoddy.

Unlikely Beginning

February 11, 2014

Subtitle:  One salvaged window and three tattered pieces of foam board

After years of contemplating the building of a tiny home of my own, and one disappointing false start, there was some doubt in my mind that I would ever see the dream through.  I moved to Portland a few weeks ago to live with new friends who are housing me and lending me space based on my proposal to build a tiny house in the backyard.  Expectations of follow-through are upon me!  I find this daunting, but also motivating and exciting.  Daunting, because this mobile cabin project poses many challenges; motivating and exciting, because I know I won't let myself and others down.  The stage is set for success despite the potential bumpy road.  

I approach this project as an experiment.  One does not necessarily know how best to design an experiment, nor do they know with certainty its outcome.  I'm on a steep learning curve with an independently supervised experiment.  Challenges will be encountered and overcome, errors will be made and learned from.  I remind myself that this fact is more than okay with me.  Risk is a catalyst for growth, both of which are necessary ingredients for a well-lived life.

So far there has been a lot of thinking, drawing, talking, and reading, but nothing really tangible to signal to myself and others that this project is anything other than a pipe dream.  I've been agonizing over the selection of a trailer and still have not ordered one.  A trailer is the all-important foundation.  To have a trailer lined up would be a concrete step in converting dream to reality.  But today that step was achieved not by the purchase of a trailer, but by the acquisition of one salvaged window and 3 beat-up sheets of rigid foam insulation...

That my project begins with these 4 tangible items seems laughable.  But holding my window and imagining looking out through it from a shelter that I personally constructed is exciting and galvanizing.  Today I understood that this project will at last become a reality.  

Trailer Considerations

February 9, 2014

Consideration #1:  Do you even need a trailer?  The trailer is one of the most expensive and complex parts.  So if you only expect to move your house a few times, then you probably don’t need to invest in a trailer.  I’ve been told to build my mini cabin on skids and engineer it so that it can be pulled up onto a flatbed trailer when it needs to be moved.  It was suggested that I call Home Depot and find out who moves their sheds.  Then call those folks and find out how I need to build a tiny house to be compatible with that moving system.  I was told around $300 bucks/move.  I haven’t verified this.  A new tiny house trailer (engineered to carry between 7k and 10k pounds, 7′x14′) costs between $2000-$3000.  Consider the cost of the trailer, but also the fact that it will degrade over time, both in price and structurally (rust).  Also consider all the materials and energy that go into creating a trailer.  

Consideration #2:  How heavy is your house going to be?  I think this would be really tough to estimate accurately…especially as a novice builder.  I’m going off house weights and trailers that I’ve seen on websites and from tiny house builders that I’ve spoken to.  It seems like 5,000lbs for a 7′x14′ or 7′x16′ is a number that’s thrown around for a variety of designs.  Five thousand pounds is too close to a 7K capacity trailer (you must factor in the weight of the trailer itself, around 1500lbs) so most people jump up to a 10K trailer (two 5K axles).  The difference between a 7K and 10K in dollars seems to be about $500.  Depending on the trailer manufacturer they may also use different sized trailer framing members between the 7k and 10k, which is also reason for the price increase.  But it’s tough to know how accurate this 5,000 lb estimate of the house weight is.  If you don’t need to make that jump between 7k and 10k, don’t do it.  Spend that money on other parts of the house.  However, in the absence of an accurate estimate of house weight, perhaps you want the peace of mind that a beefy 10K trailer can provide.

Consideration #3:  Options, options, options!  Electric brakes (not surge brakes) on both axles is important from what I’ve read.  Tongue length and configuration, quality paint finish to prevent rust over time, fenders or no fenders, jacks on all corners for the convenience of leveling,  suspension, radial tires or trailer tires, placement of the axles to gracefully carry the floor plan you’ve decided on (if you create a house design that’s unbalanced with respect to the trailer, then it can be dangerous to tow), breakaway kit, deck over wheels or recessed deck, rails, stake pockets, tie-downs, decking, led lights or non, ETCETERA!  Buying a quality trailer is important for safe towing, peace of mind, longevity of your house, and to minimize waste.  Another option to consider:  8′-6″ is the maximum road width to move your house without a permit.  A standard “car hauler” trailer has a 7′ wide deck, but the fenders and tires extend out to 8′-6″.  In my humble opinion, you may as well use some of that extra width by having the trailer builder extend the width of the deck in front of and behind the wheels.