The majority of caravans in today’s market utilise a wood or alloy framing system that is loose clad with a Styrofoam core, externally clad with alloy sheets, then internally clad with plywood decorative boards.
The wood framed version of this is stronger and the alloy framed version lighter, however both products tend to use wood within the wall and floor.
TRAIL CARAVANS approach is to attempt to eliminate the issues with these build products, and in doing so, provide some additional advantages that really matter when you have a true off-road caravan. We achieve this with our roof, walls and floor all made from a full, true sandwich panel with structural core and GRP/fiberglass skins.
All TRAIL CARAVAN walls, roofs and floors are made from a one-piece panel. These can flex, and bend as needed in travel but will always return to the original position, unlike wood or alloy framed walls.
The external GRP/fibreglass skin provides a hail resistant and impact resistant caravan. The external coating is not paint, but a very hard-wearing gloss two-pack marine gelcoat, a very similar product is used in boat construction.
Each wall panel is constructed of a 30mm, 5 element structural aircraft foam sandwich panel with internal fixing points embedded with alloy extrusions and galvanised strip fixing points to solidly lock the furniture to the body without compromise.
The roof is one of the biggest areas of failure in standard caravans today. Most are loose clad and as they are not built with a structural panel the roofs become wavy and dip, allowing water to pool around hatches and air conditioning units. Aluminium clad roofs are also susceptible to hail damage and subsequently leaks can occur, rotting out the roof and walls within a very short period.
TRAIL CARAVANS have a unique roof system that has been vacuum formed in a mould. Our roofs consist of a full sandwich panel of 30mm, 5 element structural aircraft foam core with an external and internal fiberglass skin. TRAIL CARAVAN roofs have a central high point which then curves 4 degrees right to left and front to back, allowing water to run off. This is a true structural roof that will not dip and, yes, you can safely walk on.
The majority of caravan floors are constructed with sheets of plywood that are joined, coated with a waterproof paint and installed directly to the top of the chassis.
A floor like this does not add to the strength of the caravan,and results in the caravan losing thermal efficiency through the floor. Caravans with a plywood floor rely 100% on the chassis to provide the base structural strength.
TRAIL CARAVANS believe that the floor is one of the most important elements of the caravan, and as such our vans have a 50mm, 5 element structural aircraft foam core with an external and internal fiberglass skin, encapsulating the full benefits of the combination of the wall and roof strength with the sound and insulation factors. This one-piece, re-enforced fiberglass floor is both impact and water leak resistant.
Our wall, roof and floor technology results in a caravan that provides approximately 3 times the insulation of a standard caravan and twice the strength, giving and unrivalled off-road build. Our all-round insulation is similar to a cooler box - very efficient to heat and cool and maintains this temperature for a longer time period. This results in a caravan built specifically for the extreme Australian conditions, no matter if you are in the outback, the coast or the mountains.
Having the walls, roof and floor all built with the same construction provides not only thermal insulation, but also sound insulation, helping you block out the noise when you stay at caravan parks. All TRAIL CARAVANS also come with double glazed windows with heat reflective backed block out blinds. Combine all this with the body structure and your provided with your own oasis inside your van.
Each individual wall, floor and roof panel are strong by themselves, but when bonded together with a combination of screws and German industrial SIKAFLEX glue (used in building construction) they produce a full Composite Monocoque that will stand against the Australian elements for decades to come.
TRAIL CARAVANS have a standard 6"/150mm hot dipped galvanised chassis (off road version) along the entire chassis, providing an immensely strong off-road caravan like no other.
Full Hot Dipped Gal Chassis - 6" / 150mm x 50mm x 3mm
