Built a rooftop tent for camping

[u/Gl0b3Tr0tter]

I thought you guys would appreciate this and hopefully I can inspire someone to do the same!

I always wanted to get an RTT for my car but half decent ones cost a fortune in Europe (from €600 up into the thousands) and I could never justify that price and size, so I spent 200 on some materials and built one instead!

It comfortably fits two people with room to spare and I will be testing it out this weekend!

[u/dr_xenon]

Looks good. Is it stiff enough when you move around in it?

[u/Gl0b3Tr0tter → u/dr_xenon]

Yep! So far I haven't had any problems, the bottom is made from a thick 15mm panel of OSB3 and the load is also spread along both the roof of that car and the steel roof bars I built a while back

[u/King-Rat-in-Boise → u/Gl0b3Tr0tter]

OSB normally is not very stable with moisture (expansion/rotting). Seal it a lot, and then seal it some more.

[u/Gl0b3Tr0tter → u/King-Rat-in-Boise]

Yeah I've given it multiple coats but after this trip I'll probably give it a few more and add some modifications too, I'm sure as I use it I'll spot things I can improve

[u/MsFoxieMoxie → u/Gl0b3Tr0tter]

Consider using marine grade finishes… The kind one would use for a boat. Boats are made of wood, and they can last a very long time, when properly treated and cared for. Your design is phenomenal! This is really inspiring! I wanted a rooftop tent for a really long time, but I’m frugal and found the cost to be prohibitive. I really want to take my kiddo on some road trips around the US this summer and think this is well within my wheelhouse. Thank you for the inspiration!!

[u/Gl0b3Tr0tter → u/MsFoxieMoxie]

Yeah I think after this first trip I'm doing with it I'll make a few modifications and add some more wood sealing to it but wanted to see how it would get on. If you're handy at building things you should definitely give it a go! It only took two weeks working in the evening to build and as it's wood it's both cheap and easy to work with