Well … finally got back to work site… front end repair STILL not done. (Breath)
But was able to get all the stuck bolts out and the crossbars down, ceiling and insulation down, and bulkhead removed.
The ceiling panels were just held up by the plastic screws so super easy to pop down once the bars came down. Now have a bag of pretty yellow itch stuff.
The bulkhead… okay, it was NOT a pretty process. My methods can get a bit “unconventional” at times.
But it finally came down and boy what a difference! Lots of happy dancing and yelling “I AM A BAD ASS!” Cody dog wasn’t much amused… crazy mom, calm down woman.
There are Sooooo many holes in the floors. The ones at the top of the walls will be easy to plug, but the floor.. idk.
I saw this one video of a guy gluing pennies over the holes with silicon, I mean what else are you going to use Pennie’s for these days? But that’d be a pretty penny to do all of them (get it?
). Idk if cutting out pieces of the ceiling skin and using as a patch would work just as well, to glue it down and add pressure. Idk?
Idk if painting it after would make me feel any better. I’ll be adding dampening mats. Yes I know step vans are noisy,.. that does not mean I can’t do something to reduce it a bit. If I wanted a silent runner, I would of gotten idk.. something else. I know there will be sound, I’m okay with that, I like that, but I can lessen the rattle so it’s not deafening for hours of driving. There are these paint additives that don’t cost much and say they help with acoustics and insulation, but I’m not sure how … seems like a gimmick.
Now I can see the and measure the bare ceiling cross members and height. On bare floor and bare ceiling, we’re at 6’1”… sucks as I like dating tall guys, but that’s a mere technicality I’m sure I can work around. But the shorter roof will not be such an issue with wind and gas mileage than a 7’ tall cargo, at least that’s what I tell myself.
I can deal with the roof height later if I want. It’s too much to think about right now, I’ll get overwhelmed and get fixated on the concept. I’ve listened to what others say about cutting the ceiling supports … for the moment. And figure I can install long skylights between them, parallel … so 18”-22” x 36” (or something) and I wouldn’t be affecting the supports and framing would be more secure.
I found some skylights on Amazon, and wondering if I can double stack them, with room in between, to make them double pane and improve insulation. Sound stupid… don’t answer that. I do need more light and it’ll help visually with the height. Again, if I wanted everything perfect I’d of bought a new one exactly to my specs and contracted a builder. But this is what I have (I’ve seen one stepvan advertised since I got this one 2 months ago)… one can also do something to improve, not just throw up hands and say oh well. I don’t have to accept things “as is” .. I can actually see something “undesirable” and make it good. (Well, I’ve learned that that doesn’t apply to men, no more of the saving them from themselves for me, but I digress). Cody dog is my Main man now!
The cab and dash are going to take a bit. But now that the bulkhead is down, I’m realizing how much room there is up there. Esp around the drivers seat… like tons, especially since there is not a door on that side. I could easily have my battery bank there.
Water storage and shower. Think I figured out how I’ll do the water. I wanted to have both fresh and grey tanks inside so I can be in colder climates. But how to have drainage when you can’t use gravity. Think I found a solution. It’s what I did when I put a bathroom in my slab bottom floor of house… and using what I did in sailboats and such. Just a sump pump, which only cost like $150, and will work with the shower water … plus it has the compartment and flap to prevent backwash. I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. I have room.
Plus the back two feet of the van will be a “mud room”, with the bathroom/toilet an area to shower, store wet gear, keep wet dirty Cody dog, rinse area, store muddy bike, keep muddy boots, rain area, ect. I’ll have a basic sliding door, with plexiglass on top to let door light in, which will also help with any cold drafts, but can close to keep the back 2’ separate when needed. The wet closet I can run a heat vent to and I’ll have the rear fan in that area to help with moisture.
Exploring in the northwest is a wet business. I dont want the front cab area muddy and stinky and wet dog shaking area, but the back can have planked flooring over something like a long shallow shower pan graded down towards the actual shower area which can have a curtain around it. I’d have to have drains in different areas maybe in case of non level ground, or something. It would be better if I had under carriage grey tank, But with the sump pump I think it’ll work. I’m not going to have a waterfall fancy shower. The wood planks over the top would allow gravel and dirty to drop which will easily be swept up. Yes, I’ll lose some height, but I could run the shower hose outside if I really wanted. Or I could sit down, might need to after a day of hiking. But it’s not necessarily living area, so height is not as much as an issue. I do kinda need a gear area, esp to hang a bike inside, and not worry about wet and mud and such. Did I mention wet dog who agrees to share his bed with me at times and doesn’t really mind wet sheets.
I’ll do some camping and travels this summer, maybe hit a few of the “out in the boondock backwoods” areas that hold music festivals. Do some biking and hiking and such.
But I need to get a backup and side cameras and practice driving. 24’ long is a bit different from my short Jeep with a rear view.
Okay .. that’s a lot of writing. I always get jacked up after I pass a mile marker such as finally getting the wall down. It just looks and feels different. I will be building another, but move it forward, and use window panes/plexiglass on the top to let the light through. The lower half will be insulated and a sliding door to close off, but the top “glass” so I can still see out the front which makes me feel safer to be able to see what’s outside. It won’t be as insulating from heat/cold as a solid bulkhead, but I can use thermal curtains if I like.
It’s a compromise.. Just as life is … a compromise, and accepting not everything needs to be 100%. 85% of perfect is still really good and actually attainable.