Motrukdriver
Well-known member
How cool is that?? Someone was thinking when designing that heater.
My Road Tripper
- Thread starter sephson
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sephson
Well-known member
I was actually looking for something else when I stumbled across this heater.
I gave the Little Buddy to a friend of mine who needed a heater.
I gave the Little Buddy to a friend of mine who needed a heater.
Victor
Active member
Lots of ideas in this that I liked. I've slept on passenger and driver side. I like driver side better because I don't have to crawl over the stick shift or get out of the car. I had the same idea about using roof rack solar, I'm glad to see someone has done it. I was impressed with your creation of a storage space in the back of the car. I liked the idea of the front window curtains a lot. It looks like you have good space and tools to do the project. I live in my car already so sometimes it's a hassle to work on car projects in the car. But I suppose I'm leaning more toward radical minimalism. So, maybe I'll have a bit more room in the future... Though I can't see getting rid of stuff quite yet. I just run my engine. I also really liked those small water containers. - very nice work on the whole.
Part of me struggles with how much functionality to build into the car.
Part of me struggles with how much functionality to build into the car.
sephson
Well-known member
My biggest struggle in figuring out my setup has been storage for my gear. The under floor storage works well, but my passenger side storage has bee four attempts and four failures. First was bags/suitcases. This resulted in a lot of moving stuff around to get to things. Next was plastic drawers from Target. Good for organizing stuff, but I managed to break them in one road trip. Attempt number three was the closest to success. That one was large, stackable bins. I had easy access to stuff, but it was nearly impossible to keep things organized. My most recent attempt was stackable, plastic file drawers that I modified for use in the car. They made organizing my gear fairly easy, but there was a lot of wasted space and trying to open drawers into my sleeping area is very inconvenient. Assuming I have the time, I plan to build my own storage setup that uses the best parts of all four previous attempts.
Victor
Active member
Yes, storage is a problem for me, I'm also more or less a minimalist back packer. My packs, hammock, and back packing tools and sleeping bags all double for what I use every day. I don't have different kinds of clothes really. So they are all the same. I am thinking about downsizing my clothing... Right now I have three pairs of jeans but I would like to have only two outer pants that are quick drying - minimizing my wardrobe has been one of my goals.
One of the issues with the car (after removing the front seat), is utilizing all the space under the dash. My solar design puts house batteries in that location. the space is about 2 feet wide by 2 feet in length 3 feet if you count all the way under the dash (I lounge and work in the back seat so it's shorter than 4 feet). Depends on where you measure from.
I think the only way to do the space justice is by building to suit the space. I'm looking at a variety of possibilities. Target sells those cube shelves that you can put baskets in. I think they are 11 to 12 " deep. So if two of those fit in the space it might be functional. If the whole unit was on a slide it would make it cool. Something like that would be a bit more sturdy than the plastic stuff maybe? Heavier though.
One of the problems with the Fit is it's load capacity is only 800 pounds. So design weight needs to be careful.
One of the issues with the car (after removing the front seat), is utilizing all the space under the dash. My solar design puts house batteries in that location. the space is about 2 feet wide by 2 feet in length 3 feet if you count all the way under the dash (I lounge and work in the back seat so it's shorter than 4 feet). Depends on where you measure from.
I think the only way to do the space justice is by building to suit the space. I'm looking at a variety of possibilities. Target sells those cube shelves that you can put baskets in. I think they are 11 to 12 " deep. So if two of those fit in the space it might be functional. If the whole unit was on a slide it would make it cool. Something like that would be a bit more sturdy than the plastic stuff maybe? Heavier though.
One of the problems with the Fit is it's load capacity is only 800 pounds. So design weight needs to be careful.
That's why I mentioned foam boards. Glue your prototype "cabinetry", then once the design's finalized, cover with dropcloth, canvas or mesh screening and paint with Glidden Gripper. "Poor man's fibreglass", very strong but super light, whole buildout might be 15-20 lbs.
Video and blog post out there by "mystery-13" gives examples. Or google
PMF foamie site:tnttt.com
Video and blog post out there by "mystery-13" gives examples. Or google
PMF foamie site:tnttt.com
sephson
Well-known member
I'm far more likely to build it out of scrap lumber from the scene shop at work. Sure, it'll be a little heavier, but not by a huge amount. As long as I have the resource available to me, I may as well use it and keep my out of pocket costs to a minimum.
aprilenchanted
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That heater looks amazing! I'm putting that on my list of things to add for my travels. Thanks for sharing!
Sent from my LGMP450 using Tapatalk
Sent from my LGMP450 using Tapatalk
sephson said:
I added something similar to the front edge of my solar panels...I had a local machine shop make this to my specs, then I drilled it, and bolted it on:
I still need to fabricate something for the flat front of the shell....
Attachments
sephson
Well-known member
tx2sturgis said:
Hopefully yours doesn't pound on the roof like mine did. Fine tuning the thing was a bit of a pain.
ChrisPyle
Member
sephson said:
HI sephson, I take my dogs in the car with me sometimes just going shopping and I also had that issue with the gap between front of back seat and back of front seat. Older dog would tend to slip down into it. For you I imagine you want to utilize it for storage. For my purposes I cut a couch cushion a neighbor was going to take to the dump in half and made it fit that slot. It is made of foam and I used a sharp bread knife to slice through it. I found I just leave the foam in place and it makes for a nice wide landing for groceries cat food dog food etc.
Maybe you could come across a file box narrow enough to fit in that space to stow things in. I have seen plastic narrower ones with handles on the top. Do not rule out those flat top vintage suitcases or a big briefcase or even duffle bags or soft sided luggage. HA ask an X hoarder how to fill a space. I am full of ideas. Good luck figuring this out.
I need to go out and look and measure my Blazer. I think it is 6 foot. I do not remember if there is a gap there or not.
sephson
Well-known member
I've got my house battery in the center between the front and rear seats. When I'm on the road I store my water on both sides of the space. With the containers I use, that allows me to carry 12 1/2 gallons in a relatively out of the way location.
ChrisPyle
Member
sephson. I am sorry I did not realize there were so many pages to your post when I commented I will try not to do that again. I do want to go back and read through all of them now. I enjoyed the links to the other forum with photos of the air bed added. Lots of good ideas. The one thing in my Ford Focus is the back seats do not lay all the way flat making sleeping i the back difficult. I see some people do raise the head of their beds but in my car it feels a bit steep/ I have not tried to lay down on it.
Great idea on the water tanks in that space. And I believe this is what I will use my space for in the Blazer. It is quite large. I bought two spray tanks to use for water for my outdoor shower here at home and they can serve double duty for camping in my car. I did take a few minutes and try a lay down in it and it is plenty long for me and no need to even cover over those spaces so they will make great storage compartments. Thinking water on one side my fold up chairs stuck upright in the other side. Maybe the tent while traveling to have if I need it.
Great idea on the water tanks in that space. And I believe this is what I will use my space for in the Blazer. It is quite large. I bought two spray tanks to use for water for my outdoor shower here at home and they can serve double duty for camping in my car. I did take a few minutes and try a lay down in it and it is plenty long for me and no need to even cover over those spaces so they will make great storage compartments. Thinking water on one side my fold up chairs stuck upright in the other side. Maybe the tent while traveling to have if I need it.
sephson
Well-known member
Not a problem ChrisPyle. I wasn't offended. I'm happy to hear any critiques of or ideas for my setup. Who knows? Someone may come up with something I haven't thought of or point out a problem before it becomes something I have to figure out how to deal with.
My seats don't go fully flat either, but they come close enough that it only takes a little effort to find a comfortable position for sleeping. My setup is continually evolving as I figure out what works and what doesn't. I work on it as time and money permit. The solar setup took both more time and more money than had expected, so I wasn't able to do much work on my storage setup last fall. I'm hoping that when September rolls around and I have time to work on it again that I'll finally be able to completely rework my storage.
My seats don't go fully flat either, but they come close enough that it only takes a little effort to find a comfortable position for sleeping. My setup is continually evolving as I figure out what works and what doesn't. I work on it as time and money permit. The solar setup took both more time and more money than had expected, so I wasn't able to do much work on my storage setup last fall. I'm hoping that when September rolls around and I have time to work on it again that I'll finally be able to completely rework my storage.
sephson
Well-known member
Thanks Matt_Pill! Now, if only had a little more time to actually hit the road and use those mods.
I'm so glad I found this thread. I drive for a living and I've been trying to come up with a way for me to be able to camp whenever I get sent out-of-state. Thanks to all of your pictures I've so far been able to build a tri-fold bed platform just like yours. I chose to make it out of 1/2" plywood, and my reinforcements on the sides are simply aluminum C-channel made for 1/2" plywood. I unfold it, slide the C-channel onto the sides and it turns it just as stiff as it was when it was a full sheet of plywood. I also ordered the rain deflectors for my side windows like you did on the first page. Also, a tri-fold memory foam mattress like yours, but mine is 3" instead of 2" like yours.
I just made my solar purchase, and I chose to build my own kit rather than buy one from the manufacturer. I went with the monocrystalline panels from HQST. After doing some dimension measurements, I found you were right about them not fitting with 2 panels. The polycrystalline panels fit perfectly the way you installed them, so I was about to order a set of those when I found some "slim" panels from HQST. They will fit perfectly side by side the "long way" rather than front to back like you installed yours. I also went with a 20 amp charge controller, and I happened to already have two spare 60ah deep cycle AGM batteries lying around.
I think my next purchase will probably be a 12v fan to run while I sleep, and to find some thermal reflector material to put over the windows to keep the heat and light out in the summer. I'm thinking of buying some freezer bags from the grocery store and turning them inside out and cutting them to the size of the windows.
Thanks for spending so much time documenting everything you've done to help others like myself!
I just made my solar purchase, and I chose to build my own kit rather than buy one from the manufacturer. I went with the monocrystalline panels from HQST. After doing some dimension measurements, I found you were right about them not fitting with 2 panels. The polycrystalline panels fit perfectly the way you installed them, so I was about to order a set of those when I found some "slim" panels from HQST. They will fit perfectly side by side the "long way" rather than front to back like you installed yours. I also went with a 20 amp charge controller, and I happened to already have two spare 60ah deep cycle AGM batteries lying around.
I think my next purchase will probably be a 12v fan to run while I sleep, and to find some thermal reflector material to put over the windows to keep the heat and light out in the summer. I'm thinking of buying some freezer bags from the grocery store and turning them inside out and cutting them to the size of the windows.
Thanks for spending so much time documenting everything you've done to help others like myself!
sephson
Well-known member
Excellent!
Great job on taking a few ideas and putting your own spin on them!
Great job on taking a few ideas and putting your own spin on them!
sephson
Well-known member
I have two new additions to my road trip setup.
I have purchased an Alpicool C15, 12 volt compressor fridge.
It's overall size is close to my old 25 quart cooler, though the capacity of the fridge is 15 quarts. Of course, I don't have to fill two thirds of the fridge with ice, so I have a net gain in capacity.
It's already begun to pay for itself. I usually do my grocery shopping on my way home from work. Since I work mostly nights at this time of year, the only store that's open when I get off work is Ralphs. They're not exactly known for having good prices. Now I can do my grovery shopping on my way to work, which means I can pay Aldi or Grocery Outlet prices instead of Ralphs prices. I figure I probably saved $20 on my last grocery run simply by being able to shop at the discount grocery store.
The other addition to my setup is a Costway Camping Shower.
I haven't had it long enough to do more than a little bit of experimentation in my bath tub at home, but I think it will make a good addition to my setup.
I have purchased an Alpicool C15, 12 volt compressor fridge.
It's overall size is close to my old 25 quart cooler, though the capacity of the fridge is 15 quarts. Of course, I don't have to fill two thirds of the fridge with ice, so I have a net gain in capacity.
It's already begun to pay for itself. I usually do my grocery shopping on my way home from work. Since I work mostly nights at this time of year, the only store that's open when I get off work is Ralphs. They're not exactly known for having good prices. Now I can do my grovery shopping on my way to work, which means I can pay Aldi or Grocery Outlet prices instead of Ralphs prices. I figure I probably saved $20 on my last grocery run simply by being able to shop at the discount grocery store.
The other addition to my setup is a Costway Camping Shower.
I haven't had it long enough to do more than a little bit of experimentation in my bath tub at home, but I think it will make a good addition to my setup.
