simple/solo boondocking: Promaster 159 high roof

[frater secessus]

I had to google it; looks very nicely suited to bedframe material.

For now I will stick with the grid I have for free; if it doesn't work out I'll look for some bench shelving.

 

[John61CT]

I really like the idea of the bottom of the whole platform allowing air circulation. Design to be load-bearing while light, cheap & durable.

Plus easy visibility and access to storage below, no hinges or hatches, just reach down grab what you want.

Was even thinking making that the basis for an ultra-lightweight floor design, maybe metal skin below, rigid insulation above. Any damage off-road, easy and cheap to fix.

Another 'foamie' DIY composite one is filling the grid with pourable or sprayed insulation, haven't thought a good use for it yet.

Maybe basis for a super lightweight insulated but load-bearing roof, again, allied with DIY foamie / PMF design as per TNTTT.

Obviously just thinking aloud

 

[frater secessus]

Although we are miles from anything like done, the campervan has just reached the first rickety milepost: It is now a functional camper: power, ventilation, heat and enough insulation on top to hold in that heat, sleeping quarters and underbed storage bins. Water, cooking, and toilet are all very simple/portable for now.

I will try to complete Stage 2 before RTR: galley surface with sink, water/pump, cooking and working surfaces. We will see.

Here's how the bed stuff works. Three 2x4s longitudinally from beltline rib to rib. Scrap grate/panel/shelf fastened to that, then foam mattress on top.







Just unrolled the mattress from Amazon and it will have to sit in place for 48hrs to expand. Thrift store curtains strung up on paracord:


Linens have been washed and now on the clothesline. I want to get the mattress covered before the dogs figure out it's there...

Wind was blowing curtains into the van here, but I have three giant bins under the bed platform. Massive storage.



Added those family stickers (me and the two furkids):

 

[Minivanmotoman]

Looking good and homey comfy now. Bet you can't wait to take it out for a camp out test.

 

[tnvangirl]

I love it! The bed design seems so simple. I think I could even do that. Seems way easier than trying to figure out how to make 2 boxes to cover the wheel wells, and that for most is a pretty easy project. Can I ask how you attach the 2x4s to the rib of the van?

 

[frater secessus]

Thanks for the encouragement, folks!  The mattress is now fluffed up to its stated 6", and feels great.  I put linens on it yesterday and took a nap.  

The 78" 2x4s are resting (wedged) on the ribs.   Underneath there are brackets that loosely couple them to the ribs so they are held in the general area.  This is so they can float if the chassis flexes.  The brackets bolted into threaded rivets ("rivnuts") I placed in the ribs.  You can see an unused rivnut in the center left of this pic.  

 

[frater secessus]

Made some progress this weekend. This stuff had to wait on a couple prior steps but now I can move ahead.

I got the fresh water tank secured. It is strapped to the wall and I bolted a 2x4 through the floor as a positive forward stop. There were other ways to do it but I had the scrap to do it that way and the stop would do double duty as a place to screw in a couple supports for the galley.

Built the bench that is the main seating area, allows me and the dogs to climb onto the tall bed platform, and provides storage underneath.

Mounted the galley surface. All along I'd been planning to cut it down to a smaller size, but decided to go banzai today and leave it full size (2' x 5'). I cook and eat and do other stuff standing so the space will not go to waste. The part near the bed will act as a bedside table (laptop, phone, etc.)

I'm not winning any design or craftsmanship awards, but I was able to do a lot of it with scrap I had or thrift store materials. And the ergos work for me.



Haven't finished boxing it in but you can see where the fresh water goes:



The bench is 2x4, plywood, and couple layers of scrap 1/8" XPS. Firm but comfortable. Draped with a thrift store bedspread that had a pattern I liked. Plenty of room underneath. The support thing in the middle was a proof of concept at that stage. The bench doesn't flex much but I ended up supporting the middle anyhow.



Got to use a kreg thingy for the first time. Even I couldn't screw it up:


Next up: make holes in galley surface for sink and recessed propane singleburner. Mount sink. Mount graywater catchment.

 

[Minivanmotoman]

"Decided to go bonzai today."
Lol, loved that description. Funny as all hell get out!
Sounds like you should go bonzai more often!
BONZAI!!!!
OH, you said banzai. My bad, not the same thing. .

In the home stretch, you can see the open road filled with Grand Canyons, Monument Valleys, Snake Rivers, rtrs and Santa Barbara fires at the beach!

 

[frater secessus]

First, let me remind everyone that:



Yesterday I mounted and connected the filter, water pump, and accumulator.  The sink wasn't in, but I could loop the water through the system and back into the freshwater tank.  To do that, I needed to install a switch somewhere.  

The lauan piece I hacked out for the roof vent was sitting there in the scraps pile so I slapped it up and used it to hold some switches.  




The bottom two switches are for the power donation outlet at the bottom.  (2x usb, 1x ciggy) It runs on the opportunity circuit so it cuts off below 12.7v.    It's right inside the sliding door so anytime my door is open folks are welcome to charge stuff.  It won't hurt my state of charge. 

Upper right is the water pump switch.  I ran the pump for a minute to watch it work. It's not as loud as I thought it would be.  It is low flow,  1.2gpm I think.  I figured a bigger pump would just get me in trouble with wasting water.  



Cut the hole in the galley surface, made adjustments until the sink fit.  Hooked it up.  




There are a couple of problems.  The valve on the right (cold) leaks a bit and I need to address a leak at an accumulator connection.  Right now just draining into a bucket.  I have a barrel bulkhead on the way which will allow me install/drain a gray tank.  I want to replace the faucet with a thrift store sink sprayer thingy I got earlier so I might not fix the valve leak; just replace it.  Dunno.  

I shut it down for the night since I have to work tomorrow.  Will pick up from there midweek.

 

[frater secessus]

Installed 12' of dimmable LED strip behind the driver's side cabinet hanger (cabinets not yet installed).   They are soft white daylight, 3000K.  Seen here running at about 25% brightness.  



The ability to dim is much more important to me than brightness.  I thrive on low stimulation levels.

{edited to add:  reworked a couple of water pump connections.  Removed sink faucet stems for replacement/repair.  I think the seals have hardened.}

 

[frater secessus]

Ok, well I've gotten as far as I can in the time allotted. I have a medical appt in Dallas tomorrow morning then I head out toward the RTR. Going to sniff around and see some stuff on the way.

 

[Minivanmotoman]

Life, Vans, van life, are all works in progress.
Keep on moving on!

 

[frater secessus]

The van did great at the RTR.  I had 13 continuous days off-grid and all systems held up  -- this was more than a little surprising.

While there I met Stan from the Sasnak youtube channel.   He's the guy Bob interviewed with the tricked out 18-wheeler camper.  We had coffee a couple of mornings standing in my van (high tops are awesome!)  Really good guy.

Anyhow, he asked if he could interview me as he wanted to do some of that kinda thing. Sure. 

A couple days later I pulled out every bit of electrical gear I had to try to work around an issue I found while trying to charge a nearby camper's goal zero.  I was sitting on the floor stripping wire ends when Stan came up to chat; it was time for the interview. 

[video=youtube]

I was worried the YT comments about me would be mean, but his viewers were very kind.  I am a shy person, very introverted, and don't interact [voluntarily!] with other humans very often so this is the kind of thing that makes me anxious.  :-\  Once again, nomads show they are the very best kind of people.

 

[breeze]

A really great build! Thanks for the oil analysis tip. That is too important to just leave it to pure chance alone (risky.)

Since your van looks about as tall as mine, I just got a pair of 1500 lb Rear Sumo Springs for $209 + install (~$50.)
They make it ride like a sporty pickup and high winds are no problem at all: even with the oem crap stock Firestone tires. I was going to take them off and throw them away (for Safety sake), but now I will wear them out since my van Now handles so nice Highly recommended. I can't wait until I get good tires, but now I can afford to wait: Safely.

 

[frater secessus]

Yeah, someone at the RTR mentioned Sumos, too. I'll look into them.

 

[Zoomyn]

Another PM owner checking in... Here's a photo taken this week of my van project in suspended animation just in case you ever need a motivational poke to advance or regroup 

 

[Charlotte's Web]

"...just in case you ever need a motivational poke to advance ..."

Good advice always:  Never buy a pig in a poke.

 

[Charlotte's Web]

"... just in case you ever need a motivational poke to advance or regroup..." 

Motivational? 
Mischief prompts remark, no doubt.  But may ultimately be
"Good For Nothing'.

 

[frater secessus]

Here's a photo taken this week of my van project in suspended animation

This reminds me:  there was a person (here?) who smoked a nice set of batteries because the panels on his stored van were covered with snow.  There was enough parasitical load (and no LVD) to drag the batteries down to murder level for a couple of months...

Moral of the story:  either add in shore power, disconnect the house batts, or brush off the snow from time to time.

 

[frater secessus]

I've started a series of Lessons Learned blog posts about how the campervan's performance while boondocking at the RTR.