Ford Transit high top extended conversion in Portugal

manonboard

Hey Folks

I remember reading a great thread here from one of the lads that had fantastic detail in their conversion. I was a bit inspired by it to share my own progress.

I moved to Portugal recently, following a break up, and I'm building myself a campervan as a bit of a passion project and to help me focus on myself more. I started my conversion last month. I work on it during the weekend, and maybe one night each week. Im not in a rush so i expect it will take about 1 - 1.5 years.

I purchased a 2019 High top extended Ford transit. L4H3. Then got to work on it. Im just following vids on youtube, learning from the reddit community, and lots of trial and error. I have basic skills that i learned in secondary school wood working, but a light hobbyist interesting in electronics.

Tearing out walls/floor, Treating rust, and painting

This is what it looked like when i bought it. It was in good shape but just dirty and not suitable for my needs. All the walls and flooring needed to come out so i could check for rust or problems everywhere.

This was the biggest patch of rust, just on the wheel encasings. It looks like the owner before hand (a delivery company) cut the wheel casings to have these flat stackable areas rather than the rounded wheel encasings that come with the van. The did a poor job welding and there were several small holes letting moisture in. The metal also was poorly protected.

I started pulling the wooden walls off the van. It was very very tough work. After all the screws were removed, there was an inustrial strength glue used everywhere. It wouldn't come off without alot of force.

I then had to buy a heat gun, and melt the glue and use a hot chisel to remove it and the wood. It took days. After the glue was mostly removed. I used a wire brush on my drill to grind away the residue that remained. Another few days but it was a bit of fun overall.

It was about 25C inside the van because of the sun, so i frequently had to stop because of the heat guns extra heat :D here is a general shot of the worksite

Next after removing the floor which only took 20 minutes. I began working on the hole filling in the bad welding job, the rust treatment and painting. I first wire brushed all the rust off the encasing. I then applied a rust solvent which finished the last remaining specs of rust. After it dried. I used an epoxy metal resin mix to fill the holes i could see. only 3 holes but one was about 2 inches long (5 mm thick).

Here is the epoxy resin filled hole. This stuff about 1 day to dry. Only about 20 minutes to apply. It is rock solid after a day.

I put some silicone around the edges and then painted it all with Hammerite white paint. I think its now much much better and i'm very glad i did this prep work. I have zero experience with rust or metal so it was all new to me.

I then washed it three separate times. It was quite dirty and sticky dust. After washing I painted every single place I could see anything but white paint.

That's it so far. Feel free to make any comments or criticisms. I'm happy for feedback anytime if it saves me making a mistake!

Next I will be putting in an insulated flooring made of 60mm wood beams and 60mm XPS insulation. I think i choose too big of insulation for the floor. It will work of course, but 60mm is probably a bit silly. 40mm would be perfectly sufficient for the floor i think. As the van is a high top, im not stuck for head room. I'm only 5' 9. The wood is also heavier than i thought it would be.

Nice work.

Re: Insulation, you can never have too much, so don't worry about that. You'll appreciate it as much on the hot days as the cold days.

Those wheel wells are an issue imho, but I'm not knowledgeable enough on the topic, but from what I do know, I'd say your fix may not work long term and it might need a lit of a welding job to fix it properly. Also, what does it look like on the underside in terms of rust and clearance? Is there a risk of the wheels hitting it once you load it up? If so you might need to beef up the suspension/shocks.

Its very likely not an issue just those are the things I would be digging into if I was in your shoes so just wanted to mention them

manonboard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119025858#Comment_119025858

Appreciate the concern and the opinion. Its something that has been on my mind too. I was even thinking like you mention, of increasing the suspension on the rear. When I'm going over speed bumps, I hear something, but i actually don't know if its the encasing or not. I had a look under the van today and i found something loose and banging. So i think thats what was making the noise. Certainly as you mention, it may become an issue if there is a camper van build load in it! I will add it to the list of things to assure is safe and verified before adding much load to it.

On the under side, I saw absolutely nothing that indicated a problem to me. I only have average joe level of knowledge on such matters. There was no rust or scraps on the exterior/underneath of the wheel casing that indicate to me the wheel has ever bumped into them. I will keep and eye on it as i said, and ill also look into improving the suspension which seems like a good idea anyways for what im planning. Thanks!

10-10-20

The first thing I noticed were the wheel-wells. How did they chop them and still retain the clearance for the wheels? Does the van bottom-out on bumps or is this a common mod on this transit? How is the service-history on the vehicle, especially oil changes? What about km's on the odometer? Does it have a diesel particulate filter (DPF) because if it was a short-run van with little long distance then the filter and excess coking of the engine may be an issue.

Also that was mostly surface-rust, usually nothing but unsightly. What you need to do is look under the wheel-well and see if they sealed the cuts with a good chassis waterproofer/wax. Over in Ireland that would be a major concern, but perhaps in PT it's not so big of a problem!

Keep up the good work!

manonboard

Hey Folks,

Been working hard on the sub floor. I decided enough progress has been made that it might be time for an update. Part of the reason for choosing to work on the floor first is because I'm avoiding cutting into my van for windows and solar panels. I'm having trouble finding suitable roof racks for the panels, and the window part is just too scary for now. Its fine though, plenty of work to do. Over all I am on Day 17 of work. 10 days of that has been on the sub floor to date. A day is a full weekend day, or a full week day evening.

So the subfloor is made of 60mm * 40mm support beams with 60mm insulation XPS boards. First I made some basic horizontal cuts. Partially to get over the fear of making my first cuts :D

Next I focused on just one section of the van so i could get a learning experience of the complete process. I made many mistakes but the result turned out ok even in this first part. I must admit. It took 6 hours to get a RECTANGLE working. There were so many unknowns.

1: The van floor is not level. 2: The wood is not perfectly straight. 3: I forgot to buy wood glue. 4: My screws were too short. 5: I bought a device for making screw holes at an angle, and i had no idea how to use it.

I bought a MITRE saw which has been absolutely amazing. Allowed me to cut angles and precision straights really well. I'm far more likely to do things again when they require so little effort as this saw.

It took many many days to do the other sections. I expected the van to be a bit more symmetrically even. My cuts had errors, and screwing the beams together sometimes moved things, or twisted things, which threw off the next piece. I took the approach of just doing one single piece of wood at a time, Constantly compensating as i went along. It was long, but every piece that worked motivated me more.

I bought a hot foam board cutter for the boards. Don't bother. They are so ridiculous slow compared to a Stanley knife that its not worth it at all. It also has the limitation of only being able to cut a certain width but my knife i can cut anywhere.

When i got the wood cut, i screwed it together in a way that allowed me to remove it in 3 manageable parts. I wanted to do this because i wanted to treat the wood before fully screwing it together as one single unit. I took each of the 3 pieces out. One is shown below. I painted each section with a termite/insect repellant, a fungicide and a water repellant (all one chemical). I decided to make some insulation blocks to size while it was outside too.

I put it all back into the van, still in 3 separate sections, and filled more insulation in. Its a tedious job getting the fit just right, and you can see i made some mistakes. That hole in the insulation 2 levels from front is the biggest. Ill just push some insulation bits into it to fill it i think.

Then i got to this beautiful mile stone. All in, still in 3 sections. Just needs to be glued down to the van floor and 3 sections screwed together. It will be glued down with a MARINE adhesive which provides a lot of bonding but also flexibility. I read this is super important because hard non flexible adhesive eventually vibrates apart in a van. Marine adhesive offers enough flex to survive travelling and is moisture safe.

So at this point.. I felt pretty good. It was a long 10 days of work for me. I learned alot about wood work and how crazy precise it needs to be and never is! Then .. unfortunately.. I got a bright idea.. lol...so i took the whole lot of the work back out. My bright idea was from watching more videos from a british youtuber who seems to really know his stuff. I decided to fill the space between the van metal ribs with the underflooring that you use under laminate flooring. The reasons for this is debatable. The space between the ribs has air with moisture. On cold van days, this air makes a lot of contact with the van metal floor and will create condensation. Removing this air by filling the rib space with more insulation means less potential moist air, and also a lot less air to metal contact points. The roll of underflooring is quite cheap so other than labor, it seemed like worth a try. The alternative thinking is that have some air flow is good for drying out condensation since you cant stop all of it.

So i took out all my floor and placed two layers of this stuff in each cavity. I glued it to the van floor. It took 5 hours for about 70% of the van.. then i ran out of glue again :D

It was 28C in that van during working time. A tough day, but i loved the pride i felt. While the floor was out of the van. I also read more about protecting the wood, and i found another protector that would protect the wood more from deterioration rather than fungus/bugs. I've taken the time today to paint all the sections with this second treatment.

That is where i am currently at. About 90% complete on the subfloor i think. Tomorrow ill finish the insulation in the cavities, screw it together, and glue it down i think.. i might hold off on gluing it until i complete the bathroom incase i need to more access to the van floor for plumbing reasons.

Any feedback is appreciated, criticism or agreement. Happy to learn and grateful to those who gave good feedback to me on the wheel encasings, and insulation.

Questions i have too!

1: Is the second layer of insulation a good idea or bad idea?

2: does wood really need to be treated like this? insects and then environmental?

3: Anyone know any transit L4H3 roof racks that don't cost 2k?

4: There was this cool tool that i used for making holes in the wood at an angle. I was thinking of uploading a video of using it, but i didn't know if videos were a good idea or not, as they can be quite time consuming compared to pics.

5: I have some time lapse videos too, but should i just stick to pictures on this thread?

manonboard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119025970#Comment_119025970

On the back of your comment. Ive decided to get a mechanic to check this out properly for me. So far, ive noticed no issue when going over bumps at a reasonable normal speed. There are lots of speed bumps in Portugal and i go over about 30 a day. So i put some paint on the top under the wheel casing, drove down my street which has 5 bumps, and there was no paint on my wheel. Its a lame test, but i think it means my wheels never hit the top as the paint was unmarked. At a higher load, or at a faster speed.. maybe it will. I will have a mechanic check it out at some point. There are other little things i would like checked too.

Under the encasing, there is a black rubber that looks sprayed on which i guess is the water proofer. Its like a rubbery paint. There were 2 holes in it which i have since fixed.

Service history on the van was complete. Every year had it, though with little detail (its only a 3 year old van). It had 72k on the odometer and was first registered in 2019 august.

I dont know about the DPF but i will ask the mechanic about this too. Its been tough getting a mechanic that speaks English to a level i can work with on something. I have my friends referring me atm to the ones they use. There is basic English everywhere here, but quite a difficult resistance to it at the same time. Im not where near able to speak Portuguese enough to talk about van stuff.

Thanks for the critical questions. They helped me see the importance of the encasings issues.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119095667#Comment_119095667

Questions i have too!

1: Is the second layer of insulation a good idea or bad idea?

As I've said, there's rarely an issue with too much insulation. Only time it is, is when air circulation is poor > moisture builds up > mold.

3: Anyone know any transit L4H3 roof racks that don't cost 2k?

I'm planning to use extruded aluminium for my build (if it ever happens) and have seen it used for exactly this purpose. There's a good few videos on using it for this.

Outside of that, welding something custom might be the only option if there's nothing stock you can use

4: There was this cool tool that i used for making holes in the wood at an angle. I was thinking of uploading a video of using it, but i didn't know if videos were a good idea or not, as they can be quite time consuming compared to pics.

I'm guessing you are talking about a pocket hole jig?

5: I have some time lapse videos too, but should i just stick to pictures on this thread

Time lapse vids are a great way to show the transformation, just watch the length. I've seen silly ones that are near 1 hour. If you are doing TL's step by step, then 1-2 mins max would be ideal I think. Can then roll them all together to do a full TL of the whole thing.

Loving the progress updates, nice work

manonboard

Today I made some good progress and finally completed the subfloor. I permanently installed it tonight after completing the underlay insulation.

The marine glue is super strong. That floor is not going to move. It's a great product. In 2 minutes I could hardly move it yet the glue was still semi plyable.

I'll put the xps insulation in tomorrow when there is more light. Very pleased with how it looks at the moment.

Next is the actual floor..which is just plywood and then the bathroom.

Here is a short time lapse of the cleaning, de-rusting n subfloor.

http://youtu.be/IqiPyDimrxU

BorneTobyWilde

Cool,

Were you not tempted to use a bigger vehicle , like a mini bus

manonboard

Not in the slightest. I've never driven anything bigger than an Opel Corsa! This van fits under my regular class B license, and is fairly discreet looking. Discretion seems to be an advantage given that it's never going to be super easy finding locations to park.

Finding mechanics upon my travels for a Ford transit will be super easy when there is problems.

It's an interesting idea but perhaps a bit too far out of my comfort zone still!

BorneTobyWilde

These mini buses are pretty cool, as they have single wheel at rear. and designed to sit very low

BorneTobyWilde

Optare Alero was the name of the Minibus

For reference

manonboard

A small update. I didn't work much on it recently because im having A LOT of trouble ordering supplies from amazon.de with my new bank account. Waiting over a week for it to be resolved.

Last week i put the floor in on top of the sub floor. It was really easy compared to the subfloor. Only took 2 days and that includes protecting all the wood with insect/wood treatments.

I made stencils out of cardboard and traced them on to 15mm plywood. The plywood is quite heavy but feels super sturdy. Im pleased with it.

I remembered so much from my wood working classes as a child that i was super proud of my teacher.

After fitting it all. It all had to come back out for treatment of the wood for insects/moisture protection etc.

Then after treating it all. I put the floor back in and spent 2 hours using duct table to map all the support beams so i know where i can screw! I've decided not to glue the floor down as i could easily see me needing to get underneath it again for some situations while building.

I then got some sound deadening material for the wheel encasings. its like really heavy sticky paper that absorbs a lot of vibration so the wheel encasings and large flat surfaces are perfect places for it. First i cut it into the right shapes and then i stuck it on. I spent about an hour rolling it on to each encasing using a special roller i bought for it. Its just a hard plastic roller. The sound difference is very noticeable.

Portugal has many regulations so very soon i need to employ an engineer to make all this super legal. Its a lengthy process with comprehensive plans etc in Portuguese. Roughly costs about 1k extra in fees but its not ok to get on the wrong side of authorities here if they are in a bad mood at English speaking van dwellers. Best to have as many boxes as possible ticked.

I bought a new camera phone this week so ill have much clearer pictures from now on. It was really difficult using my previous phone due to low disk space!

I made a big decision this week to stop using wood for many things. Its too heavy and my friend over here has had terrible problems going over the max weight limit of 3500kg. I have decided to use aluminum 3030 to build any future supports. I was a bit afraid to use it on the floor but after looking into it more, it was a really safe option all along. The connectors and accessories available for it are pretty amazing. I think ill end up with a higher quality finish that weighs less and is strong.

Here is a link to the one i like. https://www.amazon.de/-/en/gp/product/B075NB5HKQ

If anyone has any experience with it. Let me know.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119181416#Comment_119181416

Extruded aluminium (aka 80/20) is what I am planning on using for my build and I read up/ watched loads a year ago when I decided on it.

I'm guessing you have too and I choose it for the same reason, weight and strength. The downside is cost.

You are likely aware of the following but I'll mention it anyway just incase. What I would recommend (based on what I learned) you try doing is the following

1. Research exactly what size and form you will need / want. You can go lighter in some areas but need additional strength in other areas. Cost is a factor with this stuff so it's good to use the lighter stuff where possible to save but still have the necessary strength. Also do research on the types of connectors / fixings etc as they can get very pricey very many. Get 1 small pack of the fixings that can be slotted into a length with closed ends, you will need these because you will forget to add something when assembling. You can also get different faces on 1 or 2 sides so if looking at the t-slot doesn't appeal you can have different astethic should you wish.

2. There are 3d modelling software packages out there, sketch up being a good one. If you have the patience to learn and model your build, when it comes to the actual building you'll make very few errors. It will also save you a lot as you'll be able to work out to the cm exactly how much you need.

3. Don't tighten the fixings until you are 1,000,000% sure but once you are ready, double and triple check that you have tightened everything. The great thing with extruded aluminium is the ability to take it all apart / put it back like lego. You lose this option once you tighten so yeah be VERY sure.

4. Look around locally for a supplier. You may find a firm that will deliver you everything already cut to the lengths you need (this is where the 3d software comes in). I've been looking at Irish suppliers for this.

Look up Humble Road on YouTube. Also "Seven O Savage" there too who used both the 8020 and sketchup options. In fact just have a root around YouTube for 8020 van builds.

manonboard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119181595#Comment_119181595

Humble roads is exactly where i first came across the idea. I hesitated alot on the floor due to potential for thermal bridging. It felt odd to insulate so much but then to use a crazy great conductor.. In hindsight, i think i was overthinking it. I also think the floor is the least likely place for it to be a problem since most heat will come from the sides/top. Heat is what I'm aiming to reduce in my climate.

The 3030 is a relatively strong piece of extrusion. 2020 looked a bit too thin, and 4040 looked a bit too big. As for mixing, in theory i agree with you.. but if i use different extrusion grades, many connectors need to be purchased differently. The link i gave above has 'good' deals on extrusion in larger sizes (12 * 2 meters). Large boxes of connectors are.. affordable (though still some high expense).

I felt like wood was pretty pricey. Definitely cheaper than extrusion but as you said, i also love the flexibility with the extrusion in terms of lego play. I will use for shower room structure/supports for work tops/cabinets/Bed frame/storage. This should help remove alot of the wood weight, and ill use a thin plywood for backings/sides. Another thing i will use the extrusion for is the roof rack for the solar panels. The roof racks pre built are CRAZY CRAZY money. Absolutely silliness. 2-3k for something that i think i could build for 300.

Appreciate the comments/opinions. Be sure to drop me a line when you start your own build so i can follow!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119181835#Comment_119181835

sounds like we'll have very similar builds so I'm watching your with great interest

stephen1968

As mentioned by another person...I used on wall ceiling floor 10mm dido insulation not cheap then 25mm insulation board again everywhere...then recyclable loft insulation again everywhere...then 5mm vapor barrier everywhere...worth the time ...plus just did cvrt had no issue regarding changing to camper as believe cause left bulkhead and no window's only cut small roof light in ceiling

manonboard

Update: Installing the Fan on the top of the van

Hey folks. This week supplies arrived and i installed the ventilation fan on top of the van. It was super scary! but it went really really well.

my van is a ford transit EXT. I decided to locate the fan on the rear right hand side. The reasons for this were:

• Maximum air movement above my bed area which in hot climates is my preference.
• I havent fully planned the solar panel array sizes/roof rack so i wanted to maximize the amount of play area i have for power.
• Its on the right side rather than the middle because next year i think it likely i install a small AC unit on the left side of the rear. I left enough room for that (40*40 hole required)

I followed all the usual steps for doing the work that you find on any van build youtube video. I made some modifications that i think are a good idea.

First i measured the square hole 40*40cm for my van and attached tape. I purposefully made it slightly smaller. 39.9cm knowing i would have to file it later.

It was super scary cutting the hole. I just made 4 pilot drill holes in each corner, and used a metal cutting blade in my jigsaw. It cut through it like butter. Almost zero resistance.

I hoped by making the hole 39.9mm i would be able to have the tightest of fits. This turned out to be a bad idea and i wasted 90 minutes filing the 0.1mm back off. It just took time and energy that was unnecessary. The MOMENT i made the cut, dark clouds appeared over head so i was quite nervous the whole day about rain!

Eventually after a lot of filing, I put the plastic frame in and drilled the 16 holes into the sheet metal. The holes to the sides went through the sheet metal easy. The holes to the front and back, and corners were more difficult because they hit off reinforced metal beams in the van. I initially wanted to avoid this but it was impossible in the dimensions available. It turned out to be fantastic fortune in the end

I tend layer several strips of butyl tape over the edges where the frame would sit. I poked holes through it using a drill bit to clear the holes i made for the screws.

I put the frame in, and this is where i changed my mind about something important. The examples i saw used screws through the sheet metal and a wooden frame on the inside for the screw to bite into. It seemed like a good idea but the location meant my wooden frame i built would not fit. On the inside there is metal reinforced beams that make it impossible to get a flush finish with a piece of wood. So i decided to use bolt -> washer -> frame -> butyl tape -> van -> washer -> nut.

On the top and bottom of the hole shown below. You can see the holes went through the reinforced beams, and with a washer/nut, this gave EXCELLENT compression strength. I made it as tight as I felt comfortable without causing any distortion to the frame or sheet metal. The butyl tape got squeezed out a lovely amount and into all the edges. So the beams turned out to be very very fortunate.

I installed the fan in the frame and i cut away all the excess butyl tape.

I then added a marine purpose sealant/adhesive to give a better flush seal to the edges.

During the night time, it rained heavily and not a single drop of water came in the van, so I'm greatly pleased with that.

Any feedback or questions, feel free! Anything about the bolts/nuts instead of screws is much welcomed as i was flying by my own ideas there!

Thanks

Fastpud

Thanks for posting and keep them coming. Love getting inspiration for a future van build

nice work with the fan

Buford T Justice

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119095682#Comment_119095682

Stick about half a ton of weight in the back of the van and try the speed bump test again. By the time yo've finished your build, filled with diesel loaded up all yet stuff for a trip you'll easily have that extra weight in the van.

I would also remove the bulkhead from the van. It makes it feel bigger in the back, means you don't need to go outside to get back in to move it, and if you get swivel seats (mine came from a renault espace) then you have two extra seats in the van.

I hope you're small, that floor takes a good bit of floor height away from the internal space, maybe it won't bother you but it was a consideration for my build.

You can check out my build here - It's finished now, but it was completed around the time of the migration of boards so I didn't update too much at the end.

manonboard

Hey folks.

Small important update n a request for feedback/ideas.

I prototyped a roof rack n wanted to share it because it ended up with a really good result. Before I build the rest of it. I wanted to hear feedback or concerns.

Rack is made of 3030 aliminium extrusion. Bracket to van is a steel bracket which feels super strong. I think I couldn't bend it if I tried with any home tools.

The bracket is using a 20mm bolt to factory provided threaded hole. No washer between bolt n bracket.

Connectors from bracket to aliminium extrusion are 2 "metal" connectors designed for connecting to extrusion. Probably 6mm bolts.

Here is a picture

My questions/requests.

Anybody see anything problematic I don't?

The van is not straight and has a curved surface. The bracket area is flat but tilted by about 5 degrees. In order to make my bracket horizontal I put a sheet of 1mm hardish but flexible plastic sheet at the back of the bracket so one side is raised by 1mm. It tilts the bracket quite well. I won't know if it's enough until I do the other side n put a bar across to see if it fits level. Any thoughts on managing that angle? Surprised the bracket location is not horizontal to its sister mounting holds.

Do I need a washer between a bolt n steel bracket? The bolt definitely can't cut into such hard steel.

The almininum extrusion connectors. Use 6mm bolts. I'm use 2 connectors. It's shiny metal n I don't know the load bearing strength of them. They're about 15mm in length. 6mm threaded woth. Any concerns?

Sealing around the bracket n plastic. I'm thinking just more marine sealant I used on the fan area.

Is there any benefit to use two brackets instead of one? Putting two together to form a C channel shape? I think I could cut a second to fit on top the first so it would have 4 extrusion connectors per mounting point. All still load bearing on the same m8 bolt I to the van?

manonboard

Ah I realised I can put these corner brackets on the bracket to extrusion. I can easily attach 2 underneath that will keep it extra supported.

It would mean 4 different connectors would need to fail with 2 completely perpendicular load directions. Sounds very safe to me

manonboard

Update on roof rack. I upgraded a few pieces and finished a prototype of it.

Pretty pleased with it but I'd love any concerns you have since it would be disastrous to blow off during driving.

I added a pair of 90 degree brackets to each beam connection point.

So now the bar is connected to each steel hinge with 4 extrusion connectors. The connectors have 2 m6 bolts on the top n 2 m8 bolts on bottom.

The cross bar on top is just a demo proving I solved the angle issue because the roof is curved. I added 2 washers to the bottom of each bracket to offset tilt of the van. This is on the small bracket connected to the bar. The van bracket is still completely flush with van. Picture 3 shows the angled bar.

I have options to put the cross beam supports on top like the last picture or inset them to be the same level as the length ways bars.

I think I'll buy my solar panels next and see what works best when I have them in the rack.

manonboard

Big update since the last one.

First, the Roof rack. After some consultation with the reddit community, My roof rack turned out to have some potential issues with lateral/side loading. If there was a very large storm, the brackets i used could potentially bend. It was a bit unlikely but better safe than sorry.

So I redesigned my roof rack to be more lateral safe. I purchased larger brackets made of thicker steel, that also came with the gusset fold you can see. I had no idea gussets were a thing, but they are designed exactly to stop this type of bending.

I then attached a secondary bracket to the back of this to support the load from the vertical plane. Each bar is now bound to bracket support through 4 different bolts through 2 planes. It might be a bit overkill but im happy for that when im on a motorway carrying a solar panel kite. I added some washers that allowed me to tilt the bracket a few degrees to compensate partially for the tilt of the roof curvature. I cant believe ford didnt just make the mountain points parallel to the ground.

I replicated this on the 8 mounting points and added in 2 horizontal bars at same level to help distribute the load across the sides. Its been 2 weeks up there and absolutely rock solid.

I still have to add locking washers and sealant to the mountain points, but I wont do that until I get the solar panels incase I need to move anything. It rains so little here i have not even had to consider it.

Overall I'm super pleased with the roof rack. I feel its as sturdy as i could ever wish for, and i'm quite pleased with the cost of it. About 250 euros worth of equipment (the 3 rebuilds of it). The store bought racks were close to 2k and offered so little customizability. Absolutely crazy money.

---------------------

Next up. The interior framing and installed a bed! :D

I played around learning how to install a Riv Nut which is absolutely the best device I've ever used in the build. It is a nut/insert that fits inside a hole and allows you to screw in a bolt. It has given me huge confidence in how securely I can bind things to the van structure. Far more holding than glue and screws, with the ability to dismantle things easily.

I began framing the bed area. Its a square metal frame sitting on those horizontal supports. I believe this is the best way to distribute any weight.. In hindsight, its overkill. Its so structurally sound that it was never going to be a problem. I'm happy for that problem!

I decided to use aluminum profile (3030) for all my framing as its proved to be very very easy to use, far faster to assemble and disassemble, extremely forgiving of mistakes and prototyping. The strength and weight of it far exceeds wood qualities. I have rebuilt nearly all my bed framing 3 times now. The bolts and connectors make that infinitely doable.

I'm very pleased with the results of this too. It took a lot of trial and error, but slowly made its way towards the quality I wanted. The best thing about the aluminum is that I can afford to make very large design mistakes and simply, undo everything and fix it. I made some bad cuts but its less waste than wood because even small parts are super strong and useful.

Next i began to build the bed bottom. My hole saw broke half way through so i need to redo that part of the wood before i can treat it for bugs/wood protection. Getting the corners correct was a huge amount of time because NOTHING in a van is straight, even the straight walls. The van is 1.5cm wider at the back than the middle on the same wall, so a straight piece of plywood needs to be cut at an angle just to press flush against the van wall 'straight line'

Then the scariest part was installing the mattress. There was 26cm of area at the rear door wasted if the mattress was not cut to fill that odd shaped area. Far too much to waste. No other idea seemed good enough. I cut the mattress. It was simple enough. Unzip it, remove the fire protection cover netting (temporarily), and then cut it using a sharp Stanley knife. I used the wooden boards as the template (AFTER I MADE A CARDBOARD CUT OUT!! lol)

It fit! :D

Now i have a bed :D

Next week I am going camping in it for the first time. I have a cooler and fan that needs power to be comfortable. It's a huge heatwave here in Portugal. I installed a battery also in a temporary solution so i could connect the ventilation and food cooler.

I will do temporary wiring to allow me to use it. The correct cables and Victron Orion 48V to 12V DC/DC convertor will arrive early this week. I THINK its a matter of just running wiring from Orion converter to both 12v fan & cooler. The battery should have enough factory charge to last me a weekend easily. I can't charge it until my solar panels arrive :D It took 6 months to get one of these batteries. There seems to be a massive delay.

Anyways. That's all my progress so far. Its been really tough working in 35C heat. Just constantly using sunscreen and soaking my t-shirts/head wraps in cold water. I'm very proud of the work so far.

Any suggestions or feedback welcome!

Not much to say except that I'm thrilled to see the EA starting to come into it.

That roof rack looks solid too

copper12

I’m not sure if this will be of any help 

I recently converted a crafter van 

The 12v and 220 v I ran in two zones 

Two each side of the van 

I bought 1’ 100 meter cable roll and used every bit of it

Each side I have there’s at least two cables runs back and front that are spare 

After I finished all the wiring 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B073TZ5BBG/ref=pe_27063361_485629781_TE_item

Bought these crimper I have made hundreds of joints with other types of crimpers 

This was the best ever and used it a lot once made to join two wires together 

You can also to splice two three four wires together and makes a joint that will not come apart 

Heat shrink over and you can have confidence in the joint 

Two 8 gang panel reset switch type one each side  

copper12

I’m not sure if this will be of any help 

I recently converted a crafter van 

The 12v and 220 v I ran in two zones 

Two each side of the van 

I bought 1’ 100 meter cable roll and used every bit of it

Each side I have there’s at least two cables runs back and front that are spare 

After I finished all the wiring 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B073TZ5BBG/ref=pe_27063361_485629781_TE_item

Bought these crimper I have made hundreds of joints with other types of crimpers 

This was the best ever and used it a lot once made to join two wires together 

You can also to splice two three four wires together and makes a joint that will not come apart 

Heat shrink over and you can have confidence in the joint 

Two 8 gang panel reset switch type one each side  

manonboard

Hey Hey! Long time no update. I took a huge break from the van for many personal reasons.

Sickness, relationship stuff, travel, mood, weather. I've been back working on it and have some progress worth showing.

Solar power install:

I installed 4 solar panels on top of the van. 175W panels at 48v each. I have the wired in parallel. Open circuit voltage is about 55-61V on each panel so it meets my requirements. I first attached them each to two aluminum bars. This was pretty easy. I simply drilled holes in the side frames of each panel. Put some connectors on to my aluminum protrusion, and just screwed in from the back.

As you can see, it means two bars double up beside each other between panels. For the 2nd last, and last panel, i placed the two panels sharing the same middle bar. This is purely to save 2cm. Its important to me to save room on the roof so that i may add a 5th panel. 6 cm is a useful amount of room to me. It gives me enough to add a 5th panel should i need to.

Solar panel hell

Now.. all of this took a couple of weeks..but there was HUGE problems awaiting.

I got VERY little output into my battery. It took many many weeks of debugging before i came to the conclusion that my installation was correct. The only logical theory was that 3 out of 4 panels were broken. It seemed insane. Of course i had to have made a mistake. Its my first panel install. After many weeks of debugging. I was certain i made no mistakes. Panel 1 worked perfectly. Panels 2, 3, 4 were about 10% of the output.

After working with the sales rep, we shipped the panels back to Ireland with the agreement of no charge. It helped i had weeks of debugging data and various experiments with pictures. Couple weeks later, the manufactuer confirmed panels 2,3,4 were indeed malfunctioning. It took 15 more weeks to get replacement panels delivered because the next batch of these panels was not in stock. They are not super common. Most people get 12v and put them in series, I wanted 48V panels so i could put them in parallel to allow me to use my 100v MPPT controller from victron.

Only the other day did the new panels arrive. I tested them and they seem perfect but i have to do all my work again to put them on the roof. I am not in a rush for that. There was lots of heavy rain so it wasnt possible anyways.

Interestingly the broken panels outputted the correct voltage, but no amps.

My one working panel has been able to slowly charge my 3.5Kwh battery from pylontech (3000c). It takes a VERY long time, and i think it only brings it to about 90%. I think this has to do with the fact that the controller is 'dumb' without the devices that make it smart. It has a 48V profile setting but it has no temperature sensor or battery management system cable connected. This will allow the battery to inform the charge controller more accurately. Its not a priority for me at all at the moment. I'm not working on the electrics yet.

First proper trip

Myself and a friend went to El Choro in Spain for some Climbing. We spent a week camping in the van on a camp site (showers + kitchen). It went great. The ventilation, and bed worked perfectly. The solar panel ALMOST kept the battery with enough power for our fridge for 7 days. It only ran out on the last day. It meant we had cold drinks, milk and meat fresh. I have an eating disorder which requires me to have lots of milk so I felt super liberated by this. Ive never been able to camp like this before partly due to the eating difficulty. I felt super motivated and its really put the step back in the van progress.

Its worth mentioning that the roof rack got stuck in a tree at one point, and i pulled a large branch off the tree accidently before i noticed. The roof rack didnt budge at all. Super solid, so im very pleased with that :D

I have completely quite a bit more work and i will post very soon about. Sometimes jobs just take LOTS of time, and pictures from during it just dont provide much value i think. Currently working on the shower room, the scariest part of the whole build for me!

Any questions or feedback, please feel free!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120066660#Comment_120066660

I was only thinking about this build the other day when chatting to the wife about going van shopping. Great to see you still tipping along.

Good catch on the panels and nice to see the supplier sorted you out albeit slowly.

As regards catching that branch, it might be worth inspecting your seals where the rack is mounted to make sure nothing shifted. Unlikely, but while its fresh in your mind and early in the build, it wouldn't hurt to hold a hose over each mount point to make sure you didn't break a seal.

Is this the type of battery you got? Interesting to see it done like a server rack

https://eu.nkon.nl/pylontech-us-3000-c-48-v.html

Are you still planning on doing the interior fitout in extruded aluminum? If so I came across a piece of software that I've seen on a youtube channel that might be of use, its called MayCAD. The idea behind it is it lets you design everything and it'll tell you exactly what bits are needed for each joint, what connectors, how many etc etc

I haven't used it yet myself but maybe it'll be useful for you

https://maytec.com.de/index.php?id=21

Alkers

Do you have a wiring diagram for your power system?

manonboard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119642663#Comment_119642663

Thank you for the tips of products. I'll be ordering your suggestion and ill follow your advice and get large rolls of wire! I haven't thought much about the electrics simply because I'm terrified of the plumbing :D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120066868#Comment_120066868

Thank you for the interest! Actually nature was one step ahead of me the following week. There was 3 more weeks of terrible rain. I checked every point inside the van as it was an excellent water test. The van never once showed signs of water ingress. The fan, the mounting points, and all the door seals were perfect. I was pretty pleased with that.

Yes that is exactly the type of battery i have. I feel pretty positive about the battery.. HOWEVER... if i was doing it all again. I would NOT purchase a 48v battery. The eco system for it just does not exist in any useful way. The panels suitable for a 12v are cheaper, the products available at 12v are way more affordable and available. The 48v products are outrageously expensive and very slim pickings. Simple solutions like 12v alternator to 12v battery charging are simple...12v alternator to 48v battery..almost impossible unless you drop 2500 euros.

Ive been slowly rail roaded into using as little devices as possible on 12v (lights + fan), and the rest i'm just going to use at 240v. The 240v circuits will mean i can cheaply buy products from a huge regular section. The wire is easy and cheap. I have decided to just bite the efficiency losses by acknowledging ill have my inverter on a lot during the day. My alternative is to have losses at 48v to 12v very often. I already have a 48v to 12V converter so i still have options for 12v...but i had naively assumed i could use 48v products a lot more.. they just don't exist really.

Regards extrusion.. The biggest mistake i made was thinking i would do everything in extrusion. There is just no sensible way to water proof a shower room using extrusion. Wood made it WAY easier. It allowed me flexibility in the van which is required because nothing in a van is straight. I could carve it up into whatever thickness any particular slot/groove/curve needed. I could stack it endlessly to increase depths. I could add pieces here and there so fast for extra support without having to disassemble the rest of the joint to add more connectors. The final clinch for me was figuring out there is no way i found that i could attach plywood panels to it in a way nearly as strong as i could to wooden frame. All i have to do is attach more wood to a frame which takes minutes.. and then ive lots of new places for attaching plywood panels to.

manonboard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120066913#Comment_120066913

I do not have one at the moment no. When i create one, ill remember to post it up for you.

I have a 48V battery, a dc to dc 48v to 12v converter. Converter will power the lights + fan + usb sockets... maybe a fridge.

The 240v will power everything else from induction cooker, computer, and whatever other sockets..

Water heater element is diesel. Its a bobil van air + water combo. Excellent product. Electrical heating element is back up or time saver.

Air heating is same product, so diesel.

Buford T Justice

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120069058#Comment_120069058

240V fridge will be considerably cheaper and more efficient than a 12V one.

Alkers

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120069058#Comment_120069058

Much appreciated but sounds like youd stick with 12v battery next time?

manonboard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120071717#Comment_120071717

Yes I would.

I just have not benefitted, nor do i expect to benefit from the 48V choice. I might even suggest a 24v. There are less 24v products but its still quite abundant eco system. The nice thing about 24v is of course, half the wire size. Especially for high draw appliances like if you ever want Air conditioning. Lots of 12v and 24v models now available.

I cant see a single benefit i'm going to get from the 48v that i would not get from the 24v with much more available features.

Maybe by next year, some more 48v products will be available.. but thats just wishful thinking.

Any gains i make power wise using 48v (smaller wire) are now going to be offset by having to use the inverter more since ill be running nearly everything on AC other than lights + fan...and maybe fridge

The biggest drawback of a 24v i see is that it cant attach directly or as directly to the alternator charger. Its possible to get 12v->24v chargers, but 12v->48v is still not available on a product i can afford that is safe enough to attach to my van.

manonboard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120069211#Comment_120069211

Definitely cheaper.

Can you tell me any thoughts you have on efficiency? Ive read that 12v would be more efficient because they are designed for lower power situations so have better insulation, and im not aware of how DC->AC would be more efficent than DC-lower DC? (as in i generally dont know how conversion even works)

Buford T Justice

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120084462#Comment_120084462

I've not done any sums on efficiency or anything and in my build I was more concerned about the price point for the appliance than anything else. My thoughts are that a domestic fridge would be more efficient as there's more R&D potentially put into it than a 12v one, since the market would be considerably smaller. If you have an inverter in the van, then it seems to make sense. Just my own opinion

spaceHopper

You have a lot of screws and nuts with no split washers or tread lock. You probably should apply some tread lock to them so that they don't shake free

manonboard

Thanks. Yes good idea. I need to remount all of them and will absolutely use some thread lock.

manonboard

Hey Folks

Another update.

Shower/toilet room progress.

So first thing first. The van is not straight, level or boxy. The drive way is a slope so i cant even hang a piece of string for straightness. It has been really hard for me to learn how to make a square room in a round environment. I see people adding lots of wood and distance from the edge but i truly want to maximize every inch of space so i decided to do it my way. The curvature of the room is 10cm less wide at the top than the bottom because it hugs the walls of the van. I don't notice it when standing in the room, and I'm comfortable with it.

I want the shower room to be as tall as possible, and to have a sizeable tray in the bottom. I want it to start from right behind the driver seat.

First i had to build a bulk head wall. I pulled out the metal bulk head wall and began replacing it with my own wooden one.

I put the tray down and built a floor frame around it for other wall frame beams to fit into it.

I attached beams to the van structure by using bolts. I used cross nuts to provide the threaded hole. These are invaluable in the build I find. I can put a bolt anywhere and its rock tight/super strong.

It took a long time to figure out where to place beams, how to get them roughly straight, and how to have the structurally sound. A huge help was a beam on the ceiling which was within 2 cm of where i needed a beam. So i just put two together and put it in the roof. It provided a huge stability and a place to work off.

This was 1 of 2 super hard parts. The curvature of the roof affects the bathroom shape. I felt i would lose too much room moving the bathroom back. It was a judgement call. I wouldn't blame anyone for moving it back, and maybe adding a swivel seat so you can make good use of the space.

Its structurally very very sound. You could do pull ups off any part of this. The reason I used a particular bracket here is because a crack appeared in the wood. So I just wanted a little extra safety. I need all sides, even these at angles, to be flat surfaces so i can add a sheet of wood later as a ceiling. This works here well enough i think. It took effort. I never really worked at angles before. Everything got about twice the amount of screws or brackets as was required.

I just kept adding more and more support beams for structural support in different locations. I also needed places were i knew i could screw panels to at the edges to make sure the corners are super tight and water proofed.

This corner piece was an absolute disaster. I spent several days working on it. I think it looks like **** and i plan to just cover it up. Maybe i can make a shelf from it. I hate it. I hate it so much. Every single side of this was angled. Every piece of wood would encounter the van edge at an unusual angle at different lengths. In the end, i attempted to just build a square box around the curves. However there was nothing i could bolt into well. So i had to built extensions and then join them all. Its a horrible mess and i wish i had a better idea. FEEL FREE TO SUGGEST SOMETHING

That gap in between the wood is deliberate to compensate for the curves of the van.

I felt this was enough frame for now. I knew i might need to add more wood for screw positions but at this stage, this room is super strong.

I got started on the shower basin and drain.

Drain

This was the a very scary part of the build. I hate the idea of a leak under the floor. I drilled a pilot hole and checked it was in a good location underneath. I then just cut! The offset distance is intentional. I bought this 1 single molded piece of drain. It minimizes the risk of leak. The end of it comes out the bottom of the van. The ONLY place this can leak into the van is between the 'drainer strainer' and the rubber gasket/drain compression fit under the tray. Its a compression fit and i sealed the edges of it with marine sealant. I think its safe, ive tested it.. but ill never not worry about it!

The drain looks a lot like this: Its just more Bulbous shaped with a slightly offset pipe. The offset is irrelevant to me.

I then just connected some waste pipe to the drain bottom. That small hole is the pilot hole. I sprayed the area and edges with hammerite white metal paint. Im going to squirt some expanding foam up into that area to fill the air gap around the drain. Is this a good idea?

There is it. Water coming from the drain. I didn't find any leak but unless its super obvious.. I cant really see how. The shower tray is glued down with Marine adhesive. Its super strong, sticky and flexible. The wood frame alone is super tight around it so the glue is just extra helpful.

Any suggestions or questions. Fire away!

manonboard

Long time no Update. There was love, travel, decisions, stresses and everything else in the beautiful round of life. There was also much van building so without more delay. A big update.

I worked mostly on the Toilet/shower room. As you can see in the picture below. There is a very large cable trunk running across the room. This has about 80 wires inside it. I dont want this here. I want it in the areas behind the substructure of the van so i have nice flat walls to use. This turn out to be 13 hours of work.

I cut the cable trunk and broke all the wires into lots of different bundles. (There were approx 12 blue wires.. so i put only 1 of each color in each bundle so they dont get mixed up). I then moved the cable through all the existing holes in the substructure. I was required to drill one hole near the front where the cable 'starts' entering the sub structure.

After I pulled the cable through the sub-structure (I put a big wooly sock on the end to push it through easier).. i then set about reconnecting all the cables.. there are over 80 of them. Maybe 100... it took 13 hours of work.. WHY? Because i was 15cm short on the cable join points... I had to add 15 cm of new cable between each wire.. it was horrible. I regret it so much.

I used this fantastic product which look like see through heat shrink.. it includes solder already in it.. I just push two wires in.. heat it up with a heat gun.. the solder melts..the plastic melts..and everything joins together so well. Its a fantastic product. This is the product:

The end result turned out to be great. The cable is completely hidden behind the substructure. The van did not work again until i had all the cables reconnected. It was pretty scary. It was probably a bad move.. but it was a move i made. Nice flat clean walls.

Now that the cable was out of the way. I started to insulate behind the shower room. I decided to go with some mineral wool/rock wool i had on hand and some fiber insulation. In hindsight.. this was not great. I didnt know there was such a product called ArmaFlex.. I think its a superior product but i only discovered it after i completed my work. This current insulation works very well though. I think armaflex will also be less likely to allow water to creep behind it through the air, and wont hold moisture so much.

However, this insulation is still quite good R value. It was also super easy to place behind an existing structure where as armaflex would not be! Im very pleased with the quantity of insulation i put behind this wall and ceiling. I really packed it in there well without compressing much. There was just lots of space so it is a very well insulated area of the van now.

I then started working on building some walls finally! This was very very exciting because it started to feel like a room rather than just infrastructure. Its really hard to stay motivated for 14 months when you are just looking at infrastructure all the time.

I bought some cheap board to make rigid stencils of the walls. These walls need to be near perfect because the room needs to be waterproof for the shower. Its very very important to get this part right so its worth the 35 euros of board it costs for the whole room. I made a million and one alterations to the stencil until it was very well.

I traced it on to the half inch ply wood. I used half inch because it allowed the flexibility to bend to the corners and sides, while still being super strong. After all, the walls will carry no load, only the frame will support weight. Lighter might even be possible too.

I put the walls up and realized that there were still some areas along the sides that had no 'frame' beam to screw into. I added more where necessary. I paid a lot of attention to this part before i even did the walls.. but my inexperience shines through and i missed quite a number of places!

I attached the walls using screws and glue (to the frames!).

WHEN you are doing the walls. Do one ENTIRE wall first.. before even stenciling the next well. The bend of the wood, the thickness, the flexibility, and the tension all moves the next piece of the adjoining walls position. It was POINTLESS to make all 4 stencils at the same time. Stencil, wall, attached, then stencil next wall. I learned this the hard way :D :D

Yayyy it finally started to look like something hahaha.

Next up, while i still had access to the ceiling of the room. I decided to add active ventilation. This turned out to be FAR more problematic than i intended because no vent i could find was slim line enough for the space between the van ceiling and the framing of my shower room.

The tube part stuck down too far.. and the fan component that would go inside the wet room (attached to the ceiling) added 6cm.. way too far into my wet room and hanging from the ceiling... Even if i cut the pipe to be shorter.. it was still 3 cm too much.

The other side of this worked pretty great though! Cutting holes in van is pretty easy tbh. It just requires a bit of care and attention. Keep holes small as possible, measure ten times, cut once. File the edges down, use a rubber gasket. Compress the fitting however it works.. and then use a ton of high quality marine grade sealant. I have 4 holes in my van walls now.. All completely waterproof.

I decided on a new approach. I cut the pipe, removed the frame bars, and ran this 80mm ducting from it to outside the shower room. The pipe was 60mm so i used this clamp ring and covered it with aluminum tape too.

Later i will make a vent in the side of the wall of the room. I will attach an inline fan outside the room that will suck air from the wet room and then push it out this ducting. I think it will work just fine. The inline vent option also will allow me to connect a second 'intake' ducting from the kitchen cooking area and push it out this ducting as well.

There are some added benefits to this too because i have a huge air maxx vent in the back the van. So on days where it might be good..I can pull air in with the air max and vent out using this. There is a massive difference in capacity so that will need to be balanced a little. Luckily there are 10 settings on the air maxx vent. Its also above my sleeping spot. So i can suck in/blow air on to me when its hot and this inline van can help remove that air too.

Overall this is actually a much better solution. However because it was an accident, I didnt get to decide where this mushroom vent goes. There is no reason for it to be over the wet room at all.

I added the ceiling panels in, and attached a couple of 240v water proof downlights. These lights are just for testing and place holders as they were cheap. I want 12v lights. I hooked these up to a regular plug so i could test and have light in the room for further work. They only work when i have them plugged into my extension cord in my house :D

That's all for now. I'm working hard on it again now as i recently took a trip in a van for 9 days and i LOVED it. I cant wait to move into my van. I'm really excited for it.

Any questions or suggestions are more than welcome!

Shoog

I would be a little concerned about the fibreglass/rockwool insulation. Unless you have near perfect vapour barrier between it and the living space moisture will migrate through it and when it hits the outer shell it will condence and drip into the insulation which will hold it and saturate. This will be a perfect breeding ground for rust. Really none porous Urethane sheet is the only really sensible approach in a van.Alternatively a sealed layer of silvered bubble wrap between the inner and the rockwool will minimise vapour migration and add substantially to the insulation value.

When people buy people carriers which have been insulated with rockwool/fibreglass its typically the first job to rip it out and replace it. Condensation is a huge problem in vans - much more so than buildings.

manonboard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120683460#Comment_120683460

It's certainly something that popped into my mind. I initially was more concerned. After more research, i felt more comfortable with it. There are many many builds (in fact, most) that use mineral wool and no vapor barrier which are doing just fine after many years. In my opinion (and insulation seems to be a magic art rather than an agreed standard), unless you can make a perfect vapor barrier, its quite problematic, as there is no way for any moisture to ever escape from the walls too. I don't have the environment/tools to set up a perfect vapor barrier in a dry atmosphere which is important when setting up a vapor barrier.

I will be switching to Armaflex XG for the rest of the build, so I do think you have a good point and i wish i had use Armaflex + mineral wool (for all the gaps Armaflex cant be put in)

In terms of insulation, the mineral wool will still allow some air movement slowly over time. In the same way that air may bring moisture, it will also help it leave on warmer dry days which is most days where i am. The most important aspects seems to be to keep air gaps to a minimum, and to keep the van warm and dry with moving air. If that is done, then condensation is suitable managed.

Heating wont be a problem as I've a diesel heater planned and and i have good airflow with my 2 active ventilations.

10-10-20

Good work!

A VCL (vapour control layer) is critical in any location where you install insulation, especially on a van where you'll be living within. The VCL goes on the warm side of the insulation, right behind the wood panel. It will stop what @Shoog is talking about, but it's not going to stop all of it. Ventilation alone also won't control the moisture as too much of it builds up and is retained within the insulation due effectively to condensation. The VCL needs to be continuous and lapped at joins to prevent ingress. Many of the UK camping forums will have good guidance on this as it's much more problematic in the UK/Ireland, but that's not to say that it can't affect a Portuguese camper either! Your best defense for moisture might be to use the power of the sun to heat the van on all sides with the doors/windows left open after use (ie, rotate the van 180 degrees so that all sides get sun to dry it out over the course of a few days).

On the drain question from Jan (a bit late now, eh!) about using expanding/insulating foam around that exit point, that foam has a habit of trapping water in the pores so I would use no expanding foam in that location as if there is a leak you will not know about it till it has progressed quite far into the metal shell.

manonboard

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120689334#Comment_120689334

This is really useful help and guidance thanks a lot. I will make sure to heat my van often as you say on each side. Thanks for the tips. Good thinking on the drain hole, I actually haven't filled it yet for those exact reasons so i'm glad to hear some confirmation.

Its such a hotly debated topic. I spent sooo long researching it and still couldnt even tell if it was needed.

Arguments for:

Should reduce moisture from breathing/living area which is warm, from entering areas were it is colder. Condensation forms.

Works well only if it has a very good seal.

Works in buildings with proven history. (stops moisture coming in from outside which tends to be semi permeable substances (long time periods)).

Arguments against:

Van walls will get hotter than living space very very often as metal heats up to very high levels in sun (portugal based).

Sealing is incredible difficult, and van has lots of gaps and holes which will definitely still let air in.

Moisture will be trapped behind VCL and cant escape well.

Van exterior is largely non permeable (except for holes and bad rubber seals)

There are some great experts telling me that i should do it, heat and air conditioning designers with years of experience.. then there are exactly the same type of qualified people saying its not needed as buildings and vans are soo different. For myself, I've decided not to use a VCL (other than the rest of the van will be armaflex insulation which is waterproof).

Really appreciate the feedback guys, hope its known i appreciate it even though im choosing to not follow this guidance for the barrier.

10-10-20

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120690128#Comment_120690128

That's ok. You're in a different climate and there are trade-offs with these things. Cost and complexity are valid limits. Maybe compromise and try keep some vents open into the insulated areas so that any damp air can come out - just small slits or such top & bottom might do. The very activity of driving the van will cause air changes within the areas, so maybe that will work for you.

Shoog

Sheeps wool is the best solution for your situation. Unlike rockwool which saturates and collapses - sheeps wool hold moisture with no adverse effects and then releases it when conditions are right, it also doesn't shed fibres and absorbs air pollutants. Armaflex (or something similar) is what I used on mine, it comes in a sticky back form and is sold mainly as sound insulation but will also double up as heat insulation. We then covered it over with silvered bubble wrap and finally covered with ply and carpet. Its highly effective at keeping the heat out of the van and with the back door open and a draft it is generally be cooler than outside.

However anywhere where it is missing does generate condensation to the extent where it will dip from windows on a cold night. If the vapour has made it to the cold side of your insulation - it will be dripping back into your insulation and this is an absolute certainty. Such drips will not be evenly distributed over the insulation, they will run and accumulate in corners where they will be trapped and build up leading to a high chance of rust. A heated space, such as provided by a diesel heater, will only make condensation worse because warm air has a much higher moisture carrying ability. Your windows are your friend as they been the coldest surface overall will preferentially generate condensation in a spot that is easily monitored and managed, and divert moisture away from the hidden spaces behind your insulation.

Its all a matter of judgement - but an imperfect vapour check is far better than an absent vapour check in my book.

manonboard

Update time: A fair bit of progress has been made since my last update. Ill update part now, and part next week since there is so much changed.

Lets finish with the bathroom and shower room first! I was delighted with this outcome!

Added vent for sucking out the humid air from the shower room. That vents through the roof through an inline fan (yet to be installed)

One of the many things that makes and breaks this room is obviously its water tightness. I decided to go with a tanking membrane solution. Its essentially thick rubbery paint. First you paint on the corners and joins. You then add this rubber backed tape onto the wet rubber paint. This is somewhat not needed according to some people. The rubbery paint is quite effective. However, it never hurts to be cautious about water in a van. For the little extra cost, I used it.

The room got 2 coats of this stuff, and the corners/joins got 4. Its quite fast drying, and makes a mess. Its thick going on and dries thick too. It is a wonderful substance and is very very effective. Its pretty obvious the room is waterproof through the walls pretty quickly.

Next up i added the tap plumbing holes. It comes as one unit. I tried a couple other things but they were all too weak and flimsy. This solid (ish) piece of plumbing ordered from amazon proved very effective. It has half inch threaded tap holes at the appropriate distance from each other by standard expectations. I would like the backing piece to be a little stronger. Its not as strong as it looks but there has been no problems so far.

Then i joyfully added my first 'functionality' item. Everything else up until this point just felt like infrastructure. Nothing i would physically use myself in a day to day sense. Here are my taps. (well here they are being test fitted). It has an thermostatic value which i think might come in quite useful because my hot water tank is not too big. As the hot water leaves and is replaced by cold water. The % ratio of cold to hot will change very very fast. I hope the thermostatic value goes some way to regulating more hot water in to compensate as the shower continues.

Before putting them in permanently. I wanted to add a feature wall so:

Here is the shower installed also in the feature wall. It took me HOURS to figure out how to install the shower bar lol. There was no space at the top and the top was already on the wall n sealed lol. The shower head has a ON/OFF button which i really wanted. I also attached a longer hose to it. This allows me to easily take it outside the side door of the van to use it to wash off things before coming into the van. Like surfboards or dusty/dirty items. You may also notice that i have silicon sealed the entire rooms joins and edges. Ive used the shower a few times now, and so have my friends when camping. No water has ever been detected outside the room so I'm pretty pleased with this. It is probably the scariest n biggest risk to me.

This vent is for the natures head composting toilet. It comes with a extractor fan built into it. It helps dry the solids area and keeps a negative pressure in the toilet. I must say.. i was pretty disappointed with this fan. It comes with a 50mm pipe to extract the air from.. however the fan is EXTREMELY weak. I don't think ive seen a smaller weaker fan in any desktop computer even cooling memory down. It seems like a type of fan that might come attached to a graphics card but weaker. It just seems silly in hindsight to cut a 50mm hole for such a lack luster fan.

The natures head toilet is SUPER comfy to sit on, but if i was to do it all again. I would pick a much much cheaper box toilet for 200 euro that allows you to put a bag into the poop area. Far easier to clean, and that means far more hygienic to me. 5 times cheaper and doesn't require a fan/hole. It IS super super comfy though.

So that's my toilet/shower update portion.

Water, water, where are you?

I decided to go with undermounted water tanks to try save as much room as possible in the van. I don't ever intend to be in freezing conditions so im not worried about that risk.

This is my 48 liter grey water tank that i mounted under the van. Its quite difficult finding places to put something like this. This is near the front, just behind the drivers seat. It was quite easy to make sure there was enough clearance height wise. I think i could even have larger tanks.

Here is the 78 liter fresh water tank. It is dead center near the back. I don't have a spare wheel. So i put this here. In the future i would like to move it and put a spare wheel in.. but atm the moment, this will do. The NUTS are anti slip nuts and perform great. One issue i have is that the ground is never really level. There are some air holes on the top to allow air to leave the tank when its being filled up.. however since the ground is never level. These tend to leak small amounts of water even though the tank is not full. Its kind of annoying. In hindsight i wish had a 120L tank but a 78 liter will do me for now.

Here is my under mounted pump, and accumulator. I must admit, that it took maybe 5 versions of this just to get them to work. The filter on the left came with a NON screw ending so i had to use plastic hosing to connect it.. Well how do i connect that to my tank which had a far different size? I had to use metal female connections to plastic male threads. It is not advised BUT it worked perfectly. You just got to make sure not to over tighten. The plumbing had tiny leaks in almost every part over a few weeks of testing. To others, i suggest.. go to screwfix, get a half inch brass female adapter on each end of every plastic component..and work from there with your normal piping. The plastic threads wear out too easily.

Im super pleased with the shower room/toilet so far. Its been working just fine and offers a very nice facility to make it feel more homely. There are some design mistakes in it, but nothing others will notice i think. If anyone wants any lessons i learned from it, please feel free to ask or DM. Its been solid and watertight for a couple months now. No issues with that part. Overall, the infrastructure and room took about 4 months to build (weekends)

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121221446#Comment_121221446

Awesome progress.

Can you give more details on the materials you used on the bathroom walls, really curious about those.

The fan on the natures head is purely to create a draw of pressure so the smell is only going one way. You wouldn't want or need a powerful fan for this as it would draw more power than is necessary and would be noisier.

Oh another shower question, what did you use for the door? A curtain or a sliding yoke (name escapes me)

10-10-20

Yes, good update!

Just on the pump and accumulator wiring, make sure that it's all secured against any movement as otherwise the wiring will open up and allow moisture into it, leading to corrosion and faults.