ARcruiser
Benton, AR USA
Senior Member
Joined: 12/19/2001
View Profile
|
How 'bout a Dodge Caravan....
as converted by GTRV ?
2 Big Cruisers, The Little Man, and Bailey / ARcruiser's Class B's (the first 8)
Rig #8 Under Construction! / Here's the Project Thread - I'm actually working on it again!
|
ARcruiser
Benton, AR USA
Senior Member
Joined: 12/19/2001
View Profile
|
or a GTRV transformation of a Toyota Sienna?
|
ARcruiser
Benton, AR USA
Senior Member
Joined: 12/19/2001
View Profile
|
....other truly neat stuff is available in Europe and Australia - and the rest of the world, but I'm just posting North American rigs.
The GTRV's are Canadian but can readily be brought into the US... Safari is also Canadian but I don't think they are as easy to get into the states.
|
hamidlmt
Gresham, Oregon
Full Member
Joined: 05/02/2007
View Profile
|
Thank you for posting this! I showed my wife last night and she said... let's get that! Of course, easier said than done... kinda rare. We may just have to have it built.
|
bananadanna
Cambridge, MA
Senior Member
Joined: 11/30/2005
View Profile
 Offline
|
We spent many years car camping with both minivans and a Ford Maxivan. We did not install anything. Did not own a portapotty. Always had something comfy to sleep on. The main difference between the minis and the maxivan was how much junk had to go into the front seats or outside at night.
You will have very little room in a small van, even less if you want to cook with propane indoors instead of outdoors. Same thing about kitchen sinks and food prep and clean up.
I built my own conversion van out of a used Sprinter and my wife, always a happy camper, became an enthusiastic camper. Stand-up height is transformational and I approve of any vehicle that lets you do so. The diesel furnace (a gasoline version is available) is my favorite addition. Amazing how empty campgrounds get with a touch of frost.
A good inverter and enough batteries allow you many comforts. Microwave, hairdryer, lots of small appliances, Fantastic fan, lights, computer, etc. Much more important to me than built in water.
A portapotty and a rolling gray water tank( rarely required where we boondock) are cheap and easy to maintain. An under-van fresh tank would be nice but seven-gallon water cubes work well, especially if you expand the kitchen outside. No winterizing!
We always carry a 10x10 quick shelter with screen and solid wall sets. Less than 10 minutes to double your space.
The smaller the vehicle, the harder it is to engineer everything into it. I'd look hard for a used Westfalia if you're in love with small-and-installed. You won't save any $$$ with a smaller van.
Otherwise, you can have more toys for less money by adding a shelter and using camping gear. We have a fridge-microwave-induction burner inside kitchen to supplement our outside propane cooktop- BabyQ-dishpan kitchen. We don't suffer.
Dan
02 Freightliner Sprinter 2500 long tall home brew conversion
|
|
|
hamidlmt
Gresham, Oregon
Full Member
Joined: 05/02/2007
View Profile
|
bananadanna... I'm curious about the inverter and batteries. Just how many batteries do you need to power things like microwaves and other small appliances?
I like your whole approach. Can your post some pics of your rig? Thank you!
|
ARcruiser
Benton, AR USA
Senior Member
Joined: 12/19/2001
View Profile
|
Dan's Sprinter Project.
More links to other DIY's (including mine) here.
|
baywoodbill
California
Senior Member
Joined: 11/10/2005
View Profile
Offline
|
hamidlmt wrote:bananadanna... I'm curious about the inverter and batteries. Just how many batteries do you need to power things like microwaves and other small appliances?
I like your whole approach. Can your post some pics of your rig? Thank you!
Don't know if you're going to be powering the microwave with batteries.
|
Curt_N_Nina
San Jose, CA
New Member
Joined: 10/11/2005
View Profile
Offline
|
I have 2 deep-cycle house batteries and a 2000W inverter. That setup handles my microwave and all of my requirements without any problems. (All of my lights are 12V, most of those lights are florescent, the 3CF fridge is a 12V compressor type, and the TV/DVD & VCR are all 12V too.) All of these things are options, but not unusual options, for SportsMobile.
Curt (the talkative one), Nina (the beautiful one).
Cats: Priscilla in OR, Harlequin in CA.
The Beagle: 2006 Sportsmobile custom design, on a 2006 Ford extended body E350, with a 6.0L power stroke diesel.
|
bananadanna
Cambridge, MA
Senior Member
Joined: 11/30/2005
View Profile
Offline
|
hamidlmt wrote:bananadanna... I'm curious about the inverter and batteries. Just how many batteries do you need to power things like microwaves and other small appliances?
I like your whole approach. Can your post some pics of your rig? Thank you!
A popular inverter size is 2000w because it lets you run 15 amp ac devices, ie anything that plugs in at home.
Xantrex recommended 400 Ah for a battery bank. I have four batteries. More batteries allow gentler discharging and faster charge rates. The agms (or other lead acid battery) can put out lots of current, not a limiting factor. Figure about a kilowatt-hr per fullsize battery and then half that for optimizing the life of the batteries. I'd say two batteries would give you decent weekend use.
Lots of consumer appliances that need to work hard are designed around that 15 amp limit. The holy grail is hairdryer and microwave use.
|
|
|
