U1300L Camper

[CragMog]

U1300L camper build in Australia
The goal for this camper is a setup for two, toilet and shower inside, dinette, access to kitchen from inside or outside. Highly insulated against heat & cold, low roof height when travelling and a total vehicle weight, when loaded, of 6.5 metric ton. Minimal electronics and finicky things that will break while remote. Everything to be robust and Mog-worthy.
We looked at keeping and cutting the existing subframe and decided against it. We wanted a subframe that incorporated the slide out side stairs, the spare wheel assembly and the large toolboxes. We are also weight conscious so want a subframe that is sufficiently strong to carry the much lighter camper box. It was cheaper and better to build a new one rather than hack the existing one. This also allows us to sell the Binz box complete.
The finalized subframe was sandblasted, zinked and powder coated and weighed in at 269.5kgs.

 

[CragMog]

Just about everything on the box is composite. The wall and floor panels are custom laid up using 40mm insulation and 3mm glass fibre panels either side. Pulltruded glass fibre corners were used where we had standard angles, but in most cases the corner trims were custom made. The outer corners are strong enough to act as brush rails.
Each hatch plus the door had custom made inner and outer glass fibre trims made up. My design brief called for the absolute minimum thermal bridging and glass was the best option. FGS Composites are doing the build. They specialize in glass fibre so it made sense to use glass rather than aluminium. The subframe and spare tyre frame are steel, the floor under the spare tyre and its side wall are ply, everything else is composite.

 

[Christian]

That looks great!

I suspect you are from Australia?

Could you tell a bit more about the process, including which foam you are using, mats, resin etc? Are you involved yourself in the layup? I think there's a willing audience here
I love the detailed build threads, and will be going down the same path shortly with a Mercedes LAF1113B.

 

[CragMog]

Hi Christian - FGS Composites are building the camper for me and chose the foam which is a blown PVC, used a non-filled vinyl ester resin and designed it's own glass layup. I don't have the details and in fairness it's there IP. My design brief was "strong enough to withstand the Aussie bush". The truck stood in the full sun yesterday and at 3pm, with an ambient of 33°C (91.5°F), the outside skin rose to 39°C (102.2°F) while the inside stayed at 31°C (87.8°C). That's a good differential. We are using a Maxxair roof extractor and a Sirocco fan on the ceiling. Once I test it in the Aussie outback, if it's still too hot inside I'll add an aircon to the back wall.

We have 645 Watt of solar panels on the roof and 150AH (at 24v) AGM batteries. I considered Lithium, but the added cost and complexity couldn't be justified. AGM handles the abuse of corrugations and gives me more than enough power. We have 240v outlets for the 500w kettle and the 900w induction cooktop. No TV/hair dryer/coffee maker. I have all of that stuff at home.

The only other power usage is for the Elgena hot water system. It can be heated via the Eberspacher diesel heater or via 240v power. I have a switch which allows me to switch it on plus a voltage sensitive relay which automatically switches it off if the battery drops to a preset level. The idea is to switch it on while travelling or during the day when there is excess solar. We'll see how that works out.

All of the electricals are Victron, chosen as it is good enough quality and parts are available pretty much anywhere. The Victron smartphone app and bluetooth connection appeals to my tech side. The crank batteries charge the house batteries via a DC to DC converter. The solar or shore power charges both sets via the Victron Multiplus inverter/charger. The inverter can be daisy-chained so if the 1200w is insufficient I bolt another one next to it.

 

[Link_cat]

Thanks for sharing! 150ah battery is not so little compared to the solar rig? It is enough for you?

 

[Sitec]

Hi Christian - FGS Composites are building the camper for me and chose the foam which is a blown PVC, used a non-filled vinyl ester resin and designed it's own glass layup. I don't have the details and in fairness it's there IP. My design brief was "strong enough to withstand the Aussie bush". The truck stood in the full sun yesterday and at 3pm, with an ambient of 33°C (91.5°F), the outside skin rose to 39°C (102.2°F) while the inside stayed at 31°C (87.8°C). That's a good differential. We are using a Maxxair roof extractor and a Sirocco fan on the ceiling. Once I test it in the Aussie outback, if it's still too hot inside I'll add an aircon to the back wall.

We have 645 Watt of solar panels on the roof and 150AH (at 24v) AGM batteries. I considered Lithium, but the added cost and complexity couldn't be justified. AGM handles the abuse of corrugations and gives me more than enough power. We have 240v outlets for the 500w kettle and the 900w induction cooktop. No TV/hair dryer/coffee maker. I have all of that stuff at home.

The only other power usage is for the Elgena hot water system. It can be heated via the Eberspacher diesel heater or via 240v power. I have a switch which allows me to switch it on plus a voltage sensitive relay which automatically switches it off if the battery drops to a preset level. The idea is to switch it on while travelling or during the day when there is excess solar. We'll see how that works out.

All of the electricals are Victron, chosen as it is good enough quality and parts are available pretty much anywhere. The Victron smartphone app and bluetooth connection appeals to my tech side. The crank batteries charge the house batteries via a DC to DC converter. The solar or shore power charges both sets via the Victron Multiplus inverter/charger. The inverter can be daisy-chained so if the 1200w is insufficient I bolt another one next to it.

Hi Craigmog. So, have you gone 12v with 'house power', or 24v? I'm getting mixed suggestions/feedback from various people I ask. My truck is a 24v Merc, but I'm leaning towards a 12v 'house' at the moment as I think it's easier, and I too plan to use Victron. They have just released a fancy inverter that can regulate solar, charge 24v, 12v and accept/provide 240v... Like you the TV, hair drier, coffee maker and all that other stuff can stay at home, but... I already have a Natures Head Compost Toilet (12v fan), two x roof MaxxFans (12v), Waeco 12/24/240v fridge, 12v Surflow water pump etc so am in that quandry! We are carrying a Honda EU 20 for those flat bat emergencies.. What's your opinion? Cheers.

 

[CragMog]

Hi Link_cat - I've tried to be true to my design goals which included calculations on required power draw. Fridge, fans, lights are the minimum constant draw. Charge phones and laptops by day or when driving. The inverter use for kettle and induction cooktop is purely for convenience. No sun, use Coleman dual fuel. The excess solar panels and the hot water system are an experiment. If the sun is shining and the batteries are full can I heat up some water?

Hi Scitec - The truck is 24v and the plan was to have everything in the camper as 24v, but reality didn't follow the plan. Over long wire runs there is less voltage drop with 24v. The flush toilet is 12v, the Maxxair fan is 12v and finally the actuators on the roof lift are 12v. He Hella LED lights, the Sirocco fan, the National Luna fridge, the Eberspacher are all 24v. I don't mind the low power stuff being 12v, but wanted the high power actuators to be 24v. Unfortunately we couldn't get the 24v actuators so upgraded the Victron 24 to 12 converter to accommodate. All of our cables are highly spec'd. We created a 24v fuse panel and a separate 12v fuse panel so that I can choose based on what is available. I have a similar arrangement in the cab to accommodate 12v radios, etc.

We have low voltage relays that shut down everything plus I have the ability to jump the 24v house to the 24v crank batteries. If the solar fails then I limit power usage to the fridge, toilet and a couple of LED lights. My alternator needs to run every three days to provide sufficient power to charge the house batteries. If my alternator fails and the sun is shining then my solar will keep the crank batteries charged. With the Mog, once started, there is very little current draw and my 2 x 120ah (12v) batteries will keep the indicators working for a long time!

Our design goals include being weekend-warriors through to 4 week trips with 10 days totally off grid so we built accordingly. At worst I'll put a 1kva Honda on a roof rack. Your needs may be greater.

 

[CragMog]

Here’s the custom camper box mounted on the U1300L and ready for internal finishing and windows.

The roof pops by 400mm keeping the roofline reasonably low during travel and providing 2,000mm (6' 6") internal height once popped. The Maxair fan raises the roof height, but given it’s right in the middle of the roof it should not create problems. The solar panels are mounted on composite rails which should shield them from branches. Branches rarely lie flat so I'm hoping the roof sides will lift them away from the Maxair and solar panels. The roof is edged with 6mm thick comosite frames so should be strong enough. The canvas is a double layer with insulation.

When negotiating between large trees or tight tracks it’s better to have a bit of extra clearance at the top of the box. The side walls are tipped in to accommodate this. FGS laid these walls up in a mould to create the angled sides.

The gullwing door uses dual automotive latches to ensure it stays shut while travelling. It provides a quick and easy shelter when open. The offset handles are easy to reach from both outside and in.

The goal was to build a camper that is very well insulated and can handle the rough, corrugated Australian outback roads. Almost everything on this camper is made from composites including the furniture. It’s almost time to test just how tough it is. The internals and canvas will be finished within the next couple of weeks and the shake-down run is planned for early November.

 

[danf]

Looking awesome!

 

[Roverchef]

Looks great and seems to be very well thought out. What muffler is that?

 

[Victorian]

The water boiler/ diesel furnace set up will most likely not work. Too many bends and radiuses in there. The furnace will overheat and shut down. Best if they are mounted inline.

Cheers,

 

[grizzlyj]

Nice box

Hi Craigmog. So, have you gone 12v with 'house power', or 24v? I'm getting mixed suggestions/feedback from various people I ask. My truck is a 24v Merc, but I'm leaning towards a 12v 'house' at the moment as I think it's easier, and I too plan to use Victron. They have just released a fancy inverter that can regulate solar, charge 24v, 12v and accept/provide 240v... Like you the TV, hair drier, coffee maker and all that other stuff can stay at home, but... I already have a Natures Head Compost Toilet (12v fan), two x roof MaxxFans (12v), Waeco 12/24/240v fridge, 12v Surflow water pump etc so am in that quandry! We are carrying a Honda EU 20 for those flat bat emergencies.. What's your opinion? Cheers.

I have 24v with small 24-12 droppers at the front and rear of the camper plus another in the cab. The fan in our Separette loo is just a pc fan so swapped to 24v. A 24v Trailking pump wasn't much cash but I didn't have a 12v already!

 

[Simon dix]

Hi Cragmog, nice custom subframe

U1300L camper build in Australia
The goal for this camper is a setup for two, toilet and shower inside, dinette, access to kitchen from inside or outside. Highly insulated against heat & cold, low roof height when travelling and a total vehicle weight, when loaded, of 6.5 metric ton. Minimal electronics and finicky things that will break while remote. Everything to be robust and Mog-worthy.
We looked at keeping and cutting the existing subframe and decided against it. We wanted a subframe that incorporated the slide out side stairs, the spare wheel assembly and the large toolboxes. We are also weight conscious so want a subframe that is sufficiently strong to carry the much lighter camper box. It was cheaper and better to build a new one rather than hack the existing one. This also allows us to sell the Binz box complete.
The finalized subframe was sandblasted, zinked and powder coated and weighed in at 269.5kgs.

Hi Cragmog, nice custom subframe and great looking box too ?. You are really keeping your cog low and overall weight Low. Looks like you are keeping things simple which is great.
I have a 1300L. I want to remove the sheet metal so I can utilise existing subframe. Do you reckon the existing MB U1300l subframe will distort if I remove all the sheet metal? The tray is currently off the Mog chassis.
Cheers,
Simon

 

[CragMog]

Victorian - we didn’t have the space to lay it out inline so we’ll see how we go. I’ll probably remove it and go with coolant heater and calorifier/radiator. It makes it easier to fit small places. This setup comes out of my old camper so I know all about error code 13. In the old camper I added a fan to the intake which sped up the airflow and overcame the problem.
Simon - the frame is pretty sturdy and whatever you connect to the frame should help support it. I’m assuming you’ll replace the current deck with some sort of flooring? Are you welding up a frame or going just with panels? If just panels and they are properly joined then the box provides a lot of structural rigidity.

 

[CragMog]

Roverchef - it’s a Cowl spiral muffler. Made in the USA. Very compact and not too much money.