1 Bored Clerk's DIY Camper

[simple]

I thought about that. It seems that if you encapsulate all of the wood with fiberglass and epoxy resin, you'd be good to go. I don't know enough so I went with what seems to be best practice for something like this.


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Definitely worth it to start with the best materials before investing your time. Nothing in the NW is waterproof for long.

 

[1 Bored Clerk]

Definitely worth it to start with the best materials before investing your time. Nothing in the NW is waterproof for long.

True dat. I'm still trying to figure out how to get in and out of the camper without putting a door in it because I know the damn thing will leak!


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[1 Bored Clerk]

I'm planning to start cutting plywood tonight! I took a little time off from projects (a week or so) and now it's time to get back into it!

I've been kicking around the power needs. I don't have a fully set amount of power draws at this time except for my Engel MT 35 refrigerator. I only expect a small amount of LED lighting and phone charging beyond that. I plan to have an onboard charger with a shore power hookup so I can plug in when I'm at home and in certain locations on the road - to keep the battery/batteries happy. I don't really want to do solar as it seems like overkill for our camper. Let's talk batteries:

Group 31 Marine: odyssey batteries in this class require really high current (14+) to properly charge which makes them a bit of a hassle to take care of properly. Especially since they don't offer or endorse a charger for that battery at this point. Other marine group 31 batteries are an option possibly.

Lifeline 4D battery: This one is intriguing to me. It's about the same cost and amp hour rating (200ah) as two group 31 batteries but in a slightly better package size for my particular camper. It doesn't appear that they are as finicky about charging in that any good 3 stage charger will work. Their charge needs are within the rating of my alternator too, which is a huge bonus over the odyssey group 31.

We'll likely start the truck and drive around every day as we're wanderers, however, I'd like to be able to stay maybe two days in one spot without starting the truck at all while still running the fridge and some lighting and charging phones.

I'm not an electrical engineer or even pretend to understand, fully, what I read about this subject so I'm open to any and all discussion on my evolving plans. I know there are tons of threads on batteries and I've worked on reading up about this stuff but there is SO much info and everyone has an opinion supported by what seems like sound data. I'm likely to just go with my gut, keep it really simple, and see how it goes.

And, some notes on solar and our current leaning toward not having any:

1. We have surfboards and SUPs that we will carry on the roof on a decent amount of our journeys. They will block the panels completely for most of the trips those toys are taken on.

2. We live in the PNW so it's not overly sunny here most of the year. Plus, we have a lot of trees which make it hard to keep panels fully in the sun.

3. I don't shy away from narrow and overgrown trails. Panels are another thing to get damaged. I know this 'excuse' is thin as many people do what I do with panels onboard with no issues, but it is still a concern.

With a properly sized battery bank that I can properly charge with the alternator on the truck and shore power when I'm CGs or at home, I think going without solar will be okay. I can always add a suitcase system later if necessary, anyway. My camper isn't complex so reworking the wiring/electrical system won't be too daunting.



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[1 Bored Clerk]

Made some sawdust today.

Here's the floor of the camper!

2 sheets cut into various pieces that, somehow, are supposed to make a camper.

It was a nice change from metal work.


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[Silverado08]

True dat. I'm still trying to figure out how to get in and out of the camper without putting a door in it because I know the damn thing will leak!
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Might be easiest to use door and frame from some RV preferably new or in very good condition..

 

[Silverado08]

I'm planning to start cutting plywood tonight! I took a little time off from projects (a week or so) and now it's time to get back into it!

I've been kicking around the power needs. I don't have a fully set amount of power draws at this time except for my Engel MT 35 refrigerator. I only expect a small amount of LED lighting and phone charging beyond that. I plan to have an onboard charger with a shore power hookup so I can plug in when I'm at home and in certain locations on the road - to keep the battery/batteries happy. I don't really want to do solar as it seems like overkill for our camper. Let's talk batteries:

Group 31 Marine: odyssey batteries in this class require really high current (14+) to properly charge which makes them a bit of a hassle to take care of properly. Especially since they don't offer or endorse a charger for that battery at this point. Other marine group 31 batteries are an option possibly.

Lifeline 4D battery: This one is intriguing to me. It's about the same cost and amp hour rating (200ah) as two group 31 batteries but in a slightly better package size for my particular camper. It doesn't appear that they are as finicky about charging in that any good 3 stage charger will work. Their charge needs are within the rating of my alternator too, which is a huge bonus over the odyssey group 31.

We'll likely start the truck and drive around every day as we're wanderers, however, I'd like to be able to stay maybe two days in one spot without starting the truck at all while still running the fridge and some lighting and charging phones.

I'm not an electrical engineer or even pretend to understand, fully, what I read about this subject so I'm open to any and all discussion on my evolving plans. I know there are tons of threads on batteries and I've worked on reading up about this stuff but there is SO much info and everyone has an opinion supported by what seems like sound data. I'm likely to just go with my gut, keep it really simple, and see how it goes.

And, some notes on solar and our current leaning toward not having any:

1. We have surfboards and SUPs that we will carry on the roof on a decent amount of our journeys. They will block the panels completely for most of the trips those toys are taken on.

2. We live in the PNW so it's not overly sunny here most of the year. Plus, we have a lot of trees which make it hard to keep panels fully in the sun.

3. I don't shy away from narrow and overgrown trails. Panels are another thing to get damaged. I know this 'excuse' is thin as many people do what I do with panels onboard with no issues, but it is still a concern.

With a properly sized battery bank that I can properly charge with the alternator on the truck and shore power when I'm CGs or at home, I think going without solar will be okay. I can always add a suitcase system later if necessary, anyway. My camper isn't complex so reworking the wiring/electrical system won't be too daunting.



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Fwiw
I had bad luck with Lifeline batt,,bought brand new charged it properly and it self destructed in three months,couldnt even return it as I moved to another province and theres no dealer here for that brand..
Have you heard of this
http://www.bruceschwab.com/advanced...our-firefly-battery-dealers-in-north-america/

http://www.bruceschwab.com/advanced-energy-storage-systems/firefly-energys-oasis-group-31/

http://www.bruceschwab.com/advanced-energy-storage-systems

 

[1 Bored Clerk]

Fwiw
I had bad luck with Lifeline batt,,bought brand new charged it properly and it self destructed in three months,couldnt even return it as I moved to another province and theres no dealer here for that brand..
Have you heard of this
http://www.bruceschwab.com/advanced...our-firefly-battery-dealers-in-north-america/

http://www.bruceschwab.com/advanced-energy-storage-systems/firefly-energys-oasis-group-31/

http://www.bruceschwab.com/advanced-energy-storage-systems

Interesting. Thanks for posting...I'll do some research!


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[1 Bored Clerk]

Might be easiest to use door and frame from some RV preferably new or in very good condition..

This is going to be a very small camper. Like a Tufport but with a shorter door. I don't think there's an RV door that'll work. I'll definitely do some searching though as I have a little while before I'm at that stage. Would be cool to pick up a ready-made system.

I need to get some drawings up of what I'm doing so you all can see the direction. It's so minimal compared to what's normally on here, it's almost embarrassing to post.


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[1 Bored Clerk]

Got the router out today and put in some slots and ledges (don't know actual woodworking terms)

These features are a little time consuming but they make assembly so much easier! And stronger, I assume.

I put in all of the features for the base part of the camper: the dual drawers and the electrical compartment. I have a few details for to cut/route on the four walls involved before I can start glueing anything up.


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[1 Bored Clerk]

It's starting to look like something. I don't know what but it's something.

These will be the two storage drawers. They look massive now but they'll shrink down once room for slides and seals are accounted for.

This is where the battery, charger and, probably Spod SE will go.


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[IdaSHO]

Looking good.

What are you using for glue/adhesive?

And are you going to glass and epoxy the ply?

 

[1 Bored Clerk]

I'm probably going to use SIX10 epoxy from west system to glue everything together. And, yes, I'm going to epoxy and glass the plywood...inside and out. Maybe overkill?


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[1 Bored Clerk]

One more panel down. It takes a lot of time to measure and set up fences for any cutting/routing. I'm trying to go slow and be methodical about this so I don't end up with any time consuming and expensive mistakes.

My patented 'clamp on a clamp' work holding method. I need to get more clamps before the big glue-up.

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[b dkw1]

Nice Kennedy, who was the machinist?

 

[1 Bored Clerk]

Nice Kennedy, who was the machinist?

Good spot! My dad was a machinist for quite a few years. I still have his first toolbox...it's a Kennedy clamshell top opening model. He's picked up a few extra pieces over the years that now reside in my garage. They are way nicer than I have any business owning. Haha.


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