Expedition Camper Layout Concept

[CappyJax]

Hello all,
I have been planning a build for a while. As I save up, the cost of the build keeps moving up and getting away from me. Be I hope in the near future I will be able to start. It will be a 14ft floor on a Ram 5500 84CA. I keep changing the layout to try and optimize the use of space and I came up with this idea recently. I really want to design something super easy to work on and replace components.

I want to raise the floor 1 foot and have a slightly taller box. Floor to ceiling will be 6 feet which works for me. I'll have six 30 gallon tanks under the floor. 4 fresh and 2 grey. The left side will have a door that is 6 ft long by 2 ft high and all the fresh water tanks can be accessed and in that compartment will be all the plumbing, filters, water connections, etc. The cabinets above will lose about 8 inches in the back to accommodate everything.

On the right side will be a 4.5 ft long by 3 ft high door. At the bottom will be space for four batteries. Above it, the cabinets will again be recessed by 8 inches in the rear to accommodate the inverter, solar controller, distribution buses, etc.

I'm probably going to go with a 3kVA Victron inverter charger because the only AC appliance I plan to have will be a microwave/convection oven. I think everything else can be 48V.

This will give me a very large cargo area. An expanding cargo area is another design concept I am considering. It will be a u shaped dinette, but the rear of the dinette will be able to fold up which would provide all 7 feet of height if I needed it.

Just looking for feedback. Do you think the loss of insulation is worth the ease of access? Do you think the loss of some cabinet space is worth a clean and large cargo area?

 

[DiploStrat]

I'll play. The very first, and most important question is, where are you going?

-- North America
-- Pan Am Highway
-- Europe/North Africa
-- Subsaharan Africa
-- Silk Road/Asia

Each of these has different requirements for water, fresh and grey, and power.

Examples:
-- For North America, propane is common and practical. For the rest of the world it is getting harder and harder. Not for any single country, but for passing from one ecosystem to another. In an increasing number of countries, eg, Italy and Morocco, they simply will not, and will not allow you, to refill a bottle. Sometimes you can refill a camper if it has a fixed connection. And shipping gas bottles? Almost impossible now. We only use propane for a small outdoor grille and even that has been a pain in various countries. Next time I will carry an electric grille. We are all electric - induction cooktop, Nespresso machine, Instant Pot, toaster, etc. With the right electrical system, this works very well. Count between 125 and 150 Ah per day, without air conditioning. So the question is basically, how many days will you go in the pouring rain (without solar) and without starting the engine? That will size your battery bank.

-- With two adults, showering every day, we count 10 USG per day. Switch to expo mode and shower weekly and you can go much longer. Years ago we did three weeks across the Sahara on less than 20 USG. (Too old and ugly to do that again! ) Campgrounds and aires, draining grey water is easy. Lot of US dispersed camping areas do not permit you to drain grey water. Deep in the bush, it is easy. Three days at a trade show or similar? Could be a problem. Our Tiger had about 40 USG - we never ran out in North America. Or current camper has about 80 USG. Nice reserve, but it is a 9 metric ton truck. We typically find the grey water tank overflows first. Lot of Europeans use a rolling tote/tank to catch grey water and take it to the dump area.

-- Cassette toilets are the international standard - with or without chemicals. If you are going to use one, would recommend a SOG. But we tore our cassette out and went with a composting toilet. Just wonderful. We use hamster/rabbit litter. Probably not the cheapest, but readily available at pet stores or many supermarkets.

All of the above based on a lot of travel over the last 50 years, most of the last decade by "camper."

Offered with the hope it may be useful. See more: https://diplostrat.net/

 

[86scotty]

I'd carry half the fresh and half the gray personally. Diplostrat's first question is paramount though. I'm no expert on international travel but I can't imagine lugging around that much dirty water/sewage. Also seems like way overkill on fresh water.

8 lbs per gallon. That's a LOT of weight if you are full.