Shachagra- Family of 5 traveles Europe and Turkey, International 7500
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Hola Doug:
Thank you for thaking the time to answer my questions.
I am very interested in your experience about waste management and your heating/plumbing system.
Did you any special installation to be able to dump the waste tanks into 5 gallons buckets?
With your current experience, Would you rather use a cassete toilet and keep several (2-3) spare casettes?
Would you be able to share both your heating/plumbing design as well as your ideal waste management system?
Thanks again for sharing, that is exactly what makes this forum so great.
Saludos
Roberto Espinoza
The holding tank is a complete unit http://www.dometic.com/56932382-cbdc-4d20-8b6d-f854057dcfaf.fodoc Designed for a boat to be pumped out , not drained. If I couldn't get the hose- which is much smaller than a standard RV sewage hose, 1.5" to a dump, toilet or in some parts of the world, a really thick stand of bushes, I pumped it into the 5 gallon buckets. I would use a cassette if I could have used a gravity toilet- but the sewage needed to be pumped 6 feet from the toilet. You only see cassette toilets in europe. I'll make some drawings of the heating system. The key to it was the isotherm water heater with multiple heating coils. http://http://www.indelwebastomarine.com/home/us/html/7957.html I have the 75- 20 gallons. I'll scan some sketches.
That chassis just might be able to do it, but it would have attracted even more attention-- which is hard to do.
The berths really are a clever design. I've been trying to figure out ways to efficiently get something similar for my three kids and so far this is the best I've come up (see attached pictures). This will fit in the space most RV's use for a rear queen bed - about 8X8 feet. It's two "rooms" - one on the right for the two boys and one on the left for the daughter. We're considering possibly getting a toyhauler, building something like this in the back, with leftover space reserved for a small garage. Just one option we're considering.
Anyway, thanks for more pictures and info Doug! A few more questions for you since you seem to enjoy the interrogation!
You mentioned a shower - from the videos and website I had assumed there was only the bath. Is the shower in the bath and did you use recycled/filtered water for that as well?
With the Dickenson at one end of the trailer, how cold did the cabover get during the winter in Scotland? I assume that's where the radiant helped a lot. How did you make the loop in the tanks to heat the water? Is it an open or closed loop system?
What did you do for cooling in the summer? I don't see an A/C, nor any powered fans or vents. Were the kid's rooms ventilated?
I assume while driving the kids were riding in the booth in the back (it shows that on one of the videos). Are there seatbelts there or is the rig big enough to not need them? I imagine it got pretty bouncy up there!
How did the Vespa work out? I understand from the article that you got rid of the bikes at some point. Was the vespa mainly for errands and such?
The below-deck staterooms are a very clever idea, but I guess one compromise of that design is that you give up the storage that most rig use that space for. Did you feel you had enough storage and where was it located?
So if I understand correctly, the cab isn't mechanically attached to the camper? Did you have any issues with frame flex going over uneven terrain?
Thanks again Doug!
I love that bed arrangement, I had to break out the Legos and see how it fit together. very efficient use of space. We were looking at modifying a toy hauler originally, but they didn't seem to be able to haul much extra weight, the chassis was always at the limit and with the extra weight of water and batteries, we would have been too heavy- so we moved up to the medium duty truck chassis. It works great that the beds form two room, one for boys, one for a girl. I really like the design. I also have to admit I am jealous of everyones abilities with CAD programs. I really need to put some time in there.
Questions
1. Shower- the shower is the small room that the tub is in. It is heavily epoxied (4 layers) to make the entire room one waterproof shell. We didn't recycle shower water. The water heater is just below the shower floor so there wasn't much loss of water waiting for the shower to get hot. It is just a copy of a Japanese bathroom, they clean themselves in the shower area and then just soak after they are clean.
2. The Dickinson has a blower fan that runs through the cieling into the main cabin area but we never needed it. The overcab was better insulated than the rest, (3") due to the structure and it would stay warm on the coldest night just by body heat.
3. We have an A/C in the back just under the dickinson fireplace. You can see the 3 vents for it from the outside below the rear windows. It is just a household A/C with an extra blower to keep the coils cool. Never once used it in Europe or Asia, but ran it continually here in Fla before we moved back into our house. Every bed has a porthole and a fan. Fans work very well for keeping you cool at night.
4. No seat belts, and I'm pretty sure that's legal. Hopefully the lawyers won't tell me I'm in trouble. The ride is rough, so the family tells me, its great up front.
5. The Vespa was great, we used it all the time for running errands or doing some individual exploring when we were staying at one spot for a while. The bikes were just something to worry about. We actually kept two bikes stored inside, we sent the tandem back home.
6. We had more storage space than we needed and as always we filled it full. We spent 8 hours unloading the truck when we moved back into the house. The area where the Vespa was hoisted held lots of storage, as did a large closet just inside the cabin door.
7. No issues with flex- the cab and cabin were very tight together, there wasn't much room for flex.
Doug,
That was done with Google Sketchup, which is very easy to use. I made that sleeping configuration after watching the first 5 Google tutorial videos, which took about an hour with me following along with the software. It was about another 4 hours of messing around after that to get to what you see there. I was surprised how easy it is to use and the tutorials are very good.
I know what you mean about the lego's. That design was from one my wife originally put on paper after a lot us experimenting with Legos and blocks. We have a few other configurations, but that one is the best we've come up with so far - at least for a single, square space.
Since we're still a few years away we don't really know yet what vehicle we'll use. Toyhauler's are getting harder to come buy - not too many made anymore. We're considering everything ranging from a total build on a MDT chassis to just buying something and dealing with the compromises.
Ha! It's good to be the driver!
Thanks for answering more questions! Have a good Thanksgiving!
-Andy
PS: Ah, you're in Jacksonville! We're actually moving down to Melbourne Florida next month.
That was done with Google Sketchup, which is very easy to use. I made that sleeping configuration after watching the first 5 Google tutorial videos, which took about an hour with me following along with the software. It was about another 4 hours of messing around after that to get to what you see there. I was surprised how easy it is to use and the tutorials are very good.
I know what you mean about the lego's. That design was from one my wife originally put on paper after a lot us experimenting with Legos and blocks. We have a few other configurations, but that one is the best we've come up with so far - at least for a single, square space.
Since we're still a few years away we don't really know yet what vehicle we'll use. Toyhauler's are getting harder to come buy - not too many made anymore. We're considering everything ranging from a total build on a MDT chassis to just buying something and dealing with the compromises.
Ha! It's good to be the driver!
Thanks for answering more questions! Have a good Thanksgiving!
-Andy
PS: Ah, you're in Jacksonville! We're actually moving down to Melbourne Florida next month.
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I use a very inexpensive and easy CAD program called DeltaCAD (it's $39.99) which I found online several years ago (you can download a full working copy for free for a 45 day demo). I use that for 2D layout and dimensioning though I've also done a fair number of isometric drawings with it.
I also use Google SketchUp after I've got things designed in DeltaCAD in order to go 3D. In SketchUp I often literally "build" the project piece-by-piece as I would in the real world; that lets me really get a feel for how things will go together. You can also do very quick SketchUps just to get the feel for shapes, sizes, and whatnot without all the piece-by-piece detail. It's really very versatile (and free!).
Les
I also use Google SketchUp after I've got things designed in DeltaCAD in order to go 3D. In SketchUp I often literally "build" the project piece-by-piece as I would in the real world; that lets me really get a feel for how things will go together. You can also do very quick SketchUps just to get the feel for shapes, sizes, and whatnot without all the piece-by-piece detail. It's really very versatile (and free!).
Les
What a great build and in such a short time. It seems like my major projects take forever.
Question, how about epoxy smell? My wife really objects to my idea of building the head with epoxy coated plywood, remembering the resin smell in the fiberglass sailboat we had years ago.
Question, how about epoxy smell? My wife really objects to my idea of building the head with epoxy coated plywood, remembering the resin smell in the fiberglass sailboat we had years ago.
Not even a bit. My wife has a bionic nose and would have reminded me constantly if the smell wasn't to her liking. The entire structure is coated with epoxy, not just the bath. The idea is to seal the wood all around so that you don't get any swelling or contraction of the wood. Wood is super strong but susceptible to decay, coat with epoxy and the decay isn't a factor. I know the fiberglass smell you refer, the older fiberglass boats weren't made with an epoxy. I used MAS epoxy.
It once took me 2 years to build a kayak. You have to remember that I was retired, this was my full time job and I had some very capable help for 6 weeks, and probably the most important factor in getting a job done, I had money saved away to buy what I needed, when I needed it.
Building the reefer
Here was a pretty easy project that paid big on the trip. We had a small refrigerator and a drop in reefer, sailboat style. We could have done near as well with just the reefer designed with a separate area and access for the cold, not frozen section.
The reefer is simply a big box, lined with 4" sheet insulation (6" to the exterior and bottom) then interior sides of 1/4 MG plywood are shoved inside and joined once in place using epoxy "fillets" (pics are out of order)http://www.clcboats.com/shoptips/stitch_glue/fillets.html to connect the sides. Sealed with a few layers of epoxy and voila.....
The box is 9 cubic feet, much of it under the counter, with a smaller opening than the reefer. I bought a 12V compressor and evap unit http://www.sailorsams.com/mall/refrigerators-indel-build-in.asp which was fairly straightforward. Attach the evap in the box, run the tubing (carefully) to the compressor, hook up to 12V and it froze whatever was put in there. Avoid evaps you have to bend to get in the box- I ruined one first try. ($300!!)
The first picture is England in the winter, note the cozy glow of the fireplace in the back window.
Here was a pretty easy project that paid big on the trip. We had a small refrigerator and a drop in reefer, sailboat style. We could have done near as well with just the reefer designed with a separate area and access for the cold, not frozen section.
The reefer is simply a big box, lined with 4" sheet insulation (6" to the exterior and bottom) then interior sides of 1/4 MG plywood are shoved inside and joined once in place using epoxy "fillets" (pics are out of order)http://www.clcboats.com/shoptips/stitch_glue/fillets.html to connect the sides. Sealed with a few layers of epoxy and voila.....
The box is 9 cubic feet, much of it under the counter, with a smaller opening than the reefer. I bought a 12V compressor and evap unit http://www.sailorsams.com/mall/refrigerators-indel-build-in.asp which was fairly straightforward. Attach the evap in the box, run the tubing (carefully) to the compressor, hook up to 12V and it froze whatever was put in there. Avoid evaps you have to bend to get in the box- I ruined one first try. ($300!!)
The first picture is England in the winter, note the cozy glow of the fireplace in the back window.
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Hi Doug,
Your thread has been a bit quiet but that doesn't mean we're not still reading and waiting for more!
I love hearing about your build and how you went about it.
Also, were you able to find out the height to the top of your frame rails? Did you find a photo that shows the steps down to the truck cab?
New question: What size tires are on your truck?
Thanks!
Les
Your thread has been a bit quiet but that doesn't mean we're not still reading and waiting for more!
I love hearing about your build and how you went about it.Also, were you able to find out the height to the top of your frame rails? Did you find a photo that shows the steps down to the truck cab?
New question: What size tires are on your truck?
Thanks!
Les