[GROOVY2]

How Hot is your White Van inside ???

it Hot in my Red van -
yesterday air temp inside van was 121F at 3pm
upper van walls were 151F -

So have been considering what could be done to lower temp
for the next few months while finishing build

have already painted roof with white elastic roof coating
and it helped a Lot but now with summer in full gear
have been thinking about what else can be done -

putting small AC like others have done is one idea -
and may try it -purchased a 5000btu ac

also bought some white car wrap and put it on edge of upper van wall
and roof come together - this area is 150f ish in sun (RED)-
with white wrap it gets to 107f ish-

Van has some tree shade during part of the day -

Have considered painting van with elastic roof paint
while finishing van the peeling or power washing paint
off when done -

I am testing how hard it is to remove paint is after its dry-
so far it has been fairly easy to remove paint -

going to try putting spray wax or spray silicone on paint before
applying paint for easier paint removal -

maybe put white plastic or cloth sheet magneted in place-
but white plastic sheet is somewhat hard to find -

Not sure that Im going to keep van so I dont want to drop
a lot of $$ on van till I decide -

I have health issues that are coming back and may kill my
van travel plans-

 

[manglermixer]

i've been religiously putting up my window reflectors if the van is going to be sitting more than 30 minutes. that has helped a ton. this past week i finally pulled the trigger and installed my maxxair fan. its not wired in yet, but just having it open helps that hot air escape even more. i haven't checked temps on my van. i'm all around North Carolina, mountains to the coast. was in outer banks last week and temps were pretty high, 90's+. but with the window reflectors in and the vent open, not on, it was bearable. previously without doing anything, it was an oven for sure.

 

[bertimus2002]

What do you have for window reflectors? I may need to get some with the TX heat and not being able to park it indoors.


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[RandomJoe]

I have a white van with windows all around. I haven't made a point of checking temps in the heat of the day with full sun but the couple of times I've measured temps the MaxxFan was keeping the interior temp roughly 5 degrees warmer than outside. That's with all doors closed, the front windows down about 3/4" for air intake.

I currently just have Thinsulate in the walls and ceiling, no wall/ceiling coverings yet. Most of the windows have Reflectix panels over them (I want the windows for camping, don't necessarily want that much window normally).

This works, as I said, to keep temps just a few degrees above ambient, but it's pretty stuffy inside with all doors closed. There's no feeling of moving air except right in front of the windows unless I crank the fan up high, then the air currents stay high near the ceiling. When I'm working on the van I almost always have at least the back doors if not the slider open while inside. The way I park that usually means any breeze blows in the slider and out the back doors / front windows.

One day I was working at the back (facing west) in the afternoon. The sun slanting in was brutal. I pulled out my camping tarp and poles, put one end over the back of the van and tied it to the door handles on either side. Used the poles to support the far end so I had shade at the back of the van. The edge over the top of the van kept sliding off to allow sun in so I found a couple of magnets to hold it to the roof. That made a BIG difference, the shade combined with the breeze made the van comfortable - if still hot, it was in the upper 90s that day.

I keep waffling on the RV AC unit. I tried my portable (one-hose) unit and while the cool air blowing out was nice it could do nothing for the overall interior temp. The RV AC would work a lot better but I really don't want the permanent hit to MPG for something I'd really not use that often...

 

[joefromga]

Harbor Freight has a portable parking thing on sale for 99 bucks. Uses white tarp canvas top and metal tubing for frame.

I parked under one years ago for a long time. Makes a huge difference and is light and moveable.

 

[RandomJoe]

I haven't seen too many of those that are tall enough for a high-roof van though...

Also not sure they'd hold up very long here. We get crazy winds, it'd have to be WELL secured to the ground somehow...

...and then the city would probably decide it's a "permanent structure" and require building permits and the county would reassess the value of the house and...

 

[Budsky]

And they aren't long enough for an EL either, 2 ft short.
I have one I use for a firewood cover- has held up better than I thought it would...I drove T fence posts in at each corner and ran SS worm hose clamps around the T posts and carport legs to hold it down.
I also had to shoot a self drilling sheet metal screw in every joint to keep them together in wind.

 

[GaryBIS]

Hi,

A link to a test I did of a few simple van cooling methods (color, ventilation, and refective window shades)..
http://www.buildagreenrv.com/keeping-the-camper-van-conversion-cool-a-test/

I like the idea of some sort of tent to shade all or the part of the van in direct sun -- I think that a reflective (say white) shade with a space between shade and van skin to allow airflow would be very effective.

If you live in a dry climate, evaporative coolers can be very effective -- here is a diy one that would work for a van conversion..
http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/Cooling/RVSwampCooler/RVSwampCooler.htm
The power demands of an evap cooler like this one would allow running it on the house battery.



Gary

 

[bertimus2002]

Does anyone make window shades for the side windows? I'm trying to keep it cooler for the family when we need to load up and go somewhere. I'm guessing no because it's such a niche vehicle.


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[GaryBIS]

Does anyone make window shades for the side windows? I'm trying to keep it cooler for the family when we need to load up and go somewhere. I'm guessing no because it's such a niche vehicle.


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Hi,
You can make reflective shades easily with Reflectix and a pair of scissors.
See down the page a ways on this page: http://www.buildagreenrv.com/our-conversion/promaster-camper-van-conversion-curtains-for-windows/

I believe they are effective in reducing heat gain as they reflect most of the sun back out the window, and the reflective surface on the inside means that they don't radiate heat well to the inside of the van.

They also work well in the winter for heat loss.

If you could work out a way to put the Reflectix on the outside of the window, they would be even more effective.

Gary

 

[orton]

I made Reflectix window covers. If you look at the window frames you will see a slot between glass and the steel window frame. Some of the slots are short and some are long. I made a pattern of the glass size out of cardboard and marked where the slots were located. Cut the Reflectix to the window size with added tabs to fit in the slots. Very easy to install and remove. Did use the silver Refectix tape to seal the edges of the Reflectix.

 

[yelnam]

I've used these on other vehicles and might on the van:

http://www.eclipsesunshades.net

They are mainly for the windshields but maybe they have generic ones for passenger windows?

Work well, look nice, easy to use, a bit pricey.


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[JimT]

We have the Pro-Trim heat shields for the windshield and front windows. They work great and are not expensive. We made reflectix for the side and rear windows. We use them every time we park. We live in Austin so the outside temp is brutal.

 

[JimT]

Also we have two Maxaire fans. We keep both open and one on whenever we are parked. This helps keep the interior slightly cooler that outside temp on a hot day in full sun. Our van is white.

 

[gmartens]

I'm happy with the custom front and side windows shades for transit mr/hr from heatshield.
I bought them thru amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Sunshades-He...3_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=MRCXNZ57KFESRYJBKFMG

 

[brownbear]

On my land cruiser I have a full length roof rack. When the top has stuff in it like a plywood the whole roof is in shade. I think this make a big difference.

I suggest a roof rack. You can buy the 4 cross bars and make board slats with wood full length of the vehicle.

Its kind a like the canopy above. If you're in the shade... Also the roof fan would be nice.

 

[danketchpel]

How Hot is your White Van inside ???

it Hot in my Red van -
yesterday air temp inside van was 121F at 3pm
upper van walls were 151F -

So have been considering what could be done to lower temp
for the next few months while finishing build

.....also bought some white car wrap and put it on edge of upper van wall
and roof come together - this area is 150f ish in sun (RED)-
with white wrap it gets to 107f ish-

I think you just sealed the deal for me putting white vinyl wrap on the roof of my gem green van.

I was thinking to do only the flat area as I don't want to "see it" cuz well.... we love the gem green color. I got a quote for $425. It's supposed to last about 5 years or so and still be in decent condition to peal back and replace.

The second purpose would be to protect the original paint from oxidation.

 

[yelnam]

An alternative is to paint the top, but perhaps a vinyl wrap has advantages?


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[EddieZ]

I think you just sealed the deal for me putting white vinyl wrap on the roof of my gem green van.

I was thinking to do only the flat area as I don't want to "see it" cuz well.... we love the gem green color. I got a quote for $425. It's supposed to last about 5 years or so and still be in decent condition to peal back and replace.

The second purpose would be to protect the original paint from oxidation.

All those grooves on the roof... will a wrap get into those places and stay stuck?

 

[NewToTransit]

On my land cruiser I have a full length roof rack. When the top has stuff in it like a plywood the whole roof is in shade. I think this make a big difference.

I suggest a roof rack. You can buy the 4 cross bars and make board slats with wood full length of the vehicle.

Its kind a like the canopy above. If you're in the shade... Also the roof fan would be nice.

I also have a TLC its a 91 and my project.