[orton]

Below is a list of things I do not think are needed in a conversion. Some people will disagree with items listed. The reason for writing this is to stimulate the conversation. Some of the items listed will not be practical for your conversion. I did a DIY on a 08 Sprinter that I sold and now am starting on a Transit. Have about 100 changes from the Sprinter based on what I learned. Sprinter worked very well and the floor plan is the same. Some items will not apply for your location and weather. I am writing this list based on my use of the van. Will not be appropriate for everyone.

1. Multiple solar panels. A single 300 watt panel will work very well.
2. 30 amp shore power plug. If you do not have air conditioning why is 30 amps required. Add up your loads. I have used a 13 amp reel on the Sprinter and never had a need for more amperage.
3. Multiple batteries. One 8D 255 amp-hr battery worked fine for my application. Simplifies the cables.
4. Outdoor shower. With a little effort a indoor shower lets you shower anywhere. The trick is to use the shower space for multiple uses. I have a shower, a portapotti, a food storage bin, a towel rack and a countertop located in the shower enclosure. Just remove stuff when you want to shower.
5. Sink and Shower drain traps. If you plumb the gray water tank so drains enter the bottom center of the tank, a "trap" is created in the piping. I just use 1" coolant hoses for piping.
6. AC distribution panel. Had one in the Sprinter but will eliminate it in the Transit. One circuit breaker for one circuit with 5 duplex outlets.
7. Fancy thermal and privacy curtains. If you look at the Transit windows, they have a slot between the glass and the interior steel framework. A Reflectix panel covering the glass will slip into the slot with a tab to hold it in place. (I only have the slider and back door windows) Cut Reflectix to cover window with tabs to insert into the slots. Taped edges with Reflectix tape. Super easy to install and remove.
8. Large Microwave. A cheap ($50) 600 watt microwave from K-Mart (Proctor-Silex) works fine with a 1000 watt house inverter. Simple mechanical dials and no clock or pushbuttons.
9. Normal mattress. We use two REI 2 1/2" camp pads for each person. Easy to remove and store and comfortable.
10. Expensive complicated shower hot water heater. A 5-6 gallon tank with a 625 watt pencil heater will heat the water to 90 degrees in 30 minutes. You need a 1000 watt inverter powered by the Transit while driving to get the 120 volt power. The heating element with a thermostat is sold as a conversion kit for RV's with propane heaters. A tank, the kit, a submercible pump, a garden hose and a garden nozzle completes the system. All water is at the correct temperature so no hot/cold water mixing required that wastes water.
11. 2000+ watt house inverter. A 1000 watt inverter covers my requirements and will run a microwave.
12. Noisy large water pump. I had one in the Sprinter and did not like the noise and large space requirement. Transit will have a very small solar centrifugal water pump mounted at the back of the slider step. Turn it on when you want sink water. Plumbing will have a small bypass from pump outlet back to the fresh water tank. Bypass needed if I forget to turn off the pump to prevent it from getting hot. Pump is quiet so you can not hear it running.
13. Complicated plumbing. With the simple water heater eliminating shower water plumbing, the plumbing will have a gravity drain to a centrifugal pump with 3 outlets. One to the sink, one bypass to the fresh water tank and one to a ball valve drain. Pressurized water is available at the drain with pump is running.
14. Shower sink. A waste of space. Shower enclosure needs to be use for multiple purposes. I use a Folgers instant coffee jar when brushing my teeth because I do not want to use the kitchen sink for that purpose.
15. Doors on overhead cabinets. A shelf with a 3" high rail used with baskets makes for a simple solution. No doors to get in the way, less weight, less cost, and easier access to the contents. Worked well in the Sprinter.
16. Clothes closet. I installed a handle on the back side of the refrigerator cabinet so clothes could be stored on the side of the refrigerator cabinet.
17. Large number of lighting switches. Buy LED lights that include a switch. Just turn on the light you need at the light.
18. Air conditioning. People in mild climates can use natural draft air movement. A 4" x 4" hole in the floor and an open roof vent will create air flow from under van and out the rood vent. Movable cover is required to close floor vent when required.
19. Awning. How often will you use it? I can not have one because I stealth camp in cities. Many who have awnings seldom use them.
20. Built in counter top stove. Counter top space is limited in a small conversion. A portable propane stove can be used inside or on a picnic table or in my case on a drop down table out the sliding door.
21. Interior heater. I have found that a 12 volt heating pad under my sleeping bag keeps me warm at night. A balaclava keeps my head warm. Van is quiet without a heater running and the refrigerator runs less due to the cold van interior. Electrical use is about the same because refrigerator runs less.
22. Van wall mounted shore connection. A molded male end of a 12/3 extension cord that is tucked up under driver door works well for 15 amp service.
23. Fresh water level detection. With the right plumbing design a piece of clear tubing from pump located below the tank to the sink will show how much water you have in the tank.
24. Heated water tanks. Put fresh water inside and gray water under van. If it gets cold dump the gray water tank.
25. Sink hot water. Wash dishes with cold water and soap.
26. Mirror. Mount the microwave door high so door glass acts as a mirror.
27. High amperage solar controller. I have found a 15 amp MPPT controller will maintain my 255 amp-hr battery. Even if it could provide more than 15 amps, that would only occur around noon. Very little charging lost if the top of the charging curve mountain is flat.
28. BBQ. I will use a cast iron grill on top of my Camp Chief two burner stove. 17,000 BTU stove burners are much better than 10,000 BTU burners.
29. Black water, macerator, hose etc. A simple portapotti is easier to deal with than a built in toilet. Quick food places were invented for facilities not for food quality.
30. Direct charging of house battery from alternator. Does not give a correct 3 stage charge to the house battery. A vehicle powered inverter supplying 120 volt power to your house battery charger will.
31. Conduit and wire. It is much easier to use "SO" rubber cords for wiring. Cord can be bent in a tighter radius and is much easier to install.
32. Do not bury wiring in wall. Depending on your cabinets, it is possible to locate wiring outside the wall behind cabinets for future access or additions. I do have a 1 1/2" thick insulated floor that allows cable to cross from one side of van to the other in the floor. I do bury 16/2 lighting wiring in the ceiling.
33. Ford wire trough. A simpler replacement with easy access is a Panduit or equal control panel wiring trough. Easy snap on/off cover.

Do not expect everyone to agree to this list but it should provide for some discussion. Hopefully others will add to the list with their discoveries.

 

[Longboard]

# 11 typo: I think you meant your's will be 1000W rather than 100W.

Correction noted!

BTW, I went to Harbor Freight today to return my modified sine wave 1500/3000 invertor. Had the receipt and all packaging, looked like it did when it left the store...but.......it was already over the three month limit for returns.
Look for reports on how a modified sine wave $120 unit performs once I get some short custom cables, a terminal fuse system, and a plan.

 

[Longboard]

14. ...... I use a Folgers instant coffee jar when brushing my teeth because I do not want to use the kitchen sink for that purpose.

Your mix of saliva, plaque, food debris, toothpaste, and water is probably the cleanest thing the kitchen sink would ever see. Get over it, and stop wasting that space that the Folger can is occupying!

 

[Jostalli]

Seems like another thread dedicated to your personal choices and preferences.

 

[Longboard]

26. Mirror. Mount the microwave door high so door glass acts as a mirror.

I purchased a very high quality polycarbonate/mylar unbreakable mirror panel. It is flawless, but I couldn't decide where to mount it. Loose in a box I grabbed it while applying sun screen in Florida as needed. When I decided to shave at a beach rest room with warm water, a sink in the enclosed stall, but no mirror, I went back to the van to retrieve it and then propped it against the towel dispenser. Perfect!
Got to remember to return it to it's box in the van the next time though, the guy using the stall after me thought it was part of the set-up it fit in so well.
At least nobody knew they could just take it.
I'm going to keep it as mobile as it is from now on.

 

[Longboard]

Seems like another thread dedicated to your personal choices and preferences.

The more quality threads the merrier.

 

[Longboard]

29. Black water, macerator, hose etc. A simple portapotti is easier to deal with than a built in toilet. Quick food places were invented for facilities not for food quality.

Overgeneralization. I return the favor of their usually clean facilities with the purchase of regular coffee, egg white muffins, grilled chicken , baked potatoes, plus the occasional splurge of a $1.00 red meat & "cheese product" sandwich.

 

[orton]

Seems like another thread dedicated to your personal choices and preferences.

True. But it also may help others ask the same questions for their build. Maybe there is an item or two that makes it worth their time reading it. Might even save them some time, money or weight. I think I clearly stated that what is on the list may not be appropriate for others.

 

[skagitstan]

Dave and my applications are quite different (mainly stealth city for Dave, mainly remote multi-day boondocking for me.).
I will embed my comments in RED below.

Stan

Below is a list of things I do not think are needed in a conversion. Some people will disagree with items listed. The reason for writing this is to stimulate the conversation. Some of the items listed will not be practical for your conversion. I did a DIY on a 08 Sprinter that I sold and now am starting on a Transit. Have about 100 changes from the Sprinter based on what I learned. Sprinter worked very well and the floor plan is the same. Some items will not apply for your location and weather. I am writing this list based on my use of the van. Will not be appropriate for everyone.

1. Multiple solar panels. A single 300 watt panel will work very well.
We will have 4 panels totaling 560W max. The reason is that much of our camping will be in remote PNW locations with limited sun, or clear view of the sky. I am guestimating that we'll commonly have ~10-20% power available. We will have a microwave (probably about 1-1.2KW input power) as our major load. Since we won't be driving regularly, we will depend on solar to handle a greater portion of the recharge than someone who regularly is driving.
2. 30 amp shore power plug. If you do not have air conditioning why is 30 amps required. Add up your loads. I have used a 13 amp reel on the Sprinter and never had a need for more amperage.
We will have a 30A shore plug, mainly because I already had one laying around. It's probably overkill, but better that than underkill.
3. Multiple batteries. One 8D 255 amp-hr battery worked fine for my application. Simplifies the cables.
We will be using 2 4D (~200AH) batteries on a common slide-out tray. Only takes 2 extra very short cables, and provides some redundancy if one battery dies.
4. Outdoor shower. With a little effort a indoor shower lets you shower anywhere. The trick is to use the shower space for multiple uses. I have a shower, a portapotti, a food storage bin, a towel rack and a countertop located in the shower enclosure. Just remove stuff when you want to shower.
No showers at all here. Two buckets of warm water, washcloths, soap and shampoo are all we've ever used with our previous campers. Never used the showers at all (except for storage in the inside shower).
5. Sink and Shower drain traps. If you plumb the gray water tank so drains enter the bottom center of the tank, a "trap" is created in the piping. I just use 1" coolant hoses for piping.
I am considering this idea, but have some sloshing overflow concerns on the rough roads we'll be traveling. Certainly should be fine for more civilized camping, but stil TBD for our use.
6. AC distribution panel. Had one in the Sprinter but will eliminate it in the Transit. One circuit breaker for one circuit with 5 duplex outlets.
I will have AC and DC distribution. For AC, I want to separate counter GFI circuits from the fridge or micro circuits.
7. Fancy thermal and privacy curtains. If you look at the Transit windows, they have a slot between the glass and the interior steel framework. A Reflectix panel covering the glass will slip into the slot with a tab to hold it in place. (I only have the slider and back door windows) Cut Reflectix to cover window with tabs to insert into the slots. Taped edges with Reflectix tape. Super easy to install and remove.
We will probably do something like this, but privacy screens aren't as big a concern out in the boonies. My bigger concern is bug screens
8. Large Microwave. A cheap ($50) 600 watt microwave from K-Mart (Proctor-Silex) works fine with a 1000 watt house inverter. Simple mechanical dials and no clock or pushbuttons.
We will probably have a ~700W micro. It will have a ~1-1.2 KW input requirement. Because of my wife's disability, pushbutton controls work much better than knobs
9. Normal mattress. We use two REI 2 1/2" camp pads for each person. Easy to remove and store and comfortable.
We will be getting a good quality short queen.
10. Expensive complicated shower hot water heater. A 5-6 gallon tank with a 625 watt pencil heater will heat the water to 90 degrees in 30 minutes. You need a 1000 watt inverter powered by the Transit while driving to get the 120 volt power. The heating element with a thermostat is sold as a conversion kit for RV's with propane heaters. A tank, the kit, a submercible pump, a garden hose and a garden nozzle completes the system. All water is at the correct temperature so no hot/cold water mixing required that wastes water.
No showers here. We will be installing an on demand propane fired heater. No wasting energy to heat 5-6 gallons, when all we'll ever need to heat is at most 2 gallons at any time.
11. 2000+ watt house inverter. A 1000 watt inverter covers my requirements and will run a microwave.
My opinion is that a 1KW inverter has insufficient reserve to operate 1KW input requirements of a 6-700W microwave. We will use a Magnum MS2012 inverter converter. I feel safer not running the inverter close to its maximum output.
12. Noisy large water pump. I had one in the Sprinter and did not like the noise and large space requirement. Transit will have a very small solar centrifugal water pump mounted at the back of the slider step. Turn it on when you want sink water. Plumbing will have a small bypass from pump outlet back to the fresh water tank. Bypass needed if I forget to turn off the pump to prevent it from getting hot. Pump is quiet so you can not hear it running.
We will have a reasonable standard RV on demand pump and a pressurized reserve tank. The tank makes the pump run quieter, and it doesn't cycle as much under normal use.
13. Complicated plumbing. With the simple water heater eliminating shower water plumbing, the plumbing will have a gravity drain to a centrifugal pump with 3 outlets. One to the sink, one bypass to the fresh water tank and one to a ball valve drain. Pressurized water is available at the drain with pump is running.
14. Shower sink. A waste of space. Shower enclosure needs to be use for multiple purposes. I use a Folgers instant coffee jar when brushing my teeth because I do not want to use the kitchen sink for that purpose.
My wife wants a sink and cabinet in the john. End of discussion.:blush: No shower, and we'll be using a composting toilet.
15. Doors on overhead cabinets. A shelf with a 3" high rail used with baskets makes for a simple solution. No doors to get in the way, less weight, less cost, and easier access to the contents. Worked well in the Sprinter.
We will have latching doors so stuff doesn't go flying on the rough, rutted, washboard paths we'll be on
16. Clothes closet. I installed a handle on the back side of the refrigerator cabinet so clothes could be stored on the side of the refrigerator cabinet.
We will have a smallish clothes/misc storage cabinet.
17. Large number of lighting switches. Buy LED lights that include a switch. Just turn on the light you need at the light.
We plan to do this as much as possible. Still hunting down the ideal lights.
18. Air conditioning. People in mild climates can use natural draft air movement. A 4" x 4" hole in the floor and an open roof vent will create air flow from under van and out the rood vent. Movable cover is required to close floor vent when required.
No A.C. here. I don't want to go places where A.C. becomes a necessity.
19. Awning. How often will you use it? I can not have one because I stealth camp in cities. Many who have awnings seldom use them.
We have used the awning on every camper we owned that had one. It is really nice to stay sort of dry and still be outside when it's raining
20. Built in counter top stove. Counter top space is limited in a small conversion. A portable propane stove can be used inside or on a picnic table or in my case on a drop down table out the sliding door.
We will have a built in SMEV 2 burner hob. It is a flush mount unit with a glass cover, so it takes no counter space when you aren't actually cooking. It's really nice to heat up food/ chocolates, etc. when it's cold and rainy outside. It will be located at the sliding door side of the counter, so in good weather the door will be open.
21. Interior heater. I have found that a 12 volt heating pad under my sleeping bag keeps me warm at night. A balaclava keeps my head warm. Van is quiet without a heater running and the refrigerator runs less due to the cold van interior. Electrical use is about the same because refrigerator runs less.
Our concern is running down power for stuff like heating. That's why we are using propane for the house and water heater.
22. Van wall mounted shore connection. A molded male end of a 12/3 extension cord that is tucked up under driver door works well for 15 amp service.
As noted above in #2, I already have a 30A wall mounted shore plug. Not that hard to wire it in.
23. Fresh water level detection. With the right plumbing design a piece of clear tubing from pump located below the tank to the sink will show how much water you have in the tank.
We will have a SeeLevel gauge for fresh, gray and propane level monitoring. No changes to standard plumbing design required to monitor levels.
24. Heated water tanks. Put fresh water inside and gray water under van. If it gets cold dump the gray water tank.
This is also our plan
25. Sink hot water. Wash dishes with cold water and soap.
We will have on-demand hot water. The sink is a convenient place to get it.
26. Mirror. Mount the microwave door high so door glass acts as a mirror.
Spousal unit will handle our mirror placement (if any)
27. High amperage solar controller. I have found a 15 amp MPPT controller will maintain my 255 amp-hr battery. Even if it could provide more than 15 amps, that would only occur around noon. Very little charging lost if the top of the charging curve mountain is flat.
We will use a Blue Sky 3024. If we can get enough sun to supply 40A, I want to take advantage of it.
28. BBQ. I will use a cast iron grill on top of my Camp Chief two burner stove. 17,000 BTU stove burners are much better than 10,000 BTU burners.
We've never used a gas BBQ. Just an old grill on top of some rocks at our campfire works fine.
29. Black water, macerator, hose etc. A simple portapotti is easier to deal with than a built in toilet. Quick food places were invented for facilities not for food quality.
Composting toilet, so no black water concerns. Not too many fast food places 60 miles from the nearest town.
30. Direct charging of house battery from alternator. Does not give a correct 3 stage charge to the house battery. A vehicle powered inverter supplying 120 volt power to your house battery charger will.
We disagree here. My understanding is that alternator will provide close enough charge curves for similar (in our case AGM) house and car batteries to have relatively minimal effect on battery life. I think that a dual inverter design introduces a bunch of other issues. I think the tradeoffs outweigh any potential impact on battery life.
31. Conduit and wire. It is much easier to use "SO" rubber cords for wiring. Cord can be bent in a tighter radius and is much easier to install.
Still under consideration here.
32. Do not bury wiring in wall. Depending on your cabinets, it is possible to locate wiring outside the wall behind cabinets for future access or additions. I do have a 1 1/2" thick insulated floor that allows cable to cross from one side of van to the other in the floor. I do bury 16/2 lighting wiring in the ceiling.
Agreed
33. Ford wire trough. A simpler replacement with easy access is a Panduit or equal control panel wiring trough. Easy snap on/off cover.
TBD here.

Do not expect everyone to agree to this list but it should provide for some discussion. Hopefully others will add to the list with their discoveries.

 

[driley]

Dave and my applications are quite different (mainly stealth city for Dave, mainly remote multi-day boondocking for me.).
I will embed my comments in RED below.

Stan

Our config will be close to yours. Almost always camping with no hookups.

 

[jethaden]

Dave and my applications are quite different (mainly stealth city for Dave, mainly remote multi-day boondocking for me.).
I will embed my comments in RED below.

11. 2000+ watt house inverter. A 1000 watt inverter covers my requirements and will run a microwave.
My opinion is that a 1KW inverter has insufficient reserve to operate 1KW input requirements of a 6-700W microwave. We will use a Magnum MS2012 inverter converter. I feel safer not running the inverter close to its maximum output.

Stan

Not a comment on 1KW vs 2KW but on MS2012 vs MS2000. The MS2000 has a couple of very minor limitations compared to the MS2012, but has the advantage of being a consistent thickness (depth from mounting surface), the same as the MS2012 at its thinnest point. Otherwise the footprint is the same. I check out both and am ending up putting the MS2012 on my boat where I have lots of room and the MS2000 in the Van where my space is much tighter. The extra volume of the MS2012 is mostly open air cooling volume. Also read the PDF manual and note the limitations on mounting orientation to make sure you have no issues.

Oh, and I am definitely in the 2KW camp for option of 700 Watt Microwave, as finding a 600 watt that can be driven by 1KW inverter is really limiting as to choice, and option of Induction cook top (not decided on that vs propane yet, just putting it out there).

 

[jethaden]

31. Conduit and wire. It is much easier to use "SO" rubber cords for wiring. Cord can be bent in a tighter radius and is much easier to install.

I do not see advantage of SO cords versus standard multi-strand duplex and triplex wire. I use Ancor, which admittedly is over priced, but very good. There are cheaper equivalents. Just must be multi-strand wire. Triplex for AC. Duplex for DC. Size determined by amperage and distance from battery. AC wire is 14 gauge for 15 amp, 12 gauge for 20 amp, and 10 gauge for 30 amp circuits (thus most everything is 14 gauge except shore power). DC ranges generally 12 and 14 gauge (might have used 16 gauge for LED lights). Inverter DC cable for 2/0 up to 4/0 for 2KW (opinions vary). I do not use conduits in van or boat.

 

[WN1A]

I have been following orton’s and skagitstan’s build threads from the beginning, both with good ideas for different applications. I am replacing a 1988 suburban, 4X4, purchased new and used for years on long road trips in the western USA. On most of the long road trips we stayed off of paved roads as much as possible, and always found places where 4 wheel drive was necessary. I installed a second battery, deep cycle, that was charged by the alternator when the engine was running but isolated from the start battery when the engine was off. It did have a provision to parallel the two batteries for emergency purposes. Over time I learned several things about the system. If you are driving rough rocky roads have AGM batteries. Over time the plates in the flooded batteries accumulate scale that can break loose and short the battery internally, particularly after a few thousand miles on rough roads. When that happened 50 miles from the nearest paved road the ability to start the engine with the second battery convinced me that every multiple battery system should be able to accomplish that. I also had to replace the alternator several times, I think over time charging both batteries contributed to the failures, though the two batteries provides enough power to get somewhere for a new alternator, even at night with the lights on.

The electrical system I am thinking of will have a 1000 W true sine wave inverter with the input switchable between the Transit dual batteries and the house battery (2 - 6 volt 240 AH in series) and the ability to parallel the battery banks with no connection to the inverter. I looking at two 140 W solar panels, a quality controller and a good battery charger that the inverter will power with the provision that the inverter output can be switched from the charger to other AC loads. The output of the Transit system to the inverter will go through a relay controlled by one of the upfitter switches so it can only be enabled with the key on. I also need 70 amps at the back of the van for a boat trailer winch which will be controlled by a second relay and another upfitter switch. I don’t anticipate a need for a lot of 120 VAC power, maybe an on demand hot water faucet for a quick cup of coffee in the morning. I think this approach, after orton’s ideas will provide the best protection to the Transit power system and still permit house battery charging on winter days here in the Northwest.

One question I have is the grounding system arrangement. One comment I read is that the Transit is a computer on wheels and I agree. I spent many years working on marine electronic systems, communications equipment, and medical systems. Proper wiring and grounding determine how well all these systems work. When I look at the Ford body builders manual section the have pages of warnings about this. Is it wise and safe (for the 120 VAC) to isolate the house ground from the Transit grounds? For pumps, fans, compressors, and the like it seems that there is some potential for interference with the Ford CAN systems. Some wiring might be better to be shielded twisted pair with a careful grounding scheme. I am curious if anybody has any experience with this or thoughts about it.

In years of driving around the west we encountered many times when the suburban wheelbase was too long even with four wheel drive. We bought the 130 inch wheel base for that reason and also the need to get in and out of a driveway on a narrow city street. We have to plan carefully what we want in the van. Cabinets with doors that can be securely latched are a must for rough roads. We will have a composting toilet, a 17 - 20 gallon fresh water tank, a small sink with a hot water on demand faucet, and a well filtered drinking water faucet. A visit to a state park every 7 to 10 days will provide showers. We have a Norcold 12 volt cooler/freezer that will mount on drawer slides to serve as a drawer cooler. For cooking and heat in the winter time we will have a Wallas flush mount diesel stove heater. I would have liked the diesel engine in the Transit but it does not have the horsepower to handle mountain driving so we will need a small diesel tank for the stove. The mattress will use the Froli sleep system and foam cushions.

Our plan is to have Northwest Quad Van convert the van to 4X4 after we spend a few months testing what we put together. It will never be capable of going to some of the places we use to take the old suburban but we are old enough now that we probably should avoid those kinds of places. Hopefully the Transit will be more comfortable than the old rig.

 

[skagitstan]

I agree that careful grounding is necessary to avoid problems. That is a major reason why I am not going to use a dual inverter, isolated commons scheme.
I do have some experience in system grounding for low noise, mainly from my early days designing pro audio gear and recording studio design, and my current (mostly retired) job, which largely involves design of low noise signal conversion and processing systems for speech recognition. So I am well aware of noise and interference mitigation in both analog and digital systems.
That being said, my experience is mainly with low energy systems, unlike the power distribution stuff we are all working on. I have had to design stuff to co-exist with electrically noisy car power systems.
I do know that the potential leakage issues with separate power systems can be a real disaster in waiting.

I didn't know that NW Quadvan was doing Transit conversions. Their site only talks about E series.

 

[orton]

WN1A:

This might be of interest:

http://sprinter-source.com/forum/showpost.php?p=261334&postcount=29

 

[WN1A]

Skagitsan:

Northwest Quad Van is doing Transit conversions, not advertised on the web site, but maybe some information on their facebook page. I stopped at their shop a few weeks ago, they had 4 in back and I think 12 more on the way to be converted for Hawaiian tour company. Aside from being slammed with work, John recommended waiting awhile to evaluate how well the conversions work. The photos of the Aluminess Transit hardware posted in several threads is his van.

Orton:

The link you posted is what I have in mind. I have a 17 foot boat I use for local fishing, powered by a 70 hp and a 9.9 hp for trolling. Both motors are electric start, tilt, and have alternators. I have two AGM deep cycle batteries, one for each motor with all electronics and power for a pot puller on one battery. I have the same switch as in the picture to disconnect the battery from the big motor, connect #1 or # 2 or both in parallel. That is the basis of what I intend to do in the van. I am fortunate to live within a few miles of several marine hardware businesses, easy to go in and look at what is available. I would also recommend that for running cable to solar panels, lights and such there are excellent through hull fittings that won't leak. Hardware design for marine use is excellent for van conversions, maybe a bit more expensive but the reliability is worth it.

 

[tthrsn]

Dave and my applications are quite different (mainly stealth city for Dave, mainly remote multi-day boondocking for me.).
I will embed my comments in RED below.

Stan

In your comments you indicate that you will be using a composting toilet. Is this still your plan? Have you made any progress?

Here's a link to GaryBis's website where he documents his ProMaster conversion. He takes a low cost approach to most everything, including a DIY composting toilet. http://www.buildagreenrv.com/our-conversion/promaster-camper-van-conversion-composting-toilet/

He also links to your floor construction from the main page.

 

[skagitstan]

Yes, we have an Airhead composter. It isn't installed yet.

Thanks for pointing out the link to our floor construction!

Stan

 

[accrete]

Froli Sleep System...


I've noted elsewhere that my wife and I've been sleeping on Froli SS since our van conversion's bed was put in winter of 2011... then we put one in our full time 5th wheel that spring. Great setup for any bed. Van v2.0 will certainly have one!


Thom

 

[Budsky]

BTW, I went to Harbor Freight today to return my modified sine wave 1500/3000 invertor. Had the receipt and all packaging, looked like it did when it left the store...but.......it was already over the three month limit for returns.
Look for reports on how a modified sine wave $120 unit performs once I get some short custom cables, a terminal fuse system, and a plan.

Curious- how did that setup work for you?

I have what I think is the same invertor at my camp and found, while it will run the microwave, it does not like the MSW and takes about twice as long to heat stuff.
I bought a 1000W continuous sine wave, 2000 watt surge Sunforce invertor and it will not start the microwave.
BTW I do not recommend Sunforce- I had one that failed and it took months to get them to do something about it after I sent it to them.