2013 Chevy Express 3500 Cutaway Expo Build - Page 2 - Toyota 4Runner Forum

MStudt · 07-21-2020, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bumbo

For 200 watts of panel I would consider the 75/15 SmartSolar (Smart units have bluetooth built in, does not require external dongle)

SmartSolar MPPT 75/10, 75/15, 100/15 & 100/20 - Victron Energy

So Renogy is having some major issues, and closing down for a bit. Tons of their stuff has been back ordered, and apparently they haven't been fulfilling orders. So now I can start over.

I was able to cancel my order, and will be piecing everything together moving forward. I just purchased the SmartSolar MPPT 75/10 from Amazon, and should have it by the end of the week. I'm also looking into getting panels, cables, and some other items from Rich Solar since they seem to have everything in stock. I'm basically going to piece this kit together with some added wiring.

Mike

Bumbo · 07-21-2020, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MStudt

So Renogy is having some major issues, and closing down for a bit. Tons of their stuff has been back ordered, and apparently they haven't been fulfilling orders. So now I can start over.

I was able to cancel my order, and will be piecing everything together moving forward. I just purchased the SmartSolar MPPT 75/10 from Amazon, and should have it by the end of the week. I'm also looking into getting panels, cables, and some other items from Rich Solar since they seem to have everything in stock. I'm basically going to piece this kit together with some added wiring.

Mike

Cool update... but I recommended the 75/15 for a reason, you mentioned 200 watts of solar for what I assume will be used on a 12v battery system?

The 75/10 would be fine if you are working with a 24v system and 200 watts worth of panel.

MStudt · 07-21-2020, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bumbo

Cool update... but I recommended the 75/15 for a reason, you mentioned 200 watts of solar for what I assume will be used on a 12v battery system?

The 75/10 would be fine if you are working with a 24v system and 200 watts worth of panel.

I fat fingered that one. I did get the 75/15, and NOT the 75/10.

Mike

MStudt · 08-14-2020, 10:23 AM

Things have been progressing nicely on the van, but I haven't had much time to post about it. At this point I have the door installed, and the windows on the rear doors installed. I have the two holes cut for the side windows, but can't install those until the inside is insulated and panels are up. That being said, I have all the furring strips up inside, and will work on insulation & wall panels this weekend.

MStudt · 08-14-2020, 10:32 AM

The furring strips that we used are 18mm, and that made finding a good insulating material difficult. After looking around we decided to give Havelock Wool insulation a try. After installing a couple small pieces I can see why people like work with this material. It can be handled by hand, and won't get you itchy. Their insulation for vans is 2" thick, and this can be peeled down to two 1" pieces. With our furring strips only being 18mm (.70") we'll have to peel all the insulation down to 1", and that'll allow for a little compression. For installing the wool, I used some sprayed adhesive to hold it in place until the panel is installed.

MStudt · 08-15-2020, 03:41 PM

Both side walls are now insulated, and have paneling installed on them. I also trimmed the storage area above the cab, and mounted the switches for our fans.

I can't express enough with how happy I on about the Havelock Wool insulation. This stuff is very easy to work with, and leaves you itch free.

MStudt · 08-15-2020, 04:05 PM

A couple weeks ago I spent some time measuring & designing a simple roof rack to hold the solar panels that we're going to install, and possibly a kayak or paddleboard. My design will have three attachment points, 2 on the side, and 1 on the top. Each mount bolts to 1" x 3" extruded aluminum, and we'll have 3 of these cross bars on the roof. I still need to temporarily place these on the roof so I can get some measurements for the solar panel support brackets. I need to design some brackets that'll allow us to mount the solar panel flush with the top of the cross bar or slightly under. Just in case we need to haul an extra kayak we'll be able to without causing damage to the panels.

MStudt · 08-15-2020, 08:16 PM

Cross bars are installed, and allow for 48" of clearance between the rails. Based on my measurements I needed 47" for clearance on the panels, and that includes the hardware for mounting the brackets. I also whipped up a solar panel mount that'll allow the panel to slide a little to make it easier to get them centered in between the cross bars.

MStudt · 08-17-2020, 08:39 PM

When we first picked up the van I had an idea of how the bed was going to be, and that idea hasn't changed. A little over a month ago I design a raised bed with based off of the minimal amount of dimensions that I had. Last week I was able to find tune that drawing since I now had furring strips in place.

The side walls for the bed are 36" high, and have a total width of 57". This is a couple inches wider than a full size, and the platform will also have about 2" in bed length to spare when it's finished.

MStudt · 08-18-2020, 10:06 PM

Today I had the solar panel mounts cut, bent, and powder coated. I had about 20 minutes of free time, and was able to get one panel mounted. I like the way the panels fit, and how they can slide to allow for easier bolting. But, the bottom bolt did suck when it came to tightening them up. I think on the next panel I might use carriage bolts to help ease things along.

MStudt · 08-23-2020, 09:18 PM

Small progress, but still some progress. I was able to get to the entry housing installed, panel wires run, and the last solar panel mounted. I was also able to caulk the side door, but I doubt anyone wants to see that.

MStudt · 08-31-2020, 09:24 PM

I still have a couple things to tie up on the exterior of the van before I can completely close up the inside. That would include mounting the propane tank, and building/mounting the ladder. Tonight I finished up one of those, and that's mounting the propane tank. I had a couple brackets laser cut, and used some 1/4" aluminum spacer between the bracket and the mount. There's also an additional bracket on the inside of the van with weld nuts on it to allow me to sandwich the body between the two brackets. I used stainless BHCS with stainless sealed bonding washers, and a little 3M adhesive to help seal everything up. Oh, I had them powder coated white as well.

MStudt · 09-19-2020, 12:37 PM

With all the fires in our area it's been a while since I've been able to work outside on h van. I caught a break in the smoke the last couple of days since we had some rain move into the area.

I started working on a ladder a couple of weeks ago and was finally able to put it on the van yesterday. The ladder is made from 1" x .065 HREW tubing with rungs every 10", and was powder coat matte black to match everything else.

MStudt · 09-26-2020, 01:49 PM

Well, the smoke has finally cleared, and I've started working on the van again. The ladder is finished, installed, and sealed up. I also ran the propane hose into the van, connected the lines to the regulator, and sealed it up. Since the electrical/solar project will be coming up very soon I decided to add my shore power connection before the inside moved any further. I just used a NOCO plug, and placed it behind the ladder. The windows have also been sealed, and so far we have no leaks.

MStudt · 09-26-2020, 01:59 PM

Yesterday I was able to get the remaining pieces for the bed platform laminated, routered, and brought home. This included a divider wall to section off the front living area from the rear storage area. The divider is 19mm ply with black laminate on both faces. I also had some 7 ga steel bent and powder-coated matte black to help secure the divider panel in place. The beams for the bed are also 19mm raw ply that are doubled up for additional strength. Lastly, the cross slats are 19mm raw ply that are 2-1/2" wide, and two of them being 3". The reason for those sizes is simple, I had them leftover from the walls and needed to use some material that I've been collecting.

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