Ski RV's, who's sleeping in parking lots?

[Trefmawr]

Man I've dreamed about that conversion for a while now, just wish my van wasn't so OLD. Oh well, still get's the job done. Here's a pic of my parking lot 'blind'.



Currently awaiting some serious upgrades.

[boltonoutlaw]

You know what that thing needs? A U-joint Offroad 4x4 conversion kit - http://www.ujointoffroad.com/

It is what I have under my ambulance, under construction, and to be seen at Silverton mountain this winter:

Thanks, that rig is sick. Quadvan (Portland) said 16K for the conversion, which is super pricy. The UJOR kit looks pretty sweet. Have fun @Silverton!

[Kya]

Love the rock sliders on the ambulance. That is awesome!

[MakersTeleMark]

Did you ever fix your water pump?

[udp88]

I hesitate to post this but I can't get to it in time. It is CL, and not an auction. I know nothing about this except I want it: http://cnj.craigslist.org/rvs/2562752052.html

It seems in the same ballpark as something like:

http://www.classicvans.com/camper-va...ja-4x4-special

And this one's newer (but more miles):

http://www.bmsrv.com/2005-chinook-ba...-tan-c-285.htm

Hey, boltonoutlaw, what's the main difference between one like yours and these Baja models? Mainly I'm curious if the *space* in the interior is about the same. Amenities are nice, but play second fiddle to me.

btw, do you have satellite 'net on your rig? How are you online all the time as you migrate around? You must have a sweet work situation!

[udp88]

I have a mid 70s camper van that's, well, nominally functional, but I wouldn't personally use it in the winter. It occurred to me that maybe a full makeover would be cheaper than a new or new used rig. Anyone know what the rough cost of a full-on makeover of a camper van is? Yeah, that's vague, but I'm only looking for ballpark ideas.... $5k? $10k? $20k?

[boltonoutlaw]

Hey, boltonoutlaw, what's the main difference between one like yours and these Baja models? Mainly I'm curious if the *space* in the interior is about the same. Amenities are nice, but play second fiddle to me.

The difference between the Baja and the Concourse lies solely in the 4x4 upgrade. Everything else in the coach is identical.

[Lamothe]

Any one have any suggestions for heating and drying some gear in my wagon this winter?

[boltonoutlaw]

Any one have any suggestions for heating and drying some gear in my wagon this winter?

Searched "homemade boot dryer" here at TGR: http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/showthread.php/142795-Home-made-boot-dryer

Or: http://www.peetshoedryer.com/

[boltonoutlaw]

It seems in the same ballpark as something like:

http://www.classicvans.com/camper-va...ja-4x4-special

This sold for $46,000 on Friday. Was that you?

[udp88]

This sold for $46,000 on Friday. Was that you?

Nah, I'm takin' my time and it was too far away for me, too. That's a STEAL!!

[Lamothe]

Searched "homemade boot dryer" here at TGR: http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/showthread.php/142795-Home-made-boot-dryer

Or: http://www.peetshoedryer.com/

holy shit , propane! works as a boot dryer and probably would warm up the car some . 80$ seems like a steal . Thanks ordering this in the fall

[DanoT]

I bought some boot driers from REI years ago that are a couple of tubes that heat up and draw about 8watts each. No fan noise. Easily powered by a low powered inverter that plugs into a cigarette lighter.

[Leftyt]

Any one have any suggestions for heating and drying some gear in my wagon this winter?

Well I guess it matters how much space you have and if you will be moving around from place to place after skiing. I lived in my van for a couple months a couple of winters ago and came up with a few different things that worked pretty well. I put a inverter and spare battery in my van to run a boot dryer, lights, charger for a laptop, and a homemade squirrel cage fan out of a microwave that really moves some air. Heating I used a My Big Buddy portable heater but I am guessing you wouldn't have enough room for that. The squirrrel cage fan is about the size of a shoe box so you could make one for yourself if you could find a old microwave with a exhaust fan that still works. I really didnt use the heater to often just in the mornings to warm the van up. Check my old post I have more info on it somewhere in here.

[Trefmawr]

Udp88 - I'm in an 80's campervan myself, and I know there's a few others in here doing the same. So far my mods have been very cost effective, so you can definitely do a full winter setup for under $5k. That being said, the more money you have, the better a rig you can build, but if you're going to be spending $10k, I'd first upgrade the van itself.

The best time to do any winter mods though, is when you're doing major work anyways, so you can completely gut the bastard

The two biggest things (IMO) that a rig would need for winter living are insulation and a heat source. The better your insulation, the easier it will be keep heat in your rig and the less energy it will require to bring it to a comfortable (to you) level.

A lot of people I've seen have gotten by just buying a decent sized catalytic heater (MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ADEQUATE VENTILATION) and a good sleeping bag, and honestly you can get by with that. A lot of heat energy is lost though, due to drafts and through the vehicle body/windows, so you could end up saving that energy by insulating properly. (Save money too!)

Think of it like a mini house.

If you do a google search on van dwelling, a lot of really good info comes up, including insulation projects and the like.

I'll be updating here every once and a while with some new stuff that I'm doing to my van also.

Cheers!

[udp88]

Udp88 - I'm in an 80's campervan myself, and I know there's a few others in here doing the same. So far my mods have been very cost effective, so you can definitely do a full winter setup for under $5k. That being said, the more money you have, the better a rig you can build, but if you're going to be spending $10k, I'd first upgrade the van itself.

The best time to do any winter mods though, is when you're doing major work anyways, so you can completely gut the bastard

The two biggest things (IMO) that a rig would need for winter living are insulation and a heat source. The better your insulation, the easier it will be keep heat in your rig and the less energy it will require to bring it to a comfortable (to you) level.

I emailed a few local shops and asked the same (very vague) question and the only helpful reply I got back put it in the $10k to $20k range. I'd definitely be down to gut the thing, but at that cost, why not just buy a Chinook like boltonoutlaw's that I'm currently fascinated with? 25 years newer and ready to go. I don't know how well suited a Chinook is for COLD weather (especially compared to a custom job that might be more focused on adding a lot of insulation), but still.....

I guess I could do it on the cheap for a year and hit the sleeping bag pretty fast in the evenings, but my ideal is to have a little bit of wifi time and maybe even a shower. I'd see it as a semi-long term thing, so roughing it for like a month straight could get a little old. Depends on the snow conditions maybe. ;-)

[That was Pontus]

I guess I could do it on the cheap for a year and hit the sleeping bag pretty fast in the evenings, but my ideal is to have a little bit of wifi time and maybe even a shower. I'd see it as a semi-long term thing, so roughing it for like a month straight could get a little old. Depends on the snow conditions maybe. ;-)

Pretty much what I did in the back of my Chevy the last couple of years. Reflectex everywhere and a winter bag. The stove warmed things up a bit (keep a window open). Electricity could be troublesome, but then I didn't need it for much; phone, iPod, camera. Learn to go without a shower for a couple days, it maintains a nice dirtbag patina. Poaching hottubs makes for fun times. Wet wipes when you get desperate. Or just stop at a YMCA. Regardless, dealing with grey & black water tanks in the winter may not be worth your time. Boot liners can be dried by stuffing them in the sleeping bag when you go to bed, same with socks & layers.

[jon gaper]

I used some 50c curling irons from DI with a 12v cig lighter plug inverter to dry boot liners.

The best heating source for cheap ,and burglar alarm, is a big cuddly canine

[Trefmawr]

Big time on the canine! Husky, Lab, or GSD!

A few things to keep in mind when doing a rig:

1. Heat
2. Power
3. Moisture

For me, my setup for each includes (or will include very soon):

1. Heat - At night I use a LP Catalytic heater hooked up to a 20lb BBQ tank. I have it right by a window that cannot be accidentally closed so there's always a source of fresh air. The cat heater I have also has a built in low oxygen sensor that shuts the unit off in case of low oxy. I also have a CO alarm right by my head where I sleep. During the day I use a solar heat collector. These things are badass! Google them for more info, needless to say, they work!

My next step is better insulation. I have a conversion van that came with some ok insulation, but too many windows. I'm going to be gutting her this fall and redoing the insulation, trying to go for around R-8 with a radiant heat barrier. (Dirtbag tip! Instead of buying the reflextex brand stuff, try buying a bunch of emergency heat blankets and alumi-taping them together. $3 at a camping store each!)

2. Power - I have a very extensive solar system rigged up, easily the most expensive thing on my whole rig (cost *more* than the rig actually ) but you can rig up something a lot cheaper such as an auxiliary battery wired into your alternator circuit and a 300W inverter (fairly cheap). It depends on how much power you need and what you want to run (eg. laptop, lcd monitor, stereo, etc.) Some devices need pure sine wave power and not modified sine wave power like most solid state inverters (common) produce.

Just make sure that whatever you set up, keep in mind that you should try not to rely on your primary battery. If you run it flat, then you won't be able to start your vehicle, which is never fun in the winter.

3. Moisture - I use moisture absorbing packs and a mini dehumidifier, they work pretty well, especially since the Cat heater produces a fair amount of moisture. The same with cooking. Good air circulation is key.

Showers are kind of tricky, but if you find a few places in the area that you can sneak into (hotel pools, gyms, etc) you can get by. Or, if you have the facilities, a gym pass.

Cheers!

[That was Pontus]

^^^ Or just have your brother drop off a couple of rolls of reflectex courtesy of a government contract. The inside of my topper looked like a god damn Mars mission.

Along with a dessicant pack, consider a bag of crushed pumice to help keep the stench down.

[udp88]

Power - I have a very extensive solar system rigged up, easily the most expensive thing on my whole rig (cost *more* than the rig actually )

Mind elaborating a bit? You have enough to run laptop, heater fan, lights, and stuff like that into the nighttime hours?

Moisture - I use moisture absorbing packs and a mini dehumidifier, they work pretty well, especially since the Cat heater produces a fair amount of moisture. The same with cooking. Good air circulation is key.

Does this apply (or not) to rigs that are built for cold climates?

Showers are kind of tricky, but if you find a few places in the area that you can sneak into (hotel pools, gyms, etc) you can get by. Or, if you have the facilities, a gym pass.

How many people have rigs with showers in them? Anyone have experience/tips on that side of things?

Even if you don't have a shower, lots of you in RVs will have water... what do you do to keep it from freezing? (I know some cold-climate rigs have setups designed with this in mind, but doesn't that also require more electricity?)

[udp88]

Oh, and great tip on the solar heat collector idea. What do you use? Do you have something built in, something you just set up each day? ..... Tell us more!

[counterfeitfake]

Oh my god. That's sick.


I never showed off the rig I ended up with:

[Trefmawr]

Pontus - Lucky! That's a pretty sweet drop off

For my solar system I have a 400W PV panel array wired up with an MPPT charger, a 450 AH battery bank, and 2 pure sine inverters with 3500 watt output between the two of them. It can run pretty much anything I want, including an electric heater if I wanted. I run a small fridge/freezer, a small microwave, a small toaster oven, lights, and charging portable devices.

However, electric heaters are a huge draw on batteries, so I would advice against them on a smaller off-grid rig. If you're set on using an electric heater, use an oil filled one, they're a lot more efficient.

My solar heat collector is just like the ones you see on youtube etc, accept mine is a forced air style. I have a low rpm solar powered fan that slowly moves the hot air through the coiled black pipes. I also have a bunch of highly reflective material (solar blanket ) in the base to reflect even more radiant heat into the system. It's semi-permanently mounted to my roof.

[That was Pontus]

Pontus - Lucky! That's a pretty sweet drop off

For my solar system I have a 400W PV panel array wired up with an MPPT charger, a 450 AH battery bank, and 2 pure sine inverters with 3500 watt output between the two of them. It can run pretty much anything I want, including an electric heater if I wanted. I run a small fridge/freezer, a small microwave, a small toaster oven, lights, and charging portable devices.

That's a badass getup.

However, electric heaters are a huge draw on batteries, so I would advice against them on a smaller off-grid rig. If you're set on using an electric heater, use an oil filled one, they're a lot more efficient.

This. An electric heater is a giant resistor, essentially it's whole goal is to be as inefficient as possible in order to make as much heat as possible. Unless you have some way of connecting to the grid I wouldn't use one. A solar system is passive and will not keep up with the draw of even a small ceramic heater and in the winter with the sun at a much lower attitude in the sky a photovoltaic system will not be producing at near its rated maximum output.

Plus, fuck you if you're waiting on the sun to charge some shit, I want snow. A pretty decent alternative is run a second battery (deep cycle) off your alternator thats isolated from the starter circuit. It'll charge whenever the vehicle runs, but you're not draining your starter battery.