Extreme RV from M36a2

[tbearatkin]

Two things, have you considered a domestic refrigerator that runs on propane or kerosene?
Appliances | Gas Refrigerators and Freezers | Dometic | Dometic Kerosene Refrigerator - Lehmans.com

Second thing, caught that you are using blow up mattress from the bunks good on space saving not sure how comfortable that will be but kids are resilient. We found out the hard way when we went with foam mattress that we had to adjust our brackets out from the wall. Needed to make adjustments for the thickness of the mattress when it was folded up.

Great idea love it, You will also find that any uninsulated tank on top of your camper will be a solar water heater whenever it is parked in the sun. A black color tank may be all you need.

 

[islandguydon]

There is a 3 way power source refrigerator made for RV's this unit will power by shore power 120v/12vdc/propane. The 2 way is good as well but for a BOV the 3 way covers all the basis.

The brand recommend is Norcold N641 RV Refrigerator 3-Way RV Motor home Refrigerator Fridge 52 7/8" Black

I had mine run for 3 years on 1 BBQ propane tank. I feel this unit is the best bang for the buck..!

 

[moving chicane]

There is a 3 way power source refrigerator made for RV's this unit will power by shore power 120v/12vdc/propane. The 2 way is good as well but for a BOV the 3 way covers all the basis.

The brand recommend is Norcold N641 RV Refrigerator 3-Way RV Motor home Refrigerator Fridge 52 7/8" Black

I had mine run for 3 years on 1 BBQ propane tank. I feel this unit is the best bang for the buck..!

It ran continually for 3 years?

 

[islandguydon]

The settings on auto fuel is:

1st, shore power 110vac

2nd, 12vdc

3rd, propane.

My shore power is not hooked up so the next power source is 12vdc, the solar panel keeps the deep cycle battery charged, when the battery is at 13.5 constant the load diverter powers a hot water element. free hot water. When its been cloudy for days and the battery drops to 11.0 constant the fridge switches over to propane. Thats how the tank lasted for 3 years. When the battery gets fully charged the propane will switch back over to the 12 vdc battery again, then the cycle continues. I hope I explained the system correctly.

Also of note: The solar panel charge controller has a setting for 24vdc.This option is good for an emergency battery charge for an MV

 

[moving chicane]

Thanks islandguy that makes much more sense

 

[daddy2]

Great info guys. Sorry for the delay in responding. I bit of bad news for me, realised that the Sept deadline is just not going to happen. To much work that still needs to be done. Would have been nice for the veterans gathering. I decided to take a week or two to spend with the kids. Going to get back to it tis weekend. I was also worried about the 1400 mile drive. I would rather run it on a few closer camping trips.

I really like the info though. The generator has not been picked out yet. I do have a 18 gal. tank for either Gas or diesel. The fridge i think is going to be a apartment type. Not RV. I love the RV ones but the $$$ is just too much for me right now. I can pick up a regular one for $300. The insulation cot me over $1300 so for now i am going a little cheaper.

Islandguydon, I might pm you a bit or just call you for some electrical info, with the DC stuff being kind of new to me, AC I'm ok wiht but DC leaves me with questions. Thanks guys.

 

[daddy2]

Well got back to work yesterday. Got back from Ocean city Maryland. Did some tent camping in the 90 degree temp. So needless to say I started on the Air conditioner frame. As I stated before, I will be putting a window 8000btu unit in. I cut out the hole and framed it fwith 2*2*1/8" flat stock. I had to also make a plug to use when the ac unit is taken out in teh fall and winter. I found some 1/4" aluminum diamond plating. It has taken me the better part of two days working on it. I still need to weld on the brackets for the air conditioner supports. It needs to be heavy enouph to support the machine while bouncing around off road. I also cut out the hole for the water heater vent. I do another post with those pics.

 

[daddy2]

Here are the pics of the vent cover. The idea was to put something in that would keep the wind out of the vent pipe on windy days and to keep the weather out like snow and rain. Once the inside wall is done ( insulation and panneling), I will tack weld the 90 degree elbow in place. I am just not certain how far in the inside wall is going to set with the insullation. I do want to get almost all the welding done on the box before I spray the insulation in. No sence in having to scrape it out once it is in.

 

[peashooter]

[As I stated before, I will be putting a window 8000btu unit in. I cut out the hole and framed it fwith 2*2*1/8" flat stock. I had to also make a plug to use when the ac unit is taken out in teh fall and winter. ]

Good idea putting the AC on the back of the box. I put a window unit on the front of the box of my 109 with a cover that opens when we use the AC. However we recently started having passengers ride in the box (with a Freedman fold up paratransit seat bolted to a steel plate and the box crossmembers, also with intercom) but having the AC facing forward didnt allow for us to run it while driving, so now I need to modify the shrowd so that it can operate with the vehicle moving (air needs to enter the top and sides of the window units and then exit from the back of the AC), this will work well for you if you intend to run it off a generator while moving.
Also I have an 8000btu unit in my 109, I also have 2" foam insulation in the walls and ceiling with a value of r10, and on hot days its a struggle for it to keep up if its in the sun and the doors get opened often. Painting these boxes a dark color really turn them into ovens.
So again, good thinking with the AC placement, that should allow you to easily run it while moving, and be aware that 8000btu may not be enough to keep your larger box as cool as you think on hot days in direct sun. I learned this all the hard way. Painting the roof a lighter color may help a lot if you are okay with that, I wasnt so its a trade off.

 

[tamangel]

re: cooling...

this may be completely off the wall...errrr..roof...but has anyone thought of installing, what land Rover used to call, a 'Tropical' or 'Safari' roof.. here's a little info:

"...The safari roof was a device designed for the Series Type Land Rovers operating in the hot tropics. A simple sheet of aluminium mounted on top of the vehicle with metal feet, sandwiched a layer of air for insulation, which, when heated sufficiently, dissipated the air along with the heat while drawing in cool air through a repetitive cycle...."

just the concept, a space between roof itself and some sort of a raised '2nd roof' (for lack of a better term) to allow air movement..Should lessen interior AC load somewhat..

probably better info / examples out there..

Mike W

******

didn't mean hijack the thread...

 

[USAFSS-ColdWarrior]

re: cooling...

this may be completely off the wall...errrr..roof...but has anyone thought of installing, what land Rover used to call, a 'Tropical' or 'Safari' roof.. here's a little info:

"...The safari roof was a device designed for the Series Type Land Rovers operating in the hot tropics. A simple sheet of aluminium mounted on top of the vehicle with metal feet, sandwiched a layer of air for insulation, which, when heated sufficiently, dissipated the air along with the heat while drawing in cool air through a repetitive cycle...."

just the concept, a space between roof itself and some sort of a raised '2nd roof' (for lack of a better term) to allow air movement..Should lessen interior AC load somewhat..



Mike W

******

Interesting idea

I can see it working much the same as the tent fly concept.... a skin over the skin to provide shade and free-flow cooling.....

 

[caliber1]

Saw some MCI motorcoaches with double roofs like that a while back. Was told they came back to the states from Saudi Arabia or someplace like that. Will try to find some pictures. Got me thinking now about my trailer.

 

[ridingshotgun]

Subscribed!!! Just spent a half hour reading through this thread. You are doing what I wish I had the time and patience to do. Good luck. Can't wait to see the finished build.

 

[daddy2]

Good Idea about the roof being double walled but too much work right now. If I find that the ac unit isn't quite big enouph I might go woth a white herculiner roof. but I have tons of work till then.

 

[Mike929]

re: cooling...

this may be completely off the wall...errrr..roof...but has anyone thought of installing, what land Rover used to call, a 'Tropical' or 'Safari' roof.. here's a little info:

"...The safari roof was a device designed for the Series Type Land Rovers operating in the hot tropics. A simple sheet of aluminium mounted on top of the vehicle with metal feet, sandwiched a layer of air for insulation, which, when heated sufficiently, dissipated the air along with the heat while drawing in cool air through a repetitive cycle...."

just the concept, a space between roof itself and some sort of a raised '2nd roof' (for lack of a better term) to allow air movement..Should lessen interior AC load somewhat..

probably better info / examples out there..

Mike W

******

didn't mean hijack the thread...

Excellent idea, especially if metal.

 

[AnonymousOne]

First time seeing this post ... awesome idea. Impressive stuff .. tons of work .. nice to see your getting it done.


PS - Anyone notice the M36 before daddy started? Daddy your M36 is cleaner than my M35a3 and it is a 1993 ... wow ... very impressive !!! If that is a sign to come for your new version of the M36 .. I can't wait !!!!!!

 

[daddy2]

Thanks for the compliment. Hopefully more pics this week or weekend.

 

[59apache]

incredible amount of work...i salute you! you're doing a good job!

 

[Wolfknyte]

It's looking incredible. Truly inspiring, sir. Keep it up!

 

[Rambling Wreck]

Wow! What a beast of an RV. Keep up the great work and keep us posted.