Perkil8r Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 I have recently decided to knock the race support part of my business on the head for a while. This leaves me with a van which I don't want to sell, so what to do? Well that's easy, make it into a mobile warm room for use at star parties and darksites. The van is a Renault Trafic and is quite economical on fuel (I get upto 47MPG!) so it seems like the perfect solution to cold winter nights at Belper and the such. The intention is to have comfortable seating in the rear with a table for the laptop/s and lighting. A bit of under seat storage and adapt the rear portion for transporting gear in a better manner than chucking it all in randomly. The seat will also convert into a bed for emergency sleeping. It's not quite wide enough for me to fully stretch out width ways but is more than enough to be comfortable. The thinking here is random night's away and arriving at a starparty either too late to set a tent up or the being too bad to put a tent up etc. Here's some picks of the van before: The first job was to remove the stock and display racks and shelves from the rear. This has removed around 450kgs from the van! It now goes like a rocket so fuel consumption should get even better As I still want to be able to go back to doing the race support if things alter I needed to save that space so that the display can go back in at any time in the future. This meant I had to section the van off. I've done this with 1/2" Ply: You may notice that it doesn't come all the way to the bottom. This is two fold. I wanted to leave the bottom of the van clear enough if needs be to still fit long loads in the van. With this I can still get 8ft x 4ft sheets through and to a depth of 6". The second reason is the van is 4ft 6" from roof to floor The next job is to add sound deadening to the roof and inside the panels and to insulate it. I'm going to use recycled plastic loft insulation for the insulation and self adhesive flashing tape for the sound deadening. I want to do this now before I remove the forward bulkhead as it will be noisy in the cab if I don't do it first. I'll post more as I go through it, I know a couple of folks on here who share my van addiction Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dawson Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Go the whole hog and cut a hole in the roof and add a dome Looks good. James Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedledee Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Marvellous idea Mike. I could do with a van like that, and it has nearly as good mpg as my car! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glider Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Nice job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan the Plumber Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Was thinking of doing something similar with my van too, getting a VW transporter next year bit more room to set up than a Peugeot Expert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheila Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 looks good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cazz Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Great idea, are you including a cooker? You'll have to get some layout ideas from campervan pics. :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perkil8r Posted November 5, 2013 Author Share Posted November 5, 2013 Great idea, are you including a cooker? You'll have to get some layout ideas from campervan pics. :-D I have my little single burner camping stove. There will be a storage solution for that but no plans to develop too much of a kitchen area, I think it would be too much of a squeeze. My plan is to use the rear as a cooking / brew area on most occasions, although there will be times I'm sure when I don't want to get out of the "warm" to go make a brew. I'm thinking of this as more of a day van than a camper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cazz Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 That's how we tend to use ours mostly nowadays, now we have the trailer tent for sleeping in - we have the best of both worlds. I think you've started an EMS trend lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BAZ Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 It's coming along nicely Mike. Good luck with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perkil8r Posted November 6, 2013 Author Share Posted November 6, 2013 Been and fetched the sound deadening stuff today from Wickes. I'm using the adhesive flashing strip they sell. This is the same stuff as the expensive "proper" sound deadening stuff you can buy, just in a different format. I've used this before on a Transit I had before the Renault, it works spot on. Just wipe the panels clean first, cut to length and stick on. It doesn't need to be 100% coverage, 25% is enough to stop the majority of the drumming of the panels, but I am aiming for approx 50% coverage. I'm hoping to get that done tomorrow and make a start on removing the forward bulkhead. There are 2 rivets that will need drilling out, the rest is Torx bolts. I'm saving the bulkhead for the time being, more on that later if I need it for what I think I will. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philjay Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 Nah convert the lot Mike then it can be sleeping quaters as well. :-) I used classic acoustics stuff for antidrumming and acoustic insulation, the stuff comes in massive sheets and just sticks on. It also doubles as thermal insulation so im now toasty warm. are you putting mains in? Im still undecide about punching a hole in my van bodywork Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cazz Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 Here's an idea for hook up, scroll down the page ;-) http://www.vwt4forum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=96270 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perkil8r Posted November 7, 2013 Author Share Posted November 7, 2013 Nah convert the lot Mike then it can be sleeping quaters as well. :-) I used classic acoustics stuff for antidrumming and acoustic insulation, the stuff comes in massive sheets and just sticks on. It also doubles as thermal insulation so im now toasty warm. are you putting mains in? Im still undecide about punching a hole in my van bodywork I would love to do the whole thing but it does then limit my activities somewhat regarding the business which can now still return to race support if the demand increases enough. The seat will fold out into a bed so it can be sleeping quarters if needs be I've done a fair bit today so will post up in a while once I grab the pictures off my phone. I'm not planning on running mains into the van, yet...... I may well build that function in at some point though. The main thing is I am trying to convert it for as little cash as possible, I suppose partly to give me something to do and put my energy into rather than dwelling on the fact my main drain on time has suddenly disappeared. It almost feels like I have split up with the missus or something, there is a huge hole in my life Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philjay Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 I know exactly what you mean about a hole in your life, years ago I rebuilt a 1967 Lotus Elan s2 se and spent all my spare time on it, thenbwhen it was complete we used to do the shows and meets etc. When I sold it all that stopped and there was one heck of a void to fill. It soon gets filled though with other projects Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perkil8r Posted November 7, 2013 Author Share Posted November 7, 2013 And so to the progress.... Today I fitted the sound deadening: And removed the forward bulkhead: This has exposed some nasty bits where the pillar trims are different for the van with a bulkhead to that of the van without a bulkhead, they don't wrap all the way around: This is where my previous comment about keeping hold of the bulkhead comes into play. The trims are £169 new or £69 second hand, this seems a bit excessive to me for a few bits of cheap plastic. I have two initial ideas at the moment. The first is to scour scrap yards and eBay and hope to find a set for a lot less than the quoted prices. The second is to make something to fill the gaps, either out of wood and then re trim the whole pillar in fabric of some description or use the bulkhead to cut the relevant pieces from, cover those pieces in something and then bolt them back in. I will ponder that for a bit I think! After removing all of those bits and having put the sound deadening on the panels, I took it for a spin around the local area to see how it sounds. There is a bit more noise than before, but certainly nothing to worry about. Insulation and carpets etc should help with that too. I think it will be as quite as any regular car once those jobs are done, especially once the furnishings go in too. Tomorrow is time for a good tidy up and go hunting for the speaker wires which must be somewhere in there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teslar Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 Nice work Mike. Don't be tempted to put expanding foam in between any panels. It causes the rivulets of water to form and rots the sills if you ever need to weld them it risks setting the van alight. I saw a van that happened to. Not a pretty sight. Removable foam or packing is better My van is up for sale next summer if you fancy it I'm going to downsize to a t5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philjay Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 T5s rule Tom :-) I ditched my bulkhead straight off mike, it allowed to put the drivers seat further back for a more comfy driving position. Also you can now get a swivel for your seats, they make a great deal of extra living space when turned round plus you get a comfy chair as well. Ive fitted the double swivel nd have still to do the drivers seat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cazz Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 Good choice :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perkil8r Posted November 7, 2013 Author Share Posted November 7, 2013 Captains seats are a long way down my list, but they are there I will swap to 2 single seats though when I do. Ford Galaxy seats apparently fit without much effort and the pre-tensioners fit straight on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perkil8r Posted November 10, 2013 Author Share Posted November 10, 2013 A busy and somewhat frustrating day but the result was worth it. Fitted my beloved MB Quart 6 x 9 speakers into the rear bulkhead: Since I couldn't find where the factory fitted speaker wires went to in the rear I ended up having most of the dash out, the side trims, passenger seat and trunking in the rear to route the new cables along the path of the standard wiring loom. I'm a bit of a nerd when it comes to installing extra equipment, wanting it to look like it should be there, so the wires had to be hidden away and follow a similar route to how I expect Renault would do it The plus side is that after owning the van for 5 and a half years I finally have all the dash illuminated as I changed the bulb that has been blown since I've owned it SWMBO was pretty shocked to see so much of the van in pieces when she brought the brew out to me. I've put it all back together and can confirm I have no extra screws left over I have waited to get my MB Quarts back into one of my vehicles for a long time now, and I am very happy to have them back in and working The screws will be painted black when I take them out to fit the carpet. Tomorrow the seat/bed build will begin! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+RonC Posted November 10, 2013 Share Posted November 10, 2013 Looking (& sounding) good Mike, well done mate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catman161 Posted November 10, 2013 Share Posted November 10, 2013 Looks awesome Mike. I wouldn't even know where to begin if I were to ever want to do something like this. Am gonna go down the small caravan route myself in time. Great for the DZ and for stargazing. I hope to have it in time for EMS 3 which I will get to if it kills me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perkil8r Posted November 10, 2013 Author Share Posted November 10, 2013 Thanks guys. Felix, I'm not sure where to start either TBH, I'm just making it up as I go along I would have a caravan if I had the room to keep one, but I don't so this is a nice compromise. I still have my detatched bungalow for sleeping in at star parties, but this is for those one offs or when the weather is too bad to pitch the tent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BAZ Posted November 10, 2013 Share Posted November 10, 2013 Looks excellent Mike. We are sure going to know where you are with those speakers. Proper job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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