CaveVan Forum

Pictures and tall tales!! => Show off your projects here! => Topic started by: 42pvan on May 25, 2015, 11:16:06 pm

Title: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: 42pvan on May 25, 2015, 11:16:06 pm

So I started with a pretty standard EVC and then the stock  Norcold fridge started having problems.  :PI researched the topic on The Samba and concluded that a TruckFridge was the way to go. Ordered one and put it in and got a great fridge, more cold space, more "cabinet" space, and a new drawer!  :) And I got cool new covers to replace the plastic vent covers that were needed for the propane function of the original fridge. ;D

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: 42pvan on May 25, 2015, 11:23:39 pm

Then I wanted more fridge run time between charges rather than the day or so from the POs house battery. The local battery shop suggested dual Trojan T105s (6V golf cart batteries). But these would need a new battery box, so might as well replace the surrounding cheap plastic cabinet that would squeak all night from the plastic rubbing on plastic  ::). And these nice new batteries would need a good charger so got a ProMariner 20 amp dual that hooked to the Trojans and the starter battery. Now all my batteries stayed nicely conditioned and topped off 8)

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: albertr on May 25, 2015, 11:24:32 pm

 How do you like TruckFridge? How much current does it draw on 12VDC?

Cool vent covers! Did you fabricate them?

-albertr

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: 42pvan on May 25, 2015, 11:36:52 pm

If I replaced the passenger side cabinet, might as well do the drivers side one as well ::) opted for cubbies to access the new storage areas created by removing the original converter (rearward cubbie) and the "extra" heating duct (forward cubbie). Winnebago routed the 4 inch diameter exit duct into a large plenum and split it into 2 four inch exit ducts that can be seen on the driver side of the rear bench seat. No idea why they did this  :o
I also replaced the silly foot board under the rear seat that had no function and would fall off at the slightest touch and was hard to put back into place.

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: 42pvan on May 25, 2015, 11:43:52 pm

The TruckFridge is great! I don't have to think about it at all and works great!  I got the DC only version and works fine with the ProMariner charger when plugged into shore power. It draws about 2 amps (maybe 2.5) and uses about 25 amp hours per day. So my T105s that have a 225 amp hour rating should be able to run the fridge for about 5 days while drawing the batteries down 50%. Someday, maybe I will install a solar setup to further increase the time I can go without charging.

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: Cole on May 26, 2015, 07:34:41 am

Love two things about this! First it looks like good functional modifications! Secondly, I hate that they did such drab grey interiors in these. Any addition of color and real materials like wood make it seem like a nicer vehicle to me.

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: albertr on May 26, 2015, 08:06:14 am

Thanks for sharing experience with TruckFridge. Did you make these vent covers yourself?

-albertr

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: Itsamoto on May 26, 2015, 02:15:03 pm

Looks fantastic -- nice cabinet work. Studies show that wood grain warms and calms people.

Having never been in an EVC (and having just SWB) -- that rear section looks very useful with the mid plank removed. Versatile.

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: 42pvan on May 26, 2015, 08:34:19 pm

Thanks for the good feedback! The vent covers are really just plugs and not vents. The TruckFridge does not need any ventilation and I just wanted to plug the holes in the side of the van. I had them made at a local machine shop where we do a lot of business for my job. They are aluminum with blind tapped holes on the back to attach them, black anodized, and then the design was milled into them. They say different designs are easy in case anyone is interested.
The rear section is great because it is pretty functional in camping mode as seen in the pictures, and you can remove the board and the rear seat easily to give a huge hauling bay. Sheets of plywood are no problem!


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Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: albertr on June 04, 2015, 09:11:26 am

How much it would be to make another pair of these covers? I don''t need any custom milling on them, just plain flat surface.

Love your battery cabinet! Which aluminum extrusions were you using?

-albertr

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: 42pvan on June 04, 2015, 11:07:30 pm

The covers would probably somewhere around $40 each without engraving but could be long lead time as my work is keeping the shop really busy these days! Could probably get them anodized something other than black as well. I don't thing engraving would add much to them in case you want do something fun

I used 80/20 extrusion for the cabinets. All 1 inch series as that was the smallest they had with all the quarter round stuff. I choose this because we had a bunch of accessories and parts leftover at work and I was used to the brand. It was good because my current work project uses a bunch of quarter round extrusion which is a first for my company, so I had some experience with it.


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Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: albertr on June 05, 2015, 12:25:34 pm

Thanks, these are great looking cabinets!

Unfortunately, I have to pass on covers. If it would be about $40 for a pair, I might consider it, but for $80 is just above my budget.

Thanks again for sharing your project!

-albertr

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: sdunn on June 05, 2015, 07:14:31 pm

Great posts 42pvan!  Question: Do you still have shore power capability now that you've removed the power converter?

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: 42pvan on June 05, 2015, 07:50:36 pm

Thanks! Yes, I still have shore power. Power coming in from first goes through a circuit breaker or GFCI (the big square thing with a little button in it that you see when you open the circuit panel lid in an EVC). After passing through that safety circuit, 110 VAC comes out and is then routed throughout the van. I still have a few outlets and have the battery charger plugged into one of them. I only use them as extension cords when working in the van . The only thing the inverter does is supply enough DC power to run just about anything you could think of back in the late 90's. Now, with everything much more efficient, I found the charger is sufficient for my needs once I got rid of the energy hog Norcold fridge.


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Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: Nemesisnight on June 15, 2015, 12:02:12 pm

Great build so far, can't wait to see what else you have in store!!! It's hard to find many people that change the interiors in EVC's and I want to get as many ideas as possible before I start doing mine.  Love the addition of the back cubbies, can you elaborate or show additional photos of what you did with the heater ductwork?  did you keep the original 2 ducts and route an additional one, (or) bypass those 2 altogether and do 1 bigger one?  Do your cubbies still have the vents in them to allow circulation for the propane heater, if not what was your solution for that?  You should sell a kit minus the wood un-assembled so I can buy one and build my own lol.  Maybe its easy to find the materials and build it, I'm good with woodwork but never have used the aluminum you have for the frame structures.

Title: Re: Removing the Winnebago from an EVC
Post by: 42pvan on June 15, 2015, 08:48:07 pm

Thanks! The heater ducts were goofy to start with . The heat outlet is a 4" hole and Winnebago put about 10" of flex duct to a sheet metal plenum (about 4" x4" x10") that had 2 4" ducts coming out of it. There was flex duct between those and the two vents you see in the original EVC. I didn't see the need to spilt the heater output into two separate vents that go to the same place, so I made the new cabinet shorter and just ran one duct straight to the end of the new cabinet, keeping it high so I had additional storage space via the cubby. I haven't tried out the heater yet but the new vent does blow I to the back of the rear seat a bit in both seat and bed configurations. I just figured it didn't matter much with such a small space to heat .
The aluminum for the cabinets comes from a company named "80/20". I used the 1" series because it was the smallest that I could get the quarter round extrusions and the nifty quarter round tri corner pieces. You can get the extrusions and some parts on Amazon. But if you go through a dealer, you can have the pieces cut to length and tap the ends and drill access holes where needed. That's usually what we do at work where use the stuff frequently, and it goes together quickly. I could probably come up with a cut list of parts needed and all the modifications but it would take awhile. I pretty much made it up as I went and did not keep a record of any dimensions .
No need for vents since the cubbies are just open to the interior of the cabinets. The heater brings in outside air through one of the vents on the outside and exhausts through the other so it doesn't need the interior vents for combustion but may for some sort of cooling of surfaces. I suspect the interior vents were mostly for the archaic stock converter that came with the EVC. If you put in a modern charger or converter, you could likely get away with less ventilation.


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