Minibus to motorhome

Bit more done. The roof insulation is in.
I've used recycled plastic, and then a layer of foil bubble wrap
20210408_191155.jpg
 
Craigderby said:
Bit more done. The roof insulation is in.
I've used recycled plastic, and then a layer of foil bubble wrapView attachment 482739
Click to expand...
I m following this thread with great interest, so thanks for keeping it updated.
Recycled plastic behind the layer of bubble wrap? In what form does the recycled plastic come and where do you get it from?
I've seen that type of bubble wrap on eBay. Is that where you got it from?
Are you keeping a running total of the costs of the rebuild?
When you get there, it will be interesting to see the final figure.
 
poisondwarf said:
I m following this thread with great interest, so thanks for keeping it updated.
Recycled plastic behind the layer of bubble wrap? In what form does the recycled plastic come and where do you get it from?
I've seen that type of bubble wrap on eBay. Is that where you got it from?
Are you keeping a running total of the costs of the rebuild?
When you get there, it will be interesting to see the final figure.
Click to expand...
This is what I've used behind the foil, https://www.diy.com/departments/diall-insulation-roll-l-6m-w-0-37m-t-100mm/3663602481812_BQ.prd
It's stuck in place with double sided tape, and then the foil is fixed with spray glue, and the seams sealed up with aluminium tape. The foil wrap came from Toolstation, but lots of places sell it.
I'm not keeping a list of what I've spent, but I've spent about £750 so far. That's not for everything that's on the van, as some of it isn't fitted yet. I don't have a fixed budget, but I'm trying to keep costs down where possible. A fridge will be the most expensive bit. An awning is the other thing that I'm trying to decide on, but I don't fancy paying over £500 for a big wind out Fiamma, so instead I may add a C channel and use a caravanstore instead.
 
Craigderby said:
This is what I've used behind the foil, https://www.diy.com/departments/diall-insulation-roll-l-6m-w-0-37m-t-100mm/3663602481812_BQ.prd
It's stuck in place with double sided tape, and then the foil is fixed with spray glue, and the seams sealed up with aluminium tape. The foil wrap came from Toolstation, but lots of places sell it.
I'm not keeping a list of what I've spent, but I've spent about £750 so far. That's not for everything that's on the van, as some of it isn't fitted yet. I don't have a fixed budget, but I'm trying to keep costs down where possible. A fridge will be the most expensive bit. An awning is the other thing that I'm trying to decide on, but I don't fancy paying over £500 for a big wind out Fiamma, so instead I may add a C channel and use a caravanstore instead.
Click to expand...
Thanks for that. Every bit of information is always of help to someone...especially me lol
I wouldn't fancy spending £500 on a wind out awning either.
Does a waterproof membrane have to be fitted at some point? Or have I missed that earlier in this thread?

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poisondwarf said:
Thanks for that. Every bit of information is always of help to someone...especially me lol
I wouldn't fancy spending £500 on a wind out awning either.
Does a waterproof membrane have to be fitted at some point? Or have I missed that earlier in this thread?
Click to expand...
The foil works as a vapour barrier. Although you can't see from the photos, it's completely sealed in the section above the windows extending to the roof, and then again on the bits along the bottom
 
Craigderby said:
The foil works as a vapour barrier. Although you can't see from the photos, it's completely sealed in the section above the windows extending to the roof, and then again on the bits along the bottom
Click to expand...
I see what you mean, thanks for that
 
Craigderby said:
The windows on one side are now tinted, which was easier than expected.
Just need to do the other side.View attachment 482869
Click to expand...
No bubbles? They do make a massive difference to the look of the camper.

Funnily enough I've just tinted, with a dark ish mirror tint, the windows on the two sunnier sides of my conservatory. It has made a huge difference to the internal temperature of the conservatory when the sun is beating down on it. Don't get me wrong, it's still toasty warm, but it is no longer an oven.
I purchased my tint from an online retailer, and I used window tint made for outdoor use.
The tint was therefore applied to the outside of my double glazed units.

You can of course tint double glazed units from the inside. But, if those windows are in direct sunlight, then they may suffer thermal shock which can result in the failure of the double glazed units.

You can also buy tinted security film which when applied, makes windows extremely strong.

Thanks for keeping us updated 👍
 
I'm not going to claim they're completely perfect, but not far off. I was fairly certain I'd mess them up as I'm not great with fiddly stuff, but I took my time and it went quite well.

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Nice apart from the weight or are you older?!

I see that lt46 minibus can be downrarted. So I guess that could be too.

Cheers James
 
I suppose just about any can be downplated, but you've got to consider how much weight that then gives you to play with. The weight can quickly add up, and that's before you've added things like a full water tank, food, and people.
 
Jamesh said:
Nice apart from the weight or are you older?!

I see that lt46 minibus can be downrarted. So I guess that could be too.

Cheers James
Click to expand...
Im 52, and can drive it. But I was looking ont the downrating thing as Im not sure of how it all works.
 
Had a delivery today of a diesel heater.
It's to be dual use for general heating and also heating the water.
20210410_185023.jpg

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look into where and how you install the pump, they can tick tick tick all night long and fitting makes a big difference
 
How is the wooden ceiling fixed?
Looks good, no matter what method you have used
Where did you get the diesel heater from?
 
Craigderby said:
This is what I've used behind the foil, https://www.diy.com/departments/diall-insulation-roll-l-6m-w-0-37m-t-100mm/3663602481812_BQ.prd
It's stuck in place with double sided tape, and then the foil is fixed with spray glue, and the seams sealed up with aluminium tape. The foil wrap came from Toolstation, but lots of places sell it.
I'm not keeping a list of what I've spent, but I've spent about £750 so far. That's not for everything that's on the van, as some of it isn't fitted yet. I don't have a fixed budget, but I'm trying to keep costs down where possible. A fridge will be the most expensive bit. An awning is the other thing that I'm trying to decide on, but I don't fancy paying over £500 for a big wind out Fiamma, so instead I may add a C channel and use a caravanstore instead.
Click to expand...
That's what I use,,Excellent awnings and quick to put up.BUSBY.

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Can't believe how much you have done in such a short time..looking good.BUSBY.
 
Craigderby said:
I now have a bit of a floor to go with my ceiling. All I need to do now is fill the bit inbetween!View attachment 487676View attachment 487677
Click to expand...
looking great and coming along nicely

may I ask, is their a reason for using a timber cladding for the roof/walls rather than a polycarbonate cladding.

Just curious and i’ve never done a conversion btw, but have insulated our conservatory roof using it along with the foiled backed insulation wrap with amazing results

Al 👍
 
The timber cladding is attached to wooden batons which are attached across the roof space to metal bracing bars which were part of the roof structure when it was a minibus.
I went for wood just because we like the way it looks. There's plenty of options, just down to personal choice. That's the great thing about doing your own.

The heater was from a company called maxspeedrods, or something like that.

Today the wife did a bit and put a clear varnish on the ceiling.
I've also started to wire up the split charger and leisure batteries.

The plan is to use the van to take our daughters boat to a sailing event on Saturday. We'll be sat in the back watching from garden chairs! Lol

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A little more done today.
The split relay is in place, along with the solar controller and batteries.
I just need to install the main earth lead, which will be done later today.
The relay works both ways, so when the leisure batteries are charged it will connect to the van battery and keep that topped up from the solar. When the engine is running it will work the other way.
In case you're wondering, I will be tidying the wiring!

20210422_143430.jpg
20210422_152202.jpg
 
Craigderby said:
The timber cladding is attached to wooden batons which are attached across the roof space to metal bracing bars which were part of the roof structure when it was a minibus.
I went for wood just because we like the way it looks. There's plenty of options, just down to personal choice. That's the great thing about doing your own.

The heater was from a company called maxspeedrods, or something like that.

Today the wife did a bit and put a clear varnish on the ceiling.
I've also started to wire up the split charger and leisure batteries.

The plan is to use the van to take our daughters boat to a sailing event on Saturday. We'll be sat in the back watching from garden chairs! Lol
Click to expand...
Thanks for answering my questions re the heater and the fixing of the wood.
Its always good to see how things are done
 
I've been stickering today.
The van is all ready for a bit of use tomorrow with our daughters sailing dinghy hooked up to the back. We're still lacking any basic facilities, but it'll be good to actually go somewhere in it!

20210423_193508.jpg
 

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