Orton DIY - Background

Graphite Dave

Dave Orton
I will post progress in sections as I proceed. This section is just a general review of where I am headed.

The requirements were:

1. Must be able to park in any auto parking place. (144" WB)
2. Must be as stealth as possible. No exterior indication that it is a camper. Only stuff showing will be solar panel and vent.
3. Must be fully self contained for two people.
4. Must retain enough cargo capacity to be used for utility hauling. (Removable rear table)
5. Use construction methods that are in my skill sets. (80/20 extrusions or equal)
6. Document all work with CAD drawings.

The Sprinter specifications are: (Related to conversion)

1. 144" WB
2. Sliding door and rear doors windows.
3. Espar auxiliary water heater.
4. Rear heat preparation.
5. Insulated windshield.
6. 220 amp alternator.
7. Dark tinted glass.
8. High roof.
9. Rear seat heat ducts.
10. Parametric Special Module. (Did not use)

The hardware selected is:

1. 24" x 32" shower pan.
2. 80 liter Waeco CR80 12 volt DC/120 volt AC refrigerator
3. Sumbeam 700 watt microwave. (1050watt power input)
4. Maradyn cab heater core with 12 v. fan.
5. Custom 8 gallon SS water heating tank. (inside van)
6. Dometic 974 portable toilet. (Permanently mounted inside shower enclosure)
7. Custom grey water SS tank. (under van)
8. Custom 30 gallon SS freshwater tank. (inside van)
9. Water pump. (not selected yet but probably Jabsco)
10. Electrical components. (Details in future electrical post)
11. 80/20 solar panel roof support.
12. Maxxair 6200K ventilation fan.
13. 1 1/2" square 80/20 structural aluminum framing. (actually Futura Industries)
14. APC retractable electrical cord.
15. Rattletrap sound control mat.
16. 1" & 1 1/2" rigid closed cell insulation.
17. Reflectix foil insulation.
18. Great Stuff foam.
19. 3/8" rubber flooring.

I will post each section separately as they are completed. The posts will be Floor, Insulation/walls, Framing, Electrical, Plumbing/Heating, Table/Benches/Bed, Sink cabinet, Tanks, Overhead storage cabinets and an "other" posting to cover misc. stuff.

Hopefully the postings will be useful to others. I have done a few things different than others have done. I would like to thank everyone who has posted information about their conversions. I have gained many good ideas from the postings.

Attached is a PDF floor plan drawing to show what I will build.

Dave
 

Attachments

Last edited:

bstory

New member
Looks great! I like the idea of the little folding table accessible to the swiveled passenger seat. I keep trying to think through a folding table but I end up with one that has multiple folds to reach where I want it and can't figure that out in practice.

What are the cabinets to be made of?

Beth
 

Graphite Dave

Dave Orton
Cherry cabinets. Shelf off side of sink will be mounted on two drawer slides so it can slide out toward the center of the van 8". The back of the sink cabinet will fold down to make an outside table when the sliding door is open. The back portion of the van will have a bench seat over each wheel well. A table will be in the middle. Will sleep on top of the table. A shower/portapotty enclosure will be behind the drivers seat.
 

Hikinginpdx

Sprinter is for sale
Dave,

I'm wondering what your plans are for electrical. Didn't see anything with expected draws or loads for your conversion. Nor did I see that you're planning the factory aux battery or an additional in your conversion. Perhaps I just missed that part.

I would recommend you go with good quality LED's for lighting. It will lessen the drain on whatever you use to power them. I'd caution against relying on your starter battery to run any devices for more than a trival amount of time.

When you talk about self contained for 2, is that dry camping for extended periods or lots of brief overnights while traveling?

Overall it looks good, should be lots of fun once you get it on the road.

Enjoy the journey
 

Graphite Dave

Dave Orton
See OrtonDIY - electrical post. Separate 255 amp hour AGM battery. 135 watt solar panel with MPPT controller. 1000 watt Magnum inverter/charger/transfer switch. House system will not be connected directly to van charging system. Second pure sine wave inverter will use vehicle 12 volt power to send 120 volt power to the Magnum inverter for charging while driving. All charging will be done by the Magnum 3 stage charger. All lights will be LED. Main power draw is the 80 liter compressor style refrigerator which pulls 40 watts. Refrigerator will have 1 1/2" of rigid foam insulation around unit. No TV or noisemakers. Only question is if 1000 watt inverter will operate 700 watt microwave that has 1050 watt input requirement. Magnum rated at 1050 watts surge for 30 minutes. Will use van for both dry camping and for travel. Progress is painfully slow but I am getting stuff done. All work will be documented in CAD.
 

1hen2ducks

2006 SHC & DAD owner
Will the Dometic 970 toilet be used as a porta-pottie or plumbed to a tank somewhere ?
Why did you choose that particular toilet ? I too have had an eye on that (five gallon) model.
Thanks for any enlightenment here.

Mike
 

Graphite Dave

Dave Orton
Chose that unit because it has fittings for the bottom that allow you to bolt it down. It will bolt it to a 1 1/2" SS tube that is cantalevered off the shower wall. Wanted it at normal toilet height and did not want to put holes in the shower pan. I have a 24" x 32" shower pan. Seems like enough room to staddle the toilet to be able to take a "Navy" shower. It will be used as a portapotty. I originally was going to have a black water tank but thought that would be more trouble than it was worth. What I have learned is that an old Quik chocolate container works real well. I think they have destroyed the design by redesigning the container. Now the plastic Folgers coffee container looks like it has potential.
 

bstory

New member
Ooh, let's not go there. I am just finishing a batch of Christmas cookies to go in a plastic Folger's container to go in the freezer.

On your build, Dave, how wide are the seats in the back over the wheel wells. We wanted the full 4' space between ours so they are only 9.5 inches, but I am thinking about using folding shelf brackets to have a fold up extension on each side to make sit-able seats. 18" or so in total. Is that a comfortable seat depth? We could still put 4' wide stuff on the floor the back as long as it wasn't more than 20" or so high.
 

Graphite Dave

Dave Orton
Width of seat is 48". Seat back is 2 1/2" toward center of the van from the van wall. Seats are 15" deep. Thanks bstrory for the direction on the water faucet. It was delivered yesterday. Just what I was looking for.
 
Last edited:

georgetg

2005 140" low roof
A couple of new illustrations of what I will end up with. The blank space behind drivers seat will be a shower/portapotty enclosure. I am making progress but it is frustatingly slow.
Looking good!
I think you have a pretty solid compact design.

While it might be frustrating to take time and prototype, I found I ended up with better solutions long term...

Cheers
George
 

d_bertko

Active member
We have a dining table sized like your one at the rear. I made it to be freestanding and we in fact use it outside the van about 5x as much as inside. The base consists of two TableMate2's and the top is 1/4" luaun with hardwood runners for strength. The TableMates can be used individually if preferred---they make fine laptop work stations. The TableMates have about a foot of height adjustment and that's a big help for unlevel sites or for different tasks.
 

Attachments


Top Bottom