Van

this is my van! i live here.

it is named xxx. it is a 2019 ram promaster 2500 with a 159' wb (hightop).

solar

i have 2x100W renogy panels mounted on a custom bracket that i made from a few unistrut bars. soon i'll have 4x200W panels, hopefully.

insulation

xxx has full killmat sound insulation, multiple layers of polyiso in the walls and ceiling, with thinsulate in any areas where needed (like doors, roof, even above the cab, and in the ribs). Ceiling is knotty pine tongue and groove, walls are 3/4" oak plywood (lower walls) and white painted luan (upper walls). Floor is Killmat, XPS foam insulation topped with 3/4" oak plywood, topped with vinyl flooring. All wood is sealed with polyurethane (multiple coats).

electrical

The electrical system was designed for future expansion, should it be necessary. Lots of "extra runs" of 10g stranded wire was run anywhere I though that it may be needed. In particular, 110v runs are provided to front and rear fan locations (for AC if it is ever installed), plus 12v lines run to the kitchen counter area, the rear above doors area, and to both front and rear fan locations. All of the wire runs are labeled at both ends. The system is powered by a 300ah ampere time battery, which is charged by a Stirling 60 amp battery to battery charger while the van is running & the 200W of solar.

The house battery can also charge via the AIMS inverter-charger while connected to shore power. The AIMS 2500w inverter charger is mounted to the drivers-side wall under the bed. All of the main wiring terminates in this area. All 100v and 12v power is regulated through an RV fuse (12v) breaker (110v) distribution center.

the above system was designed & the pic was taken before i got my grubby paws on the van. i'm planning on tearing out the inverter & shore power & converting to a DC-only system, with small plug-in inverters wherever i need AC power. i have no appliances that use more than 65W, so cutting out the large inverter should mean that i'm able to eliminate a bunch of failure points.

plus, i care immensely about being self sufficient & i don't want any excuse to rely on grid power. i need to set this constraint so that i manage my system appropriately.

Subhyphae