After making a 2,500 mile trip from San Diego to Lake Oswego, Oregon and back we found that there was a need for a few updates. Especially adding a toilet, sink and wash station.
With the 2020/2021 COVID lockdown I kept busy for months updating our Ford E150 van to meet our new camping standards. Below are some of the newly added features. There is not much more to do to make this the total off-the-grid camping vehicle. After a few desert trips, lunch down at the beach and camping up in the forests, there will be many memories to share!
We added sides to enclose the CareFree awing. This makes a great wind break and added privacy. We also installed an exterior pressurized water tank that gets heated by the sun. This makes a great wash station for dishes and showers.
The battery system needed to be upgraded for off-grid camping. There are now 200 amp hours of battery power charged by the solar panel. We added a few 30 and 50 amp sockets to power accessories. The old rear air-conditioner and heater was removed to make room for the second battery. Prior to installing the cabinets I added access to the fuel pump by cutting an access hole in the metal floor. This will save time and labor by not having to drop the fuel tank for repairs.
In my past life of building boats, it was only natural to do a nautical interior of teak and bamboo. All of the wood molding was cut for planks of teak. A butcher block counter top and hatch lids made for a solid surface to sit and work on.
The final changes came to the interior. The cabinet build-out added a toilet, kitchen sink with a 5 gallon pressurized water system.
