Club 80-90 Forums

Not sure if this has been done before, can't find any threads on it so I'll ask the question;

Has anyone designed/built/installed a removable camper interior? I.e. the Fridge/sink/cooker/cupboard unit?

I was thinking about making a quickly removable system so that I can have the full size of the interior available reasonably quickly should I require it (I occasionally carry large items in the van and it can be a squeeze).

I was thinking of building the Sink/cooker/fridge/gas bottle into a removable unit which can be 'unplugged' from the interior, fixed to the existing spare seatbelt mounting holes with plugs and sockets for power and water connections. Perhaps some sort of pin-and-socket arrangement at the front of the cabinet going through the floor so that the unit is tipped forwards, the front engages first then the unit would be rolled over backwards into place and then bolted to the mounting points.

As well as giving much more room this would also make it a lot nicer to gain access in the future for repairs to the more inaccessible areas behind the cupboards. A similar approach could be employed to fix the wardrobe into place and I was also considering making a 'stealth' seat built into the space where my food storage cupboard resides currently so that with no interior, but the rock-n-roll still in place I could potentially carry up to 4 passengers.

Any thoughts on this?

everything is removable in mine but it's a bit heath robinson and no cooker or sink.
Basically a bed supported by storage boxes and a fridge that doesn't have a gas flue, some shelves by the rear window which unbolt.

I'd say hard to do if you want sink and gas fridge.

http://s1145.photobucket.com/user/paul_ ... wap&page=1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Ask Lloydy about his portable kitchen unit....

I have an "all in one" style unit, it was built by previous owners as it is a westy multivan i have and the unit replaces one of the jump seats at the sliding door, its in bits at the moment as i have been modifying it but it incorporates the sink, cooker, gas bottle, fridge, the water bottle for the sink just sits behind the passenger seat, it had a drain bottle in the unit but i have re-plumbed it so it goes out the bottom of the van that way i have more storage for dry foods, pots, pans, plates, cutlery etc

its bolted in to the floor via 2 coachbolts that can be quickly undone and whole unit removed, but it is not the easiest thing to move due to its size
this is kinda the only shots i have of it in the van prior to me removing it and cutting it down by 3 inches


and one of it in bits as i modify it



changes i have done to it were chop 3 inches off the top as it was sitting much higher than the windows and wasn't comfortable enough to use with it being too tall imo, cut a hole in the left side cabinet for a 4.5kg calor bottle to sit into as it was using Campinggaz before and didn't fancy paying their refill prices on smaller bottles, it only had a gas line plumbed in for the cooker which now has a line and valve to run the 3 way fridge on gas if i want it to, added switches to the front panel, one being a "fridge switch" as the fridge i have cannot be connected to 240v or 12v at the same time, so added an Isolator switch on the 12v side, the drain bottle inside the cabinet for the sink has been removed and a drain line all the way out the bottom of the cab has been added so i can just add the drain bottle outside the van when parked up, have also added a "volt meter" so i can see what the leisure battery is at and a dual 3.1 amp USB charger to the panel next to the switches, the plywood has also been routed out on the edges so i can attach grey westy edging strip and i have grey fablon to cover the wood grain so it looks more like a factory unit at a glance than something someone built

A few years ago I saw a german guy who made a camping unit that was attached onto the rails of a middle row seat so you could just slide in place of the seat.
And there were the units that Edd China used in the Wheeler Dealers, they were attached onto a rail and were easily removable.

E D I T: my memories were false: he made only a table-bed that slides in:
http://www.kerschhofer.net/t3/lbc.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

weegaz, That's the sort of thing I was considering, but perhaps a little wider to accomodate the (15kg?) gas bottle that I use.

The logic being that no gas gets un-plumbed if the unit is removed. I'm thinking of building a basic steel frame for strength and then lightweight marine ply for the outer. I'm acutely aware that the whole assembly will be behind me (the driver) while moving, and I don't fancy having it becoming detached and impaled in my spine in the case of an accident. In saying that, the current units are made of MDF which is horrid stuff and has wicked up water over the years and expanded, it's not in the best condition and probably wouldn't survive too well in an accident. This is why I'm considering steel pegs into sympathetic recesses in the floor combined with seatbelt mount fixings at the rear.

The main unit would be quite wide, as I have a sink with drainer and a 2-hob burner with grill. The secondary unit would simply be a small cupboard and food storage, possibly extending to the wardrobe if I decide not to make it a 3-part system.

ZsZ, I've not seen that one but would like to make a system using similar rails to those used on aircraft seats, the ones where you pull a pin and slide the mechanism inside of a track. This would allow for adjustment of the positions of things while maintaining the strength.

Dave.

The WD episodes:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3id30 ... orter_auto" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3id7e ... orter_auto" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

the interior units are in the second video

E D I T: and as I read there they made the modules:
http://www.amdro.co.uk/about_us.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If you want to slide a unit in, then you can't really cover the rails, so you'd have to go without a floor covering. If you can simply lift the unit in, and bolt it down, then all you need are holes in the floor in the right place (something I did with my westfalia unit). You need to be sure that the base of the unit is up to the job - I was concerned that in the event of a crash, the unit might come away from it's base. So a steel/aluminium framed unit would be useful. Then it starts to get heavy....

Wow... I've never seen that WD episode although I've heard of it, and the fact that the van now resides in a breakers due to an engine bay fire?

Very much not my cup of tea, not very homely. Did they seriously leave that MDF uncovered and untreated?

tforturton, for this design I was thinking more along the lines of 2 pegs shaped like hooks which would slot in if the unit was tilted towards you but won't disengage if they are simply lifted up. The base would be a square frame of steel angle and the rest of the unit would be Ply. The steel base would also incorporate some sort of clamping or strapping mechanism for the gas bottle since it would be the single most heavy component of the system.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewto ... sc&start=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
also seen this on another thread in another forum here, with you saying you were going to build it from a metal frame this might be more along the lines of what your after

That's not a bad design, I was thinking of just using a metal base rather than the whole thing, but I recon this fella's design would be probably lighter than my initial idea.