Isuzu NPR HD Truck Camper Build

VicHanson

Adventurer
On Monday I went to Ace Hardware and to Menards (a large home improvement store in the Midwest) and tried to get as much stuff as I could think of for the solar panel installation. Of course this was hard to do as I really didn't know what I needed, was just guessing and learning as I went, kind of like this whole camper build! Thankfully Menards has one of the largest selections of stainless steel hardware (nut, bolts, etc.) of anyplace I have been except for Ace, and their bulk packs are a lot cheaper than Ace. I also got a 4' piece of pipe and that was enough that I can loosen the nuts on the front wheels, those are the wheels with the new tires. I haven't tried the back wheels yet.

Yesterday I laid out one of the solar panels on the driveway and tried to work out the mounting for them. I want to be able to tilt the panels up as well, as this helps a lot to get maximum power out of them with the low angle of the sun in the winter time. To further complicate the issue is the lack of space on the roof for the large panels. I bought them at Sun Electronics in Miami (they also have stores in Arizona). Their higher watt panels are all the same size so I got the 210 watt ones, which were $385 each if I remember right. I just checked their website and the price has gone up a little, they are $403 now, still way cheaper than others. They are the same as the Evergreen panels, except that they are not U.L rated. The Evergreens are $480. I had also ordered a 45 amp Morningstar TriStar charge controller with the solar panels, but when I got there they didn't have one so they gave me the 60 amp one for the same price. It normally costs $30 more! That might be needed if I added another panel, but I don't have anymore room so probably won't be able to use the extra capacity.

Anyway the panels are 37 1/2" wide by 65" long. I have about a inch to spare total for each panel, between the roof vent and the edge of the camper! The third panel will go sideways at the back of the roof so the available space will almost all be used. The only problem with this is that the 2 front panels can tilt up on their sides, the 3rd one will have to tilt up on its end, so I won't be able to tilt it up as far with out having it stick way up in the air. The mount will still have to be stronger and use more of the expensive aluminum angle.

As you can see, the right panel tilts fine, and clears the roof vent but due to a design error in the mount the left one doesn't tilt at all (except the opposite way!) I ran out of 1" angle so had to use 3/4" and then had to set the feet in almost an inch due to a lip on the edge of the roof, and the combination doesn't leave room for it to hinge. I didn't realize this until I had them bolted down. The outside of the right panel is the same but that one tilts in to the middle so it isn't a problem. I think I have a solution figured out, just need some scraps of aluminum - unfortunately my source of aluminum scraps is in Florida!

I guess this is a good time to give public thanks to my cousin Jim, where I stayed for four months, Dana, who did all the aluminum work, and Adam who did the plumbing and other things. Without their help this project would never have turned out this nice, would have taken much longer, been a lot harder and cost a lot more! And thanks also to Janet for the good cooking and making the curtains.

Tomorrow I hope to get the material for the mounting of the third panel and get that installed. Getting the panels hooked up to the charge controller and the batteries will have to wait, maybe I can do it on the trip west.


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D

Deleted member 9101

Guest
1. It amazes me the stuff you can find cheap at Harbor Freight and Northern Tools

2. I love your solar set up.
 

VicHanson

Adventurer
Just a quick note before leaving Lake City, Minnesota, on the banks of Lake Pepin (a very wide spot in the Mississippi River) - the birthplace of water skiing they say.

I got the 3rd solar panel installed today after going to Menards for more aluminum angle. Also had to redo the second panel I installed yesterday because it wouldn't tilt. It still only goes up about 2 feet so might have to modify it a bit more. Will have to see if it works OK like this, I think if I raise it any higher it will cast a shadow on the panel behind it during low sun angles.

I should have done the last panel first, it was much easier because the feet are not under the panel like half of the feet on the first two. Of course I learned a lot doing the first two so the third was easier due to that as well. The other good news is now that the panels are installed, my overhead bed is freed up to sleep in, so I can put up my table now as!

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Checking the fit

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Close up of the mounting

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All mounted!
 

VicHanson

Adventurer
Been too busy hiking and traveling to spend much time here but will give a quick update. I guided a family from Spain on the Tahoe Rim Trail for 11 days in August, we all had a great time on a beautiful trail. Then we spent 5 days in Yosemite and a couple in Sequoia N.Parks. After that I stopped at a friend's place and finally got my solar panels hooked up. I have been using them now for almost 2 weeks and am very happy with the results. The 120v fridge works well, except the freezer isn't quite cold enough to keep the ice cream hard. I could turn it colder but this way the ice cream is easier to dish up!

After that I spent over a week in the Tahoe area, hiking a few sections of the TRT that I could easily drive to, and camping near the trail when possible, a few days at the beach, and then a day of mtn. biking.

I camped last night in the Tahoe Nat. Forest off hwy 20, between Soda Springs and Nevada City in California. Had a great day biking on the Pioneer Trail, which I discovered by accident when I was looking for a place to camp. Afterward I took my first shower using a Coleman 5 gal. solar shower, only $7 or $8 at Walmart. I had it on the roof with 2 gal. of water for less than 2 hours and it was so hot that I had to add 1 gal. or cool water to use it, which made it just right. As it was my first shower in over a week, I used about 2 1/2 gallons! I DID 'wash' (no soap) in Lake Tahoe a few times last weekend.

Just last night I got the camper 12v system hooked up, now I can hook up my LED lights to that rather than using the AA batteries in them. I also have some that I recharge on 115v, so am using a small 75w inverter plugged into one of the 12v receptacles I installed. Seemed silly to use the 2000w inverter to charge them, laptop and cell phone. The big inverter has a load sensor on it, it only runs when there is a load turned on. It works great with the fridge, toaster and rice cooker, but not with the microwave. The microwave has electronic controls and it needs power to set the cooking time, but doesn't draw enough to turn the inverter on, so I need to turn on something else first, then turn on the micro, which works OK.

This afternoon I stopped in Grass Valley to pick up a remote temperature sensor for the charge controller, it sends the battery box temp. to the controller to adjust the charge as needed for cold or hot weather. Will try to get that hooked up tomorrow.

I wasn't sure how much electricity the fridge would use but am pleased with the results. It uses about 25 amps to start but quickly goes down to about 15, then slowly drops down to 12 amps and then shuts off, after running about 10 minutes. I was waiting to see how much reserve power I have, and it is plenty, so I am going to add more 115v cooking appliances and use them rather than LP. I plan on getting a small electric fry pan, a 1 burner hot plate, and maybe a waffle iron. I have used the micro to reheat rice, and probably with use it to cook frozen veggies until I get the hot plate.

I have never been below 92% of a full charge in the morning, and usually it is 94%. With full sun the panels have put out up to 30 amps of power, and that is leaving them flat, I haven't tilted them since I hooked them up. And they are fully recharged in a couple of hours once the full sun hits them. I have tried to use the toaster, rice cooker and micro during the day, and the gas stove in the evening, but it looks like that really isn't necessary. So far haven't used the Mr. Buddy heater, the coldest has been about 50 degrees inside when I wake up in the morning. Will be time to head south soon!

Well I need to go find a camping spot for the night. BTW, both Burger King and Mac Donalds have free WiFi at most stores. I am using Walmart's $30 a month plan, 1000 min. of phone and 5 mb of internet, which has worked OK for checking my email and updating Facebook, but not for Expo.

I do have some hillbilly racing stripes on my camper now, as well as knocked off 1 red lens from a side marker light someplace in the trees around Tahoe. I'm glad the camper isn't any wider (7'8") or longer (21'). I have been able to go most places I wanted to, have passed on some forest service roads that looked too steep or rough. Have been getting lots of admiring comments and looks. Had one older mtn. biker ask if I would adopt him! So far I am very pleased with the way the camper turned out and is working, just need to get a few of the remaining comfort items finished like the plumbing and get some water in the fresh water tanks.

I have averaged just over 15 mpg most of the time, except for a few fills with more mountain climbs then downhills, so am happy with that.
 

UHAULER

Explorer
Hey, you're right up the road from my 'hood. There are some sweet motorcycle trails near the pioneer trail. I hope you enjoy the area.
 

VicHanson

Adventurer
A few more comments about how the camper is working out in daily life. On really hot days of 90 plus degrees, it gets up to 90 in the camper as well, especially if the larger window is facing the sun and I am not in the camper so it is all closed up. I found that the fridge wasn't getting enough air flow around it (there aren't any coils on the back, they are inside on both sides of the fridge). This caused the fridge to keep running, I suppose because it wasn't cooling properly. I have a 12v fan, about 11" in diameter, that I got at Walmart for $13. It takes 8 "D" batteries or an AC adapter (not included) so I hadn't used it yet. I just hooked it up to the camper 12v system and put it on top of the fridge, blowing down the back and around both sides. This really helps the heat dissipation and now the fridge shuts of normally or a little slower when it is hot. Because the problem is only when the sun is shining, the extra draw of the fan isn't any problem. It is only .5 amps anyway, so not much. It also helps circulate the air throughout the camper as well.

I wanted to hook it up with 12v cigarette type outlets and when I looked for them at Walmart the cheapest they had was a "Y" setup, it has 1 male plug and 2 female receptacles. It was also the same price (or cheaper) than buying 1 each of male and female units ($5 or $6 if I remember right). I cut off the 2 female sockets and connected them directly to the 12v wiring that used to power the heater that I took out. I took the male plug and connected that to the wires that used to go to the battery compartment in the fan. So now I have a 12v socket for both the fan and the small inverter (which is powering my laptop now, WiFi courtesy of the AT&T store next to Home Depot where I am parked tonight. For such a cheap 12v plug/socket unit, it really works well. The plugs fit in securely, connect every time and the sockets even have rubber caps to cover them when not being used.

Here are a few pics, including some of hooking up the solar panels to the charge controller, inverter and fuse box. The meter shows the charge rate in amps.

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SWbySWesty

Fauxverland Extraodinaire
Hey Vic,

How are things going since we met a while ago at the hot springs? Where have your travels taken you?

Garrett
The guy with the VW poptop
 

VicHanson

Adventurer
Hi Garrett, Thanks for checking on me. I've been in the desert since Thanksgiving, after spend time in L.A. and the San Gabriel mtn. Went to the slabs near Niland, then 5 Palms south of there, Quartzite AZ and have been around Ajo and Gila Bend AZ for the last month. Just today heading back to Phoenix and then on to Tonto NF. Plan on being in Denver by Apr. 8th and then Minn. by the 1st of May. Having a great time, lots of hiking but not enough hot springs!
 

VicHanson

Adventurer
I just spent a week hiking and biking on the Black Canyon National Recreation Trail, north of Phoenix, AZ. It is open to hikers, mtn. bikers and horses. Some of the trail on the south end (starting at State Rt. 74) is just old jeep trails, but north of what is called the Boy Scout Loop to the Agua Fria River just north of the Black Canyon Trailhead is beautiful single track. It is a great hiking trail, but is even more fun on a mtn. bike if you like a rolling and twisty single track. It's not super technical but it gave me a good work out after not doing much mtn. biking for the last few years.

I'm also posting a few pics from the last couple of months, haven't had a lot of extra internet time to do it before.


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In Utah somewhere - Half Dome, Yosemite
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Big Sur, California coast - Big rig at Quartszite, AZ
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Sororan Desert Nat. Monumento near Gila Bend, AZ
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Hamburgers on the George - A friend on the trail
Foreman grill via solar power
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Black Canyon Trailhead - Bike art on the Black Canyon Trail
 

VicHanson

Adventurer
Well I have been visiting my son and some friends in the Denver/Colorado Springs area for a couple of weeks, wishing I was back in warm Arizona. I drove through the Superstition Wilderness on the Apache Trail and spent about a week near Canyon Lake. Great scenery and hiking, really enjoyed it.

After leaving there I took US Hwy 60 to New Mexico and then north. I did have some unwanted excitement on the way. Just before getting to I-25 I was going down a curvy hill with a very strong cross wind from the right. I heard a noise and got a glimpse of something that seemed to hit the cab. I had two cars behind me, a no passing zone and couldn't pull over due to a crash barrier and no shoulder. I slowed down (had been going 55 mph) trying to figure out what had hit me when all of a sudden I saw something flying across the oncoming lane on the left. The cars behind passed and pointed at my roof and honked.

As soon as I could I made a U turn and slowly went back up the hill on the shoulder. I soon found what I had lost - one of my solar panel laying shattered in the ditch! The mounting frame was still attached by the 2 bolts on one side, no bolts on the right side that had been facing the wind. Evidently those bolts had come out and the wind raised it up on that side and ripped the lag screws out of the roof on the left as the wind grabbed it and away it flew. Thankfully it blew straight across the 2 oncoming lanes (and there wasn't any traffic coming) and landed in the ditch.

All I can figure out is that the bolts vibrated loose with all the rough roads I had been on and the last one must have been what hit my cab. During Dec. and Jan. I had been tilting the panels to get a better angle for the sun, but hadn't needed to do that in Feb. and March. And I guess I hadn't checked them since then, which was a huge mistake!

So, if you have anything attached to the roof or sides of your camper, make sure you check the mounts regularly!

On a happier note, the other 2 panels are functioning fine and producing enough electricity to meet all my needs now with the longer days.

I needed to replace the 4 back tires but the price in Arizona was much higher than when I bought 2 new ones for the front last summer in Minnesota. I just got them here in Colorado Springs for about $120 cheaper, plus a $60 internet rebate! All prices were from the same chain, Discount Tire and the same tires, BF Goodrich Commercial TA Traction. The total mounted and balanced price was $768.51 including the rebate.

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Boulder Canyon Trail

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Apache Lake, Roosevelt Dam and Lake
 

jronwood

Adventurer
I just wanted to say what a great job you did on this unit. I am a welder, fabricator, blacksmith, sawyer, funiture designer, woodworker, and all around inventor. You did VERY well. You were wise to "nix" the camper and start fresh, there is ALOT of RV junk out there. I am converting an all aluminum Ambulance body into an "adventure camper" to pull behind my truck (family of 5) so need room and capcity on truck for fun gear.

Enjoy, Jronwood
Greensburg Pa.
 

VicHanson

Adventurer
Still trucking!

Been a long time since I posted here. I spent the summer in Minnesota, then headed west through the Badlands, Black Hills, Yellowstone and Glacier, and then south through Washington, Oregon, arriving in Los Angeles in October. I am now back out in the desert south of Palm Springs, in the Salton Sea area, enjoying the hot weather, hiking and biking. Been playing in the low hills and slot canyons near Mecca for the last couple of weeks. Great fun, anyone want to come and join me?
 

SWbySWesty

Fauxverland Extraodinaire
Hey Vic!

I'm glad to hear that all is well. Since you're in the Salton Sea area, do you think you'll still be out there come late March when the Desert Rendezvous comes somewhere out to the SoCal desert? It would be great to meet up again and see how all your mods are holding up!

Garrett
 

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