Eastern Sierras

This was the first major trip for iVan. And to put the rig to the full and complete test, Sidney and I decided to take along our friend Erin and her 7 year old son.

The kids slept in their own make shift bed under the adult's bed. We visited loads of hot springs, got in some fishing, built fires, had yummy food, and slept wherever we wanted. Which meant EVERY "campsite" had the best view ever!

Enough reading, this is gonna be a picture post!

Galley Cabinetry

The galley has proven to be the most meticulous of cabinets for the van. Drawers are a bit more complicated and involved than the swinging up doors I did on the upper cabinets.

All in all I'm very happy with how they came out. The van is very convenient now with all my possessions right where they need to be when I cook, clean, and live...

Cool it!

There are challenges to keeping food cool in a van. Size, power/fuel consumption, and a tilting/moving platform. Fortunately this is a great time in compact low power consumption refrigerator technology. The fridge I chose, runs directly on 12 volt energy meaning there is no need to convert my available power. It can also be modified (sadly it can't be purchased already modified!), to run directly with a solar system and take advantage of day time vs. night time power availability.

That modification involved drilling holes in a brand new fridge, removing the thermostat, and installing a thermometer connected to a new computer system. What it does is run the fridge as cool as possible without freezing the food during the day. It recognizes day time by sensing increased voltage on the circuit caused by the charge current for the batteries from the solar cells. In the evening it falls back to normal refrigeration temperatures.

If there are bottles of fluid or ice packs in the fridge, these are able to keep the fridge cool through the night dramatically reducing power consumption. Some nights the compressor hasn't engaged a single time. Another great benefit is perfectly quiet nights.

It has everything including the kitchen sink

Now there's a place to wash dishes and another line goes out back for an outdoor shower. The same system that heats air also heats water giving me hot water at the sink and the shower. After a little bit of usage, I think this is one of my favorite features and makes living in a van not much different than a "normal" home.

Now we're cooking!

Cooktop stove installed with one minor mistake requiring a bit of reconfiguration and a second hole in the floor. This stove sucks diesel out of the main fuel tank and air from within the cabin to produce heat and exhaust to the outside through the floor (when installed correctly!). It's really convenient to fuel as it just sucks diesel out of the same fuel tank the engine is using. It heats the cabin as a bonus (or minus if it's hot out!).

The downsides are it takes about 2-3 minutes to startup. Diesel isn't the most readily combustible of fuels so a whole ignition process has to progress until there is heat.

So far I love it. It cooks just fine and is easy to cleanup. Also checkout the butcher block counter top!