Gigi’s Log Book Chapter – 13

I got myself really busy lately as all the bits and pieces purchased in February, have started being delivered and the fact that the temperature has dropped significantly, it makes working long hours much easier… Building a motorhome under the sun is easier said than done especially around the 43° Celsius and 80% humidity.. You gotta to love Queensland weather and is not for everybody… ;)

Back in 2015 I  made a huge list of the jobs that needed to be done and based on the weather I  was getting I would have decided if to work either outside or inside the Coach.. That turned up to be an excellent idea as you can work pretty much every day… Unfortunately I didn’t keep in consideration flash flood (we already had three this year), where you get 10 cm of water, that eventually turns into mud all around your working area… Some old carpet did help but some days it was just not worth it getting near the vehicle.. Those days were spent doing homework and research on materials, colours, different ideas…

The first project to be completed this month, was the painting of the roof. After the removal of the air conditioning unit from the roof I did patch few holes with fibreglass, then using an airgun I applied a good quality undercoat and finally finished the job with two coat of two pack white paint… I was very lucky that a friend came to the rescue with a beautiful Genie diesel scissor lift that made the entire job a breeze…  I originally had planned to use trestles but I can see now it would have taken ages considering the length of the roof.. In the end it took 4 litres of undercoat, 6 litres of two pack paint (4+2) and about 2 litres of thinner… In the picture you can see the undercoat covering the entire roof… Now you may ask why I didn’t go for the more popular vinyl paint that seem to be used by most caravan these days… There is a very simple reason for that… The two pack paint is much, much long lasting and much stronger against abrasion, that are quite common on recreational vehicles..

I’m also still working on the ramp and like any new projects it has few little problems that need to be ironed out, but overall is coming along quite nice… I’ll probably make a video of the entire project and show it in operation soon..

Unfortunately I’m still waiting on the side panels that I ordered to replace all the windows, so in the meantime I decide to start to work on the bin’s area. The bin’s area was pretty good and it had no rust. Considering that all the tanks, pumps and plumbing is going to be installed there, I decide to make the floor waterproof… After an undercoat of bitumen paint I applied two coats of plastic paint (same stuff used to paint inside cement water tank and to make retaining walls waterproof…) Now it doesn’t seem much but the entire bin area is nearly 10 square metres, so be prepared to spend some time in a very awkward positions while painting, as it is very hard to reach the  centre of the floor unless you want to stay on your knees on an angled floor.. 😥 (good luck with that)… After two days the floor was completely painted and ready to take the next steep which include a 10mm marine ply panels… Then it will be the turn for the water tanks to be allocated and fixed in position, followed by the black, the grey and the hot water system.. That’s about half of the space gone. The rest will be for the BBQ, the washing machine, the workshop and the storage bin…

This month I also got the delivery of the fridge, the cooking appliance, plus some electrical items…

The fridge I decide to use is the Dometic model RPD 218 (more details here), that can run on 12/24 or 240 Volts. I will mostly use the 24 Volt as it has an hourly consumption of 4.5 Amp, that if my calculations are correct, will require a total of 54 Amps per day or a bit less than 10% of my battery bank allowing me to use the other 10% for the other items.. (as I’m planning to use only 20% daily)

Other important features were the control panel situated at the top (as it is the compressor, at the back), a T rating, metal shelves instead of glass, (I had bad experience with glass shelves) and last but not least a great look (love the black and satin)..

It seems very easy to install and to keep clean once is running…

The cooker, I got to admit, it was a very lucky buy, as I originally intended to purchase it brand new, but I couldn’t pass on this chance when a new one (still in a unopened box), showed up on Gumtree for less than half the price..  😀

As you probably recall, I don’t have/want any gas installation in the motorhome, (again based on bad past experience), so the only option left worth considering was the choice between the Webasto model X100 Ceramic Top or the Wallas model XC Ceramic Top (now called Nordic DT). They are virtually identical other that the Wallace cost an extra $800.00 dollars and it does come with a (heat blower lid) that can be used to warm the interior of the vehicle.. Beside the difference in price, I didn’t really need this extra feature as I already had previously purchased the Webasto heater, so it was just logical to continue on the same brand/path and get that great deal on Gumtree..

The Webasto does however required a 12 volts connection with 9 amps for 3 minutes when first started.. Because I’m running 24 volts, a 24/12, 20 amp switch mode converter was purchase at Jaycar for a fraction of the cost of the Redarc, that for some reason, it reminds me a lot of when I used to buy spare parts for the BMW..

I mean Redarc sell for $512 dollars a 20 amp switch mode voltage converter, when other companies sell the same item for $120… I let you decide if it is a brand thing, or they are targeting customers with “special needs”..  😂

Time will tell…

Updates: As of 7/09/2023 Redarc 20 Amp voltage converter is no longer available… Surprise surprise…