[Closed] Yet another van conversion thread.

Bike rack in. I considered so many options but I have two priorities. Firstly a proper bed, Mr TW is very tall and I have a bad back. Secondly convenient bike storage. Everything else we will squeeze in where we can.

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Like the bike storage solution.

Cheers.
Spoiler alert. It's just 2x Halfords bike racks.

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Alternative view in case anyone is interested.

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I wish I'd thought of that bike rack thing when I had our long high Renault master ( the camper that never was )

I got lucky and sold out big van after a few years of failing to convert it properly for most of what it cost me

Air bed and mains hook up is as far as I got so well
Done

It's far more work than most imagine

Great bike storage.

I have no intention of ever doing anything similar, but this is still a fantastic thread, and I'm folllowing it avidly.

Built the bed. Not pretty or subtle but I haven't done woodwork since I left school nearly 20 years ago. Metal brackets ftw.

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Yeah I'm so glad the woodwork was done in mine.

Good shout on the halfords roof racks. I may steal that for when I make my slide out bike tray /drawerfor mine.

Have you got anything restraining the bikes in the forwards direction ? Do they twist the racks when braking / acceleration etc ?

Love a good van thread...

Have you got anything restraining the bikes in the forwards direction ?

Nothing other than the down tube clamp but that is fairly bomber. My bike has done 1000 miles to the alpes and back at 85mph on the roof using that rack. I'm more than happy it will be fine inside.

I have started building a bulkhead between the garage and the bed but we are going take it away for a few days rather than do anymore work. I built a wheely shelf for the fridge which should comfortably slide under the bed. Fridge is currently full of beer and getting down to temperature in the kitchen.

On,y reason I asked was you will be loading the rack perpendicular to the way it was designed to work.
(Although I don't know what forces braking and accelerating exert).
But as you say proof is in the pudding. It's is a neat solution though

Bike racks were fine. Bed didn't collapse. Fridge got too cold and my coke exploded (Beer was ok).

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Having a couple of nights away has really helped us understand how we are going to use the van. We are going to have a two week tour to the Alps in July so that's a firm deadline. This week has helped us prioritise what we need to have completed before we go.

@timidwheeler - this is a great thread. Well done so far.

Some hopefully useful tips:
- If you're going to put a stove in it, buy a portable CO detector for peace of mind.
- Cups, plates etc will rattle about unless you stack or pack them well. We use bits of tea towel or bubble wrap to drown out the noise. Any minor rattles will drive you mad after 3hrs or so.
- On some European campsites you can be more than 25m from the power point, so a 25m cable and a second 15m cable come in very handy
- Have you got any vents in it? condensation can still build up when the outside temps drop especially in the mountains
- External screens are better than internal screens for keeping the heat in and reducing condensation, we've got one of these on our Transit: http://www.vancomfort.co.uk/fourseasonsscreenpage.htm
They're expensive for what they are but they fold up well and disappear under the bed when dry
- a reversing camera or sensors will be very useful
- have you got a spare wheel and a proper Transit jack? Most vans don't have them mind you I'd rather get the AA to change the wheel
- if you're on mains power a normal kettle will be fine. Caravan type kettles take forever to boil
- Security on transit vans is piss poor, message me and I'll explain this to you (email in profile). We found out the hard way 😥

- best tip someone gave me was get the [url= https://www.decathlon.co.uk/base-seconds-pop-up-camping-shelter-id_8208602.html ]2m Decathlon pop-up tent[/url], you can dump all your dirty crap and BBQ, chairs etc. in there whilst you're out all day

ElShalimo,
Thanks for posting that.

We aren't going to bother with a stove, we may put a microwave in to keep the DVLA happy but we tend to eat in pubs/bistro. A kettle however, will be useful and I do have a very good camping cooker and portable bbq should we feel the need to cook for ourselves.

We have already fitted a reversing camera. I say fitted, but the actual camera is held on with masking tape as we were planning on adjusting it before sticking it down properly. It's been there for weeks and gone down the motorway in a downpour 😆

Sadly, I am fully aware of the issues with Transit security. Roary came with extra locks in the doors but no keys. We need to swap the barrels but they have been put in with rivets and we haven't got round to drilling them out.
No vents, they are on the to do list.
Pop up tent a great idea. Will order.

Do euro campsites have 16 amp plugs or do we need a euro plug converter?

am well jealous and it looks like you are making lots of progress. one day I would love to be in a similar position!
and the bike storage is deffo a great idea.

@timidwheeler - re: hook-up

I've been to lots of sites in Europe and >95% of the time the standard 16amp hook-up is okay.
for example:
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On some sites they have a reduced current say 10amps but the cables seem to work okay.

There have been 2 or 3 sites where we plugged directly into a Euro style plug but just used this style of adapter
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Cheers mate.

Progress has been painfully slow and in some ways it feels like we are going backwards. The bike racks have come down temporarily and I have fixed up the bulkhead. I gave it a coat of gloss but I haven't done a great job so Mr TW will have to sort it out at the weekend.

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We are going to the Alps in 2 weeks time so we have a solid deadline to get enough done that we can live comfortably in it for a fortnight. We still have loads to do! Doesn't help that we only have two days off together in that time and I want to have at least one of those out on the bikes.

- have you got a spare wheel and a proper Transit jack? Most vans don't have them mind you I'd rather get the AA to change the wheel

Yup. Ring AA. Wait.

You'll be waiting a while if you're in France.

From bitter experience in 1987 if you're going to change a flat, make sure you've got a breaker bar or wheel nut spider. If you're using a spider, take a big lump hammer to hit the centre whilst undoing.

have you got a link to those bike racks I couldn't find them on the Halfords site. 😳

I've had a look on the Halfords site and it looks like they don't do them anymore. I will double-check our breakdown cover.

Swivel seat fitted. We weren't sure if it was worth the money but we wanted an easy quick way for us both to be able to sit down. The space saving is also a major advantage. We may consider re-covering the seat at a later date.

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Mattress arrived. Curtain bodged up. Floor badly fitted. Tunnel booked. We will be in the Alps by the weekend.

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Hopefully

Enjoy !!

Enjoy and updates please on the subject (or glorious failure) of the maiden Euro roadtrip.

Found this thread late. Have now added to favs.
Great stuff!

Battery fitted and maps packed.

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Final pack for the Alps.

Back done.
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Front done.
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Left late and only got three miles before some trim came loose. The van is now wrapped in duct tape. Do the Swiss have rules about vehicles being held together with tape?

We have made it back from the Alps and our van performed perfectly (other than leaking round the door).

Things had started badly when our 1950 tunnel crossing became a 0322 crossing. The van showed his worth and we got a few hours sleep in the tunnel car park, before driving through torrential rain for hours to get to Metabief.

We took the northern route through Belgium and Luxembourg which seemed to drag on forever. The site at Metabief was one of the best of the holiday and we enjoyed the riding in the bike park.

I couldn't afford a proper awning so I bought a £25 tarp set from Decathlon and we screwed three hooks into the gutter rail. It worked really well and only took a couple of minutes to set up. I was worried that we would have water pouring down the gap between the van and the tarp but dispute dreadful weather there were no problems. It's also howling a gale here which is why we have pegged the middle down.

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Another van thread lover here. Looks like you managed well on your trip all told. Nice one!

After Metabief we had an overnight at Sameons. Fantastic campsite but we were too early for the lifts so we had to XC which wasn't massively popular with Mr TW. Temperatures were starting to rise but all was well in the van.

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Fabulous stuff!

That looks great, I shall add van to the shopping list

After Sameons we had a few days in Les Gets at the La Grange Au Frêne campsite which was very nice. Weather was great and nice views of Mont Blanc.

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I need to sort out the screens but I think it gives him cute little ears.

After Les Gets we moved to Les Saisies which was a fantastic little place with some great riding and spectacular views. We stayed at the Alpage of Jorets site which was gorgeous.

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Then back to try Sameons with the lifts open.

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Before finishing in Chamonix.

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I love my van

I love your van too. Van life is real life,

I forgot we also had a night in the Aire at the bottom of Les Saisies. Our van was possibly not quite as classy as the others.

And yes, the neighbours did store their dog on their roof.

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All of that looks flipping excellent! Quality van you've got yourself there. I now want a van!

Our van was possibly not quite as [s]classy[/s]lardy as the others.

Indeed. It's amazing how big some of those things are.