My 1978 GMC motorhome

Been working on the power system design (a bit of discussion HERE) and have started to order "stuff." This is a (very small) representation of what I'm planning on. This layout gives me shore power and Generator (through an auto transfer switch) to feed the Victron Multiplus 2 3000VA 120v Inverter/Charger. I've included a 30 amp DC-DC charger to run off the starter battery and charge my lithium pack when the motive engine is running. I will be replacing the old "squareD" residential style breaker box with one from progressive dynamics that is set up to have two feeds. The Inverter/charger I picked has two AC outputs. One is pass through only, and will only power items on that branch when plugged into shore power (like the AC units). The other branch will supply inverted AC from the batteries. Speaking of Batteries, I decided on 400 AmpHours (4x 100 amp hours) from Epoch. They have gotten VERY good reviews everywhere I've looked and they are relatively inexpensive for a heated LiFePO battery (about $500 each). They have their own BMS. This system also gives me room to add solar in the future. Based on my energy budget the set-up should give me just over a Day of runtime (350 amp hours with a 20% overage calculated in and a 20% SOC) if we are pretty wasteful with our energy consumption. The charger puts out 120 amps, so we should be able to run the gen for 3 hours and be fully charged again.
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I'm very happy with how this has worked out. I aimed for a 5000 dollar budget and I will go over that by about 10%, but it will be a VERY nice system when complete. I will be placing the orders for my Victron stuff soon. Once I have it all in my hands, I'll work on the layout and order my battery cable and terminals. Something else not shown, and kind of the budget buster, is the Cerbo GX monitor system I will include. The Cerbo will replace the OE control panel in the coach. It will display all the battery information, control my inverter, display up to 4 tank levels (with a couple add ons), it can send an auto start signal to the genset, if I so desire, etc. Very neat and it displays all the information on a 5 or 7 inch screen (like a small tablet).

Now that I have this stuff figured out, I will get back to work on cleaning the rest of the interior, running my new lighting circuits, etc.
 
My battery/power stuff is starting to roll in. Got the monitor, shunt, and display. Also got an ultrasonic LP tank sender that is supposed to work with the Cerbo GX system wirelessly. It’s designed for 20 and 30 lb tanks though, and I have a 60 lb horizontal tank. Will need to call them to see if it will work or not.

I finalized my floor plan this weekend too.


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Going to replace the “standard” dinette with a u shaped one and make a new table. Also going to reconfigure the kitchen to include a TV cabinet. The tv will be mounted to a lift, so it can tuck away for counter space when not in use. I might get cheeky and install an electric fireplace too…I think I have the room.

While my wife and I were working today we decided to pull the bathroom and kitchen apart too. We were trying to avoid this, but I’ve found too many sketchy things to just let it be. This was the latest

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Those nicks in the insulation were covered in tape so whomever did it KNEW they did it- and didn’t fix it. That wire feeds the gfci in the bathroom and all the AC outlets in the kitchen. Unbelievable
 
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I saw this thread a long time ago and liked it but then forgot about it. Read through the whole thing this weekend and really enjoyed your work. Excellent job!
Also, hello from a former Michigander. Some of your camping pics bring back good memories.
 
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I saw this thread a long time ago and liked it but then forgot about it. Read through the whole thing this weekend and really enjoyed your work. Excellent job!
Also, hello from a former Michigander. Some of your camping pics bring back good memories.

Thanks! I’m kind of a glutton for punishment, taking on these projects. But, these are unique and it will be worth the work. Not like an old Winnebago or something that is essentially a box truck with a bathroom
 
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Thanks! I’m kind of a glutton for punishment, taking on these projects. But, these are unique and it will be worth the work. Not like an old Winnebago or something that is essentially a box truck with a bathroom

I remember seeing those rigs in northern Michigan when I was a kid. Even then, I thought they had great style and the chic has aged very well. I’m sure its very challenging and I‘m glad to see you sticking with it.
 
Ewww...Yucky!

I pulled the air ride compressor and assorted bits from the motorhome yesterday to get the 45 year old carpet out from underneath it and to check and replace any leaky air fittings. Its a fairly complicated setup with an auto level valve on each side of the coach with a total of 6 solenoids to support. Nice in practice but its prone to leaking, based on the number of plastic airline fitting installed and 45 years of neglect.

Anyway, the system also has an air tank (which I didn't know). That air tank is steel...and we all know where this is going, don't we? 45 years of neglect and an air compressor with a steel tank. Yeah, well, it was full of water and rust scale. There is a schaeder valve installed to drain it...but I've never done it, and based on the contents of the tank, its never been done.

I removed all the fittings and cleaned the tank out. This was the result. The floor drain in the Lower RH side of the pic is 8x8 for size reference.

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The tank is now filled with evaporust for a couple days. After that, I'll flush it back out and coat it with some Eastwood internal frame coating. Draining the tank is also something that will be added to my winter storage checklist, if not sooner.
 
Batteries showed up yesterday. Its really weird...you see the case, and its looks just like a FLA battery. Same dimensions and whatnot. When you pick it up though, it weighs about half of what you'd expect! This company is very highly rated and the batteries come with heaters (so you can use them when cold), their own battery management system, and a remote SoC indicator. They were pretty inexpensive too, as far as LiFePO batteries go, at about $500 each. $5 an amp hour was not the cheapest I could find, but it was in the top 5. There are discount codes out there too, if you wanna take look around at some marine how to sites (hint, hint).

For reference, The same battery from Victron (drop in style, 100 amp-hour) was over 1000 dollars and you still needed to buy a BMS!

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No real update other than all the expensive power handling stuff has arrived. All but one piece, anyway, that I forgot to order. I have figured out where my batteries are going (need to modify the gen compartment battery storage) and I'm working up a plan in my model for all the various components. Once I get them pseudo-situated, I'll have one more big $$ order to make (battery cable and lugs) and things can start going back together.

I did get ONE thing complete...finally. My Shore power connection was a 25' cord that came out of the side of the RV...but it wasn't on a spool or anything. It just flopped around in the rear corner and sometimes got tangled. So, I bought and installed a new shore power outlet. It a twist lock style with a threaded ring to prevent accidental disconnection. That will help clean up the wiring in the rear and let me use that area for routing of the new power system.

Since the old box's form factor was narrower and longer than the new one, I had to improvise a bit and use some flashing to cover existing opening. I also installed it parallel and square to the old one and I'll be damned if I didn't step back and notice that the new one looks "crooked" but I never noticed that the old one did. You can see here how the top edge follows the dirt edge of the old one. Meh...I'll fix it proper when I paint the lower section. I'll need to slap some fiberglass in there to fix it right and I don't feel like doing that until I know that it's the only spot I'll need to fix. For instance, that city water inlet could use some attention...but that is another problem for another day. Gotta draw the line somewhere, or I'll have the body pulled off the frame!

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Been working on my battery storage drawer. I have a cubby behind my generator that is pretty under utilized. I took some measurements and designed this tray to fit. I have to extend the compartment depth a few inches, but I have the room to do so. Just a little more optimization of the original layout.

I used some 300 lb drawer slides I got from Amazon, some 1/2” birch plywood, and a couple pieces of 3x3x 3/16 aluminum angle (3000 series).

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Using some polypropylene webbing to fashion some tie downs. I’m using stainless footman loops for anchors and a stainless cam lock buckle for holding power. Plan on installing this week sometime. Getting closer to being able to buy some super expensive copper and battery lugs.

Speaking of…anyone have a go to for the HD battery lugs? I have some of the flared copper ones, but I’d prefer to get the HD ones that are tinned over the copper and marked for where they crimp.
 
I’ve been trying to sew up the polypropylene webbing straps for my battery tray over the last week or so. I’ve been largely unsuccessful. I have tried an old domestic pfaff, newer computerized pfaff, and a brand new, top of the line pfaff. My mother has quite a collection of them and none of them would hold the webbing tightly enough to make a decent stitch on the bottom side. Even the new one with an adjustable pressure presser foot knotted and made a mess of the lock stitch.

Inspired by @NashvilleTJ thread, here, I kinda started looking for a used, HD, walking foot machine. Drove into the research, thought about buying an old Adler that needed some work, looked at a consew 206rb that was pretty inexpensive, but 2.5 hours away. Was pretty convinced that was going to be the one to buy. It was one of the many Chinese imports duplicates of the Thompson mini Walker (same as the gen 1 version of sail rites machine) .

On a whim, I checked Craigslist and not 30 miles from me, someone had just posted a Pfaff 1245. It’s an industrial, triple feed, machine. Came with the work table, 1/3 HP clutch motor, the head, and thread stand. It was also very recently tuned up and should be ready to go. I bought it. Spent more than I really wanted to, but I also feel that I got a pretty good price on it. I didn’t steal it, but I don’t think I’ll lose any money either. It’s previous life was spent pretty easy, as a hobbiest machine.

Now I’ll be able to sew my own cushions, curtains, and anything else I can think of, like new seat covers for my Jeep! :D
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I’ve been trying to sew up the polypropylene webbing straps for my battery tray over the last week or so. I’ve been largely unsuccessful. I have tried an old domestic pfaff, newer computerized pfaff, and a brand new, top of the line pfaff. My mother has quite a collection of them and none of them would hold the webbing tightly enough to make a decent stitch on the bottom side. Even the new one with an adjustable pressure presser foot knotted and made a mess of the lock stitch.

Inspired by @NashvilleTJ thread, here, I kinda started looking for a used, HD, walking foot machine. Drive into the research, thought about buying an old Adler that needed some work, looked at a consew 206rb that was pretty inexpensive, but 2.5 hours away. Was pretty convinced that was going to be the one to buy. It was one of the many Chinese imports duplicates of the Thompson mini Walker (same as the gen 1 version of sail rites machine) .

On a whim, I checked Craigslist and not 30 miles from me, someone had just posted a Pfaff 1245. It’s an industrial, triple feed, machine. Came with the work table, 1/3 HP clutch motor, the head, and thread stand. It was also very recently tuned up and should be ready to go. I bought it. Spent more than I really wanted to, but I also feel that I got a pretty good price on it. I didn’t steal it, but I don’t think I’ll lose any money either. It’s previous life was spent pretty easy, as a hobbiest machine.

Now I’ll be able to sew my own cushions, curtains, and anything else I can think of, like new seat covers for my Jeep! :D
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Awesome, Mike. That thing's a beast.
 
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The DIY upholstery plot twist was unexpected, though I do look forward that storyline.

Meanwhile, just in case you didn't see this on Marketplace. . . for parts, guest house, or custom chassis & driveline Click for amusement.
 
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The DIY upholstery plot twist was unexpected, though I do look forward that storyline.

Meanwhile, just in case you didn't see this on Marketplace. . . for parts, guest house, or custom chassis & driveline Click for amusement.

Ooof...That one is pretty sorry. It doesn't even have the front subframe so I can engineer an LS swap sometime in the future...

The DIY upholstery is something I've been kicking around for a bit. I did a fair bit of it on my boat (some cushions and curtains), but I ended up taking the bigger, heavier duty stuff in because the machine I had available just wasn't HD enough. It would work, sorta, but mostly it just jammed and caused headaches. This one is SO MUCH BETTER. I was playing around with it today, and sewed up a french seam, in no time flat.

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And, the real test is what the back side looks like...this is what will separate a domestic from an industrial when it comes to sewing this type of material

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Finally, with the addition of my new to me sewing machine, I can say the battery tray is complete. I added to the project, in that I would like to add a strip of vinyl to the aluminum to prevent rubbing to the battery case and I will probably add a thin sheet of plastic on the terminal side to prevent arcing, should the batteries move.
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Now that I have this sewing machine...my wife has been picking out all kinds of projects for me around the house...I may have created a monster...
 
Now that I have this sewing machine...my wife has been picking out all kinds of projects for me around the house...I may have created a monster...

You get to use the monies saved for jeep projects, right?