Our Campervan is ILLEGAL! | Van Conversion Diary WEEK 28
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- Things are getting tough again with our campervan conversion! We take Nessa to the weighbridge and it is not good news!! So we hold a 'Very Important Planning Meeting'!
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I'm in the early stages of planning a conversion, top of it is a 7.5t licence, getting a Luton van.
Excellent news! That'll be great fun to do and travel in.
Have you seen Those Happy Days are selling their Luton van Morgan
I was recently told that there are two types of motorhome - those that are d overweight and those that are overweight but the owners don’t know it !! The upplating isn’t too bad assuming you have C1 license
Steve's good on the licence front 👍
Have a look at Van Weight Engineering who can do the up plating and are very competitive priced and good at the job
Thank you
maybe front bulkhead could go except for the shower wall ,also not many people travel with a full tank of water bearing in mind a litre of water weighs a kilo and maybe consider replacing the wood bed slats with ikea ones which are thinner but in reality the easier option is upgrade suspension for five tonne uplate when you think a thousand kg payload is easily reached when converting a van
We'd like to keep the bulk head as the cab condensation without in our previous van did our head in. Definitely going to explore the upplate 👍
use good wood glue very good for timber work
Thank you
Surely adding all this carpet is unnecessary weight , carpet is not lightweight.
It will definitely be lighter than the wood.
change bed slats to ikea ones
We'll look into this 👍
Why not take the head board down make more room for you as well should take a bit of weight off
We'll need to keep some of it in place but do have a plan to reduce it.
Add a spring and replate.
Pain in a butt to do.
And not cheap.
But a lot less hassle.
Could be our option. We'll definitely look into it.
I don't think we have ever converted a lwb crafter and kept the weight low enough to keep it at 3500kgand always recommend my customers up plate to stay legal. I wouldn't get too bogged down in ripping stuff out to replace it with lighter materials (too late I know). But realistically you will have a lot of work and maybe save 20kg. Personally I would just get on with the up plating exercise as it does take a few weeks. It is definitely made easier if you have done enough to get the van changed to 'motorcaravan ' with the dvla first, but not the end of the world. Also, at this point, all you are concerned with is the gross weight of the vehicle but bear in mind it really comes down to axel weight if you get pulled and weighed.
Ed
We don't think we met the '2 window' criteria for the motor caravan.
@@pitched_up_wanderers no, that could be an issue. I have definitely seen vans pass with one window on the side....it's a game of chance with the DVLA even if you definitely meet the criteria 🤣.
As long as your not trying to use the van commercially then I think you are ok without a taco. But you do need to do some declarations etc. I have only ever done the up plating after Motorcaravan was on the logbook. It would be worth a chat with Dee at Van weight Engineering.
Nice vlog again guys, I do like how you work together, I’m converting mine and the wife won’t go near it, and when I ask her to think something through with me she gets bored quick and huffs & puffs.
Anyway, if you do decide to up plate as many comments suggest please to a video on it, I a suspect a lot of us will need to do it with the LWB vehicles.
I watch people building their kitchen units past the door opening as one framed unit, meaning if they have any issues with the door it can’t be accesses without ripping the kitchen out.
I have built my kitchen frame to the door edge, and built a second smaller module unit out over the sliding door area, the module unite screws to the other unit and the floor so it is strong and secure, the worktop is all one piece, so you can’t tell, then if you have any sliding door issues you can unscrew the smaller module unit and remove it, leaving the worktop floating, but it means you can access the sliding door cards and mechanism if needed.
If you are re-working the kitchen units anyway you may be able to create that option. 😇👍
Shame her hearts not in it 😪 We've definitely enjoyed the process together (well most of it 😂)
We will definitely video our journey with this issue. Hoping it's easy to do!
The idea about the kitchen is genius! We may be able to modify what we've done 🤔
@@pitched_up_wanderers genius? Why thank you sir.
At least you get a brew made 😂
If you are already 90kg overweight, you realistically need to shed in the region of at least 250kg to allow for living items when using the campervan. Fiddling with thinner ply and carpet isn't going to cut it! As others have said, up plate seems the only sensible option here, as long as you have the appropriate licence.
We're good on the licence front 👍
Can you up plate the van,?
@@Grt234generally yes
Hi Steve
R.E. The worktop instead of buying , cutting and scribing more wood . Why not router out pockets half the thickness of the current worktop on the underside . You'd be removing the worktop if you were to replace it anyway .
Perhaps you could use this method or holesaw for the drawer carcasses too or any other hidden from view places for that matter ?
I know this suggestion is an absolute last resort but you could double space the ceiling slats or remove alternate ones all together . Yes I realise what a monumental task the ceiling was but think of the fine if you're overweight . Wishing you all the best .
Fattrucker
That's a good suggestion for the worktop 👍
@pitched_up_wanderers Not so much the ceiling, though, eh ? LOL
If you're enlarging Chez's hole . Sorry, Chez's PEEP hole . Why not remove the majority of the bulk head to create a walk-through ? Replace the lot with thermal curtain ? Then, at a push, you could switch the double seat for a single ? Unless you've GOT to keep it for offspring etc ? You've had issues with missing out on free park ups already with not wanting to trail mud into the hab area . Win win 👍
Fattrucker
😅👍👍😢👍👍👍
Loving the emotion summary of the vlog.
This video worries me because I really can't see where your weight is... It makes me wonder how heavy mine is... And up-plating, while possible, would be awkward for me being over seventy and having given up my grandfather rights :(
We said the same as it baffled us a bit. We've not gone crazy with overhead cupboards like you see in some vans.
Hi Guys cracking videos as always. Seriously you ain’t gonna shed enough weight to make it a pleasure to go away. Get in touch with Dee at Van Weight Engineering if you have std axles you should be able to up plate to 3.9 tonnes, or as I have, if you have up rated front axle to 2.1 tonnes, up plate to 4.2 tonnes. You should have a C1 licence I’m guessing, so you will be fine to drive over 3.5 tonnes.
Thank you 😊
Time to consider up plating to 4 tonne me thinks 😮
Think it might be the solution! Steve's got a HGV licence so we're good on that front 👍
@@pitched_up_wanderers I've got a class 1 ..I did my last motorhome about 5yrs ago it was quite easyto do but I guess like everything it might have changednow .. I'd seriously think about it.
Might this require uprating things like suspension and brakes?
Possibly. We know it can carry 3900kg without any adaptations.
Get yourself a Electric Brad/Nail Gun for pinning the ply to the door frames they work a treat, thats how i done mind. Sorry to see you ripping out the hard work cause you 90kg over
Thanks for the tip 👍
first level uplatig is just paper work ad gets to just about 4000kg and by far your best option many firms offer this ,unofficially police will not charge you if you are within 10 percent (350 kg) because van is safe its just a driving licence problem IE. go for uplating . good luck and keep up the great content
Steve's good for the licence as he's got HGV. Thanks for your support 🥰
Up Plate it to its design weight via dvla to 3.9 ton I have the mwb version of your van and plan to do this. Think it's about £27 . Obviously depending on your driving licence.
Steve's all good to go with the licence so we'll definitely look into this.
Shame,all that hard work,small van are prob difficult to keep weight down.
We'll find a solution 🫠
At least you can weigh everything you take out and put in.
Very true!
RE condensation, you need a vent over the bed 👍 trust me, don't try to control condensation. Just let it out, I have 3 roof vents, 2 with fans, one just a skylight, never have a drop of condensation appart from on the window next to where I sleep 👌
Thanks for the tip. We might struggle with a vent due to solar panels. Hoping we can sleep with the window locked open now it's Spring 🤞
@pitched_up_wanderers it'll help deffo but there's a reason ventilation is at the top, IE hot moist air rises, that's why the damp/mold staining was mostly at the top of the rear door pnnel, if you duct fresh air from outside into your diesel heater rather than recirculating it from inside it will help as well, either way you have to waste heat either by heating colder outside air or by letting the hot air out that's carrying the moisture , lungs do 2 things very well, extract oxygen from the atmosphere AND add moisture back into the atmosphere, basically your a human humidifier 🤣
Maybe we'll hold our breath 😂😂🤙
@@pitched_up_wanderers 🤣🤣🤣👍
Take your bulkhead out save weight and save all the other doing the other jobs🥴‼️
We hated the cab condensation in our old van and having the bulk head stops that. We'll find a way.
Ventilation, use aircon at all times if fitted, you can get one of those moisture vacuuns to take it off the windows in the morning.
We've not had much success with moisture vacuums on a windscreen as they hate being at an angle.
As most have already said, don’t waste your time, effort and money changing things trying to save the approx 100 kg you need. Just replate the van and relax.
Cheers 👍
But you need to make sure you have the C1 entitlement, for vehicles 3.5-7.5t on your licence then don't you?
@DiAllinson yes Steve's got that automatically due to when he got his licence
@@pitched_up_wanderers I had C1 grandfathered on my licence but they removed it when I had to have a 3-year medical licence, and told me I'd get it back if I got more than a 5-year licence back. I got my 10-year licence but no C1 entitlement on it ☹️
Apparently payload does not include fuel and batteries.
This is distorted information .
Quoted from Parkers website . . .
Unladen weight / Kerb weight
The unladen weight should be self-explanatory - it is the weight of a vehicle without anything in it. There are different interpretations as to exactly what this includes though.
According to the UK government website, unladen weight doesn’t include any fuel or, in the case of electric vehicles, the batteries. This renders it fairly unhelpful as it doesn’t represent a vehicle that can actually drive anywhere.
Kerb weight is the more helpful measurement as this also includes what you need to get the car moving as it includes the necessary fluids and some fuel. There is no standardised definition for this, though, and some manufacturers will include a nominal weight for a driver and others won’t. Volkswagen for example, allows 75kg (just under 12 stone) for a driver whereas others don’t include this at all.
When fuel is included then it tends to be that manufacturers will factor in a tank at 90% of capacity. Obviously how much this works out at depends on how big the actual tank is.
Payload is the most important statistic for many van owners.
In simplest terms the payload is the weight that a commercial vehicle can legally carry. Carry more than this weight and you can risk falling foul of the law .payload information is relatively easily found. Manufacturers will list them in brochures, put them in the vehicle manual or put them on a sticker on the vehicle itself, normally on the lip inside the door.
Before you start filling up with cargo weighing the same as the maximum payload figure, though, it is worth bearing mind that this figure must cover more than just the contents of the loading bay. You can’t just put 1,000kg of stuff into a van with a 1,000kg payload for example.This is because the payload has to cover in everything that goes into a vehicle. Sometimes a manufacturer will factor in a driver, but they typically only allocate 75kg (just under 12 stone) for this. If you have more than one passenger, or a larger driver, then their weight will reduce the amount of load you can carry.
You calculate a payload by subtracting the kerb weight from the gross vehicle weight - the remaining figure is how much you can carry.
The safest way to work out exactly how much you can carry is to weigh your vehicle with all the things in it apart from what you want to transport.
Fattrucker
We disagree with this.
Thank you. This is really helpful.
A different mattress??
We did look at lighter ones originally but this one is comfortable for Cheryl's back. However, we'll keep our eyes peeled for options.