James here. Yes we did consider those, but they tend to be more expensive. Also the plan is to leave the panel on the roof overnight to then catch the morning sun while we are still asleep. A suitcase style would be more obvious, less stealthy, more nick-able and more prone to being blown around.
Searching for a camper or similar Van, and farting around in Internet looking for all things Camper, I found you two. Watched this video and instantly subbed you both. Now gonna go see what other offerings you have to fill my evening. Take care, Steve.
Thank you for subscribing to us. If you like a bit of adventure, some interesting facts or a bit of history stuff ( not too much, leave that to the experts!) and some harmless banter and listening to us have a squabble or two!! Then I hope we don’t disappoint 😊👍🏼
Good idea, without drilling holes in the roof 😂 You just need a chair, a brew and a little table so that you can sit there catching the sun ☀️ 😆 Subbed 👍🏻
Just found your channel, you two are great 😊 Just bought myself a 2003 Berlingo to make into a little camper to replace a Mazda Bongo 4x4 which is brilliant but thirsty. And we have two, one each, so very thirsty. I did a Berlingo camper years ago, again a mark one and loved it. Love your set up and your ingenuity and enthusiasm. That was me last year with my Jackery and solar panel getting over excited at each 1 watt increase 😃
The great thing about the Berlingo and other small vehicles is that as a camper, they’re ….yes small and compact but very stealthy and also used as an everyday commute vehicle. We use the fuel computer to keep an eye on how much we use and we ease off as much as we can going up hills and can achieve over 50 to the gallon. Thank you for your lovely comment. 😊
It's a great idea but if the suction cups aren't thermal resistant they'll turn hard in the winder and the solar panels will fly off like a piece of cardboard in the wind and in the summer they'll simply crack and perish under the sun .
It’s a trial at the moment. Just not convinced about drilling holes in the roof . As at some point, we’ll want to sell the berlingo and upgrade to probably something bigger. That’s not for a while yet though but we will see how it goes.
@@aaronweiser5421 and@TheOfficialXerxes, the plan is to only use the solar panel when we’re parked, evenings, mornings and when parked in the day when away from the van. We will assess the weather and if we think it’s too windy we can choose not to put it out. At night we can put it in the front cab area as it’s only a small panel. If the cups become brittle over time we can replace them (we even have six spare as we bought a pack of 12). Thank you for your feedback. It is an experiment and you have helped us with our thought process. We will let you know how we get on in future videos…
We will just run the cable through the side window, just a small enough gap. We also have rain guards over the front windows and see how it goes. Like we say, we don’t want anything permanent just yet.
Is that only to be deployed whilst stationary, removed from the car whilst driving? Magnetic strips like they have on the back of L plates might've worked too, but would only work on the roof not the windscreen.
Suprised you didn't consider suitcase style panel which can be placed anywhere for maximun sunlight, still a greaat idea.
James here. Yes we did consider those, but they tend to be more expensive.
Also the plan is to leave the panel on the roof overnight to then catch the morning sun while we are still asleep.
A suitcase style would be more obvious, less stealthy, more nick-able and more prone to being blown around.
Searching for a camper or similar Van, and farting around in Internet looking for all things Camper, I found you two. Watched this video and instantly subbed you both. Now gonna go see what other offerings you have to fill my evening. Take care, Steve.
Thank you for subscribing to us. If you like a bit of adventure, some interesting facts or a bit of history stuff ( not too much, leave that to the experts!) and some harmless banter and listening to us have a squabble or two!! Then I hope we don’t disappoint 😊👍🏼
@@JustForTheWeekendvanlife Got it..., let the journey beginn!
Nice one! l like the just for the weekend van life 😄
Good idea, without drilling holes in the roof 😂
You just need a chair, a brew and a little table so that you can sit there catching the sun ☀️ 😆
Subbed 👍🏻
Haha we are not very good at DIY 😂
Can use the camper tables with the connecting pole and will have to buy some deck chairs. Roll on summer weather 😊
I really thought you were going to drill holes in the van 😂
😂 Glad he didn’t 😂😂
Nice idea. Cracking setup.
Glad you liked it 😊
Just found your channel, you two are great 😊
Just bought myself a 2003 Berlingo to make into a little camper to replace a Mazda Bongo 4x4 which is brilliant but thirsty. And we have two, one each, so very thirsty.
I did a Berlingo camper years ago, again a mark one and loved it.
Love your set up and your ingenuity and enthusiasm.
That was me last year with my Jackery and solar panel getting over excited at each 1 watt increase 😃
The great thing about the Berlingo and other small vehicles is that as a camper, they’re ….yes small and compact but very stealthy and also used as an everyday commute vehicle.
We use the fuel computer to keep an eye on how much we use and we ease off as much as we can going up hills and can achieve over 50 to the gallon.
Thank you for your lovely comment. 😊
I saw one conversion where the driver had the panel on his roof rack with a tilting mechanism to tilt to the best angle
We are hoping to achieve the same effect. As the panel has suction cups we can park the van facing the sun and attach it to the windscreen.
It's a great idea but if the suction cups aren't thermal resistant they'll turn hard in the winder and the solar panels will fly off like a piece of cardboard in the wind and in the summer they'll simply crack and perish under the sun .
It’s a trial at the moment. Just not convinced about drilling holes in the roof . As at some point, we’ll want to sell the berlingo and upgrade to probably something bigger. That’s not for a while yet though but we will see how it goes.
True, i dont think suction cups are a good idea.I wouldnt trust them.
@@aaronweiser5421 and@TheOfficialXerxes, the plan is to only use the solar panel when we’re parked, evenings, mornings and when parked in the day when away from the van.
We will assess the weather and if we think it’s too windy we can choose not to put it out. At night we can put it in the front cab area as it’s only a small panel. If the cups become brittle over time we can replace them (we even have six spare as we bought a pack of 12).
Thank you for your feedback. It is an experiment and you have helped us with our thought process.
We will let you know how we get on in future videos…
How do you run the cables in when all the doors are shut ?? I want a similar non permanant setup
We will just run the cable through the side window, just a small enough gap. We also have rain guards over the front windows and see how it goes. Like we say, we don’t want anything permanent just yet.
Is that only to be deployed whilst stationary, removed from the car whilst driving? Magnetic strips like they have on the back of L plates might've worked too, but would only work on the roof not the windscreen.
That’s the plan, well at least for now. Just to be used while stationary. The power bank can be charged up by the alternator while driving.
amzn.eu/d/1TEcRkA
Made an error in the video. It’s Renogy not Renology 🫢😒