$1,000 Cable MISTAKE You Must AVOID | Solar Wiring Gone Wrong - video Dailymotion

Life With No Anchor

In this episode diving into our van conversion ideas, I share a costly $1,000 lesson about solar wiring that could save you from making the same expensive mistake.   Watch as I show the difference between 6 AWG and 12 AWG cables and explain how miscommunication with installers led to purchasing the wrong gauge wire.  This van build update covers crucial conversion ideas including cabinet installation, drawer systems, and coordinating with solar installers. I'll walk you through building the kitchen slider framework, planning storage solutions, and the challenges of working on uneven ground during your conversion project.  Key topics covered: Solar cable gauge requirements and voltage drop calculations Kitchen cabinet and drawer installation techniques Coordination with professional installers Storage planning and space optimization Working with marine ply and drawer runners Ventilation considerations for fridge installation  Whether you're planning your first van conversion or looking for practical building tips, this episode shows real challenges and solutions from an active build. Learn from my expensive wiring mistake and get actionable van conversion ideas for your own project.  Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: Next Stage of Van Build 0:14 Solar Installation Planning Meeting 0:56 The $1,000 Cable Mistake Explained 1:58 ChatGPT Cable Calculation Process 2:24 6 AWG vs 12 AWG Cable Size Comparison 3:11 Cable Cost Breakdown ($28 vs $7 per meter) 4:36 Solar Equipment Total: $20k Investment 5:04 Installer Rates and Industry Practices 5:48 Cable Runs and Fan Installation 5:57 Cabinet Build Planning 6:45 The Plan for the Next 4 days 7:18 Space Utilisation with the Solar Installation 7:41 Hyperlapse with Music Courtesy of @anahatasource 17:10 Day's Work Complete: Carcass Installation Next Steps 18:30 Plan Changes Based on Drawers Fitted in the Front Area 19:21 Plans for Fridge Slider and Airflow Allowance for Fridge Freezer 20:58 Plans for Installing Sliders (Drawer Runners) 21:38 Plans for Bench Seats in Slide Out Kitchen Build 22:42 Learning from the Challenges Experienced So Far  Special thanks to @AnahataSource for the chilled music!  Previous Episodes: Complete van conversion series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsQqAskealc&list=PLPtLTepoxwRm3LOsGsqaz194hX6QBw8Vk  Follow Life With No Anchor: 🌐 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifewithnoanchor/ 🌐 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LifeWifNoAnchor 🌐 X (Twitter): https://x.com/LifeWifNoAnchor  Looking to become a Housesitter or a Petsitter?  Want to connect with a Sitter?  To get 25% off your membership on Trusted Housesitters go to: https://www.trustedhousesitters.com/refer/RAF582519/?utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=refer-a-friend&utm_campaign=refer-a-friend  Tags: vanlife, campervanconversion, vanbuild, diyvan, solarinstallation, vanconversion, offgrid, australia, lifestyle, travel

Transcript

00:00Mo, mo, mo, mo, hey, mo, we are at the next stage it's always the next stage isn't it

00:10always the next buddy stage most recently um we popped down to have a chat with the guys who are

00:16doing the solar installation for us they've provided a couple of quotes they're a bit fluffy

00:20or a bit rubbery and that's because there's certain contingencies i suppose that they say

00:24that they need to plan for so there may be some variations due to how things have transpired or

00:30what they encounter the conversation i had with them was around making sure that whatever work

00:35we're doing isn't for a start creating a problem for them but isn't going to require to be pulled

00:40apart in order for them to do what they need to do that could result in whatever it is that we've done

00:46being potentially damaged or destroyed so i popped down there yesterday to have a chat with them and

00:51show them what we've done so far so you can see these you know cables and stuff hanging here

00:55interestingly when i was chatting with one of the guys there the week prior and he said i need at

00:59least six millimeter cable to run through for the fans he didn't reply to any of my communications

01:06when i was trying to confirm the awg which is a bit of a shame because i went and bought based on the

01:12research and yes again this is one of those things clarification is important ask more questions persist

01:18because even with the specs from the manufacturer's product the fans in particular on the the vent fan

01:25and the information available online in relation to the linear meterage of cabling that there's going

01:33to be connected from the batteries and the inverter right through to the appliance and the potential for

01:39a drop-off in relation to voltage apparently the longer the cable if it's not a thick enough gauge

01:45you actually lose power as a part of the process but if you give it more cable as far as a gauge goes

01:51a diameter then you don't experience that drop off so much as far as when it gets to the other end so i

01:57threw all of that data into chat gpt as well and gpt came back and said yeah look there's um 12 awg

02:05which has been run and that's six millimeter cable apparently or six millimeters squared everyone seems to

02:11use different blade terminologies and it said based on the appliances and the length that i also need a

02:17six awg so it's double more or less the uh the size of the other cable it's not cheap there was probably

02:26eight hundred dollars worth of this there we go here's the thin one for a comparison it's all sitting

02:33right down here so we've got two lengths of the 12 awg and then we've got the six so i'm going to bring

02:42this closer to the camera for you so you can see the difference between them and yes i'll put tags on

02:46the ends of these so they know okay this cable goes from point a to point b without needing to like try

02:52and eyeball trace it or potentially run a current through it so let's have a look at that six and 12.

02:58so you can even see the gauges based on those two how different they are that's so there you go

03:0412 and six bloody big difference the top ones the six the bottom ones are 12. the top one's expensive

03:10the six was about 28 a meter the 12 was about seven dollars a meter now of course i'm not going to look

03:17at the situation and go well now let's just run this seven dollar cable because i'm a tight ass i actually

03:23want the stuff that's being wired in to work so it turns out i don't need this much as far as the gauge

03:30goes this would have been fine all the way through but even for these fans so the bloke who i was

03:35talking with there he said one thing the guy who specializes in these installs i thought they both did

03:42said something else now i've been assured that the six awg cable won't go to waste it'll be able to be

03:48used in other parts of the setup and the install connecting batteries and all that sort of stuff

03:53but there's a nine meter run 11 meter run and a four meter run there's 23 meters of this stuff now

04:01unless they need to use this to run the dc to dc which they might there's going to be a hell of a lot

04:07of this cable left over which we can't get a refund on because j card just don't give you refunds on that

04:12stuff and it's an unfortunate additional expense because when they run this stuff through they're

04:18going to charge us for that as well so we're going to be paying for the cable twice and hopefully we

04:23get value or use out of what we've already bought and they're not charging us for that for other areas

04:28big lesson in there and i'll be watching their pricing and their quotes too because the last thing

04:32anyone wants to get is ripped off and it's not going to be a cheap job the equipment that we've

04:37purchased and we got it at a good price the three 200 amp hour batteries the two 350 watt panels the

04:44multi-pass with the dc to dc 50 amp there's also touch screen to be able to see what's going on and

04:50the controllers everything else that goes in there is around about ten thousand dollars the fit off is

04:56going to be about ten and a half so we're looking at pouring over twenty thousand dollars just in the

05:01solar into the band now the spark is charging about 145 bucks an hour at the moment which i think is

05:07probably fair market rate ish but they'll be charging 145 bucks an hour for unskilled labor

05:12too i know i was in a similar industry in a previous life had unskilled people working with me and i was

05:18charging them out at skilled rates that's just what happens in the industry you don't charge out an

05:23apprentice at apprentice rates you charge the apprentice out of the tradies rates and you pay

05:28the apprentice the apprentice relates anyhow long story shortening it up cables are run they may need to

05:33pull some stuff out we have got the insulation up they should be able to use the existing toyota

05:39wiring that's running through there just snip it off and rewire that in to be able to put leds in and

05:43switches based on the conversation so we've got some mounts for the fans which i just need to put

05:48some screws in to be able to tighten them up and they've already got the holes and the cable fed

05:52through okay we'll be ready for it through within a gauge and that'll be set up so the next step that we

05:57have is building in the cabinetry in this area that i'm sitting in so i've got a bit of marine ply here

06:0312 mil that's going to go up against the drawers that have been installed so two 500 millimeter

06:08drawers going to create a cavity that's sitting immediately here to my left going to build the

06:12cavities or the carcasses for the slider drawer on this side and the slider drawer on that side so

06:18you're going to be in a drawer very soon promise i'll take you out before we actually do build it not

06:23take you out because my wife won't really i don't think she'd be happy with that so yeah i'll take

06:28you out of the vehicle before i put the drawers in and that way you're not stuck in a drawer forever

06:32okay not funny i'm not cutting that out either that's where we're at and hopefully with what we

06:38um we're doing it's just going to make life that little bit easier the end goal is i've got four days

06:44to work on the van taking two days leave off work so i'll be doing saturday sunday monday tuesday in

06:49that time i want to be able to get this structure built and have the bed frame fitted or at least

06:54sitting on top it doesn't need to actually be firmly fixed but enough for us to be able to use

06:59it for a couple of weeks because we'll be bouncing between house seats and i also want the guys who

07:04are doing the solar install to see what's going on top where it's going to be positioned so they know

07:09what sort of height they've got to work within and they can also see what kind of footprint they're

07:14able to occupy the setups that i have seen of theirs that they've done they've been extremely

07:18efficient on space utilization which is a big big plus for us because if we're able to leverage some

07:25of this cavity space for storage lift the bed up and then stuff can get stored under here that we're

07:29only going to need to access once every couple of months then that's going to be a huge win because

07:33we will need some additional storage space although we will need it we'll definitely use it so that's

07:39that's what we're going to get stuck into let's just get this work done

07:53one source one most high

08:08And we want light shining eternally.

08:13I and I come from John, no lie in the truth.

08:17Same flame in the elders, same spark in the youth.

08:21Know me and you, know them and we.

08:26One light shining eternally.

08:31See the lion, see the dove.

08:33Same heartbeats, same word love.

08:39From the river to the holy land.

08:43From the mountain to the desert sand.

08:47Skin might change, tongue might sound.

08:51But the soul of I and I is always found.

08:55Don't get fooled by the flesh and name.

08:59The breath inside we all the same.

09:02John made the tree, John made the sea.

09:07And planted that same root inside of me.

09:11Not just me, not just you.

09:15But the whole wide world is sacred too.

09:19I and I come from John, no lie in the truth.

09:23Same flame in the elders, same spark in the youth.

09:27Know me and you, know them and we.

09:31One light shining eternally.

09:36I and I rise, never divided.

09:40Jive in the heart, truth can be hid.

09:43I and I chant, roots like a tree.

09:48Love is the fruit, unity to see.

09:52Every time I look in your eye, I see the same piece of the most high.

09:57No need to fight, no need to claim.

09:59We all return to the same flame.

10:01I and I know, deep inside.

10:05One notion, just different time.

10:09I and I come from John, no lie in that truth.

10:12Same flame in the elders, same spark in the youth.

10:17Know me and you, know them and we.

10:22One light shining eternally.

10:25I and I come from John, no lie in that truth.

10:29Same flame in the elders, same spark in the youth.

10:34Know me and you, know them and we.

10:38One light shining eternally.

10:41Jaja, oh, I and I.

10:46Jaja, oh, I and I.

10:51Same breath, same sky.

10:55One love, I and I.

10:58Ancient one, beat the drum.

11:24Come back home, come back home.

11:26Come back home, where the river runs.

11:29Mmm, yeah.

11:32Heart knows the way.

11:36Temple of the heart, light without flame.

11:40Speaking no words, still calling my name.

11:44Kindness is gold, compassion, the art.

11:49Wisdom lives in the temple of the heart.

11:53Temple of the heart, light without flame.

11:57Speaking no words, still calling my name.

12:01Kindness is gold, kindness is gold, compassion, the art.

12:06Wisdom lives in the temple of the heart.

12:10They carve the truth in stone and sky.

12:13But it's in your chest where the secrets lie.

12:18Not in books, not in scroll or start.

12:22But in the quiet between the heartbeats are.

12:27Every breath, a sacred sign.

12:30Every soul, a thread of the divine.

12:35Old souls whisper through banyan trees.

12:39Teaching peace in silent breeze.

12:43They say, don't reach far, don't try to prove.

12:48Just sit with love and let it move.

12:52The oldest path, the softest tone.

12:56Is learning how to be alone.

12:59And known.

13:00Temple of the heart, light without flame.

13:04Speaking no words, still calling my name.

13:08Kindness is gold, compassion, the art.

13:12Wisdom lives in the temple of the heart.

13:17What's the truth?

13:18The sage is new.

13:20Love that sees all the way through.

13:25What's the fire that doesn't burn?

13:29The heart that gives, expecting no return.

13:34Where's the teacher?

13:36Where's the star?

13:38Right here now, the open heart.

13:42No throne above, no stone to kiss.

13:46Just presence in a moment like this.

13:50A hand held soft, an honest tear.

13:54A listening soul that stays near.

13:58The masters came, the prophets taught.

14:03But the heart still says what they forgot.

14:07Temple of the heart, light without flame.

14:11Speaking no words, still calling my name.

14:14Kindness is gold, compassion, the art.

14:19Wisdom lives in the temple of the heart.

14:23Temple of the heart, light without flame.

14:27Speaking no words, still calling my name.

14:31Kindness is gold, compassion, the art.

14:36Kindness is gold, compassion, the art.

14:37Kindness is gold, compassion, the art.

14:39Wisdom lives in the temple of the heart.

14:42Almighty part beyond.

14:46Open wide, let the light come through.

14:51Temple of the heart, I return to you.

14:56J.J. Ram, J.J. Shine

15:08Peace in my heart, no need to run

15:13One love rising like the morning sun

15:17We chant the name till the work is done

15:22Wake up slow, feel the rhythm of the day

15:26Incense burn and chase the dark away

15:30Drum and bass lift the clouds and the fear

15:34Every breath I take, the divine is near

15:38Oh, let it roll like thunder

15:43J.J. I sit in awe and wonder

15:52J.J. Ram, J.J. Shine

15:58Peace in my heart, no need to run

16:03One love rising like the morning sun

16:07We chant the name till the work is done

16:12In the garden of my soul, the lotus grows

16:15Truth is a river that forever flows

16:20From Babylon's stress to a holy place

16:24Every mantra brings a warm embrace

16:28Shanti, shanti, feel the healing star

16:31Reggae, redeem with a sacred heart

16:36Who brings the light

16:38Who brings the light? Ram brings the light

16:40Who calms the mind?

16:42Shine them all the time

16:44Who lifts the soul?

16:47Heart rate takes control

16:48And where we going back to the hole?

16:53J.J. Ram, J.J. Shine

16:57Peace in my heart, no need to run

17:02One love rising like the morning sun

17:06We chant the name till the work is done

17:10Wow, okay, what a day

17:11It has been full on

17:13The focus has largely been on getting

17:16As you can see, the carcass in

17:17And the runners

17:18So there will be another set

17:22That will come up on this side

17:23Around about here

17:24So it's going to give us

17:25Our dry good storage area

17:27And the other one's going to be

17:28Probably around about here

17:29Maybe a little bit higher

17:30So it's going to be

17:32110mm from the top

17:35I reckon

17:35Because we need to have

17:37Enough space on that shelf there

17:38For the appliances to get installed

17:40So we've got all the electrics

17:41On the back here

17:42Just behind this panel

17:43There'll be another panel

17:44As you've probably seen

17:45I've been measuring up

17:46For panels to be facing off on here

17:47We'll have the GPO there

17:48Which we're going to be able to then

17:50Plug powerboard or any leads into

17:51That we want to

17:52To be able to set up

17:53As the kitchen slider comes out

17:55So this top drawer here

17:56Is going to be where the

17:57Kitchen workbench slider will come out

18:00There'll be some additional prep

18:01And the plan is to build it

18:03So that it's a drawer

18:04With a top

18:05And then when it comes out

18:06The top is able to then

18:07Fold away

18:08And then maybe even have

18:10A double fold down

18:11So that we've got

18:11An increased preparation

18:13Work area

18:14In this immediate footprint

18:15So it'll come out about a metre

18:16It's pretty decent

18:17Probably more going to be

18:18Utensils and stuff like that

18:19On the top shelf

18:20Maybe some other dry goods

18:22But we really

18:23Like when we first

18:24Planned for these drawers

18:25To go in

18:26The anticipation

18:27Was it we were going to have

18:28About 1100

18:29As far as the footprint goes

18:30But that was

18:32Taking into account

18:33A much bigger

18:34Space that we'd occupy

18:36Towards the back

18:37In that footprint there

18:38So that back area

18:39You can see there

18:40The plan was

18:41To be able to make that

18:42About 490

18:43For the

18:45Batteries to be installed in

18:46But what we did was

18:47We've cut the recess

18:49Out at the bottom

18:50Of the fridge there

18:50So the slider

18:51Can actually sit

18:52Over the top of it

18:53It's probably going to be good too

18:54As far as airflow

18:55Ventilation for the fridge

18:56In a little area goes

18:58But that's brought us back

18:59Another 12 millimetres

19:00On the other side

19:01Which is good for us

19:02To be able to utilise

19:03From a footprint point of view

19:04For the batteries

19:05So the batteries

19:06Are about 485

19:07From one side to the other

19:08The internal dimensions

19:09Of that cavity

19:10Now is 500 millimetres

19:11Which 15 mil play

19:13To be able to put

19:14The batteries in

19:14Gives them heaps of space

19:16To be able to work with

19:16My assumption is

19:17That's heaps of space

19:18The other sliders

19:19What I'm planning on doing

19:21With these

19:22Is there'll be a wall

19:23That'll come up

19:24On this side of the fridge

19:25And one on that side

19:26To take into account

19:27The protrusion of the nuts

19:29I'm going to cut some little

19:31Or drill some little pockets

19:32To recess in

19:33So I can get the 12 millimetres

19:34Plie hard up against

19:36The edges of this fridge slider

19:37I know there's some people

19:38Out there who are probably

19:39A bit concerned

19:39Saying but you need

19:40To have ventilation

19:41And airflow space

19:42Around your fridge

19:42So it doesn't overheat

19:43That's not going to be an issue

19:44Because we're going to have

19:45Breather holes cut

19:47All around the sides

19:48And along the back as well

19:49So there'll be airflow

19:50Inside the entire cavity

19:52The top of the fridge slider

19:54There's going to be about

19:55A 45 to 55 millimetre space

20:00Which in that space

20:01There'll be a 30 millimetre

20:03Slide out table

20:04So bottom sliders down here

20:06Sorry you can't see that

20:08Can you?

20:08The bottom slider down here

20:10Is going to be a bench seat

20:11So that'll be about

20:12A 360 millimetre bench seat

20:14This'll be a 200 millimetre

20:16Bench seat on this side

20:17Then there'll be

20:17Draw, draw, draw, draw

20:19And over the top on the fridge

20:21It's going to be a table

20:22That slides out

20:23So there'll be enough space

20:25For air to be able to

20:27Hot air to rise up

20:28Above the fridge

20:29And come out around it

20:30It'll be able to bleed off

20:31Through the bleeder holes

20:32That we're going to cut

20:33Or the breather holes

20:34That we're going to cut

20:34Into the panels

20:35That go up on the sides

20:36And along the back

20:37And it'll be able to flow out

20:38Throughout the van

20:39That's probably going to be

20:40Good for us too

20:40Because any additional warmth

20:42That we can get in there

20:43If it's particularly cold

20:44Is going to be helpful

20:45And if it's too warm

20:46Then we can just

20:47Crack the door open

20:48A little bit at night

20:49And the airflow

20:50Coming in and out

20:50Will keep us cool as well

20:52The fans and everything

20:53Getting fitted in the top

20:54That'll roar out

20:54All the heat as well

20:55It's going to be fantastic

20:56So the plan is

20:58At this point in time

20:59I've got two more pieces

21:00To cut to size here

21:02I'll mount the runners

21:03To those boards

21:04Before they go in

21:06I'm also going to mount

21:06The L brackets

21:07Because you'll notice

21:07I'll put brackets in

21:08Down on the bottom

21:09To help fix the panels in place

21:11There'll be brackets

21:12That'll come along the side

21:13Onto the panel

21:14On both cases

21:15But also from the floor down

21:16To be able to attach those properly

21:18I'm going to mount them

21:19To the panel first

21:21And then put the runners

21:22On the panel

21:23Line them up

21:23And get them at the same height

21:25So then it really is

21:25Just a case of

21:26Screw the panels down

21:27Into the floor

21:28And screw them

21:29Into the side as well there

21:30And then they're done

21:31Checking to make sure

21:32That they're all plumb

21:33They should be fine

21:34Then it's about

21:35Measuring up

21:35What sort of footprint

21:37Are the drawers

21:37Going to occupy

21:38The bench seats

21:39Are going to be pretty easy

21:40This side in particular

21:41Being as thin as it is

21:43At 200 odd mil

21:44Or 220

21:45I should be able to get

21:46A nice decent piece of timber

21:47That's 30 by about 260

21:49And just get that trimmed down

21:51The other side's probably

21:52Going to be a little bit

21:52More challenging

21:53So I might need to

21:55Find out about getting

21:56A custom piece of timber

21:57For that

21:58So I really would like it

21:59To just be one solid piece

22:00Rather than a couple of planks

22:02That have been

22:02Dowled together

22:03Whatever it might be

22:04So that's tomorrow's project

22:06Because I've got to bugger off

22:07The guys who are doing

22:09The solar install for us

22:11Have asked us to

22:11Not fit off any finishings

22:14On the roof

22:14Or the panels on the sides

22:16So that's going to make

22:17It a little interesting

22:17When it comes time

22:19To put the masonite panels

22:20Back on the sides

22:21That side should be fine

22:23Because it's only going to be

22:24One little join there

22:26That I've got to take into account

22:27With the brackets going across

22:28This side here

22:29I'm probably going to have to

22:29Cut some slots

22:30And feed things through

22:31But we'll figure it out

22:33Either way

22:33And we'll make sure

22:34It's all nice and tidy

22:35And secure

22:35Then it's building up

22:36The covered cavities

22:38Up towards the front

22:39So the left and right

22:40Of the drawers

22:40But it is a

22:42It's an interesting process

22:43It's been

22:44I wouldn't say challenging

22:45In a negative way

22:47It's been challenging

22:47In a good way

22:48It's pushed me

22:49In some regards

22:51Not just the build itself

22:52But where we are

22:53At the moment

22:54There's no level ground

22:55Around here

22:56So I can't trust

22:57The spirit level

22:57I have to go for

22:58Right angles

22:59And starting by getting

23:01The floor as flat as possible

23:02Was the important part

23:03And trusting that

23:04The manufacturer actually

23:05Had a floor that was

23:07Flat across the board

23:08Leap of faith there

23:09But yeah

23:11The van right now

23:12Is sitting on probably

23:13A 10 degree

23:14Incline on the hill

23:16Up that way

23:17And about

23:177 to 10 degrees

23:18This way

23:19So all the weights

23:20On the back corner

23:21Of the van at the moment

23:22And you're really set

23:22When you're standing here

23:24Looking at it

23:24Because of the weight

23:25Of what's been installed

23:26You can tell that

23:27The passenger rear tyre

23:28Has got a little bit more weight

23:29Being carried by it

23:30Than the drive rear

23:32Or either of the front tyres

23:33Working on

23:34Unlevel ground

23:35That's interesting

23:36So if you're planning

23:37On doing a reno

23:38On a van

23:38Or something like this

23:39Mate

23:40If you can get

23:40A flat piece of ground

23:41To work on

23:42Bloody hell

23:43Okay look

23:43Even the driveway here

23:44There's nothing

23:45There's nothing about

23:46This block of land

23:47That's flat

23:47Or the driveways on it

23:49The flattest thing

23:50That there is

23:51Is the house

23:52And you know

23:53Obviously

23:53They've had it built

23:54So there's a flat wall

23:56But how'd you be

23:57Living in a house

23:57And your bedroom's

23:58On an angle

23:58You know

23:59Blood rushing to your head

24:00Well that's it

24:00I'm going to stop waffling

24:01I'll catch you on the next one

24:02I'll catch you on the next one

$1,000 Cable MISTAKE You Must AVOID | Solar Wiring Gone Wrong

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