Building the ultimate off-grid campervan! Our 2016 Toyota Hiace Super Long Wheelbase High Top 4x4 is getting a complete solar transformation. We've consulted with solar specialists to design the perfect 300 amp hour lithium battery system paired with a Victron inverter for maximum off-grid capability. Follow along as we share the professional insights that are guiding our solar installation decisions. From strategic component placement to optimizing our limited van space, we're documenting every step of creating a self-sufficient mobile home that can handle extended off-grid adventures. This episode covers the critical planning phase - marking out equipment positions, preparing for the fridge slider installation, and ensuring we maintain access to essential van components. Whether you're planning your own conversion or dreaming of van life freedom, these expert tips will help you make informed decisions about your solar setup. Timestamps 0:00 6 Pro Tips We Got From a Solar Expert for Our RV Build 0:17 Introduction 0:38 Various Conversations with Solar Specialists 2:05 Desired Outcome for Solar Fitout 2:29 Current Plan and Footprint for Solar Equipment 3:28 Next Step Considerations Before Fitting the Fridge Slider 4:00 Placement of Fridge Slider and Access to Spare Wheel Nut 5:43 Marking Out Lines for Slider Install #CampervanConversion #ToyotaHiace #VanLife #SolarPower #OffGrid Special thanks to UGOKAWA! Previous Episodes Episode 1: https://youtu.be/_bnGqKQl29o Episode 2: https://youtu.be/JeEQsZfDxlU Episode 3: https://youtu.be/c-v8_4XAiOY Episode 3a: https://youtu.be/H4Myt9t2Zog Episode 4: https://youtu.be/qLX_OlvNsWY Episode 5: https://youtu.be/BlIaaA45aKQ
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00:00Off they go, bags in tow, Matt and Chrissie hit the road, maps unfold, stories told, adventures never getting old.
00:10Matt and Chrissie roam so free, through the city, past the sea, finding joy in every mile.
00:17G'day, it's Matt from Couple of Cities here again, and we are at the next stage with what we're doing in van.
00:24At this point in time, we've had a conversation with an auto-electrician who does the fit-outs for a lot of the off-grid solar setups,
00:32and he's recommending that we go for two 300-amp-hour batteries instead of three 200-amp-hour batteries,
00:40although the conversations that we've had with some of the other people have been along the lines of,
00:46you get more amp-hours at the moment with the battery pricings that they've got for the 200-amp-hours.
00:52So three of those will get you more amp-hours to the dollar than two 300s,
00:57which I suppose that makes sense because we are talking with someone who's going to be able to give us close to wholesale prices,
01:06and the guy we're speaking with today, his top-end retail pricing is, it's pretty intense.
01:15So, as an example, the equipment that we've mapped out, and I'll show you the floor plan here in a minute for the conversation from last night,
01:24was largely based on what we thought was a pretty reasonable quote,
01:30it was about seven and a half, eight grand for everything that we would need,
01:34and that's including two 350-watt panels to be able to pull in and keep three 200-amp-hour batteries set up with a decent inverter.
01:46It's a multi-pass that they're recommending, and yeah, I think that's definitely leaning in a much better quality direction than the King's equipment that we're looking at.
01:58Price point for a lot of people, I suppose, that's going to be a challenge, and you've got to figure out what works for your budget and what doesn't,
02:04but we're looking at how do we put a bit of value into this, so that we get a good quality outcome, number one.
02:12But if we do choose to sell down the track, which is highly likely that we will, that whoever's buying this is getting a decent setup.
02:18They're not getting something that we've tried to cut corners with as far as the quality of the materials goes.
02:25So, I'm going to quickly show you what it is that we've done.
02:28So, that footprint that you can see there is a void that would fit behind the two drawer assemblies that we've got.
02:36Chris has opted to go for two 500 by 500 drawers instead of the 700s,
02:43and that will effectively mean that what we can do is bring this line back to about here.
02:51So, it's going to give us a heck of a lot more space in that void in the middle.
02:56That could potentially mean that we'll get two, possibly even three, batteries in there.
03:04And then we've got space here that's allocated on that side for the multi-pass,
03:11and then the DC to DC and the controller in that space there,
03:15and another footprint there for another battery.
03:18So, we'll figure out what's going to work and what's not going to work.
03:23The main thing I've got to consider at this point in time is our little inspection hatch there,
03:29or access hatch for the spare tire, and the fridge slider.
03:34So, that's the 100-litre fridge slider from King's and 4WD Supercenter.
03:40And I need to figure out whether or not that is going to fit what we've got there,
03:47or do I need to change anything along the side.
03:50So, let's check it out. I'm going to whip this thing open.
03:53Okay, so what I was hoping for here was that with where this fridge slider needs to go,
04:03is that the hole in the middle of it, I was hoping that when it was fully extended,
04:08that that hole in the middle would be something that would line up nicely with the access hatch for our spare.
04:18So, it's just sitting along the line there that we've got here.
04:23That's roughly where it's going to go.
04:26But you can see here, there's the access hatch just there.
04:32And if I come up, you can see based on the line there,
04:36that this part of the plate sits directly over the top of that access hatch.
04:41Now, that's not too much of an issue because what we can do is extend the slider all the way out
04:47and access that little hatch to be able to deal with the spare.
04:51So, based on that, I think we're on a winner as far as the placement goes.
04:57The next thing I need to do is make sure that I've got the markings on the edges of the panels
05:03and up the ends there so I can string line and get these things back into being square.
05:11I'm going to be doing this on my own because Chrissy is down in Victoria for the next four weeks
05:15looking after a couple of dashions.
05:17She's down there for a birthday party and the people who had offered her a place to stay
05:21based on one of our previous house sits had said,
05:24look, can you extend your three-day weekend to four weeks so we can go away
05:29and you can look after Miles and Luna.
05:31So, that's where she is down there at the moment.
05:34And all this hard work is going to be left up to me.
05:37So, anyhow, it'll be good fun.
05:39So, I'm going to get to marking things out and we'll see where we end up next.
