Having sorted out some of the basics on the base vehicle, we started on the long process of a design. We knew what we had to have (fixed bed, big storage, balanced energy system) and went back to a book that was an inspiration when we did our Dodge - Travel vans by John Speed http://www.travelvans.co.uk/ Although it's based on a Mercedes 609 almost all the ideas are transferrable. After lots of forays with graph paper, we ended up with some plans by using Google Sketchup - a cracking bit of free software. The link below is to a series of PDF images but you should be able to get a sense of what we're after!
https://docs.google.com/fileview?id=0B_V1FolpsOx6MjY4ODBmY2MtN2E2ZS00NjE0LThlNDItNjE5MjUzZjkxMDI5&hl=en
Thanks to our good friend Isabel who helped out with using Sketchup - she's a top artist too and you can see her work at:
We also made extensive use of the experience and advice to be found on the Self Build Motor Caravaners Club (SBMCC) http://sbmcc.co.uk/forum/ - this site is a real gold mine and the good folk that post there are really friendly and helpful - although we've only just started this blog in April 2010 along with the build proper, a substantial amount of lurking has been going on since last year - and a lot of useful learning in the process - not to mention finding some absolute bargains in the for sale section!
Insulating the floor was the first proper job. Having decided to leave the original 18mm ply on the floor, we looked at lots of alternatives to get good thermal properties and not lose too much head room. In the end we went for closed cell thermal matting from the Outdoor Mega Store - http://www.outdoormegastore.co.uk/ very good value!
On top of that we laid 12mm ply - resulting in a quieter and warmer floor. Although the walls and ceiling will eventually be spray foamed, the grey material you can see on the wheel arches and on some panels is an anti drumming tape (otherwise known as flashing tape form Screwfix - works a treat!).
The ply boxes around the wheel arches will be filled with a plastic based insulation material as some of the service pipe work and cabling will run through them.
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