Horse lorry to camper.. in 4 months

[NopocketAces]

Hello all.. just joined as this seems like the right place to be! To cut a long story short we have just acquired an old horse lorry (old enough not to have seatbelts in the cab) and are attempting to convert to a self sufficient MH by the end of October. The beast is parked up, the mahogany panelling stripped off and repurposed as a shed and the first coat of red oxide is going on. It is a nice old wagon with iron framework so we are going for a composite body panel to fit inside the frame and will weld hangers on the subframe to mount the accessories.

Where could it possibly go wrong... except my first attempt at welding was not pretty

 

[Jamesh]

Wow big job!

Keep us posted!

Will you still have the steel work showing on the outside?


Careful if galvanic corrosion between the steel/iron and the Alu composite panel if Alu??

Cheers James

 

[NopocketAces]

Yes, thats the idea.. Its not in bad condition for 25 years old so will cut a few pieces out for windows and line it inside with composite panelling.... however I have never undertaken anything like this so will probably find the ideas change as I go along.. with a bit of advice from all you DIY ers!

 

[Mr Ed]

and good luck

 

[Minxy]

Oh MANGOFORTH ... would you like to give your input seeing as you've been messing about doing silly things with trucks too!

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[Minxy]

Hi NopocketAces, welcome to the fun house!

I noticed on your other thread you'd mentioned about going to Ireland in October ... I don't know if you realise it will be cold and wet there (it rains a lot in Ireland) but more importantly is expensive to cross on the ferries so might be worth having a look into that and start saving your pennies (or Tesco vouchers!).

 

[NopocketAces]

Many thanks for the advice Minxy...probably not even considered the cost of travel...not going to get more than 10miles from home at the current rate of spend. I have followed Mangoforth and read every one of his posts... A man after my own heart!

James... Composite panels will be GRP outers with 20mm of extruded poly inside. ( hoping this is sufficient for insulation). I am also looking at the same panel with an ally sheet added to the inside for load bearing. Can't decide whether this is sensible or just have wooden battens with self tappers through to the exterior steel frame where I need them.....

 

[Minxy]

Watch out for thermal bridging - I think Mango has done something about this for his build.

 

[tonyidle]

Welcome . That's certainly a blank canvas. 20mm insulation is minimal and possibly inadequate. Most motorhomes are at least 40mm. Aluminium sheet for internal attachment is good but use PU adhesive to attach it to the inner skin. I'd be tempted to avoid screwing anything through to the steel structure.

 

[davidbaldam]

Hi and welcome to FUN.

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[Bailey 15]

Looking forward to following this one

 

[NopocketAces]

Just a couple of questions whilst the red oxide dries....

How much insulation do I need for the floor. As heat rises I was not planning on much!
Water heating is going to be through a webasto or eberspacher into a 30l dual coil tank also connected to the truck cooling system... do you recommend an expansion tank or will a pressure relief valve be sufficient?

Many thanks

 

[Minxy]

Just a couple of questions whilst the red oxide dries....

How much insulation do I need for the floor. As heat rises I was not planning on much!
Water heating is going to be through a webasto or eberspacher into a 30l dual coil tank also connected to the truck cooling system... do you recommend an expansion tank or will a pressure relief valve be sufficient?

Many thanks

Heat rises but you have to bear in mind that outside under the vehicle it will be in shade even in sunny weather so will be cooler and thus the floor area will be cooler so don't skimp on the insulation there, if anything you need more than the walls and roof.

As for the heating, can't help with that sorry.

 

[Destination Unknown]

There could be a J plate Mercedes Horsebox for sale shortly. It would make a cracking project to a campa, as body is a square box, put a picture window in where ramp is.
Would of been really tempted but it's a manual gearbox.

 

[The Coops]

Great project but how difficult is it to get rid of the smell of horses? ( Wet dogs are a close second!!!)

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[NopocketAces]

Q for Tonyidle - why the worry about tapping through to the frame? I am thinking it would give a better load bearing than the aly sheet (bonded inside the composite material)... however wdik?

 

[NopocketAces]

Also, does anyone have an idea of what u value I shouldbe looking for in regards insulation. The panels I am keen on have a u value of 1.40 at 20mm thickness and close to 1 with 28mm. is there that much of a difference .. we are not planning on Norway in winter!

Thanks for the info on floors Minxy.. point heeded

 

[Jo662]

 

[Bagofsand]

have fun, make many changes as you go its all about evolution.

 

[NopocketAces]

Just installed the 150l fresh water tank and welding up the second simlar frame for the grey water

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[tacr2man]

You will need a big heater for the tank in winter !!

 

[Raul]

Also, does anyone have an idea of what u value I shouldbe looking for in regards insulation. The panels I am keen on have a u value of 1.40 at 20mm thickness and close to 1 with 28mm. is there that much of a difference .. we are not planning on Norway in winter!

Thanks for the info on floors Minxy.. point heeded

A R 1.4 is very low, 3/4 “plywood has one R. On normal dwelling, in the walls it needs to be from R13 to 23. On ceilings and pitched roofs, R30 to R45. Of course this is all dependable on the installation method and bridging. You wand to get as low as possible U value, the rate the heat is lost via: convection, radiation and conductivity. Pointless having R20 in the ceiling and you have high conductivity via windows, doors, fixings etc. While is nice to have a high R value in the coverings, also the shell as a hole needs to be well designed. Bridging is the killer as it conducts. Hence double skin floors are sufficient, while ceilings as much as 4 to 5 times more is needed because of added convection losses and radiation.
Good value thermal board is kingspan high density and any closed cell foam. Also if you have space rock wool do high density slabs with a R45 and very good acoustic properties. Research a bit the insulation, and try to keep the U value as low as you can. You have more scope with the box than a panel van.

 

[phillipsheila]

You will need a big heater for the tank in winter !!

Thought it was going to be a camper

 

[NopocketAces]

Thanks Raul for the info - Two things I am terrified of is thermal bridging and damp ingress

I am looking at something called Stadurlon from Corepro systems for the walls:
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It comes out quite spenny but takes away the thermal bridging. I will proably go for something similar for the floor with a further kingspan topping.

tacrman not too worried about the winter usage at this stage but will thermal clad the tanks in their frames and hope for the best!

 

[P Jones]

Great project but how difficult is it to get rid of the smell of horses? ( Wet dogs are a close second!!!)

no piggs they fart, then they shits,then they smell of perfume, its cauld, : holy sh-- . bless me for i have sin-d.
can you smell me im off. ok pj. do not come near.

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[Jamesh]

Why not batten out the inside with 2x2 horizontally then insulate with polystyrene / celotex and the ply line with 1/4 ply.
You can then apply paneling to the outside using poly sealant. marine or Phenolic plywood might be my choose in 6/9mm thickness.
You need a vapour barrier in there too.

Cheers James

 

[Jamesh]

What weight is this van? Could it be down plated to 3.5t?

Fancy a retro / quirky camper could become a serial converter!!

Cheers James

There could be a J plate Mercedes Horsebox for sale shortly. It would make a cracking project to a campa, as body is a square box, put a picture window in where ramp is.
Would of been really tempted but it's a manual gearbox.View attachment 412625

 

[NopocketAces]

Hi James

Considering all options for the flooring at the mo. If I use a fibreglass skin or composite for the floor I have cut out the moisture issue. Wall comosoite panels are extremely light but cost is higher. It is a lorry up to 7.5t laden so i have around 4t to play with if i want to hit the top end buffers. Hopefully come in at about 6-6.5 laden once fully fitted.

 

[tacr2man]

As you have a steel outer frame you can just bond the inner panels to the frame and to themselves , I would use a pvc faced panel to avoid ali to steel corrosion . There would be no need to bolt or use other means that would give a thermal bridge Just put angle ali frame inside corners to ensure rigidity . Riveted together and to panels eg special grp rivets https://www.seascrew.com/browse.cfm?4-0-X-18MM--ALUMINIUM-PEEL-RIVET-FOR-GRP---PVC&p=0000004038 HTSH

 

[NopocketAces]

Many thanks Tacr2man
~Just spoken to the panel maufacturer and we will go with a straight pvc composite panel -2mm pvc/26mm xps/2mm pvc. We will bond this to the steel supports . My only area of weakness is how to provide support for the kitchen units etc but I suppose the only way will be to attach battens via self tappers/rivets through the panels to the steel supports. I take iot you mean angle ally to each internal corner....

Thanks

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