Hello Everybody,
First post.
I camp a lot in tents but after spending three days straight in a tent in the rain at Dolly Sods I swore I'd make a change.
Here it is.
Bought it Wednesday.
Drove it home today.
1999 Ford E-250, 6 cylinder, 125K miles.
Was a home builders work van. Some slight surface rust.
Cargo doors a bit dinged up.
I'm planning on doing a full conversion. Most of the work I'll do myself but some will be beyond my abilities. I'm giving myself a deadline of no later than spring. Van won't fit into my small garage so that will affect how/when I can work on it.
I've been reading this and other conversion forums for a few weeks. It's been a huge help so far. Learned quite a lot already but there's still a lot I don't know. Counting on the pros who frequent this forum for some advice.
Advice like: The previous owner drilled some 3/4 inch holes in the floor for bolted down shelving. Whats the best way to cover these holes from underneath? Should I treat the metal edges of the holes before I start?
Thanks for your time, now and in the future.
WVvan
P.S. I'm thinking of call it "HAL the Van".
Why HAL? Well since my name is Dave....
Dave Bowman: Open the pod bay doors, HAL.
HAL: I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that.
First post.
I camp a lot in tents but after spending three days straight in a tent in the rain at Dolly Sods I swore I'd make a change.
Here it is.
Bought it Wednesday.
Drove it home today.
1999 Ford E-250, 6 cylinder, 125K miles.
Was a home builders work van. Some slight surface rust.
Cargo doors a bit dinged up.
I'm planning on doing a full conversion. Most of the work I'll do myself but some will be beyond my abilities. I'm giving myself a deadline of no later than spring. Van won't fit into my small garage so that will affect how/when I can work on it.
I've been reading this and other conversion forums for a few weeks. It's been a huge help so far. Learned quite a lot already but there's still a lot I don't know. Counting on the pros who frequent this forum for some advice.
Advice like: The previous owner drilled some 3/4 inch holes in the floor for bolted down shelving. Whats the best way to cover these holes from underneath? Should I treat the metal edges of the holes before I start?
Thanks for your time, now and in the future.
WVvan
P.S. I'm thinking of call it "HAL the Van".
Why HAL? Well since my name is Dave....
Dave Bowman: Open the pod bay doors, HAL.
HAL: I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that.
I'll give this a proper write up when I've farther along but got this finished tonight before dark.
Cut a hole on the inside of the rocker panel under the van
Use the cutout to reach inside the rocker panel and drill a small hole through to the outside of the van.
From the outside use the small hole as a guide to cut a bigger hole.
Install diesel fuel inlet.
It's a gas van. The diesel will be for a heater.
I started with just the tape measure then before you know it looks like a hardware store.
While the chromed diesel inlet looks pretty cool, the view from under the van shows I still have a ways to go.
Cut a hole on the inside of the rocker panel under the van
Use the cutout to reach inside the rocker panel and drill a small hole through to the outside of the van.
From the outside use the small hole as a guide to cut a bigger hole.
Install diesel fuel inlet.
It's a gas van. The diesel will be for a heater.
I started with just the tape measure then before you know it looks like a hardware store.
While the chromed diesel inlet looks pretty cool, the view from under the van shows I still have a ways to go.
Sofa-bed continued:
I've tried to come up with a way to explain how everything works together. Hopefully this all makes sense.
The sofa-bed is in the sofa position. The switch is in the off position. Both limit switches have wires running to the NC (Normally Closed) terminal on one side and the COM terminal in the other side. There is only a complete current path through the switch if it is in the Open position. The two diodes directions are opposite of each other. Both the Drive Actuator and the Lift Actuator are in the fully extended position.
Flipping the switch down begins the conversion to the bed position. Power goes to the Drive Actuator which begins to retract. This causes the Seat Platform to starts to move forward and the Back Platform to slide down the Back Support. With limit switch #1 closed and the diode stopping current flow the Lift Actuator doesn't move.
In the diagrams I'm using red to represent positive and black to represent negative with current flowing from red to black and blue shows no current flow. It's not really accurate but I think it works well enough for this explanation.
Once the Drive Actuator has retracted enough it allows limit switch #1 to open. I've placed the switch so it opens only after the Back Platform has cleared the Back Support. With the switch open the Lift Actuator starts retracting.
As the Lift Actuator retracts it lowers the Back Platform. This in turn causes limit switch #2 to close. This shows the purpose of the diodes. With the closed limit switch the Drive Actuator would stop moving except now the diode gives the electric current an alternate path around the switch so the actuator can continue to retract.
Both the actuators are fully retracted and the sofa-bed is now in the bed configuration. I show the power switch in the off position but that's not really needed. The actuators will shut themselves off after either fully retracting or fully extending.
The power switch is now flipped up to convert the bed to a sofa. Only the Lift Actuator is energized at this time. Notice the diode with limit switch #2. When the Drive Actuator was retracting this diode allowed power to bypass the limit switch. But now that the current is flowing the opposite direction this same diode prevents the Drive Actuator from extending. The practical purpose for this is that I don't want the Seat Platform to start to move until the Back Platform has risen enough to clear the Back Support.
The Lift Actuator has raised the Back Platform far enough for limit switch #2 to open. This applies power to the Drive Actuator so both are now extending.
As the Drive Actuator extends it will cause limit switch #1 to close. This is the same situation from two drawings back. Even with the limit switch closed I still want the Lift Actuator to keep extending. So this shows the second diode doing it's stuff.
Both actuators keep extending until the sofa-bed is back in the sofa configuration then they shutdown on their own.
That's it. If it needs further explaining just let me know.
continued -
I've tried to come up with a way to explain how everything works together. Hopefully this all makes sense.
The sofa-bed is in the sofa position. The switch is in the off position. Both limit switches have wires running to the NC (Normally Closed) terminal on one side and the COM terminal in the other side. There is only a complete current path through the switch if it is in the Open position. The two diodes directions are opposite of each other. Both the Drive Actuator and the Lift Actuator are in the fully extended position.
Flipping the switch down begins the conversion to the bed position. Power goes to the Drive Actuator which begins to retract. This causes the Seat Platform to starts to move forward and the Back Platform to slide down the Back Support. With limit switch #1 closed and the diode stopping current flow the Lift Actuator doesn't move.
In the diagrams I'm using red to represent positive and black to represent negative with current flowing from red to black and blue shows no current flow. It's not really accurate but I think it works well enough for this explanation.
Once the Drive Actuator has retracted enough it allows limit switch #1 to open. I've placed the switch so it opens only after the Back Platform has cleared the Back Support. With the switch open the Lift Actuator starts retracting.
As the Lift Actuator retracts it lowers the Back Platform. This in turn causes limit switch #2 to close. This shows the purpose of the diodes. With the closed limit switch the Drive Actuator would stop moving except now the diode gives the electric current an alternate path around the switch so the actuator can continue to retract.
Both the actuators are fully retracted and the sofa-bed is now in the bed configuration. I show the power switch in the off position but that's not really needed. The actuators will shut themselves off after either fully retracting or fully extending.
The power switch is now flipped up to convert the bed to a sofa. Only the Lift Actuator is energized at this time. Notice the diode with limit switch #2. When the Drive Actuator was retracting this diode allowed power to bypass the limit switch. But now that the current is flowing the opposite direction this same diode prevents the Drive Actuator from extending. The practical purpose for this is that I don't want the Seat Platform to start to move until the Back Platform has risen enough to clear the Back Support.
The Lift Actuator has raised the Back Platform far enough for limit switch #2 to open. This applies power to the Drive Actuator so both are now extending.
As the Drive Actuator extends it will cause limit switch #1 to close. This is the same situation from two drawings back. Even with the limit switch closed I still want the Lift Actuator to keep extending. So this shows the second diode doing it's stuff.
Both actuators keep extending until the sofa-bed is back in the sofa configuration then they shutdown on their own.
That's it. If it needs further explaining just let me know.
continued -
Sofa-bed continued:
Time to wire some things together. I'm using uninsulated push-on style terminal ends along with 18 gauge wire. Here I'm inserted two wires through the crimp end of the terminal, after having stripped the insulation off the wire ends..
Use a crimping tool to join the wires to the terminal.
Here's how it appears after crimping.
Since I'm using uninsulated terminals I have to insulate them. I'll be using shrink tubing. The tubing comes in different sizes so use one that's appropriate for what you're working on.
After sliding on the shrink tube you can use a heat gun.
After heating with the gun the tube will shrink to fit the terminal.
To connect the diodes I'm using butt connectors. That's them at the top of the picture.
Just slide the wire ends into one end of the butt connector and crimp it. Then slide whatever you're joining it too in the other end and crimp that end.
Here's what it looks like all joined together with a limit switch.
To mount the toggle switch to the side of the sofa-bed I used one of the left-over bracket rejects.
Then did a little cutting and drilling.
Screwed it to the side of the sofa-bed. This will not be the permanent switch. Just until the van is finished.
Here's how the switch appears from the back all wired up.
Now to attach the limit switches. Here is a diagram that shows where the two limited switches are mounted. Notice that limit switch #1 is closest to the Drive Actuator and #2 is closet to the Lift Actuator. It might be a little confusing that the switch closest to each actuator actually controls the opposite actuator.
Here is limit switch #1 mounted below the Drive Actuator. You can see that the drive rod from the actuator has the switch in the closed position. Since operation of the Lift Actuator is dependent on the position of the Drive Actuator this limit switch is wired to the Lift Actuator.
When the Drive Actuator is almost completely retracted, limit switch #1 is opened.
Here is limit switch #2 next to the fully extended Lift Actuator. The switch is opened and closed by the position of the Back Platform.
Luckily I bought 5 of the limit switches before I started. Lucky because I broke one switch and bent back the lever on another while trying to get the placement and adjustments just right.
Continued -
Time to wire some things together. I'm using uninsulated push-on style terminal ends along with 18 gauge wire. Here I'm inserted two wires through the crimp end of the terminal, after having stripped the insulation off the wire ends..
Use a crimping tool to join the wires to the terminal.
Here's how it appears after crimping.
Since I'm using uninsulated terminals I have to insulate them. I'll be using shrink tubing. The tubing comes in different sizes so use one that's appropriate for what you're working on.
After sliding on the shrink tube you can use a heat gun.
After heating with the gun the tube will shrink to fit the terminal.
To connect the diodes I'm using butt connectors. That's them at the top of the picture.
Just slide the wire ends into one end of the butt connector and crimp it. Then slide whatever you're joining it too in the other end and crimp that end.
Here's what it looks like all joined together with a limit switch.
To mount the toggle switch to the side of the sofa-bed I used one of the left-over bracket rejects.
Then did a little cutting and drilling.
Screwed it to the side of the sofa-bed. This will not be the permanent switch. Just until the van is finished.
Here's how the switch appears from the back all wired up.
Now to attach the limit switches. Here is a diagram that shows where the two limited switches are mounted. Notice that limit switch #1 is closest to the Drive Actuator and #2 is closet to the Lift Actuator. It might be a little confusing that the switch closest to each actuator actually controls the opposite actuator.
Here is limit switch #1 mounted below the Drive Actuator. You can see that the drive rod from the actuator has the switch in the closed position. Since operation of the Lift Actuator is dependent on the position of the Drive Actuator this limit switch is wired to the Lift Actuator.
When the Drive Actuator is almost completely retracted, limit switch #1 is opened.
Here is limit switch #2 next to the fully extended Lift Actuator. The switch is opened and closed by the position of the Back Platform.
Luckily I bought 5 of the limit switches before I started. Lucky because I broke one switch and bent back the lever on another while trying to get the placement and adjustments just right.
Continued -
Sofa-bed continued:
This posting covers the first part of the electrical wiring for the Sofa-bed.
WARNING: Messing with electricity can be dangerous. If handled unwisely it can cause fire, death and general mayhem. If you don't know what you are doing, hire someone who does. I'm not an electrician and have had no formal training on the subject so don't believe a word of what I say. You have been warned.
The sofa-bed's conversion from sofa to bed is accomplished with the mechanical force provided by two different actuators. The Drive Actuator causes the Seat Platform to move forward or backward. The Lift Actuator raises and lowers the Back Platform.
The actuators are powered from a 12 volt battery (or in my case two 6 volt batteries). There are two wires running to the actuator motor. To get the actuator to change direction you simply have to reverse the polarity of the two wires. That means if one wire was hooked to the positive battery terminal move it to the negative terminal and vice-a-verse with the other wire.
If you watch the YouTube video of the sofa-bed in operation you might have noticed the two actuators operating at different times. This is accomplished with limit switches. A limit switch is activated when something presses against it as opposed to a wall switch which you "flip".
Here is a picture of one of the limit switches I'll be using. Notice the small lever with the roller on the top of the switch. The movement of this lever is what causes the switch to open or close.
On the left side of the switch you will see two tabs. The tabs are marked "NC" and "NO". The markings mean "Normally Closed" and "Normally Open".
What that means is if the switch is in the "open" position, which it is in the photos, there is a current path from the "Com" tab on the right of the switch to the "NC" tab. When the lever is depressed the switch is considered "closed" then the current path transfers to the "NO" tab.
Along with the limit switches I'll need a couple of diodes to control the actuators. A very simple description of a diode is that it's a electrical component that only allows current to flow in one direction. Here is a picture of one of the diodes I'll be using.
Notice the silver band around one end of the diode. The band denotes the cathode end of the diode. It helps me remember how a diode works by thinking of it's electrical symbol.
If you think of current as flowing from positive to negative you can see how the triangular shape is pointing in the direction of current flow. While the vertical line resembles a check valve that swings down to prevent the flow of current in the opposite direction. Anyone who really knows about electronics will surely tell you there are different kinds of diodes and it's more complicated than I've explained but hey, this works for me.
"I am serious ... and don't call me Shirley." Happy 30th Birthday to "Airplane!"
One more electrical part before I can start putting it all together. From Radio Shack I bought this toggle switch. It's a 3 position (ON-OFF-ON) DPDT (Double Pole - Double Throw ) switch.
The metal face-plate shows it's 3 position. The six wire connectors on the back indicates it's DPDT. I'll use this switch to reverse the polarity of the electrical connection to the actuators.
This shows how I hooked up the switch to the batteries and to the actuators.
One small note. I forgot to add a fuse to the circuit drawing which strangely enough matches what I did in real life.
continued -
This posting covers the first part of the electrical wiring for the Sofa-bed.
WARNING: Messing with electricity can be dangerous. If handled unwisely it can cause fire, death and general mayhem. If you don't know what you are doing, hire someone who does. I'm not an electrician and have had no formal training on the subject so don't believe a word of what I say. You have been warned.
The sofa-bed's conversion from sofa to bed is accomplished with the mechanical force provided by two different actuators. The Drive Actuator causes the Seat Platform to move forward or backward. The Lift Actuator raises and lowers the Back Platform.
The actuators are powered from a 12 volt battery (or in my case two 6 volt batteries). There are two wires running to the actuator motor. To get the actuator to change direction you simply have to reverse the polarity of the two wires. That means if one wire was hooked to the positive battery terminal move it to the negative terminal and vice-a-verse with the other wire.
If you watch the YouTube video of the sofa-bed in operation you might have noticed the two actuators operating at different times. This is accomplished with limit switches. A limit switch is activated when something presses against it as opposed to a wall switch which you "flip".
Here is a picture of one of the limit switches I'll be using. Notice the small lever with the roller on the top of the switch. The movement of this lever is what causes the switch to open or close.
On the left side of the switch you will see two tabs. The tabs are marked "NC" and "NO". The markings mean "Normally Closed" and "Normally Open".
What that means is if the switch is in the "open" position, which it is in the photos, there is a current path from the "Com" tab on the right of the switch to the "NC" tab. When the lever is depressed the switch is considered "closed" then the current path transfers to the "NO" tab.
Along with the limit switches I'll need a couple of diodes to control the actuators. A very simple description of a diode is that it's a electrical component that only allows current to flow in one direction. Here is a picture of one of the diodes I'll be using.
Notice the silver band around one end of the diode. The band denotes the cathode end of the diode. It helps me remember how a diode works by thinking of it's electrical symbol.
If you think of current as flowing from positive to negative you can see how the triangular shape is pointing in the direction of current flow. While the vertical line resembles a check valve that swings down to prevent the flow of current in the opposite direction. Anyone who really knows about electronics will surely tell you there are different kinds of diodes and it's more complicated than I've explained but hey, this works for me.
"I am serious ... and don't call me Shirley." Happy 30th Birthday to "Airplane!"
One more electrical part before I can start putting it all together. From Radio Shack I bought this toggle switch. It's a 3 position (ON-OFF-ON) DPDT (Double Pole - Double Throw ) switch.
The metal face-plate shows it's 3 position. The six wire connectors on the back indicates it's DPDT. I'll use this switch to reverse the polarity of the electrical connection to the actuators.
This shows how I hooked up the switch to the batteries and to the actuators.
One small note. I forgot to add a fuse to the circuit drawing which strangely enough matches what I did in real life.
continued -
Let's see, work on the van this past weekend or head to the woods?
Woods win.
Sofa-bed continued:
After having completed building the lifting mechanism I bolted it to the Seat Platform.
I need to make a way to attach the top of the actuator to the Back Platform. Since I had moved the Center Support the attachment point would now be on one of the side panels so I wanted to do a little reinforcing first. Cut a small plywood panel that fits tightly into the Back Platform recess.
Then glue (Mmmmm - wooden toaster pastry) -
and screw into place.
Because of the way the sofa-bed operates the top of the actuator can't be rigidly attached. It has to be allowed some movement. After some testing and a couple prototypes-
I came up with this design.
The bolt has a 1/4" diameter and I need it to be able to slide within a slot on the aluminum bracket. To create the slot I drilled a series of 1/4" holes taking great care to keep the holes in a straight line. Then used a hand file to smooth down the ridges left from the holes. Again being careful not to enlarge the slot but keep it at 1/4". The advantage of using aluminum to make the bracket is it's a lot easier to drill and file than a similar sized piece of steel would be.
As the sofa-bed converts from bed to sofa I'll explain how the bolt moves in the bracket slot.
The sofa-bed is in the bed position. The Back Platform is lying flat. The lifting actuator is completely "closed" or un-extended.
The transitioning begins. The actuator has just started to extend. Notice the change in position of the bolt head.
The top of the actuator post has made contact with the bottom of the Back Platform. This contact is how the lifting force from the actuator will be transferred to the Back Platform. The purpose of the bracket is to guide the top of the actuator post and keep it in place. I'm using the base of the bracket to help spread the lifting force.
Here the actuator has extended to the end of it's stroke and raised the Back Platform as high as it can. Due to the pivoting of the of the actuator post edge against the bracket as the angle of the Back Platform increases the bolt has moved downward slightly in the slot.
Even though the actuator has raised the Back Platform has high as it can the platform is still not in it's final position.
At this point the second actuator is activated. It moves the two hinged platforms backwards and brings the Back Platform against the end support blocks.
As the second actuator continues to operate it causes the Back Platform to slide up the end support blocks increasing it's angle . When the second actuator stops moving the Back Platform will be positioned so it's angle matches that of the end support block.
While the angle of the Back Platform was being increase the bolt through the end of the lifting actuator was sliding downward in the bracket slot.
Figuring out the whole system of getting the lifting actuator to get the Seat Platform most of the way up then having the end support blocks lift it the rest of the way while not binding up on the lifting actuator was a major challenge. I'm sure it looks fairly straight forward here but it sure wasn't in my head.
In this picture you can see the pencil marks and screw holes from some of the different designs I tried before creating this one.
continued -
Woods win.
Sofa-bed continued:
After having completed building the lifting mechanism I bolted it to the Seat Platform.
I need to make a way to attach the top of the actuator to the Back Platform. Since I had moved the Center Support the attachment point would now be on one of the side panels so I wanted to do a little reinforcing first. Cut a small plywood panel that fits tightly into the Back Platform recess.
Then glue (Mmmmm - wooden toaster pastry) -
and screw into place.
Because of the way the sofa-bed operates the top of the actuator can't be rigidly attached. It has to be allowed some movement. After some testing and a couple prototypes-
I came up with this design.
The bolt has a 1/4" diameter and I need it to be able to slide within a slot on the aluminum bracket. To create the slot I drilled a series of 1/4" holes taking great care to keep the holes in a straight line. Then used a hand file to smooth down the ridges left from the holes. Again being careful not to enlarge the slot but keep it at 1/4". The advantage of using aluminum to make the bracket is it's a lot easier to drill and file than a similar sized piece of steel would be.
As the sofa-bed converts from bed to sofa I'll explain how the bolt moves in the bracket slot.
The sofa-bed is in the bed position. The Back Platform is lying flat. The lifting actuator is completely "closed" or un-extended.
The transitioning begins. The actuator has just started to extend. Notice the change in position of the bolt head.
The top of the actuator post has made contact with the bottom of the Back Platform. This contact is how the lifting force from the actuator will be transferred to the Back Platform. The purpose of the bracket is to guide the top of the actuator post and keep it in place. I'm using the base of the bracket to help spread the lifting force.
Here the actuator has extended to the end of it's stroke and raised the Back Platform as high as it can. Due to the pivoting of the of the actuator post edge against the bracket as the angle of the Back Platform increases the bolt has moved downward slightly in the slot.
Even though the actuator has raised the Back Platform has high as it can the platform is still not in it's final position.
At this point the second actuator is activated. It moves the two hinged platforms backwards and brings the Back Platform against the end support blocks.
As the second actuator continues to operate it causes the Back Platform to slide up the end support blocks increasing it's angle . When the second actuator stops moving the Back Platform will be positioned so it's angle matches that of the end support block.
While the angle of the Back Platform was being increase the bolt through the end of the lifting actuator was sliding downward in the bracket slot.
Figuring out the whole system of getting the lifting actuator to get the Seat Platform most of the way up then having the end support blocks lift it the rest of the way while not binding up on the lifting actuator was a major challenge. I'm sure it looks fairly straight forward here but it sure wasn't in my head.
In this picture you can see the pencil marks and screw holes from some of the different designs I tried before creating this one.
continued -
WVvan wrote:
Hal the Van is at the shop tonight getting some welding work done on a couple of places that need more than what I can do with Bondo.
Anyway I have a new question. I'm drawing up my van layout and am leaving the right rear corner (passenger side) of the van free for a possible toilet. I'm not sure if I'll add one but want to leave enough space for a future installation. This would be free standing, not an enclosure. Also not sure of what type I'd go with (Porta, blackwater).
What is the minimum space (width) I should leave free?
Thanks.
On a separate note, here is the wiring scheme:
Since must of my camping is boondocking I have fairly simple shore power set-up. Unplug the two 120 AC outlets from the inverter and plug them into shore power. Since the inverter will be the biggest power draw I should be able to run the 12V DC side from the solar panel. Use the charger for when I get home.
Why not run the solar panel wires directly to the batteries. You will never get enough continuous power from the panels to run much at all.
