Building a “Home” in a 80-series Toyota Land Cruiser — part 3
We have been busy. We leave for Alaska in 6 weeks. Not much time left. Rain has kept us from working, but we made some progress. We have been working on the frames for the kitchen, storage and bed.
The storage compartment will be behind the front seats with 3 aluminum lids that hinge. We are not sure if we want this as compartments or one large storage that can be divided by boxes or storage bags. The two hatches on the driver side and center will have 2" cushions and will be the upper part of the bed.
The lower side of the bed will be a bench that has a slider part that opens to a twin bed. The bench will have 3 cushions so that passengers will be able to sit on a bench seat in the back. They will have leather on top to match the front seats. The bench also has a storage area underneath.
There will have to be some latches to lock it in place. We will also install a back cushion for the bench, that will be removable and used as the part of the mattress that covers the slider part of the bed.
These 3 frames will be attached to each other and to the vehicle itself with screws. They will not be permanent, and can always be removed.
We ordered SkyCart aluminum drawers and installed them with extension glides. The bottom drawer is a bit lower to allow taller pots to fit in.
Stove work is done and it has been tested.
The stove will slide under the Fridge. We can pull it out and work on the tailgate or on a table. If weather gets bad, we may be forced to cook inside.
Kitchen cabinet got aluminum doors. This is 6061-T6 0.1" thick. All metal work will be powder coated.
The rear tail gate has food grade stainless steel plates with latches so that we can store all the recovery gear. It is a bit heavy, so when opening it, care must be taken.
The bracket for the water tanks that sit under the vehicle is done. Water tanks are 8" PVC schedule 40 with caps. Each tank provides 30 liters of water. One of the tanks will be hot water. A circulating pump with a thermostat will run the water through a heat exchange unit with the radiator coolant. The compressor will pressurize the tank so that water will ‘climb’ to the faucet and shower. Ha, yes, the shower…
The exterior shower unit is a Bullfinch shower head. The unit is well made, and very compact. We will let you know how clean we come out.
The shower head plugs in and has the handle integrated into it.
Also, the electrical panel is being assembled. Solar panel controller, 110 VAC Converter panel, main switch panel, thermostat controller, 110V plug and fuse box. A main disconnect will be added as well.
The 110VAC 1KW converter was mounted inside the wheel well to save space.
I guess we will post this public, and continue working…