It's taking shape!
Just making sure it fits on the truck…
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The build starts tomorrow, first thing! The pile of stuff in the garage is all the parts that won’t be built by Koops’.  A couple of weeks ago, Koops’ Tinsmiths gave us a date to start the camper build: Monday, July 26. Despite the temptation to immediately blog about it, we spent our energy making sure we were ready to drop the truck off, and getting whatever last minute things were needed so that once the build starts, we won’t have any delays due to waiting for parts or information. The past couple of weeks have been consumed with two main things: figuring out the solar system and ordering insulation. Tom has been doing a ton of research on what we need for a solar system. We’ve figured out what our electrical needs are from the draw side, and he has been looking at what is available as far as solar equipment here in Belize to meet those needs. However, we recognize that there is a limit to what you can learn in a limited time from YouTube videos, and the electrical system is both expensive and complicated enough that we want to get it right the first time. So, we decided to hire an expert and contacted our neighbors Jon and Tatiana from Sun’s Electric. Their business is to design and install these systems, and after talking to them we know we are in good hands…and, they appreciate all the research Tom has done so they’re not wasting a lot of their time explaining the basics. It also helps that we’ve lived off grid for the past 14 years so we understand the principles of balancing use with collection, but we were really relieved to get their professional expertise. We were also really happy that we talked to them and discussed the specific equipment we will use before the build was started, because we found that in order to fit the solar panels we plan to get on the roof, we are going to have to move a couple of the roof vents, and it’s way better to have figured that out now, before the build, than to have to figure out a workaround afterwards. The other task we needed to complete before the build starts was to get the insulation to be used in all the walls and the roof. The camper is going to have an aluminum skin outside, and aluminum walls inside, with foam board insulation between the outside skin and the inside wall. Because it will be constructed in panels, and because the design was already done, Justin was able to give us an exact list of the number of insulation panels of each dimension needed for the whole thing. We had looked into how to get foam board insulation a few months ago when we first started thinking about the specifics of the build, and found that it would be most economical to get it from a company in Belize City called Belize Polystructure, both because we wouldn’t have to pay for import from the US, and because they cut all panels to the exact sizes ordered, reducing waste to zero. Tom ordered the foam board at the beginning of last week, and on Monday, two days ago, we drove the flatbed to the factory in Belize City to pick up all the insulation. We immediately took it and dropped it at Koops’ Tinsmiths, where it is waiting for the truck to be dropped off on Friday so the build can start first thing Monday morning!  This is a camper’s worth of foam insulation, strapped down to be transported to where the camper will be built.  Unloading the foam insulation into Koops’ Tinsmiths shop, waiting for the truck to be dropped off on Friday. If anybody doesn’t believe in magic, try to visualize some sort of structure in your head, and then sit down with a CAD wizard and watch it come to life.  Justin is so quick and competent, even I don’t feel the need to wrestle the mouse from his hand and take over! That’s what we did last week with our camper design with Justin at Koops’ Tinsmiths. Over the past few weeks, most of our camper parts ordered from the US have arrived here in Belize. So, we have exact sizes, and all the information we need to make sure all the pieces we have will fit and work together.  Passenger side view with door and windows  Driver side view with windows and water heater hatch We already had a rough shell and wall design. Now, we know that with a few tweaks, that design will work with the rest of the pieces. We spent almost four hours placing windows, door, roof vents, escape hatches, and utility hatches. We also designed boxes for water tanks and plumbing and electrical components. We came up with a plan for external lights as part of the vehicle. A few wall panels needed to be adjusted, and we had to compromise on a few minor details, but overall we are getting EXACTLY what we want.  Interior, with appliances  Interior passenger side with moto garage and water tank space  Driver side cutaway showing living space with bathroom and garage/utility space Now, we just need to get the build scheduled and started!
https://www.cdc.gov/importation/bringing-an-animal-into-the-united-states/high-risk-dog-ban-frn.html
So the CDC is now saying dogs cannot come into the US from Belize. You can apply for an exemption, but the process is long and involved and expensive, and we don’t legitimately qualify for any of the exemptions. So, if you were looking forward to seeing us...I guess it will have to wait until this “temporary” ban ends. We remember, once again, why we moved to Belize. |