Project DIY: Truck-bed Pullout Kitchen (and BS)

anything new?

 

Not a whole lot. I ordered a water pump and some braided tubing. I need to re-apply the spar varnish because we sort of skimped last time to get it ready in time for camping. No adverse effects were noted, but I don't want to risk it. At some point, an Alu-cab Khaya camper might be in our future, so for now, the hot-water idea is out (or at least post-poned). All I will focus on is just getting the 12-gallon tank installed and the faucet hooked up. I don't expect to get much done though until around February.

 

Did you see what Hondo garage is working on? This might be the ticket for you

 

I have to say, that does look intriguing. But I'm looking for a four season camper. One of the dealers is here in Seattle so I'll go check it out in January. It's more of a Four Wheel Camper alternative: it's a slide-in. As long as it's insulated and has a viable heater option, I'm sold.

 

This is what I'm eyeballing at the moment:

 

Oh man that is some serious gear, I bet that costs a pretty penny

 

From what I was told, it might actually be cheaper than FWC... But FWC is definitely four season... I'm not sure this is. We'll see.

 

I talked to them about price. Don’t quote me exactly but starting around 25k I think. Gonna be great though. I lived in my FWC with my wife for a year. Even with a heater we still got frost and ice sickles a few times. You can’t replace hard sided and insulation no matter what if your dealing with Winter.

 

Yeap. Very true. I don't plan to live in mine, just take the odd weekend and not concern myself that it's 36 degrees or it dips below freezing in the night. I've done it in my RTT and after dealing with the cold, had to towel everything down because of condensation. It's enough to make me check the weather and go NOPE. I want to start saying YEP more often.

Edit: I was told the Khaya would be 15-20k depending on package. If it's starting at 25k that puts it back in the running with FWC... a very nicely equipped one at that.

 

Sorry, partly misquoted. I found the email I got from Tom @ Adventure Ready.

We do have some initial information on pricing - shell will be $16,999.00 and fully loaded camper with all of the options (including full kitchen, fridge, electrical kit, solar, etc. will be about $25,500.00.

 

17-25... does sound like there's a happy ground in the middle there somewhere. I already have a fridge and I can probably tap into my on-board battery... Definitely worth exploring. Thanks!

 

The Khaya camper starts at $13,995 and a fully kitted unit can top out at $27,254 with everything including even a tire carrier. Official pricing and option lists will be posted up by Alu-Cab dealers come the start of 2018.

I've spent a ton of time in our prototype unit and we have made no less than 25 changes to better suit the North American market. One of the biggest being a dual layer fabric for greater insulation and a self contained diesel hot air and water heater. This heating system rips and effortlessly keeps the camper too warm for even a sleeping bag in <30* temps. We were also able to "test" some revised campers last month down in Cape Town, South Africa.

 

I think we're sold - let's see how the finances end up this spring.

 

To get back on topic: I'm looking for some help to try and identify what plumbing fittings I need to buy to complete this water tank project. I started a separate threads to see if I can get some extra eyes on it:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...ng-fittings-for-water-tank-for-my-rig.525303/

I admit I feel pretty dumb not being able to find something I need, but once I started looking into plumbing thread types, my head spun and I kind of threw in the towel and am asking for help.

 

sub'd

 

Alright, now begins the fun part. Designing how I want my sink pullout to work. I'm trying to incorporate a couple of "wants":

1.

$21 Progressive International Prepworks Collapsible Portable Wash Basin Dishpan

Removable/Collapsible Sink - Bought two of these, but I think I'll only use one.
2. Faucet to be convenient to filling the sink
3. Faucet to be convenient to washing hands off the side
4. Bonus if I can store everything in the pullout

Underneath the cook-top, I have about 2-3/8" of clearance. (There's a smidgen more because of the clearance to the kitchen base, but not a whole lot.) So, everything needs to tuck away into that space. The collapsible tub is approximately 15x12 so I only have about 4 to 4.5" of width left to fit the plumbing. Another challenge to deal with: It will pullout about 16" so I need to make sure the braided tubing can accommodate that. Here's what I've come up with mocking things up:



The idea here is to build a "base" that the sink will recess into. Then, in the space to the right, the faucet will mount so that it can be tucked away as shown above.
The photos below show the faucet oriented in the various positions.

 

Cool, it looks like you could hinge that piece Along the upper edge to give it a bit more clearance on the outside. It's nice and simple as it is but you might find yourself wanting a bit more space under the output when it's over the sink. A hinge could do both.

 

Okay, this is proving more challenging than I anticipated. The challenges I'm facing are having a place for the wiring and the tubing to be able to pull out along with the sink/faucet. I have some plastic drag chain for the wiring, and 16" of movement isn't a lot to worry about, so I think that part is solved. But the tubing...

I'm trying a few ideas in Sketchup to see what works and what doesn't. I'm thinking having the pullout full-width of the cooktop cabinet isn't going to work. I need a "fixed" channel where I can run the drag chain(s) (I'm considering one for the tubing as well) or just a place the tubing can sit loose with enough room to be pulled out.

For those wondering, this is drag chain. One end is fixed (upper cabinet). The other end is attached to the moving part and it rolls, protecting the cable or tubing contained within. I'm also planning to do something like this for the power cord of the fridge.

 

Won't some coil hose fit?

 

Subbed for tomorrows reading.