Kimbo Camper BS and Mods

If you're looking, this is pretty minimal, "stealth" bumpers was the search. Under a $1000 which is nice.

 

Truck house looks to be using the SSO full plate bumper without the hoop, found here

 

I have one of these soft plumbed into the "City" water side of my faucet for hot water, and as an outside shower. Although a little finicky, they work good. They must be drained before reaching freezing temperatures. I had to replace the mixing valve after frozen water damaged it while camping at Porcupine Flats in Yosemite.

 

Hey nelsonator - yep, That was me all right! Great to have you on here. Cool to see this taking off and sharing ideas/info.

 

As far as the diesel heater goes - I've installed three so far and they work fine for smaller spaces (think van/kimbo/etc...) but once the space gets a bit larger they are not as effective. I installed one on top of our previous camping solution and it heated the sleeping area as well as most of the vestibule in below 10degree weather. I also installed one in my garage knowing that it wouldn't 'heat' it up but at least take off the chill of a well insulated garage and it works well. The last one I installed was out at the lake 'shack' but it has high ceilings so is much less effective. One thing I learned with the one at the lake is that if the diesel line is not properly insulated from the cold, the diesel gels up and the tiny pump is not strong enough to move the diesel through the line - so that's a major consideration and why we added the propane Dickenson heater to the Kimbo.

 

Previous camping solution in winter garb - the diesel heater is in the storage box mounted on top and is removable for summer camping.

 

Holy COW!!! that snow looks AMAZING - you're gonna be able to give everyone decent feedback on the Kimbo's snow performance for sure huh?

 

Thanks for the link - love that bumper (without the bull bar) but that'll have to wait quite a while LOL.

 

Curious is additives in the tank would effect the heater when burned. Probably not this winter but next winter I may be testing that cold.

 

I doubt it.

Ive run mine down into the -5*F range without an issue. I think keeping the pump, filter, etc in the same enclosure as the heater helps to pre-warm the fuel a bit. But at the end of the day this is not a high pressure system and there are no injectors, so I think the tolerance for gelling should be better than a mechanical diesel engine.

 

This may already be known but I just had the fan not starting when flipping the switch - realized the problem was that the cover has a switch on it, if it’s closed too far - the fan won’t start. It’s raining off and on here so I just had the cover cracked and evidently it was right at the switch threshold. Figured I’d pass that along - it’s not a wiring issue (at least for my situation).

 

Yep, remember Collin at Kimbo telling me this too. The fan is fully loaded for sure.

 

Hey guys - another revelation. We had a strong smell in the Kimbo that I figured was left over from the propane furnace burning off the sealant combined with whatever other sealants/adhesives were used in the manufacturing process and I couldn't get it to clear out. I finally got my wife to see if she could recognize the smell, well she immediately said it smelled like gas...oh my! I'd been leaving the propane tank valve open (not the furnace valve) overnight because I was running the furnace while randomly fiddling around each day. I immediately turned off the valve on the tank and let it set over night. This morning there was no more smell - the strange part is that the strong smell didn't strike me as a gas smell like rotten eggs, more of a burnt smell. Just passing along random findings! Be safe out there!!

 

Probably check the seal/valve on the tank then? I know some propane take sellers will certify them. Your propane detector plugged in?

 

yep the detector is on and a test shows it's working properly - I'll keep an eye on it tho.

Planning to double check the fittings at the furnace with some soapy water shortly - just to be sure

 

I've noticed propane tanks have the tendency to off-gas, especially when they're full, even if the valve is closed. Obviously, a pilot light will also leak gas if it's not lit up.

 

yeah - the Dickensen furnace is a ‘light it yourself with a lighter’ style, so no pilot light. I did check the hoses and connections with soapy water and didn’t see any leaks. I’ll simply have to shut the valve off every time I turn off the furnace, which is probably a good practice anyway.

 

yes, but planning to put the fridge right up against the structural wall where the wet clothes hanger is. The front opening door will allow for shelving above the fridge (where I’ll store the goalzero).

 

Alright - we are legal, registered and the title is on the way!

now I need to find a decent spot to mount this license plate, grrr

 

I had this picture for awhile for a similar idea to help visualize. Hope this helps.