Maybe I'll work on my..... something.

Picked up my batteries today. The bank will be 12v 470AH.

 

Solar power V8 anyone?

 

Exhaust. Still have some work to do before it is "finished" but I didn't want to get it coated before I build the brackets for the running boards because I will be welding some pieces in place.
After the running board brackets are done, I will be getting the exhaust blasted and ceramic coated.

 

Used the break in rain to do some work. Got the batteries installed and wired up, and put the first solar panel on. The first panel is on a tilt mount so I can aim it out of the entrance of my covered parking spot to get good afternoon sun. I'm not going to install the other two up top until it warms up and I paint the roof.

 

Got the propane tanks mounted up. Need to get a cable lock for it. I added aluminum angle on the bottom to give it a bit more strength for the bungee cord that I use to help make sure wind doesn't lift it off the tanks while driving.

I also got the awning mounted up on the street side. These are the powered arms that I got for $100. Basically, I got awnings for both sides for the cost of one.

Inside, I got the corner panels cut to size (painted just for moisture resistance) and speakers mounted. I am going to redo the ceiling in aluminum sheeting because the FRP glue didn't stick to the FRP and it is sagging. I will also cap the corner panels with aluminum. The pioneer speakers sound really good, but give a bit of vibration in the corner panels. So, I will be putting sound dampener on the back side of them. I mounted them so they aim at the jackknife sofa and are centered on each other across the trailer.


I finished up the cutting on the access panel in the bathroom. Just need to get the aluminum flat stock to trim it. Unlike the vents in the main area, I left the flaps in the one in the bathroom to be able to reduce the airflow coming from the heater. If I left it fully open, I think it would get uncomfortably warm in there.

 

Two more 100w panels on top. Not permanently mounted yet because I plan to paint the roof with thermal paint and want to get under the panels. So, waiting for a couple 70*+ days to remove the two panels then sand and paint the roof.
Gas is hooked up completely, including outside valve. Just did a test and found no leaks using a gas detector.
Next for today is checking all the water connections and hooking up to city water to check for leaks.
Once it is confirmed to not have any leaks, the trailer is liveable with only trim work/cabinet doors/drawers needed inside.
I am going to find the most efficient "budget" generator to run just the AC since I built it to be just gas and 12v except the AC.

 

Worked on my OBA for the truck today. When running the power wire for the air bag self leveling kit, I found that the jackass who put the canopy on ran the wires through the hole then put the body plug back in. Nothing like pinching a pair of wires against a sheet metal edge. So, I cut a hole in the body plug and re-ran the wires through the plug.

Tomorrow, I need to wire in the compressor (and put a heat shield on it), and wire in the 28" air horn. Then, my OBA will be complete with air horn, self leveling bags, and a quick disconnect for an air hose hidden up behind the rear bumper.

 

Painted the roof white and started the trim work in the bathroom. Just waiting on a piece of vent hose for the toilet to get here, then it's ready to go. I just applied for an on site watchman for a logging company. Start on the June 1.

 

Picked up 4 of these 20kg suitcase weights today for $50. It was a price that I could not pass on for weights for my tractor. They fit perfectly on my rear blade frame, just need to get 2 pieces is 4x6x1/2 steel plate to bolt to the frame to lock them in place.

Not going to get to work on it again until there is a fire and my employer pulls me off the landing, or I spend a couple hours of my downtime offsite and bring my tractor up to the landing to work on it.
Got my site assignment today, going up on Monday to get my camper set up for Tuesday which will be my first day on the clock.

 

Gave a little more consideration to this while looking at what is available for track. I think I might go this route on a new trailer. After I get a year in on the new job, I am going to buy a new car/tractor trailer and give my old one to my dad.
I'm thinking that a new trailer with adjustable bags might fit me more, that way I can have it ride/load low and raise it up when needed to pull into gas stations/driveways. Plus my dad gets more use out of my old one than I do now and I already got more than my money's worth out of it.

 

Finally made it back into town to get water and gas. I have one bar of signal that I find in random spots up on the hill, but it doesn't last long.

 

Crap. Day 23 and my fridge broke.... Thin plastic on the handle where the shaft goes through.

 

On to site #3. Lots of burned trees. Unfortunately, they have me sitting in a spot with heavy tree coverage to the south. So, even when it isn't raining, I get crap solar. Once they clear out a spot up on the site (a mile away up a well travelled blm road), I am going to see about moving up to a clearing.
I did do some more work on the trailer. Added two more solar panels for a total of 600w (need sunlight of course), and I added a second shower valve to create a recirulating system to reduce water waste while waiting for it to get hot water to the showerhead. This way, I can turn the pump (and water heater) on then choose to send it to the showerhead or back to the fresh water tank. Now, the only cold water that I get at the showerhead is what is in the hose coming from the wall.
I also got rid of the 44gal water tank in the bed of the truck in favor of a 55gal drum to transport water and another on the ground to store more. This way, I can carry more water with less total weight since I don't have a wood rack to hold the tank.
Sorry no pictures yet, got a new phone today and haven't taken any pictures with it yet.

 

New spot.

 

Scored a new Ever start Maxx for $30 off. Manager said it was mislabelled, I said it wasn't my fault the entire display was incorrectly priced.
My neighbor was kind enough to mill out my Optima tray to fit the bigger battery so it would fit in the car.

My grandfather and uncle visited last week and they were very pleased with the exhaust sound and almost giggled when they saw that big ol motor sitting under the hood.

 

Built an easily disassembled box for my 55gal drum. Now, it doesn't look as obnoxious as just a bright blue barrel. This will keep the rain/snow off and help with insulation in the winter.
I am going to put in a water circulation setup that uses a heater core which will be mounted above my furnace. I will add pictures once I build it, but the idea is to use the waste heat of the furnace to warm up the water inside the barrel.

 

Not much to update. I did install an observation camera system since I don't have a front window. I am going to order a light for the front since I can't see anything but the roof of my canopy at night.

Oh, and I installed a hour meter on my genny. Need to pull it off when the genny isn't running to hook it to a battery to get the hrs to match (meter is 20hr behind).

 

Added spigots and y blocks to the side of the box. This way, I dont have to switch lines around when I want to fill the tank vs running the recirulating pump vs transferring water to the trailer. Will only need to connect one hose to fill or transfer water. Using quick disconnects on hose fittings also.
Forgot to order 90* hose adapters for the side of the trailer, so it won't get hooked up til next week.

 

I now have a functioning recirculating water warming setup. I'll pick up some foam to insulate the hoses next week.

 

So, with the little bit of freezing rain and snow we got, I remembered that I hated clearing snow off of awnings (owned a 33ft class A before I went into the army).
I decided that I wanted to have my generator covered but be able to have the awning in. So I built a cover.
No rain or snow getting on it, easy to access, easy to start with the lid closed.