BluesideUp Alaskan Project

[Rusty]

Nice fit....never enough air

is that the 200#/1.76 cfm unit?

 

[BluesideUp]

Yes it is. The tank is 150 psi and the pressure switch is 110 on / 145 off.

 

[BluesideUp]

I am starting on the interior Pirelli seals on the bottomhalf half first and have a question about placement of the Pirelli.
Should it be laid flat so the edge of the Pirelli touches the inside of the upper half at a 90 degree angle or laid so the edge touches at a slight angle and the Pirelli moves more like a windshield wiper when the camper goes up and down ?

 

[Rusty]

I've seen it installed both ways...with a slight curve so it works like a windshield wiper and flat so it tracks the edge without a curve to it.

I've installed mine without the curve...because of the time I put in on the paint ....no scratching, rubbing or buffing

 

[BluesideUp]

Thanks that's helpful, since I have a bow on the top half this is going to be an interesting install. Less bow on the Pirelli ends but more in the middle to fit the curve of the top
1st picture is the wood trim installed on top of the old Pirelli, the 2nd is with the trim removed and the 3rd is with trim and Pirelli off.
Before I removed the staples I drew a reference line on the aluminum siding along the inside edge of the original Pirelli.
I immediately ran into an issue trying staple through the siding and upgraded to a heavy duty electric which started to jam so I am waiting on a pneumatic stapler with 18 gauge, 1/2 crown, 1" staples.

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[Rusty]

Don't rivet the stuff down...remember...you're going to be the one replacing the pirelli in a few years...pulling the 18 ga 1" staples out

that's one of the sizes my old Senco shoots

My molding trim around the edge is attached with oval head brass screws, so replacing the trim is easy

 

[BluesideUp]

LOL. Thanks good point I will pick up some 1/2" staples. My trim is attached with 1/2 " square head counter sunk screws.

 

[BluesideUp]

Got started on drivers side first using 1/4 crown x 1/2". Set air pressure to 45 psi so as not to drive through Pirelli but enough to get through aluminum. Definitely an improvement but not as good as it should be.
Tried to install with slight bow and spaced staples at 3-5 " on a 90 degree angle on the first run then switched to parallel. Not sure what was going through my head on that.
You can see the line drawn for the inside of the original factory install and by the time I got to the center I only had a hair more than a 1/4" to play with due to the bow in the top and or bottom sections.
Will work on curbside tomorrow which should be interesting since I have high cabinets

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[BluesideUp]

When I extended the deck of the flatbed we moved the brake, position and backup lights however I soon noticed at night, especially in the rain with water on the rear view mirrors how cumbersome backing up in tight places could be.
I had kept the wiring for the headache rack backup light coiled under the bed after we cut the rack so I ran a splice to each side of the original backup light position and installed the original incandescent lights. They actually seem brighter than LED's.
So we will see if four backup lights are better than two.

Note if you look closely under the rear brake light you can see a nice crease that attests to the level of my skills.

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[Henricksen]

When I extended the deck of the flatbed we moved the brake, position and backup lights however I soon noticed at night, especially in the rain with water on the rear view mirrors how cumbersome backing up in tight places could be.
I had kept the wiring for the headache rack backup light coiled under the bed after we cut the rack so I ran a splice to each side of the original backup light position and installed the original incandescent lights. They actually seem brighter than LED's.
So we will see if four backup lights are better than two.

Note if you look closely under the rear brake light you can see a nice crease that attests to the level of my skills.

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I am late in discovering your post and responding. By the way, the execution of your project is way beyond my skill level. But I found your pics and description extremely interesting and yes, some of your posts do indeed have particular relevance to us and our 8 year old CO Alaskan. I do have a comment regarding incorporating solar into the Alaskan experience. Four or five years ago I purchased a Kyocera 65 watt panel, Sunkeeper 6 charge controller by Morningstar and 20 feet of cable. I made a stand to set the panel in with the ability to adjust the angle as needed, a sturdy carrying box for the panel and a plug to plug into the camper outside plug-in. When we stop to camp, I unplug the line coming from the truck and plug in the panel cord and plug. I then move the panel around to where the best solar gain is. This setup has served us with all the power needed for our minimal needs. Most of the time this is the two fantastic fans, refrigerator fan and lights. Sometimes it also includes the furnace fan.
Hope this helps if help is needed.

 

[BluesideUp]

Help is always needed, thanks for your post thats a great set up.
I am currently upgrading the truck's alternator from OEM 125 amp to a Tuff Stuff 140 amp performance alternator and will carry the OEM as a spare. I have purchased two additional Odessy 70 Amp 12 volt batteries which I will install in parallel for house batteries with a battery isolator from the truck electrical. Presently the alternator charges the existing house battery through the 5th wheel trailer plug on a 40 amp fuse. All the batteries, truck and house will be same make and model deep cycle AGM's so they are interchangeable. I like redundancy.
I found a Go Power solar system on eBay and will permanently install the panels on the roof. Since the camper was not pre-wired for solar I need to figure where to mount a through roof cable fitting.
Since I have to replace the forward fan I will probably install it in close proximity to the rear of the housing

 

[Ripperj]

I'm in the planning stage for 200w solar on my 8' CO, I plan on using a marine grade bulkhead fitting, but looping the cable into the rear or side wall of the camper (penetration not on roof)
Inside I am going to have a cable that runs from the roof to the lower camper,i have a couple different ideas for the 20" difference between up and down, a loop with a bungee would be simple and functional, but ugly. A telescopic conduit would be slick, with the loop hidden inside a cabinet behind a false wall.

 

[BluesideUp]

Thanks, I am looking at a waterproof fitting to be placed about 8-12 " behind and offset from the forward fan exterior mounting bracket. I say 8-12 because my Comfort fan is broken and I have a new MaxAir fan with the rain guard so I am not to sure of clearances with the shroud closed.
I want to temporarily set the fan and panels before I start cutting holes
Bryan at Alaskan states the existing fan mounting screws are set in 2"x 4" in the structure of roof, thus the reason for the offset.
The cable will exit in the CO run back to the divider then over to the cabinet next to the IOTA load controller where I will mount the two solar controls.
The two solar panels are 58"x 26" and are too long to run straight down the middle in-between the hatches so they will be most likely mounted side by side

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[BluesideUp]

Email from Bryan at Alaskan for solar wiring run on already built

"What we do on a already built camper is drill up just inside the overhead cabinet about an inch inside from the cabinet face frame. The overhead cabinet is screwed into an 1 1/2”X 1 1/2” stringer running front to back. We like to take a razor knife and cut out the “ceiling inside the cabinet which is the laminate plus the 1/8” luan panel. Then your to the spray foam which you can dig out. There shouldn’t be any wiring there but once we found 110 wire stapled to that 2X2 but I think that was before your campers time. Then you can use your thru fitting from the top and get a couple screws from the top into the 2X2. By going in here your wires can run down with the existing wiring harness to the battery."

 

[BluesideUp]

While playing around with the front fan in the CO I noticed two verticle cracks about 6" inside of the front jacks on the mounting structure.
Has anyone run into this?.

 

[BluesideUp]

Replaced inoperative forward Comfort fan with a MaxFan. The exterior mounting flange fits the existing cutout but is slightly smaller so no matter how I positioned it I still had one row of exposed holes in front which I solved by placing left over butyl tape over the holes and reinstalled the 8 screws. I still have to seal everything but wanted to test run before I did. I elected to use the old Comfort Fan interior garnish ring.
The MaxFan is great, can operate in the rain and has auto temp control.

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[Ripperj]

These cracks are on the middle roof bulkhead 3/4" Plywood? On mine that's where the bulkhead is cutaway to make CO access easier, is yours the same? The cracks are on the top?

 

[BluesideUp]

Yes both are on the CO side of the bulkhead about 3" inboard of each jack which attaches to the cabin side

 

[Rusty]

can you take a shot a little further back....plywood wouldn't do that...bi directional plys don't work that way...if that's a film and not a wood veneer....possible...but strange

nice fan...is that the "up" position or does it have an "up" position?

 

[BluesideUp]

Yes that is the open position which allows use in the rain, either intake or exhaust. You can also operate the fan with it closed in recirculation mode. Has manual, automatic or remote operation and comes in white or smoke hood.
The cracks are I think from stress with the front & rear jacks lifting out of sync.

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