It has been a while since I last posted an update on my campervan conversion project, and although I have been largely occupied with vertical farming up till now, I have also been quietly chipping away at my own vision of future sustainability. As some may recall, Kickstart Kamper started on DesignSpark as an attempt to assess the feasibility of alternative living and sustainable technologies in the form of an old Iveco Daily off-grid campervan conversion, and in that regard, I would like to confirm that a great deal of positive progress has indeed been made!
In previous articles, we covered the design and build of two modular kitchen units made out of aluminium extrusion as well as the frame that would house all of my off-grid electrics. Using these designs as the template, I have since managed to fit out the entire van in a similar manner and although ongoing, I have been very keen to share some of these victories.
Insulation
Admittedly, I did do things a bit out of order in the beginning, so before mounting any of the furniture I made, I had to insulate and cover the walls and ceiling of the van to make sure it was protected from the changeable UK weather outside. I identified early on that the biggest disadvantage to a living space made of steel panels was condensation, and learning how to regulate moisture effectively in the van was therefore extremely important.
The big difference between the van and more traditional living spaces, is the fact that we are insulating a thin single layer of thermally conductive metal, that is exposed to the elements on one side, as appose to the inner and outer brick layers common to modern housing that are less thermally conductive and can whisk away moisture with freely moving air between them. It was therefore very important to try and emulate this breathability by installing a vapour barrier that stopped moisture settling on this often-cold outer surface.
Condensation can be a big issue on exposed metal surfaces.
To do this, I used a roll of specifically designed self-adhesive closed-cell foam called dodo-mat to cover as much exposed metalwork as I could, this acts as a thermal buffer against the metal which is a good thermal conductor, and therefore reduces the threat of condensation within the van. The before and after was very stark, as I no longer had hundreds of water droplets forming on the ceiling during the winter months as I did before. Once I established this was working, I could then cover it with my choice of primary insulating material.
Finishing the roof insulation with dodo-mat and thermafleece.
Obviously, I also wanted to experiment with more sustainable forms of insulation so in the end I decided to use Thermafleece, a composite material made of sheep wool that has some fantastic properties. Not only is sheep wool a great insulator but it is also fire retardant, highly breathable, and malleable, which makes it a lot more practical than the hydrophobic and rigid Celotex foam panels, while being safer to work with and more natural than mineral “wool”.
Thermafleece is sheep wool insulation on a roll.
To add to the challenge of insulation, there are no flat surfaces inside most modern vehicles; this is by design and increases the strength of the body panels while improving the weight of the vehicle through the use of thinner metals. The obvious downside of which is the added challenge of having to mould your insulation against a non-uniform surface. This makes the use of traditional insulation effectively impossible, with exception of perhaps Luton box vans, having flexible insulation is an absolute must.
Making wheel arch covers to later fill with insulation.
The most prominent example of this is when I needed to insulate my wheel arches by building a wooden box around them and filling the cavity with leftover Thermafleece, a non-uniform surface if ever there was one! However, the process of cutting and sticking insulation in place was actually very straightforward and could then be hidden with covered plywood sheets.
Materials-wise, I think I have managed to improve the sustainability of the build greatly while having added benefits of lowering the toxicity of the insulation that I will be in close contact with. Overall, I have learned a great deal about vehicle insulation, breathability and even architecture that will be extremely useful if I even get round to building an off-grid homestead.
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