PMK Mods Expanda 16.49-1B - OB

[PMK]

Hi All,

Not much to tell yet about mods to our Expanda. Did the LED conversion for the interior lighting & have replumbed the underside of the van. For some reason Jayco choose to go under the floor joists when they could easily run through the openings in them, I plan to fit sheet metal covers to the bottom of the joist rails for stone protection..... photos will follow soon.......

Also I fitted taps to the tank drain plugs so when we bush camp we have water outside the van. See pics below.
Also makes draining the tank alot easier when the trips are over.....

In the way of security we have a T Bar made from 3mm thick 30mm square section that padlocks into a base dynabolted to our driveway. I have made the mounting bolts inaccessable so they can't just be undone without a lot of work & tools. I figure that if a crook wants to cut through the T Bar it'll be alot harder than just using bolt cutters to cut the chain. But as you'll see by the pics I can't help myself & still padlock the chain too !
With the T Bar in place our van can't be moved forward or backward ( as it is already hard up against my shed at the rear)

Although our van is 20 odd metres up our drive & under the car port it is still open to the street. Not that we have had a problem but at least if I need to I can show the insurance company I made an effort to secure the van.



Sorry some of the pics are around the wrong way........ Still learning how to do this.......
Well thats all for now.......... I'll post more pics as I get organised...

Cheers,

Paul

 

[chartrock]

Looks great Paul. I like your lock setup but our van is hidden in back of our block and sits on a dirt floor in a shed. My plans also include re-routing the plumbing and fitting at least one tap, I just have to wait for the van to come back after repairs.

 

[Bank of Dad]

The lock looks good.

Ours will be in the drive too so I'm going with a centre lock Hitch lock and a wheel clamp. After that it is insurance. ray2:

Did you have a tap on the drawbar?

I'm not an insomniac (3am) just got home from work!

 

[achjimmy]

That Abus padlock will take some getting through, they are very good.

I didnt think the plumbing underneath was to bad compared to my last van. I know the section you want to shield between the two tanks and it screams out for a guard, I hadn't decided between thin sheet metal or shade cloth yet

 

[PMK]

Looks great Paul. I like your lock setup but our van is hidden in back of our block and sits on a dirt floor in a shed. My plans also include re-routing the plumbing and fitting at least one tap, I just have to wait for the van to come back after repairs.

Thanks Chartrock,

I wish I could keep my van out of sight, also as we have 2 cars it's taken one of their parks under the carport.

Yep! the plumbing is a bit rough & I don't have the shower model or a HWS....... Must be a mess under them. I did the same on my eagle too.

Best of luck with your repairs,

Paul

 

[PMK]

The lock looks good.

Ours will be in the drive too so I'm going with a centre lock Hitch lock and a wheel clamp. After that it is insurance. ray2:

Did you have a tap on the drawbar?

I'm not an insomniac (3am) just got home from work!

Hi BOD,
I was looking at the wheel clamp also, but just never got around to it. My wife work for an engineering joint & they made up the T Bar for me. (very cheap) Yep! in the end there is always the insurance........

Yes, we do have a tap on the drawbar too, but only mains pressure. I'll probably never use it as when we have a mains connection there's usually a tap nearby. The tap on the underneath just relies on the gravity feed from my tanks.

Cheers,
Paul

 

[PMK]

That Abus padlock will take some getting through, they are very good.

I didnt think the plumbing underneath was to bad compared to my last van. I know the section you want to shield between the two tanks and it screams out for a guard, I hadn't decided between thin sheet metal or shade cloth yet

Thanks Jim,

The way I have the padlock mounted it's difficult to get to the shank to cut it, there is only a small part of it exposed.
I have the covers made up of sheetmetal (at my wifes work again) Plus I'm going to extend the existing tank guards furthur out towards the chassis rails left & right to protect the tank outlets & level sensors. ...... I'll post picks when done.
We did a lot of off road trips with the Eagle & did the same on that to protect the plumbing on that. Works well.
Cheers,
Paul

 

[mfexpanda]

Very nice Paul Maybe a type of flange welded above the padlock to stop boltcutters ?

 

[PMK]

Very nice Paul Maybe a type of flange welded above the padlock to stop boltcutters ?

Good Idea ! MF ....... It is a prototype & will be subject to modifications......... I might pinch that idea ! Thats what this forum is all about. Sharing information.

Thanks,

Paul

 

[MolongMick]

I saw this idea when scrolling through some other pages for info on bike racks, maybe something like this could be rigged up.

 

[achjimmy]

yep the sensors are a bit exposed, i was doing the same. also going to mount a guard for the tap.

Whilst towing home we stopped for lunch and swicthed on the water pump and the drawbar tap worked! i presume it was the pump and not just water in the lines!

 

[PMK]

I saw this idea when scrolling through some other pages for info on bike racks, maybe something like this could be rigged up.

Hi Mick,

Yes thats a strong looking one & hides access to the padlock shank. I think they use similar one on site boxes on building sites........ Looks expensive though

Paul

 

[PMK]

yep the sensors are a bit exposed, i was doing the same. also going to mount a guard for the tap.

Whilst towing home we stopped for lunch and swicthed on the water pump and the drawbar tap worked! i presume it was the pump and not just water in the lines!

Thats interesting .......I don't have an electric pump...... Yet. Did you have water coming out of the mains tap at the sink too. Maybe it's plumbed differently with a pump.

It's given me an idea for when I do get a pump ! Ah! this site is giving me too many ideas......... Ha !

Cheers,

Paul

 

[straydingo]

For some reason Jayco choose to go under the floor joists when they could easily run through the openings in them

Good job Paul.
Its interesting that all of my pipes except the main filler hose are through the joists.
Just one thing, if the pipes are made to go through them, make sure they won't move at all. If there is a sharp edge, constant vibration can result in a nick or grinding down of the surface, so that when they go under pressure it opens.

I like the idea with the tap. The outflow will be better than at the a-frame (if not on a mains connection), and the cap doesn't get 'misplaced' when emptying. Might have to copy that one!!

 

[Bushman]

yep the sensors are a bit exposed, i was doing the same. also going to mount a guard for the tap.

Whilst towing home we stopped for lunch and swicthed on the water pump and the drawbar tap worked! i presume it was the pump and not just water in the lines!

A-frame tap should work from both pump and mains presssure. well mine does.

 

[mfexpanda]

A-frame tap should work from both pump and mains presssure. well mine does.

so does mine

 

[straydingo]

As does mine. But, if on the road, the pump isn't on, and if connected to mains, it takes priority, and some times mains isn't always suitable to drink. So just the A-frame tap, running from the tank itself has low water pressure (if any), especially as the tank is close to empty.
I was also intending to put an in line tap into the main feed to be able to turn it off to the a-frame when not suitable.

 

[cruza driver]

You have been busy already Paul, I like your work :thumb:

 

[PMK]

Well made a start on the under body protection. First off was a simple sheet steel plate to protect the pumbing I redirect through the chassi rails. I've posted some pics before & after


I also removed the small steel plate Jayco expects to protect the shockers from damage & replaced it with a rubber mudflap. I did the same mod to my Eagle when I had it after I destroyed the shocks on an outback trip & had to repalce them. I put these flaps on both sides although I have only pics of the RH one.



Well thats it for now......... Next is a small cover plate for both ends of the water tanks to protect the outlet & senders.

Most of these mods have come from ideas from when I had the Eagle. After our first trip in it I realised there was a need for improvement... We did a lot of damage to plumbing fittings, Shockers & electric brake cabling........

Cheers,

Paul

 

[mfexpanda]

Looks good Paul I think I'll be doing the mud flaps like you :decision: