LRJ's Work in Progress

Decided to make my own thread about my landy and the ongoing (and never ending) preparation for laning, camping and hopefully at some point in the future, international explorations as well So here goes, first post on interior storage and layout!

To do list:
Interior Storage
Insulation
Camping Stove
Roof Lights
Dog Guard
Mud Terrains
Bulkhead Repair
Hi Lift mounting
Diff and Steering Guards

I have been thinking about how I'd like to fit out the back ever since I picked the landy up last May. What I really wanted was to have enough room and a flat area to sleep on when camping, so I finally got around to working on it today, with the Herts Laners trip to Wales at the end of next month to test it out on.

Here is the design. The area highlighted in red is the area in which to sleep. It is about the size of a small double bed The area highlighted in green will stay empty for the time being but I plan to make a cupboard system to fit up the side wall. The hot water tank came fitted and sends water around the engine bay to heat up. After driving for a little while the water comes out piping hot .. great for a shower in the evening but cold again by the morning. For now, it will just be a bucket of hot water but maybe later I will get round to fitting an electric pump for complete luxury The diesel heater will fit well between the wheel boxes for now, and the hot air will be able to drift through the racking and spread through the vehicle keeping it toasty warm

Took a picture first of all, to show you what it looks like completely uncluttered:



After fitting ply to the loadspace floor:



And after popping the drawer in to see how well it fitted:



After this I took it out and fitted ply along the inside of the wheel boxes to make it a better fit and less rattly in the back. Very tight squeeze to get it in, by this time it was took dark for proper piccies so you will have to wait till tomorrow folks

BTW, those racks leaning up against the roof rack ladder are the mantec jobbies I put in the design.

Looks good!

LRJ - I plan to kit mine out a bit too. I was considering building my generator into the interior with an exhaust going through the floor to the outside, but I have pretty much abandoned that idea because I almost never use it anyway and there is always a slight pong of petrol inside, BUT....

See the wheel arches? Years ago I had an old ex-MOD landy and there was storage compartments built into them so I've been thinking about cutting oblong holes in the top section of the arch box and using a few black plastic tanks I have (I think they are header tanks for household water systems) to fit into the holes then make a hinged lid to go over the top for extra storage space. Like these:-



Obviously, they wouldn't be fitted above the wheels.

Clanforbes said:

LRJ - I plan to kit mine out a bit too. I was considering building my generator into the interior with an exhaust going through the floor to the outside, but I have pretty much abandoned that idea because I almost never use it anyway and there is always a slight pong of petrol inside, BUT....

See the wheel arches? Years ago I had an old ex-MOD landy and there was storage compartments built into them so I've been thinking about cutting oblong holes in the top section of the arch box and using a few black plastic tanks I have (I think they are header tanks for household water systems) to fit into the holes then make a hinged lid to go over the top for extra storage space. Like these:-

Obviously, they wouldn't be fitted above the wheels.

Click to expand...

I have thought about using this space which is currently just wasted. For now it's out of budget but in the future I think I may look into fitting a side box or two like these:

Gap Analysis - Vehicle preparation for overland expeditions

I had originally thought about fitting a gas bottle under one side but was put off the idea because it could be incredibly dangerous if it wasn't fixed securely, and would be exposed when off roading. Also it could be a pain to fit a regulator to each time you stopped and wanted to use the stove.

Also if I ever want to go really far afield I could look at getting one of these fitted:

FRLR41 - 110 200/300TDI 45L AUXILIARY WHEEL ARCHED MOUNTED FUEL TANK - LR Spare Parts - All Land Rover and Range Rover makes

Looking good jack! Well done.

A few more piccies here. Been trying to fit the Mantec racking to fit flush with the top of the box but its been a bit of a pain. The ply I got wasn't cut to the measurements I gave to the guy at B&Q and I only noticed after I spent ages wedging the drawer in place. :doh::doh: Unfortunately I don't have a jigsaw so it's going to be an annoying job getting it all to fit.

looks good mate

My only concern so far is the weight issue, your using ply for the floor and other areas which isn't needed, if you want some sort of buffer between the drawer and bodywork, then you should consider 11mm osb board ( or sterling board, same thing ). Its cheaper and alot lighter and as these areas have no structural gain in using ply, you may want to consider it in the future.

Carry on

PaulWilde said:

looks good mate

My only concern so far is the weight issue, your using ply for the floor and other areas which isn't needed, if you want some sort of buffer between the drawer and bodywork, then you should consider 11mm osb board ( or sterling board, same thing ). Its cheaper and alot lighter and as these areas have no structural gain in using ply, you may want to consider it in the future.

Carry on

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I'm not too bothered by that much difference in weight. I have driven along with 2 people 5 steel wheels 4 tyres a bike 2 massive suitcases and a spare battery and it really didnt affect performance much on the road. I used the same board so it would sit at the same height as the rest of the interior. I prefer sleeping on a level surface

I hear you with the load and running along, i had the 200Tdi in the back and hardly noticed the difference, but for future reference, more weight overall is going to increase wear, fuel consumption etc. If its for future overlanding as well, then its worth considering

Bit of a frustrating day today after nothing seemed to fit well This picture helps a little in showing you how things slot in. I had to get the drawer out and take out the ply down the side of the wheel boxes cut to the right size. Hard work with a very blunt saw!!



I'm hoping tomorrow will be a bit more productive!!

PaulWilde said:

I hear you with the load and running along, i had the 200Tdi in the back and hardly noticed the difference, but for future reference, more weight overall is going to increase wear, fuel consumption etc. If its for future overlanding as well, then its worth considering

Click to expand...

I'll keep it in mind for everything else I do Thanks for the tip. Was thinking of copying your landycam but I'm not sure many people would be online in the day and its too dark on the driveway in the evening

I must agree Jack, it's all looking good. I do like you sidebox idea, but wow they are pricey. I had considered turning the boxes "inside out" to make the floor level in the back with arches for the wheels - don't know how practical that would be though.

However, I'll keep an eye on the process as you go along and may well copy some of your ideas.

Clanforbes said:

I must agree Jack, it's all looking good. I do like you sidebox idea, but wow they are pricey. I had considered turning the boxes "inside out" to make the floor level in the back with arches for the wheels - don't know how practical that would be though.

However, I'll keep an eye on the process as you go along and may well copy some of your ideas.

Click to expand...

Never thought of doing that before, sounds like it could work well but I don't have the skills to do it. If you ever try, make sure you post some pictures

I am having a few second thoughts about the layout in the back. Basically I didn't really want to have the water tank near the heater because I would probably end up with warm water. In the drawing I put the heater under the racking which would be great in the day because all the warm air would circulate through the vehicle, and it was as low as possible which would help too (hot air rises). This is all great until you inflate an airbed.. The racking is then covered and the hot air can't spread!

So... I thought about swapping the positions of the tank and heater, building a box around the heater and cutting two holes in the rear bulkhead through which the cold air intake and hot air output could travel. This would mean I would get a nice warm bum when driving but then the weight of the water in the tank is further back and affecting CoG slightly. Also the hot air circulating wouldn't necessarily reach anyone lying down behind and below the bulkhead. I can't remove the bulkhead because I have a dog guard I'm going to fit to it which will improve security and will be useful to hang things on.

One last option would be to house it somewhere on the wheel box highlighted in green but it isnt quite as low down in the vehicle. Thoughts everyone?

How much noise and vibration do these things make (never turned mine on). Would it be possible / comfortable to sleep with it between the wheel boxes if it was right under you, especially your head! Anyone got any bright ideas?

Jack

Looking good Jack,

I've got a jigsaw you can borrow if you want and have you thought about fitting a leisure battery?

Diesel72 said:

Looking good Jack,

I've got a jigsaw you can borrow if you want and have you thought about fitting a leisure battery?

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Thanks mate, I may take you up on that offer but will probably be next week if so. I would like to fit a 2nd battery but its out of budget atm.

landroverjack said:

Thanks mate, I may take you up on that offer but will probably be next week if so. I would like to fit a 2nd battery but its out of budget atm.

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What is your budget £5?

Thoughts on water tank/gas bottle & heater.

Why not mount your water tank under the wheel arch on the outside of the vehicle?
Put your gas bottle on the other side to give some counter balance or mount two smaller tanks, one on each side.
I know you mentioned earlier about putting you gas bottle under the arches, but decided against it on the grounds of difficulty of access and safety. If you made it reasonably easy to remove for off roading, then the safety issues would be lessened.

I would probably use two or three ratchet straps to lift the bottle off the ground and thus secure it - though an added metal strap would be worth considering to lock it into place or a rack which the bottle lies on and the straps used to raise it up. Then you could simply fit the regulator while the bottle was at ground level and ratchet it up under the wheel arch from inside - if you pass the straps through the top of the arch that is, the same could apply to your water tank or tanks. Or if your water goes under the arches, then the gas bottle could go at the bulkhead.

I have an eberspacher heater in my 110 and I have mounted it on the access plate where the centre seat used to be, I intend to build a cubby box around it with a false floor which will cover the heater.

As for turning the floor "inside out," I had been thinking along the lines of making two cuts from floor to sidewall then (and this is the bit that would be difficult) re-bending the original box section so that it would "invert" into a flat floor section and fill in the open spaces at the ends with a small plate. I was then gonna mount my generator on one side and a porta potti in the other side. But, my generator has been living in the back of the van for a few months as I'd been using it and I kept noticing the smell off the petrol and I don't want to be sleeping beside that all night, the porta potti I could live with as it would only be used in emergencoes and cleaned immediately after. So the generator idea is out the window and will go back into a little trailer I used to use for camping gear (genny, microwave, toaster, kettle, big gas bottle, picnic bench set etc.)

Since I abandoned the genny idea, I have come up with the plastic tank storage box idea, they would be useful for just about anything to be kept in out of the main living space in the back. Cutting the holes in the top of the arches will be easy enough and the tank will simply fall into place, sealed round the edges with silicon sealant and a simple hinged lid for a cover, or no cover at all as I plan to make bench seats which will double as beds similar to the way they do it in caravans, then I can simply lift the base of the bench for acces to the contents of the tanks.

P.S. I don't know about water heaters, but the Eberspacher night heaters make very little noise. When they start up, you will hear it, but once the temperature has risen it goes into a sort of tick-over mode and makes very little sound. Certainly, nothing to keep you awake, or even wake you up once you become accostomed to the sound.

sible88 said:

What is your budget £5?

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Pretty much lol, until the end of the month