2010 Express AWD build,The Gnarvan

[TeleSteve]

Here is the front cabinet assembled and in the van.

With the Engel refrigerator, 600w microwave and portapotti in there places. Still need to make a drawer and door and add some ventilation for the fridge.

Do you think the free space behind the microwave is a good place for the 1000w inverter/charger? If I put it there it will get some added venting holes added. It has a remote so is this something I will need quick access to? To access it the microwave will have to be unmounted (a few screws from the bottom). This same space will also be part of the fridge and microwave venting think there will be any heat issues? The fridge coils will be 3-4" away through a vent hole.

Next question, I want to put the Airtop heater on the floor between this cabinet and the wheel well. To fit there the intake vent will have to poke into the portpotti closet, is that a bad idea. It will be in the bottom of a 12" deep cabinet.

[hogasm]

If the possibility of a spark in the same compartment as a gassing battery exists, it might not be a good idea to have them share the same air space. This is an example of how my buddies house burnt down.
Having the air intake from your heater sharing the porta potti air space could spread the smells associated with the potti chemicals in your van while running.

[86Scotty]

I think your inverter would be fine behind the microwave, as long as it's vented decently. Microwaves aren't running very often or for very long, so I doubt it would be a problem.

The cabinet looks nice!

[TeleSteve]

Originally Posted by hogasm

If the possibility of a spark in the same compartment as a gassing battery exists, it might not be a good idea to have them share the same air space. This is an example of how my buddies house burnt down.
Having the air intake from your heater sharing the porta potti air space could spread the smells associated with the potti chemicals in your van while running.

Battery will be under the van.

[Scalf77]

It is hard to tell from your picture, but the minimum requirement is 2” of airspace on all sides, and that is dependent on adequate airflow .

If was going to use that space, I would think about turning it around so that your intake vent would be open to the coolest air possible. I think getting the input air from the back of the refrigerator would not be a good idea. Thermal spec are between 32° F (0° C) and 104° F (40° C); and the inverter’s output specifications are rated at 77° F (25° C).

While I agree the microwave won’t run much, I expect that you will run the inverter to power the microwave , this would be when you do not want to see any additional heat feeding the input of the inverter. It does look like you would have some head room as your inverter appears to be 1000 watts while the microwave takes 600 watts.
The inverter will require some large DC power cables, so you also need to account for getting them to the inverter and access

And last while the remote is going to perform most of the daily function the input and output circuit breaker are on top (DC cable side). Easy access to those would be a concern for myself.

-greg

[TeleSteve]

Originally Posted by Scalf77

It is hard to tell from your picture, but the minimum requirement is 2” of airspace on all sides, and that is dependent on adequate airflow .

If was going to use that space, I would think about turning it around so that your intake vent would be open to the coolest air possible. I think getting the input air from the back of the refrigerator would not be a good idea. Thermal spec are between 32° F (0° C) and 104° F (40° C); and the inverter’s output specifications are rated at 77° F (25° C).

While I agree the microwave won’t run much, I expect that you will run the inverter to power the microwave , this would be when you do not want to see any additional heat feeding the input of the inverter. It does look like you would have some head room as your inverter appears to be 1000 watts while the microwave takes 600 watts.
The inverter will require some large DC power cables, so you also need to account for getting them to the inverter and access

And last while the remote is going to perform most of the daily function the input and output circuit breaker are on top (DC cable side). Easy access to those would be a concern for myself.

-greg

Thanks for the input, It looks like the 2" clearance is doable, and I think I could make enough venting to avoid any heat issues, but the accessibility is the kicker. This was not my planned location for the inverter/charger but when I set the microwave in there and saw the empty space this seemed like a option worth considering. I was originally thinking in the back behind one of the wheel wells.
I haven't picked up a house battery(s) yet, but I am thinking of using a single 210 ah AGM battery. It looks like this could be mounted on the frame rail directly below this location so the cables would be relatively short. Although I am not sure if the one battery will be enough. I would like to have enough battery to run the 12v fridge and keep the Webasto heater working through a night in 0-30* F temperatures thermostat will likely be set pretty low maybe 50-60* over night. The heater will likely be set to the minimum when not in the van when temps are below freezing And low room temperatures for up to 2-3 hours a day. Other energy draws will be limited to basic lighting (led) and keeping a phone, and laptop charged. I plan to add solar but during storms they will do very little especially if covered in snow. If the single battery won't be enough the batteries will need to go in the back between the frame rails. I will likely be spending 2-3 days at a time with out a long enough drive to really charge the house batteries up.
One more question, when running separate starting and house battry(s) connected by a ACR can the house batteries be grounded to the frame or does a large ground need to be ran to the starting battery?

[Viva]

Originally Posted by TeleSteve

One more question, when running separate starting and house battry(s) connected by a ACR can the house batteries be grounded to the frame or does a large ground need to be ran to the starting battery?

In the RV's I have seen (including my SMB) a chassis ground is used for the negative path between the battery banks. (Although there is nothing wrong with running a negative wire, and that's how it is typically done on boats which don't have a steel chassis to work with.) Since I started with boats and then got into RV's, at first I was like... where are all the negative wires?

[TeleSteve]

I finally had a productive weekend working on the van. I finished building the back closet, doors and drawers, and built and covered the water tank enclosure. Even started on some plumbing.

[TeleSteve]

Building drawers and doors:

[TeleSteve]

Covering the lower closet with Nautalux marine vinyl flooring and all the cabinets fitted.