Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

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Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

February 08, 2015, 02:22:42 pm

We'll post plans and pictures over the next couple days as we drive down from Richmond VA to Nac. Current plans have us stopping outside Johnson City TN tonight then hitting Huntsville Al and visiting with friends there for a few days before hitting the road again Thursday morning with hopes to be @ FOT Friday afternoon/evening.

The main parts of the remodel of our 1998 u320 4200 (rear carousel closet floorplan) will be focused on:

1. Putting in a loft bed/flip curb side down locker to bed conversion for our daughter.
1a. Separate privacy curtains for both the new loft bed and in a "C" shape around the jackknife sofa.
2. The current kitchen table will be flipped 180 deg and become the top for a desk that will re-use existing nightstand cabinetry from the bedroom etc and be located under our daughter's new bunk just behind the passenger/co-pilot seat.
3. Flip out desk (like an old school chair with the desk that slides up then fold over) replacing the end of the sofa to create a workstation for our son's computer programming endeavors.
4. New wider kitchen table that slides a bit more over the J lounge.
5. Possibly adding LG ventless washer/dryer under buffet.
6. Possibly changing aging convection oven out for a 240 volt Advantium over range oven.
7. Adding new soundproof wall separating bedroom from bathroom.
8. Change out lift up Queen East West bed for adjustable base Double/Full East West bed.
9. Remove existing night stands and replace with thinner symmetrical night stands with laptop slot.
10 Fixing the asymmetry in the lockers, bed etc (not a lot of changes needed to do so).
11. Putting curtains around the windows in the bedroom that over lap the ends a bit to hide the asymmetry in the bedroom window placement.
12. Totally remove the rear closet and replace it with custom designed office setup with two people sitting on benches (on the engine hump) facing the walls with flip up desks, monitors on swing arms.
13. Shared desk on bottom of rear wall with a storage hump running between the backs of the two benches that has a flip up white board, shared work and storage space.
14 On the driver's and curb side of back wall will be storage (hanging lockers, drawers etc) along with space for shredder on the curb side and safe on the driver's.
15. Center top of back wall will be a LARGE 55-60" monitor that can be shared by both laptops and can break out into 4 separate displays on the same screen (4k UHD) with shelving below holding scanner, printer etc, all behind louver doors.
16. Existing Mac mini and raid storage array will go in the console/hump running front to back between the two benches.

We've spent weeks working on the plans to ensure we're re-using almost everything here from the massive louvered doors in the back, to drawer fronts and cabinets. Susan's a gifted artist so she drew up to scale plans of the renovation projects. I'll try to upload them into the gallery and post links here.

We're trying to plan things so that we have a lot of things that we can do ourselves (demo etc), and may leave off a lot of the assembly and finishing work and do it ourselves after the stuff we CAN'T do ourselves has been done by the service folks and Dave's crew at FOT.

We're also planning on a quite expensive battery replacement, switching out the three VERY anemic 8D house batteries for 2 8D Smart Battery LiFePo4 lithium Ion batteries (300 amp/hours each with 100% discharge, they are actually 400+ amp/hr with built in limiters that prevent them from being over charged OR discharged). They run about $3500 a piece, but the long term cost analysis is very compelling and the protection from over discharge damaging the batteries will almost certainly be invaluable. They also save huge amount of weight, replacing about 450 lbs of gel batteries with 186 lbs. 600 amp/hrs (2 8d Smart Batteries) also beats the heck out of 386 amp/hrs (3 8d Lifeline 255 amp/hrs batteries @ 50% levels).

Eventually we plan on adding about 1600 watts of solar on the roof, so these batteries will be hugely useful in leveraging that capability for dry camping.

I'll be starting separate threads/topics to ask folks for opinions and feedback on several different issues, but I'd like to thank everyone up front for all the help you've already provided to our family as we move through the final stages of finding, buying and renovating our new home on the road! If anyone's planning on being down in Nacogdoches from Friday through sometime early/mid March please stop by the FoT campground and look for Shadow Beast's distinctive Grey and Black. We'd love to meet and talk to any and all, we have much to learn! :-)

James and Susan
Alex (13) and Elizabeth (12)
Gigi (black Cat-dog) and Tortie the fluffalump.

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #1 – February 08, 2015, 06:53:49 pm

Be sure to have the lift desk secured properly. I had mind done and it did not stay at first. This sounds like a major project, will you be there while it is being done? Many times you will adjust the design as you put it together.

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #2 – February 08, 2015, 07:19:44 pm

::nods::

We're going to be there the whole time. Will stay on the rig when feasible and in a local hotel in Nac when not.

We fully expect this to be an iterative process, where we start with our initial plans/drawings and work with Dave and the renovation folks to figure out the things that are feasible and worth having them do vs. doing them ourselves. Now that we're safely hooked up on a really solid wifi I need to get some of the images of the plans uploaded. :-)

James

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #3 – February 08, 2015, 07:27:00 pm

WOW

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #4 – February 08, 2015, 07:44:27 pm

Ok. I can get the .jpg versions if it would work better, but since we're putting the plans together for Dave in a .pdf all the sections are currently setup that way. Can anyone else see the results if I link to the album this way?

http://www.foreforums.com/index.php?action=media;sa=album;in=402

Does that work on your end?

James

The selected media item is not currently available.

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #5 – February 08, 2015, 09:21:25 pm

Ok, replaced the .pdf with .jpg images so it should be a lot easier to look through. Can anyone else see the images?

James

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #6 – February 08, 2015, 10:42:15 pm

Quote from: Tigratrus – February 08, 2015, 09:21:25 pm

Ok, replaced the .pdf with .jpg images so it should be a lot easier to look through. Can anyone else see the images?

Yes, much better, can now download and zoom in to see the detail.

Wow, what a project, can't wait to see the progress on this one. Looks like you have a great plan. One thing I'd be sure to add; USB outlets near each sleeping area. It's nice to be able to just charge electronics without needing the regular plug portion.

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #7 – February 08, 2015, 11:55:18 pm

Quote from: Tigratrus – February 08, 2015, 02:22:42 pm

2. The current kitchen table will be flipped 180 deg and become the top for a desk

James,

Did you mean 90 degrees?

Trent

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #8 – February 09, 2015, 12:17:43 am

@tothetrail
Susan's been lobbying for the same thing re the usb ports in the outlets. I kind of want to avoid running individual protocol/standard specific ports as they invariably get outdated and become nigh useless in a few years. I've been focused more on making sure we have ample (and easily used) conduit so that we can run anything needed, to anywhere. Power cords, data cords, network cords, video cables, usb, thunderbolt etc.

But.

I think you're both right that usb ports as a power source standard is simply too wide spread and too useful. I can just put in some of the outlets with built in usb power outlets, or otherwise provide powered usb ports on both nightstands. The outlets could always be replaced in the future if standards change, it's not like removing skeins of cables from walls. ;-)

@TulsaTrent

Sorry, I should have been more precise. It will be rotated 180 degrees so the cut out in the corner of the table faces the driver's side front rather than the corner of the J lounge curb side rear as it currently does. It will ALSO be removed from the kitchen and moved to the desk behind the passenger seat. The kitchen will get a new table, probably walnut.

I'm sure the plans/sketches will evolve over time and (esp) discussions with Dave and his crew etc. There are a ton of details I didn't go into in the writeup above, I didn't want it to be even more of a wall-o-text than it already IS! :-) Our idea is that if we have the full blown plans in place, than we can always grow into it piecemeal if needed, but at least we'll be able to avoid rework, and hopefully be able to focus on what's it makes the most sense to have Dave and the remodeling crew do at FoT.

We've been working, planning and dreaming towards this for about four years now. It's both incredibly affirming and stressful at the same time to finally be in our new rig, headed to FoT with plans in hand and funds in the bank. What a long strange trip it's been... And what's ahead? :-)

James

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #9 – February 09, 2015, 12:27:29 am

Quote from: Tigratrus – February 09, 2015, 12:17:43 am

@TulsaTrent
Sorry, I should have been more precise. It will be rotated 180 degrees so the cut out in the corner of the table faces the driver's side front rather than the corner of the J lounge

James,
Sorry, I was thinking of my coach which has the standard rectangular table across from the kitchen sink. I have been thinking of turning it 90 degrees so it does not take up so much space out of the center of the RV.

Good luck on your project!

Trent

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #10 – February 09, 2015, 01:49:18 am

Ah a real project. Did quite a few total build from scratch non standard oreds/unihomes long ago.

Remodel is harder I would think. If anyone can do this its Foretravel.

Foretravel hated me ordering a verathaned interior woodwork medium glossed u300 back then but they got over it. Took three coats. $5k then

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #11 – February 09, 2015, 09:04:50 am

You might want to think about adding additional shelves in the upper cabinets. You will dramatically improve the utility of the storage space. Also add LEd lighting in all of your cabinets and closets. On on/off switch for power and a magnetic proximity switch to turn the loihpghts on when you open the door. Big improvement, low cost.

Roger

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #12 – February 09, 2015, 02:48:38 pm

Great ideas! :-)

I've started changing over all the lighting to LED's, found a great 2/$10 LED halogen puck light replacement on Amazon. That reminds me I meant to chime in on one of the LED topics with a link to that. Super easy to work with. Do you happen to know a good source for the switches off the top of your head?

James

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #13 – February 09, 2015, 04:30:55 pm

Just bought some of these Amazon.com: Magnetic Switch: Car Electronics
from Amazon to put in closets. May not be the cheapest, but quality is good, and since it's Amazon Prime, they got here fast.

One caution if you get these - make sure the triangles on the switch and the magnet line up for max sensitivity. Some commenters on Amazon seemed confused...

As an Amazon Associate Foretravel Owners' Forum earns from qualifying purchases.

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #14 – February 10, 2015, 08:55:51 pm

Awesome. Amazon Prime has be wonderful these first couple months on the road. Getting it in 2 days makes it a LOT easier to get things delivered for projects. I'll have to give those a try, thanks!

James

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #15 – February 13, 2015, 03:36:54 pm

Welp... Shadow Beast has arrived in Nacogdoches to start the planning and preparations for the latest metamorphosis! If anyone else is here, look us up. :-)

James

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #16 – February 13, 2015, 06:45:54 pm

@Tigratrus: See the latest posts in the "ChatBox" for other members presently at FOT.

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #17 – February 13, 2015, 07:07:58 pm

Thanks!
"Chatbox"? Don't see it in the forum listing?
Susan and I are going to go get some dinner, but it's beautiful here so we'll probably be hanging out outside later. :-)

James

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #18 – February 13, 2015, 07:10:51 pm

NVM. Found it. :-)

James

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #19 – March 03, 2015, 07:23:57 pm

So, progress on the back bedroom/office space! It's gone from a 8' x 8' bedroom with a 5' x 8' closet set at engine hump level (so lose 40 cubic feet) BEHIND CLOSED DOORS to a wide open 13' x 8' bedroom/office space. New carpet comes in Thursday, install Friday and then we'll put in our adjustable base in a Full instead of a Queen and regain 17" of space at the end of the bed when it's pulled up. SO much more functional for us!

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #20 – March 03, 2015, 07:44:49 pm

Progress on the bunk in the front of the bus:

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #21 – March 03, 2015, 07:46:36 pm

Finished laundry hamper!

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #22 – March 03, 2015, 08:53:14 pm

OK I am going to most probably get booted off Forum for this comment but I will say it anyway. Can members PLEASE post pictures the right way up, and if using one of those stupid cameras in a cell phone, chuck it and take pictures with a proper camera so we do not have to keep turning the computer around all ways to see what they have posted.!! I post the right way so do others so why not all of us?
Sorry but it has bugged me for a long time.
JohnH

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #23 – March 03, 2015, 09:00:40 pm

Thank you John, I was biting my tongue.
Gary B

Re: Heading to FOT for Shadow Beast's major renovation and service visit.

Reply #24 – March 03, 2015, 09:18:47 pm

My pictures WERE the right way up when I posted them. Sorry to have offended with my crappy cell phone (what MOST People have for a camera these days). I'll just remove them.

P.S. I owned and ran successful forums for 9 years so while I'm familiar with forum etiquette, I'm still getting used to this particular forum (and its quirks). I appreciate your comments on your annoyances, but I will say that it's better taken (especially by a newbie member) when accompanied by at least a *little* comment on the actual topic of the post. Again - sorry to have offended you.

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