Van Tour - 5G+Starlink Alexa-Enabled RAM Promaster Camper Van
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- čas přidán 6. 08. 2024
- Tour of my DIY Promaster Van Conversion. ~ If you enjoyed my video please LIKE and SUBSCRIBE.
I got it new on the lot from a dealer in Wisconsin in October 2019. Since then I have put 50,000 miles on it and visited all of the National Parks in the lower 48 states.
I did most of the upgrades / conversion before the start of the pandemic which was fortunate because some days I would be at home depot and ace like 5 times!
When I started it was just a windowless cargo van. The heater, roof vent and windows were installed by a pro because I was not comfortable putting a big holes in the roof/walls or punching a hole in the gas tank - otherwise all of the other work was done by me. I learned a lot along the way from CZcams and Google searching. I have become a bit of a cellular expert and I would consider myself an amateur carpenter and electrician.
All of the electronics inside the van can be controlled with voice command except the roof vent and heater.
Here is my build list. If you have questions or need more detail - drop a comment and I will get back to you.
2019 RAM Promaster 1500 136" WB High Roof
Van Windows Direct windows - Middle and rear
CR Lawrence windows - Bunk
Thermal Window covers from Eurocampers
Window Air Deflectors - Mopar
Window Vents from Eurocampers and Sprinter Store
Floor - Marine plywood
All season front floor mat for driver & passenger - Weathertech
Bedrug Vanrug
Shoe storage
Walls - Baltic Birch plywood
Sound deadening
Insulation - Thinsulate
Bed platform - Birch Plywood
Ikea Skovar slats on 2x4 holders attached to 2x6 cedar bolted to frame
Bed - Ikea
Bedding - Kohl's / various
Passenger seat swivel - CTA
Driver seat swivel - CTA
Storage - Shelving, Bins - Home Depot
Dometic 75dzw (fridge/freezer combo)
Primary power station - Goal zero - Yeti 6000X with Link
Secondary power station - Goal zero - Yeti 3000
Renogy 100 watt Solar panels
Shore power outlet
External power outlet
Shore power extension cord
Rapid charger - Goal Zero
100amp breaker @ battery/alternator
12v fuse panel
Cellular router 1 - Peplink BR2 Pro
Cellular router 2 - Peplink BR1 Pro
LTE antennas - Panorama Mako
LTE antennas on a mast - Poynting XPOL-V3
Ubiquiti U6 LR WIFI Access Point + Tycon POE injector
Starlink RV dish, DC buck boost power supply and POE injector
23" Vizio smart tv
JBL speakers
Echo Dot smart speaker
Kasa Smart Light Strip
Kasa Smart Outlets
Webasto Heater 2000STC
MaxxAir Fan
All Terrain Tires - BFG K02's
Bike rack swing arm - Kuat
Bike rack - Hollywood Racks
Topper MFG Roof rack and decking
Recovery boards
Recovery straps
Shovel
Tools (various)
Folding table - REI
Folding chairs - REI
0:00 Intro
8:02 Inside Van Front Area
14:29 Inside Van Middle Area
22:48 Bed Area
30:21 Under Bed Area
35:29 Starlink setup
39:19 Internet router
43:25 Wrap up
What is your favorite part of the van? Mine is the windows! Adding those was a game changer. I also love the tech and the roof rack/deck. :)
What I like the most is how this guy didn’t get all bourgeoise with the build.
Thanks for watching! 👍
You sure make me miss my old vans. Now with these new stand up vans i got the fever again but its too late. Cant get them unless ya want to wait a yr or two. Its so nice now with the lectric wonders, heaters, plumbing etc. Wish i was young again so i could build one again.
Thanks for your comment. The process of building a camper van has been an adventure. I'm glad I was able to rekindle your van spirit! Cheers 🍻
Your videos are fabulous, so detailed … you really explain everything … the reason I watch these type of videos if for the minutia … such valuable info. Kudos on your ‘first’ video … amazing. Ty
Thanks for your kind words!
Love the very functionality and simplicity.
Thanks! Much appreciated. :)
Loved the walk through. Hope all is well!
Dude, Your channel is awesome! Thanks for your comment.
Thank you for the super detailed tour....love it....👍👍👍
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks
Thanks for the explanation of the pepwave - I found it really helpful!
Glad you found it useful! I will be posting a more detailed video describing the internet setup in a few days. I will explain why a dedicated setup is better than using phone hotspots and how I use cellular in combination with starlink and other internet sources like free wifi. Hit the subscribe button to get notified of it ;)
Here is the more detailed walk-thru of the internet setup. Enjoy! :) czcams.com/video/HNKKpZDUtnk/video.html
Awesome , tons of detailed information . Keep up the good work ...
Thank you good sir. Much appreciated! :)
Very nice set up
Thank you! 🙏😃🚐
Nice. It would be neat if you listed the sources for some of your accessories. The opening windows, the window vents and covers and things. good stuff.
Thanks for your comment. I will work on getting everything into the description. In the mean time I can answer for those things.
The windows - Van Windows Direct (sliders) & CR Lawrence (awning)
Metal Window Vents and Reflective Thermal Covers - Eurocampers
Plastic Window Vents - Sprinter Store
@@MountainsCallingMe Thank you!
I want that roof rack! Good tour brotha!
The roof rack is a Topper MFG 10ft version. Its actually marketed as being for the 116" Promaster. The length is perfect for a 136" campervan roof rack.
The decking is 3/4in x 3.5in PVC trim board from Lowes. I made the decking go all the way front to back in case I ever change solar panels. The area around the max air fan I cut the cross bar shorter then used galvanized fence post joiner adapter to create a T between the bars. So all the cross bars are in place even around the fan.
Every trim board has 2x T9 screws into every cross bar. 14 screws per board. Predrilling was nerve racking because the drill went through the PVC like butter so if I didnt keep the drill straight on the top of the round pipe I could ruin that piece. Drilled so many holes, I went through 2 drill bits predrilling into the pipes. Fortunately I didnt mess any up. It is super solid! The white pvc trim board is nice because it required zero prep (sand,paint/seal) and will last forever. Its also nice and cool to the touch when I get up there in hot sunny weather.
Cheers. Thanks for the comment!
Nice video.
Many many thanks
*NEW SUBBIE CANT WAIT TO TRAVEL THESE ADVENTURES WITH YOU* 🤞🏼💜 *LETS GOOOOO* 💯💯💯💯
Welcome!!
So dope!
Thank you for your comment! 😁
Good for you
Thanks 😊
Nice!
Thanks!
Hotels and motels I have found are often dusty and I've gotten sick staying in them. That and the carrying things in and out were major reasons I went with a Promaster that I'm building out. I've camped and backpacked a lot of my life. The only vehicle I had really liked that we used camping or traveling was a VW Campmoble, pre Westfalia days. The promaster comes closer to being like, driving like and has the advantage of building it out the way I want it. I've never been crazy about camping in campgrounds. My preference is to camp in as wild a place as I can find. Maybe being a backpacker has something to do with that.
Hi, thanks for watching! You and me sound a lot alike! The Promaster is a big "upgrade" from a tent on the ground. My needs a minimal and I mainly care about being in the wild places, having views from my van, being reasonably comfortable (airflow/temp) and staying connected (cellular/starlink). I love my PM! I have two big trips coming up soon... I will be driving to Alaska for 2 months in June-July working remotely for a portion of that but then taking 4 weeks off to visit all 8 National Parks and backpacking. Then shortly after driving back from Alaska I will drive to Wisconsin for a family party. Along the way back I plan to route through CO/UT and visit some of the National Parks. Doing this type of travel is "easy" with the van and my setup. I can never go back to not having a van!! I hope your build out goes well and you get the use out of it that you are wanting. Have a great day!
@@MountainsCallingMe Alaska is beautiful. I got to go to Fairbanks when my brother that lived there was still alive. He gave us a tour that was beyond anything you could buy. We went to his cabin up the Good Pasture River and to his son's cabin on the way to Anchorage and lots of other places. I so greatly enjoyed the fire weed and have learned they are a valuable herb. I hope you enjoy it at least as much as I did. When you are in CO if you are close to Durango, consider getting together with me, I'm only 35 miles from Durango. I'd love to share some amazing places with you if you want.
Really nice, don't need more than that
Thanks! Much appreciated.
Loved and subbed your video! You explained everything so well and informative..please ifyou could put links in where you got your items.
Thank you! I will work on adding links and ping you once they're added.
Always sleep with your head on the PASSENGER side.
Why? In the US we park on the right side of the road. If you have to park and sleep roadside, and soneone hits your van while you are asleep, your FEET and not your head take the impact hit.
Thanks for your comment. Cheers!
Wow this is weird. But awesome!
Thanks for your comment! 😃
Awesome van, looks like you are getting good use of it and built it for how you use it. My van has lots of built in cabinetry but no flexibility. Did you opt for the stock tire size for the KO2's?
Thanks for your comment. :) I have the stock tire size for K02's. I often go to the mountains in the winter and I think having that larger size tire would make using snow chains impossible - it's something to consider.
Great van and video. Thank you for the information. Can you share the information for your temp/humidity gauge?
Thank you! Sure thing - I took a look on amazon and it appears the model I have has been retired for a newer version amzn.to/3Ol4kKe - the important thing for me with this unit was that it has WiFi in addition to Bluetooth. That way I pair it to the WiFi I have in the van which is always on and I can remotely monitor the temperature. If you have WiFi that is only on periodically that is fine too. It sends up data to the cloud whenever it has a WiFi connection or whenever you sync it via Bluetooth. It then keeps that in the cloud forever so you can look back at the data. It does have internal storage and will keep about 30 days worth locally. The Bluetooth also works fine it just wont have the historical information pre-loaded in the phone app until you sync it via Bluetooth. Looks like there is a 20% off coupon right now I am going to buy another one! 😃
@@MountainsCallingMe Thank you! I hope you enjoy your new one. Thanks again for being so generous with your knowledge!!
Would like to know where you got the metal window vents. I am not finding them on Amazon. Thanks.
This metal ones I got on eurocampers website. That is also where I got the reflective insulated window covers for the front.
The other plastic vents I got on sprinter store website.
I hope you find what your looking for. 👍
How are those shelving racks attached to the floor?
The shelves are screwed into the walls. Couldn't use just screws as-is... I used an appropriately sized fender washer to grab the metal of the rack. Stainless screws+fender washers.
I notice the condensation inside the headlamp. Is that an ongoing issue?
It is recent. In Jan 2023 9 atmospheric rivers went through California. I think it was triggered by clogged drain above that light. I routinely clean out those holes but the place I park it is under a spruce tree and the squirrels nock little bits off onto my windshield daily causing water to back up above that light. If it doesn't resolve by spring I will figure out a proper solution.
why do you have to put the starlink up to use it, can it not stay up there the whole time?
Some people do that. I believe that is unsafe. The only thing holding it into the post is a chinsy metal clip.
Since I made this vid in Feb 2023, in June 23 I cut the back off the starlink and mounted it flat within the Starmount enclosure. I also added a 2nd gen3 starlink and flat mounted it too. I have 2 flat mounted starlinks! I am currently in the Yukon Territory and its working great up here. I am on my way to Alaska and will be posting an updated van tour with all my changes I have made to the van in the last 1.5yrs.
Thanks for watching! 😃
How has the van worked out in SF? Is the high roof Leagal?
I live near Santa Cruz. I go up to San Francisco occasionally for work or to sight see. I never leave the van unattended in San Francisco because the amount of break-ins are INSANE! If I have things going on in the city I will take the train into SF. Safer for the van. :)
Yeah especially with all your windows I’d guess….
I lived there for 23years but I’m not familiar with the current SF. I left in 2013. moved to Santa Cruz till 2015. And now in LA.
I fanaticize about visiting Nor Cal in a van . I wondered if Forest Hill area would be safe enough to park and take the train around from there. A curious concern of mine was that the high roof might pose a citation problem however. Have you ever had a high roof violation problem anywhere in your travels?
@@MeatyMcBaconBeacon no. Never had a high roof issue anywhere
How long is it......
Roughly 20-21 feet depending if bikes are on the rack or not. The 136WB Promaster is 213 inches bumper to bumper. With the bike rack folded up adds 28 inches. With the bike rack folded down and bikes on it adds 42 inches.
spend little more money
I don't have unlimited funds, unfortunately.
I have done work to make it better every year I have owned it. I don't feel like its "done" yet, but that doesn't stop me from using it as-is. I lived out of it like this for 3 months last year, and 6 out of 7 days just last week. Works for me. :)