TheSamba.com :: View topic

Fri Dec 09, 2011 7:37 am

Might be an interesting blog to follow.
http://www.drivenachodrive.com/

Fri Dec 09, 2011 7:56 am

:bay_blue: Can't wait for the start of this trip, always wanted to do this, but to old now so you have to do this for me. Just remember I gave you your first trip in a bus to Las vegas baby! Joseph :D

Fri Dec 09, 2011 9:34 am

Joe, you were indeed my first inspiration to buy a VW van. Wanted one since I was 15, when it took us 9 hours to do the 5 hour drive from Flagstaff to Las Vegas! Finally, at 26, we got our VW van. Victory is mine!

Leaving for the trip in 2 weeks and things are getting hectic. Putting stuff into storage and trying to wrap up some last minute Nacho projects. The work is never done on that thing.

Thanks for following!

Brad

Fri Dec 09, 2011 1:19 pm

I've put a short cut on my desk top. Lots of reading. Thanks Happy Trails

Fri Dec 09, 2011 1:27 pm

Hey!

When you're close to Scandinavia or actually is in Sweden, give me a call or send an SMS and I'll hook you up with all the good guys! :)
You have a free dinner, sauna, summer night fishing and a bunch of beers if you come over to my place!
You have a PM in a minute with the details.

Fri Dec 09, 2011 1:35 pm

You're on Sven! Be careful what you offer, we may never leave...

Fri Dec 09, 2011 1:36 pm

Old news: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4...p;start=20 . :wink:

Looking forward to following the journey! 8)

Fri Dec 09, 2011 1:39 pm

You see what you all are in for Kam? Whenever anything happens I'll be crying out for help from people who actually know what they're doing. Just fair warning.

Fri Dec 09, 2011 3:46 pm

So Alaska must be included in the Domestic Trip, to begin after a brief rest at the conclusion of the International. Good plan. Nice map. That's sort of how all my planning goes too, you know, except for the three year part. I'd say good luck, but it's probably adventure you're looking for.

Fri Dec 09, 2011 4:41 pm

WOW, thats so awesome that you've got the courage to follow your dreams there, good luck on the road, I'll be watching.

Please post more pics of Nacho real soon, the blog was a teaser for good van photos. Especially all the mods you did on the interior.

Fri Dec 09, 2011 8:04 pm

Bman wrote: WOW, thats so awesome that you've got the courage to follow your dreams there, good luck on the road, I'll be watching.

Please post more pics of Nacho real soon, the blog was a teaser for good van photos. Especially all the mods you did on the interior. :bay_blue: I hope Brad will show some of the work he has put into Nacho. I've been over to his house, and it is unbelievable all he has done. The new interior ,top,the back rack,and at least the shower , hot water system, oh boy the water purification system is unreal ! :D

Fri Dec 09, 2011 8:27 pm

joseph928 wrote: Bman wrote: WOW, thats so awesome that you've got the courage to follow your dreams there, good luck on the road, I'll be watching.

Please post more pics of Nacho real soon, the blog was a teaser for good van photos. Especially all the mods you did on the interior. :bay_blue: I hope Brad will show some of the work he has put into Nacho. I've been over to his house, and it is unbelievable all he has done. The new interior ,top,the back rack,and at least the shower , hot water system, oh boy the water purification system is unreal ! :D Yeah, the baja trip with the wind turbine is still "etched upon my mind"....they are going all Bumfuzzle on us :D Safe travels! That interior is a thing of beauty, form and function!

Sat Dec 10, 2011 10:45 am

Do you have any more pictures during construction or drawings of the hot water heat. Or any other information like parts used?

How did you coil the copper tubing inside the 3 inch outer copper pipe?

How did you connect the water heater into the cooling system?

Did you have steel or plastic cooling pipes?

Do you have a separate water tank to how hot water or is on demand?

I was planning for hot water but didn't think that far out of the box... Propane water heater was what I was thinking.

Aloha and Mahalo,
aukaiiki sends from the Hawai'i Northwest...

1983.5 1.9L WBX Westfalia being rebuild w/ AAZ Diesel

Sat Dec 10, 2011 11:24 am

WOWZER, those water mods are amazing!!!

You could go into business on the Samba classifieds selling that water heat exchanger device, very slick!

http://www.drivenachodrive.com/about-nacho/water3/

I can't wait to see the cabinets. You are a very funny writer, and I will follow your blog for sure.

Buon Viaggio,
CJ

Sat Dec 10, 2011 1:18 pm

Nice trip plan and well wishes for an auspicious start. I posted on your blog, and also made the now redundant comment to check out Samba - heh. Didn't know you were already here.

Only thing I see you are doing wrong is that you have not opted to paint your van yellow!! Actually, a random comment might be to put some type of generic international aid organization logo on the front of the van like a Red Cross or similar. At some point in your travel it may cause a group of bad folks looking at your approaching vehicle through a rifle scope to conclude you are harmless.

Looking forward to following your blog...

DougM

Sat Dec 10, 2011 1:51 pm

Wow. I was reading about that water system, and my mind is just blown.

Wow.

(i'm going to go read it again and see if I can understand it. I can't wait for the rest of the technical write-ups.)

Very nicely done.

Sat Dec 10, 2011 11:04 pm

Thanks for the comments, everyone. Sheena and I appreciate your words of support!

@aukaiiki: The heat exchanger was pretty complicated, so I won't be able to adequately explain how to make it here. I'll offer a few tips though in case you want to attempt one:
- we have 2 tanks; one for hot, one for cold (15gal each)
- We also have on-demand hot water, which works either with water from the tank or water from an outside source
- Search the Google Machine for how to bend copper tubing without a tubing bender. I filled mine with powdered salt and bent it around a shovel handle.
- Making the HX itself required a lot of fittings and brazing/sweating.
- I didn't plumb it into the radiator pipes; I plumbed it into the heater line that runs under the van. If you plumb into the radiator line then you'll have to wait until the thermostat opens before it'll start heating your water.

Hope that helps! Who knows, maybe when we get back we'll try to put together a kit to sell. Definitely won't be happening from the road though :) Thanks again for following along!

-Brad

Sun Dec 11, 2011 12:22 am

drivenachodrive wrote:
- We also have on-demand hot water, which works either with water from the tank or water from an outside source

I too was working on a heat exchanger but have also been trying to decide what system would be good as a backup or booster.

Which on-demand system are you using?

Sun Dec 11, 2011 12:29 am

I love engineers.

Sun Dec 11, 2011 4:26 am

My friend David (and his wife Kikki) who drove to Cape town and back has a similar heater, but I think he only has a mechanic shut off valve. If the water keeps heating it simply stays at the coolant temp.

He also told me once that if you fill up a PET bottle with water and leave in the sun, it will be totally "UV sterilized" and you can drink it with no problem. It doesn't remove particles but the bacterias are gone.
http://www.wikihow.com/Sterilize-Water-With-Sunlight
http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/004261.html

Good to know in the wilderness. :)