I have a 1987 Dodge B250 Ram Van with a Hightop. Induction Cooktop, Oil Filled Heater with Thermostat eliminates the need to purchase Propane or Diesel Fuel. Diesel Heaters Consume Diesel Fuel at a massive rate and are way too Hot for a van, even with a Thermostat they never stop running. Those propane cookers need Propane that is expensive and what do you do when you run out of Propane or Diesel and you don't want to leave that perfect Camping Spot! That Solar Set up works well at providing power to an Induction Cooktop and the Oil Filled Heater with Thermostat. Set and Forget all winter and you van stays warm. I run 400 Watts of Solar Panels with the same MPPT Controler and 200ah Lithium Batteries. Ice and Snow buildup on the Solar Panels can throw a wrench in the works. I use a DC/DC Charger to the Alternator in the Van to charge the batteries when I'm driveing. I also have a charger to connect to 110 volt when needed. All Electric set up, no money needed for Diesel and Propane. I installed the MPPT Solar Charge Controller, the DC/DC Charger, the 110Volt Charger, the 12 Volt Fuse Block, Power Distribution Blocks, Bluetooth Monitors for both the Batteries and the Solar Charge Controller and Wired it all together on a 2' x 3' Project Board I bought from Lowe's. When I disconnect the DC/DC Charger I can take it inside if the power goes out and run the Refrigerator and Lights with it. Completely Portable and not permanently mounted to the Van for Insurance reasons. I used wire from CE Auto Electric located in Nevada www.ceautoelectricsupply.com They have a program you enter the size, length and ends you want on the Cables and is professionally built to your specifications. They mail the Wires anywhere. I like what you have done with your van. I think you will regret having a Diesel Heater and Propane Cookers. Nice Van Build! James
Awnings are such a great way to add “living space” to your van, and I’d highly recommend getting one! If you have a roof rack on your van you can easily mount an Amazon roof rack on there that should do the trick. They come with mounting brackets and are relatively cheap. I had to get crafty with installing the awning on this dodge van as the roof is fiberglass with no roof rack capability. I decided to reinforce the fiber glass with sheet metal and drill holes through these layers with long bolts holding everything in place. Completely custom job that has held up great in the elements at highway speeds. I can do a video explaining how I fabricated my set up if this would be useful. Thanks for commenting!
Jealous of the lipo4 battery you have! I’ll definitely be upgrading to one in the next build, but for now mine works flawlessly for what I use it for. Thanks for your support friend!
Hello, I copied your Astro van build (thanks for putting those videos together) and I added solar to it. 2 - 195 Ecoworthy panels, 1 panels connected to a victron charge controller, which then goes into a 100ah LiFePo (powers lights, water pump, USB chargers, starlink 12v conversion), and the 2nd panel, connected to an eco flow River pro with 2 extra batteries. What is your thought on going all electric in the van? I also own an eco flow delta max 2000 with 2 extra batteries (6kw total capacity). I wanted to install a diesel heater, but if I got 6kw of power, I could probably get away with a standard electric heater... what are your thoughts? Also, I own an eco flow wave AC.
That sounds like a powerful set up! I think you might be able to get away with a standard electric heater. I would consider it because worrying about filling the diesel reservoir can be a pain when you have free clean energy from the sun! An AC would be next level!!
Hello sir...we are love your van build and are in the process of doing our own van build with a 1994 Dodge van. We have been following you throughout your adventures and love your content. We would love for you to check us out for our first video.
I have a 1987 Dodge B250 Ram Van with a Hightop. Induction Cooktop, Oil Filled Heater with Thermostat eliminates the need to purchase Propane or Diesel Fuel. Diesel Heaters Consume Diesel Fuel at a massive rate and are way too Hot for a van, even with a Thermostat they never stop running. Those propane cookers need Propane that is expensive and what do you do when you run out of Propane or Diesel and you don't want to leave that perfect Camping Spot! That Solar Set up works well at providing power to an Induction Cooktop and the Oil Filled Heater with Thermostat. Set and Forget all winter and you van stays warm. I run 400 Watts of Solar Panels with the same MPPT Controler and 200ah Lithium Batteries. Ice and Snow buildup on the Solar Panels can throw a wrench in the works. I use a DC/DC Charger to the Alternator in the Van to charge the batteries when I'm driveing. I also have a charger to connect to 110 volt when needed. All Electric set up, no money needed for Diesel and Propane. I installed the MPPT Solar Charge Controller, the DC/DC Charger, the 110Volt Charger, the 12 Volt Fuse Block, Power Distribution Blocks, Bluetooth Monitors for both the Batteries and the Solar Charge Controller and Wired it all together on a 2' x 3' Project Board I bought from Lowe's. When I disconnect the DC/DC Charger I can take it inside if the power goes out and run the Refrigerator and Lights with it. Completely Portable and not permanently mounted to the Van for Insurance reasons. I used wire from CE Auto Electric located in Nevada www.ceautoelectricsupply.com They have a program you enter the size, length and ends you want on the Cables and is professionally built to your specifications. They mail the Wires anywhere. I like what you have done with your van. I think you will regret having a Diesel Heater and Propane Cookers. Nice Van Build! James
Thanks for your insight James! This is something I’ll be sure to look into. Cheers!
Thanks, buddy. I have a 2004 GMC Safari ( 52,000 miles!) I would like to build out one of these day. I appreciate your time and effort.
Wow what a great find with very few miles. Hope you get to do your dream build, and thanks for commenting!
Love the videos man! I have an Astro that I’m converting right now and wanted to install an awning. Would you have any tips?
Awnings are such a great way to add “living space” to your van, and I’d highly recommend getting one! If you have a roof rack on your van you can easily mount an Amazon roof rack on there that should do the trick. They come with mounting brackets and are relatively cheap. I had to get crafty with installing the awning on this dodge van as the roof is fiberglass with no roof rack capability. I decided to reinforce the fiber glass with sheet metal and drill holes through these layers with long bolts holding everything in place. Completely custom job that has held up great in the elements at highway speeds. I can do a video explaining how I fabricated my set up if this would be useful. Thanks for commenting!
You've got the rack rails on your model so you've already won most of the battle. :)
@@kitrecon exactly right!
Pretty much my same set up except i have a 200 Ah lifepo4 battery and a 12v fridge. Oh and mines in an astro still :D Great Video man
Jealous of the lipo4 battery you have! I’ll definitely be upgrading to one in the next build, but for now mine works flawlessly for what I use it for. Thanks for your support friend!
Hello, I copied your Astro van build (thanks for putting those videos together) and I added solar to it.
2 - 195 Ecoworthy panels, 1 panels connected to a victron charge controller, which then goes into a 100ah LiFePo (powers lights, water pump, USB chargers, starlink 12v conversion), and the 2nd panel, connected to an eco flow River pro with 2 extra batteries.
What is your thought on going all electric in the van? I also own an eco flow delta max 2000 with 2 extra batteries (6kw total capacity). I wanted to install a diesel heater, but if I got 6kw of power, I could probably get away with a standard electric heater... what are your thoughts? Also, I own an eco flow wave AC.
That sounds like a powerful set up! I think you might be able to get away with a standard electric heater. I would consider it because worrying about filling the diesel reservoir can be a pain when you have free clean energy from the sun! An AC would be next level!!
do you have a fuse block between your inverter and your fridge? or is just plugged in directly?
Plugged right into the inverter
Curious as to what size wiring you use to connect everything?
I used a variety of wire sizes for my electrical system. I’d suggest looking at each appliance and complying with whatever the unit requires.
Keep it up.
Thanks for your support!
good shit bro
Glad you enjoyed this one!
Hello sir...we are love your van build and are in the process of doing our own van build with a 1994 Dodge van. We have been following you throughout your adventures and love your content. We would love for you to check us out for our first video.
Hello there!! Thank you for your support! I’ll go ahead and check out your build 🙂