Four Wheel Camper Modifications (Part Three)

Inside our Raven Four Wheel Camper (driver's side)

We opted for the Raven shell because we needed the extra floor space, particularly since we travel with our 100-pound Golden.  One of the things that we particularly wanted in a camper was a dinette table.  While Four Wheel Camper offered an optional dinette, we felt that it was simply too large for our needs.  To solve the problem, we retrofitted an old TV tray.

Our dinette table closed.

We mounted the TV tray against the water tank cabinet, under the pass-through window to the truck.  David rigged a pulley system to collapse the legs so that the table rested the height of the water tank cabinet and would raise the table to the proper height when we need it.  

This pulley system allows us to collapse and raise our dinette table.

Once the table is open, we can sit across from one another and have sufficient space to eat a meal, play a game, or use our laptops.

Our dinette table open

Our next problem involved the water fill piping system.  We had asked that the water fill and piping be lowered as much as possible.  Unfortunately, it was not.  As a result, one of us often had to lean against the rigid pipes, which was quite uncomfortable.

Our original water fill line piping system

To alleviate this problem, we purchased high-density foam cut to the size we needed.  David used an electric knife, cutting grooves in the foam to accommodate the piping.  Then I covered the cushions with fabric and voila... this is so much more comfortable!

New cushions against the water piping make this area much more comfortable!

We ordered curtains with our Raven Four Wheel Camper as well as a screen door.  When the camper arrived, we discovered that the curtain to the back door was placed between the screen and door.  Not only was it very unpractical, but it did nothing for privacy when only the screen door was in use.  To open or close the curtain, we had to exit the camper and separate the screen and door to close or open the curtain.  To solve the problem, I sewed a curtain from duck cloth to go over the back door and made it the full length of the opening in case we were using just the screen door.  We hung the curtain using aluminum curtain track and snap tape.  Now we can close the curtain from the inside of the camper.  To draw the curtain closed, we gather it shut and wrap it with self-adhering Velcro.

The new back door curtain can be closed from inside the camper.

We also installed a homemade sink earlier in our camper modifications.  To learn more about the sink, click here:  Sink from wood, a shower bag, and embroidery hoop

In our final post about our camper modifications, we'll look at the changes we made to the electrical and watering system.

Four Wheel Camper Modifications (Part Two)

Space saving and organization are the trick to living comfortably in a confined space.  This post will cover how we have modified our Raven Four Wheel Camper shell model to store more gear.

We flipped the cabinet upside down and installed a towel rack and a removable storage container.  Notice that we also moved the awning crank to rest along side the door.  

We opted for the king-size bed in our Raven and have slides to accommodate the extra cushions.  To make storage more efficient, we relocated the cabinet (we affectionately call it the head-knocker cabinet) and butted it up against the bed slides.  We also flipped the head-knocker cabinet upside down so that the doors now hang down because we couldn't easily see inside the cabinet and it took two hands to remove anything from it... one to hold the door open and the other to fish out the item we needed.  Now that the cabinet door hangs down, it is much more convenient to see inside the cabinet and remove items.

To further utilize the area under the head-knocker cabinet, we installed a paper towel rack to the bottom of the cabinet.  We also moved the awning crank from its position on the seat under the window.  We removed the catches and placed them along side the door.  Now we don't need to crawl into the camper to access the crank.

Originally the fire extinguisher and its case were placed in the middle of the wall below the head-knocker cabinet.  We removed the case and relocated the fire extinguisher to the corner by the back window.  This allowed room for an additional, removable storage box.  We screwed self-adhering Velcro straps into the camper wall and wrapped the box and fire extinguisher separately to the wall to allow easy access and to avoid having items bounce around the cabin.

We also installed curtain tracks for snap tape curtains along the back wall of the camper.  I made some handy pouches to hang along the track for additional storage.  As you can see in the photo above, we have a short pouch behind the head-knocker cabinet (on the passenger side of the door).  We also have two pouches to the right of the door.  The first small pouch holds our thermostat (more about that in another post).  The second, larger pouch holds kitchen goods.

Using curtain track and snap tape, we made pockets to store additional items.

When David was working on the water and electrical system, he removed the panels around the furnace.  To our surprise, we found several areas of unused space.  The first was directly under the furnace and battery box (located in the rear on the driver's side).

David boxed in this area, and we found a container that holds my spices perfectly.  The spice rack is also held in place with self-adhering Velcro.

Spice rack below furnace and battery box.

There was also a pocket of space around the corner from the spice rack.  David boxed this in also and built a door for it.  The space is sufficiently wide to hold paper goods.

New storage cabinet.

More modifications in our next post...

Final Four Wheel Camper Modifications (Part One)

Many folks have asked us how we store and load our Four Wheel Camper.  We store our camper in our garage.  Our garage is too short to drive the truck into it with the camper loaded, so we move the camper to and from the truck with a dolly and tracks that David built.  

The dolly is made of 2x6" boards cut to the length of the bottom of our Raven camper.  The cross pieces are made from light-weight, galvanized and perforated steel angle.  The wheels are heavy duty, swivel dolly wheels.  The tracks in the background guide the dolly wheels, keeping it straight as we guide it under the camper.  The tracks are made from 2x6" boards with wood guides on either side to keep the wheels in the middle of the track. (If you're interested in more details, please leave us a comment.)  Because our driveway is not level, we use boards to level the tracks.

Homemade dolly and tracks for our Raven Four Wheel Camper

To load the camper onto the truck, we roll it on the dolly onto the tracks (it is light enough for me to roll by myself).  We then push the camper to the end of the tracks to clear our roof line.

We roll the camper to the end of the tracks.

Then we raise the camper to a sufficiently high level so that we can back the truck under it.  Of course, before we begin backing up the truck, we remove the tracks, boards, and dolly from underneath the camper.

We raise the camper, then remove the dolly and tracks from under it.

To unload the camper, we reverse the loading process.  We store the camper on the dolly in our garage so that we can move it around whenever necessary.  

Our next post will detail some of our space-saving modifications...

Inside our new Four Wheel Camper

We are in the process of modifying our new Four Wheel Camper.  Before we get started, however, we wanted to post a few photos of our Raven shell.

Looking towards the rear on the driver's side and showing the furnace, battery, and propane tank housing.

Passenger's side, showing windows and Luggable Loo.  There is a bench over the wheel-wells on both sides. 

Our slide out, king-size bed!

Many have asked why we chose so few amenities in the camper.  Simply put, we wanted the extra room.  The camper is quite spacious without the couch, dinette, and kitchen tower.  And... as you can see by the photo below... we need all the floor space we can get with our 95-pound Golden!

Floor space... after the addition of Roxanne.

Backpacking on wheels is still our motto... we plan to continue traveling as spartanly as possible during our extended trips.  With our new furnace, however, we will be toasty in below-freezing weather.  The hard-side will also be beneficial in bear country and during long periods of rain.

Our new modifications already include a Luggable Loo to replace our Cleanwaste Pett toilet.  While we were very happy with the Cleanwaste potty, the span of its support legs did not fit into the camper's corner.

Additionally, we are installing a faucet and collapsible sink, modifying the storage, remounting the thermometer, modifying some of the electrical and plumbing, and installing lift assists to the outside of the camper.

Chris Janeway, owner of Rocky Mountain Four Wheel Campers, has been a great help to us during our modification process.  He has gone above and beyond to make our new camper experience exceptional.  Thanks, Chris!

UPDATE 2014:  We have now completed our Four Wheel Camper modifications.  To see what we've done, click here for Part One and continue through Part Four:  Four Wheel Camper modifications