VW Camper Conversion Electrical Install - This Is SHOCKINGLY Complicated!!

This is the first part in our off grid electrical install in our Volkswagen Crafter Self Build Camper Conversion. There is so much that goes into the electrical build for our VW Crafter Camper Van that we got to the stage where we needed some help. Roamer were fantastic in helping us get to the bottom of our install.
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[@steveallen8987]

Looking great. A quick suggestion, where the cables go through the holes in the phenolic board they will over time chafe so I usually use self amalgamating rubberised tape and just wrap some round the cables so that the rubber touches the board. Safe. Steve

[@timeaves6164]

I'm totally absorbed by your build Shaun. But it is now keeping me awake, it is so complex compared to my Cali Beach. Its a whole different league, I shudder just thinking of the costs, and your time. This would do my head. Great work though 😎

[@ABusAndBeyond]

Thank you so much for watching. Trust me there’s plenty of sleepless nights here too 😂

[@stuartguy4479]

Great job, really impressed with ROAMER’s service.

[@ABusAndBeyond]

Cheers Stuart. Yes they’re so helpful 👍

[@MrAirborne144]

Your doing a great job there Shaun. Hidden work is the hardest. It’s a big job converting a van properly as well all of the family and work commitments. I chatted with you in 2018 at the NEC and told you of my attempt at a van build that went wrong due to an engine fire caused from previous garage work using a jubilee clip instead of a Mercedes hose clip on the rad pack that wore away the main wiring loom! 🔥 Nobody was hurt and that incident sent us on our VW California Ocean journey.

[@SwamperJez]

Hey, whatever you chatted about evidently did not put him off. If anything, it encouraged him👍

[@roamerbatteries]

BRILLIANT video Shaun, telling it like it is. So glad we could assist, thank you for letting us be a part of your journey. And totally feeling Harvey's displeasure on suncream slathering! :D

[@ABusAndBeyond]

🤣 thank you so much for all your help. It made the install so much easier 😊

[@LeisureBit]

Looks like a great setup - I’m about to add a Cerbo GX to my setup. That heat resistant board is a great idea. Good that Roamer does the schematics too, that’s super helpful. Good luck with the rest of the install and wiring it up. All the best, David 👍

[@kevingriffin6199]

I love the updates on your van, can't wait for the next one.

[@ABusAndBeyond]

Thank you Kevin 👍

[@WildLiveTV]

Awesome Video! Looking forward to meet you guys somewhere with your green monster and my t6.1…continue with the awesome content! Best wishes from Cologne!

[@ABusAndBeyond]

Thank you very much. We’d love to explore Cologne one day 👍

[@deanissit]

Looks good following a plan helps.

[@ABusAndBeyond]

Absolutely 👍

[@g00dspeed98]

Great videos Interested in the route you took cables from the van battery to the dc to dc charger still I decide which side of the vehicle under the bed to put my electrics

[@captaincoxyboy]

Really enjoyed this episode, personally with all that kit and your powerbanks I’d avoid a gas installation if possible. An induction hob and air fryer draw a lot of current but only for short periods of time, I just use a portable single gas burner if power gets low, I understand your demands will be higher with the growing family👍👍👍

[@ABusAndBeyond]

Thank you very much. It’s definitely worth considering. Thanks again 👍

[@robertdon777]

I think I'd just go portable now and build a van with that in mind. A Delta2 and Extra Battery with a good solar set up would keep you off grid and power just about anything required..or go Delta Pro. Having that portability and being able to charge them at Car Chargers too opens up off grid living.and having the ability to just tie it in with their AC and Heater unit for less that £900 makes a lot of sense for a van. AC alone is what £2K+ in a van, a decent branded heater another £1K (plus install time)...

[@SwamperJez]

Hey Shaun, I still can not get my head around you taking big boy's toys to the van, nor your wife's agreement to you doing this. I know why we spent so much on our conversion. A) My wife would not allow me to do anything like this B) I would not be brave enough. Net result...££££££.😢 Hope to see all of you at Camper Jam or BusFest. I remain excited to see you complete this mission, and thereby not be banished to the shed🤞🏻

[@ABusAndBeyond]

We really appreciate you watching. Thank you very much. We can’t do Camper Jam unfortunately but will hopefully get to BusFest 👍

[@stephenrussell6074]

Few suggestions - some too late. I think it is much easier to cut clean lines with a multi tool rather than a jigsaw. I would have bonded some 1mm aluminium strips along the edges to prevent damage of the thin sections. I think I would always use separate items if possible too make changes more easily in the future if I wanted an improved inverter or distribution and also if any one element failed. I also think I would be very tempted to have a professional install just on the electrics as they did on camper vibe for their mums van. The phenolic boards are often used on trailer floors for water proofing, friction and noise. One last point I would not place my gas cylinder near the electrics even in its own enclosure with vented sump.

[@GedandMichele]

Nice job and you can't do too much planning or research.I can see that thin piece of phenolic board a magnet for Harvey though 😂

[@dogsdangelies1]

I’m new to this, so sorry for the ignorance, but can’t you use the ecoflow for those things ? Would be intreasted in the price comparison too ?

[@ABusAndBeyond]

Lots of people do go down that route with great success. The only really reason I can find for not choosing to do that is if something fails you generally have to buy a complete new power station whereas with a dedicated installation you can replace or upgrade individual components as and when.

[@paulbrown410]

Certainly a big job but you're off to a great start! By the way, where did you source your phenolic board from (im uk based). Cheers!

[@ABusAndBeyond]

Thanks Paul. I got the board from eBay actually and it arrived unbelievably fast 👍

[@sccobyste]

Doing the same as you guys got my t6.1 camper up for sale if you know anyone let me know cheers

[@colinstewart173]

You won’t get any better than Victron. One question though why didn’t you go for an induction hob and not have gas at all?

[@ABusAndBeyond]

We prefer to cook with gas and we also like to have a bit of redundancy. If the battery fails (albeit very unlikely) we can still cook, we can always plug in a portable electric hob when on hook up if we want to save the gas for whatever reason.

[@Bigchaser01327]

I thought you were a sparkie by trade?

[@ABusAndBeyond]

Technically yes, but I did big mains cables for campsites so it consisted of digging trenches mainly 😂 I should also add that was 13 years ago as well. Lots has been forgotten

[@LittleCamperNZ]

Im surprised that more people dont switch over to using a powerstation. I have one that powers everything including running two fridges, my gallery pump, tv, computers abd all at the same time. It supplies 240v, 12v, 5v and you can with the aid of a very small solar panel have endless power. Its also a lot lighter and xan go portable very easily so you can charge your cars flat battery. They come in a multiple array of sizes. Mine only weighs 5kg. Have you ever considered them as an option? The a a breeze to install with no need for heavy car batteries separate mpt controller, etc. Here's a link to my review on the one I use kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZmjOfn-ZrLeBn7c

[@JC-kh1ut]

Oh dear!!!😂

[@ABusAndBeyond]

😂 he’s very cute when he says that

[@SuperWolffie]

when you wanted a new buscamper you didn't want a complete camper but thought that with all your tests and experience in using campers , you could design and built one of your own........looking at your videos , i think that was a bit ...uhhhh.....too confident. LOL

[@watcher24601]

I've seen plenty of self build camper videos, most are poorly finished by comparison. We can't all be professional master builders like you. Don't piss about - what don't you like?