8*20 Toy Hauler Build

[flboy]

It is on. Ordered a Diamond 8x20 with 7 ft interior height. Building it fully outfitted for off grid and comfort. Sold my 7*18 V-nose in June. This one will fit my Harley Davidson Ultra Limited. Details to follow. Should take delivery and start building in 5 weeks. Already ordering materials.

Pic of the HD. We just got back from a 5,000+ miles Route 66 trip.

 

[flboy]

Okay, Here's the details of what I ordered for the build:

Brand: Diamond Cargo

8ft Wide, 20ft Long, 7ft Interior height tandem axle - Flat Nose - Heavy Duty Rear Ramp

Standard Tailer Specifications with the following upgrades/changes:

• White Polycore Aluminum Siding .080 thickness - White/semi-screwed (promo upgrade)
  • instead of cheap .024 aluminum which will "oil can".
• Blackout package - trim, fenders, wheels, etc..
• 6,000 lbs. straight axles with electric brakes
• 24 inches black diamond plate all around bottom.
• 60" triple tube tongue
• 24" on center spacing on first floor joists behind tongue, otherwise 16" on center. (to accomodate 23" wide Gray and Black watert holding tanks)
• Rear Spoiler with 12vdc loading lights
• Brace for AC on top vent
• 32" RV Door with Screen Door and Opaque window
• Therma cool ceiling liner(promo upgrade)

I took standard wheel package as I can do better locally and have the tires under a nationwide warranty, but will be changing wheels to 16" Aluminum Mags with All Terrain LT Tires.

Diamond Cargo will leave all trim and D-rings included loose in thtrailer and be sure to use screws (not nails) so deconstruction of the walls and floor for build out will be easy.

 

[flboy]

My design requirments

• Fit Harley Davison Ultra Limited in cargo area
• 30 gallons or greater for Blackwater and Gray water holding
• 50 gallons or greater freshwater
• All ammenities useable including sleeping while traveling with HD on board.
• Full offgrid power - 12VDCLifePo4 @ 640aH (I will build battery pack) with premium Victron Energy power management and display equipment, >600 Watts of solar panels and 3000W Inverter, 120A Charger
• On demand Hot Water (propane) with water miser plumbing
• 2 Induction cook tops with 1 reversionary propane burner.
• 32"x32" shower, porcelain toilet and vanity
• DC rooftop Air Conditioner and DC refrigeration (high efficiency)
• Automatic Awning deployment
• Extensive use of technology for monitoring critical systems (Victron Cerbo GX and etc..)
• Microwave/Convection/Air Fry combo oven
• LED Lighting
• Perimeter security cameras
• HAM Radio HF/VHF/UHF power and Antenna ports
• WiFi and Cell Phone Boosters
• 2 side widows in additon to door window
• Queen size bed
• 4 Season Capable

 

[featherliteCT1]

WOW! You are going first class (including, but not limited to, use of Victron components, and of course, the Harley!). I am thinking about all the skills you have acquired over the years that will be displayed in this new build. Looking forward to watching your build.

 

[flboy]

Thanks! This will probably be my last build, so I want to go all out for it. Been working on the Electrical System Design. I have the block diagrams done. I should have the trailer to start build in 5 weeks.This is what I will build into the CTC. Settled on a 24VDC System. The high efficiency 24VDC Rooftop AC is the driver for 24VDC in addition to overall smaller gage wire requirments.

 

[featherliteCT1]

IMHO, 24v makes a lot of sense for your use case.

What are the specs of your solar panels and how many panels will you have?

 

[flboy]

Hi. I'll have 3-200 panels for 600w total most likely. Looking at some Renogy panels that use a new technology to limit loss due to partial shade and etc.. I believe they call them "ShadowFlux". Panels will be serial configuration most likely. I haven't settled all that yet.

 

[featherliteCT1]

I'll have 3-200 panels for 600w total most likely

I was thinking about the 100 maximum volts limitation for the Victron MPPT 100/50. Three 36v panels in series would exceed the 100 volt maximum, using panel VOC. I like most of the Renogy panels..

 

[flboy]

I'll have to take a look at that closer when I pick the panels. I will be waiting on the controller purchase to make sure I match well with the system. I still need to consider the Serial vs Parallel connections Pros/Cons also. Thanks.

 

[flboy]

Received the Lifep04 cells today. I'll start the process of top balancing and integration this weekend. My Victron equipment will be here Monday PM.

 

[featherliteCT1]

After you balance the cells, will you do a capacity test?

 

[flboy]

Yes, I have a shunt with coulomb counter. I'll use a 1000w inverter and a small ceramic heater for a load.

 

[flboy]

I cut up a large Poly cutting board I got from Walmart, some Angle Iron, Threaded 1/4 rod , washers and nuts from Home Depot, and made a compression holder for the battery bank. I will mount the BMS appropriately on the side before I get finished. The flange on the bottom piece of angle Iron will bolt to the floor to keep in place.

 

[flboy]

I got the battery built up. BMS and Bluetooth app seem to be functioning. I need to get my Victron MultiPlus II before I can top off the charge and then capacity test it. Sometime next week I should have that done. Really liking this JK BMS. 2A active balance and it has a switch to turn the battery on and off.

 

[flboy]

Had to make some handles for lifting. This battery is 110lbs!

 

[flboy]

I did the capacity test and I shut it down at 320Ah. The external shunt read 320Ah and the internal shunt on the BMS showed 330.3 Ah. In any case, there was still more left at 320Ah, so I am happy with the batteries. I tend to trust the external shunt more, but after about 12 hours of loading, they were not that far apart (~3%).

 

[featherliteCT1]

I am glad you got full capacity!

I am curious what the voltage delta between high and low cells will be when the cells are “fully charged”, in the neighborhood of 3.4v to 3.5v.

 

[flboy]

The JK BMS I am using has a 2A active balancer that keeps the cells top balanced to within 10mV (0.010v). The active balancer just transfers from the highest to the lowest until they are all within 10mV. This JK BMS works really well and continues to balance after charging is halted by a cell reaching the high limit first (3.55v in my settings). I have the active balancer starting when the cells reach 3.35V, so it is active during the charging process.

 

[rose090999]

After a couple of years trolling around here I'm getting ready to finally pull the trigger on an 8.5x16 cargo trailer to be used as a toy hauler/camper. Still debating whether to go with the Diamond Cargo or one of the other South Georgia brands. I'm not quite sure if I want to go with the Polycore exterior that the Diamond Cargo comes with or go with a brand that has the traditional (.030) aluminum. Any pros/cons that you know of? I know the thinner .024 aluminum has the "oil canning" issue but does the .03 oil can as bad? I've read where the polycore looks good initially but over time can get a "dinged up" appearance because of the thin outer layer that sandwiches the "polycore"...

 

[flboy]

I am new to polycore, but I have had a few trailers and I usually upgraded to a .040 Aluminum and it oil canned as well.

I like the .080 thickness and the other qualities such as noise and some insulative benefits. I guess I will find out.

Just go to YouTube and search for Polycore. You will see some videos. I did so some research, and mostly found positive views.