Solar Volkswagen travels to America + video

Brian and Ian from Portland call themselves Dangerz. But this is not a name at all, but a nickname stuck and liked. In the summer of 2012, the couple, along with their beloved dog Karma, went from Vancouver on a trip to America in an old minibus Volkswagen II 1967. Before the trip, the bead underwent a major overhaul and turned into a mobile home with an autonomous power supply from solar energy.

Dangers of the spouses began to be called friends, after they helped them get out of difficult situations a couple of times. The old minibus, bought in 2009 “in perfect condition” with shiny paint and no through holes in the body, but with rusty streams, the Dangers went through with their own hands, raked out all the mold and peeled off the rust, threw the worn salon into the landfill and remade everything at their own discretion.

Before installing the new skin and furniture, the panels and floor of the cabin were pasted with sheets of soundproofing, and all the cavities were filled with foam so that during the trip you could feel as comfortable as at home. Then came the turn of thermal insulation, for which the couple decided to use foil bubble film, mainly for the reason that you could buy it in any local store.

The equipment of the cabin was made of not quite ordinary, but environmentally friendly and sustainable Kirei material. Extremely light and durable, it looks like bamboo, but is actually a secondary material, a high-tech product of processing sorghum stems.

Of course, on a trip can not do without a hiking kitchen. The minibus has a gas stove connected to a durable and lightweight fiberglass cylinder. Dangers chose it because of the weight, but over time they were terribly disappointed, learning that such containers are not intended for recycling and after developing the resource, they go straight to the landfill. As the couple write in their blog, this is enough reason for them to never buy such cylinders again.



Power supply is an important minibus system for travel. Lighting the ray in the evenings in the salon for lighting is not fashionable today. In addition, smartphones and tablets no candles will not help, their batteries constantly require replenishment of electricity.

The basis of the on-board electric network, the Dangers chose a pair of standard unmaintained car batteries in a completely isolated case. This choice is due to the fact that the batteries are installed in the cabin.

To charge the batteries on the roof of the minibus placed solar panel Kyocera with a capacity of 135 W. As the Dangers tell, the mount had to tinker, as there was no ready-made version for the 1967 Volkswagen, but at the same time drilling additional holes in the panel meant losing the manufacturer's warranty. Despite the difficulties, the solution was found, the panel was installed on the upper trunk. Its slope can be adjusted, since at the base it relies on a long “royal” loop.



The charge controller allows you to connect to the panel not only the batteries installed in the cabin and designed for household needs, but also the starter battery of the car. To prevent its accidental discharge, the starter battery is connected through an insulator that allows charging current to pass, but does not load the battery with additional consumers.

An inverter is used to connect to the onboard 12-volt network of devices designed to be powered by the AC network.

On their sunny bead, the Dangers drove through several western states of the United States, visited Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. But no matter how good it is at home, it is better. The couple are now back in Portland and have even started a small design business.

Solar Volkswagen they put up for sale at the end of last year, perhaps the car has already changed its owner. However, the Dangers do not rule out that they will eventually go on the road again.

According to Dangerz,





Source: facepla.net