after about a month and a half on the road and approximately a quarter of our way around the country this might just be a good time for a little stock take and analysis of our setup.
we’ve done a few hundred kilometers on dirt, stayed off the grid for a couple of days and tried to see what it is like to rely just on what we bring ourselves.
overall – knock on wood – apart from the one self-inflicted wound when i damaged the kk rear door both the tug and the van held up pretty well. there were some weird noises emanating from various parts of the setup at different points but those went away without any negative effects so we put this down as dust related. i hope we are right ….
the most important update to the van was definitely the pico which allows us to see all relevant parameters – generation, consumption, water – reliably on one screen. the recent firmware update has thrown me off my game a bit, state-of-charge measurements were all over the shop after that, but i managed to work out that the manufacturer had introduced some new parameters and figured out how to use them. all good now.
especially when bush camping it is critical to stay on top of how much water is left; we were surprised how much water we used cooking, washing ingredients and washing up. the first time we camped just relying on our own systems we filled more than half the grey water tank in one evening; that’s using about 40l of water, or 20% of our reserve. to put this in a different perspective, that’s about four flushes of an average toilet or a three minute shower. doesn’t sound like much, does it? it becomes quite precious when you only have 210 liters to begin with.
being self-reliant also means we can’t use 240v gear. well, we could but that would mean turning on the inverter and that’s a heavy power user. the only thing we can’t run on 12v is the toaster, so we are generally ok with the on-board system. we have 7 usb charging points rated at least at 2.1amp throughout the van and a few more in the car plus aux points that can deliver higher currents. this allows us to charge all electronic gear, cameras, zippy the spark, tooth brushes etc.
again between the pico and the victron bluetooth solar controller i have a pretty good idea how much energy is being fed in and how we use it. generally the solar panels do a good job keeping the batteries topped up but when it gets hot the fridge is drawing quite a bit of energy. as a result we have adjusted the fridge settings in the van and the car slightly which has resulted in much lower consumption while keeping our food cool enough.
we recently added a 100w folding solar panel to keep the car batteries topped up as well, in case we are stationary for a few days. the reason is that we also use our 40l engel fridge in the car and despite the dual battery system we installed a few years ago the batteries need some help when they don’t get sufficiently recharged while driving.
i also installed 2 little bluetooth monitors for the main & secondary battery in the disco. this is another safeguard to ensure we don’t run out of juice in the bush, on top of a cut-off between the fridge and the secondary battery. i’m also thinking of making a cable with anderson plugs that would enable us to jump start the disco from the kk if need be. i hope we will never get to that point though.
we ‘stole’ an idea from a fellow kk owner we met in portland: the rear windows can legally be blocked out since they are not used for driving. kris & nat cut up some sun screens and stuck it on the windows to keep the temperature in the car down. and yeah, we’ll be cleaning up the boot; it will probably last a day or two.
another idea we adopted – to use the proper technical term – is the use of an inline filter in the water supply. this one is only a carbon filter but as soon as we can get our hands on one we’ll install an antibacterial filter (we already have one in the cold / drinking water supply). that will ensure that whenever we use tap water or we fill the tanks no nasties can get through.
another key addition we installed during the trip is the sirocco fan.
it can be stored vertically when we are travelling but when in use it can swivel to create a cool breeze almost anywhere in the van. it can also be set to operate for 3/6/9/12 hours on three different levels. cool.
the best addition to the kk living space, however, is without question the bedouin awning. kris and i can get the awning up & down in not much more time than the ‘kwik’ awning which is now permanently strapped to the roof rack. the bedouin awning provides more room, more shade and way more privacy. best addition ever.
i am also happy that i installed the compressor under the hood. especially through brachina and bunyeroo gorge i needed to reduce tyre pressure due to the corrugations and it was great to be able to re-inflate them once we were back on tarmac. we’ll be using this a lot more in western australia. i’d like to travel the gibb river road, kris is not so sure … she may need some convincing.
not quite as important but kind of cool: switches with led indicators. now we all know which light is turned on.
the most useless piece of kit i installed in the van is – unfortunately – the router. the way wifi is set up in most caravan parks it does not seem to be able to connect and so we are not using it. bummer.
zippy the bush sparkeroo on the other hand is probably the most interesting addition to our arsenal of gadgets. kris was very sceptical at first but even she enjoys the different perspective the tiny drone provides. it is pretty cool to look at these amazing place from the air.
let’s hope things keep on ticking over as they have so far. the disco will get a service in perth, maybe also the van. the second part of the lap will definitely be a bit rougher on us and the gear.
please continue to keep your fingers crossed ben!