Category Archives: DIY

Finalizing the FLOOR PLAN | Cargo Trailer Camper Conversion

I use cardboard boxes and painters plastic to get a feel for the full size floor plan of the new cargo trailer camper conversion (we need a better name – leave your ideas in the comments).

I also used a meter to test how much water is used in a typical RV shower and washing the dishes. It looks like our planned 50 gallon tanks are going to work, but only give us about 3 days off grid.

Link to the water meter I used:
https://amzn.to/2hCeIvk

ULTIMATE Mobile Workshop – PART 3 – Bandsaw Cabinet w/ Toggle Clamps

How to build a bandsaw cabinet on wheels with piano hinge doors. I used toggle clamps with e-track tie offs to secure it to the wall of the trailer when not in use.

**This project was built and filmed before deciding on Makers on the Move version two**

HUGE THANKS to Lark United Manufacturing:
https://www.larkunited.com

Trailer Pre-construction Tour:
https://goo.gl/7mKcNp

Pull Action Toggle Clamps:
https://amzn.to/2fdUsO0

E-track Tie Offs:
https://amzn.to/2fhmwmJ

Can Your Trailer Alarm Do This? Our Plan for Keeping the Workshop Secure

How to install an alarm system on an enclosed utility trailer with siren, brake lock, and text message notifications. We have the option of arming with either a keypad in the trailer or key fab outside.

Thank you Trailer-Alarms.com for putting this system together for us!

Link to our system:
https://www.trailer-alarms.com/Alarms_c_1.html

The install took about 8 hours, but we have more openings than the average trailer. Something I didn’t mention is that you can change the timing of the exit/entry and the sensitivity of the accelerometer.

ULTIMATE Mobile Workshop – PART 2 – V-Nose Workbench / Power Tool Cabinet

How to build a simple wall mounted workbench and cabinets for power tools. The V-nose of the Ultimate Mobile Workshop is going to serve as my main workbench. I used 2x4s and plywood to make a simple counter top and covered the wall in 1/2″ plywood to organize my hand tool holders.

The power tool cabinet above each of the two-way drawers uses grooves in plywood to allow you to fit any size tool you want. Simply move the dividers around to change the slot size from 4 inches up to 24 inches.

HUGE THANKS to Lark United Manufacturing:
www.larkunited.com

Trailer Pre-construction Tour:
https://goo.gl/7mKcNp

DIY Concrete Toilet Tank Sink – This SHOULD Be On Every Toilet!

QUIKRETE is having a contest for the best project using one bag of concrete. (Not a sponsor.) I decided to make a “toilet tank top sink.” I first saw the idea on toilets in Japan.

When you flush the toilet, the fill water is re-routed to a faucet (don’t worry, it’s perfectly clean). You wash your hands like normal, then watch the water drain directly into the toilet tank. Next time you use the bathroom, the recycled water flushes the toilet and clean water is dispensed from the faucet. The design saves an estimated 1 gallon of water per person, per day! No modifications are made to the toilet except for routing the fill water tube into the bottom of the faucet.

Hopefully it’s good enough to win the $2500 dollar prize 🙂

Tackling DIY A/C Repair

The dash air conditioning in our motorhome was broken and I saw there was a leak from the fitting going into the compressor. Everyone I called to fix it wanted to remove the 40 foot lines from the RV and take them to a shop to install the new fittings. This would have cost $400-500 dollars so I decided to fix the connector myself with the mastercool hyrda-krimp a/c crimping tool.

I needed to upgrade to the $300 dollar crimping tool because I wanted to do the work in the engine bay and not at a vise, but the cheaper ones work just as well.

The $140 dollar crimping tool:
https://amzn.to/2aiL0rZ
My manifold gauge:
https://amzn.to/29KXg8w
The more expensive crimping tool I bought:
https://amzn.to/29Kr2V8

Onan Generator Troubleshooting and Repair

The RV is still in the shop (long story) and the trailer is still being built, so I’m sort of in between projects. I worked on this Onan Marquis 7000 generator for a little extra money and thought it might be interesting to some of you.

Note: This is NOT the generator from our RV. This is from a stage trailer that my church bought.

When I got the generator it wasn’t running. Once I got it running it wouldn’t produce any power. It turned out the carbs were all gunked up, the voltage regulator was bad, and the brushes needed cleaning.

DIY “Samsung Family Hub” Refrigerator with Raspberry Pi + Camera!!!

I got tired of seeing the commercials for Samsung’s Family Hub refrigerator with the cameras inside, so I decided to make my own. I used a Raspberry Pi and USB webcam to take a picture inside our fridge and upload it.

Whenever the door opens, a light sensor triggers the a simple program I wrote to take a picture and upload it via FTP to our website. Total cost was about $80 dollars.

See what’s in our fridge!
https://www.inourfridge.com

Parts I Used (Amazon Affiliate)
Webcam – https://amzn.to/1ZMaJvg
Raspberry Pi – https://amzn.to/1tt1wOx
Light Sensor – https://amzn.to/28zYI1Z
SD Card – https://amzn.to/28zYg3H
Keyboard and Mouse – https://amzn.to/1tt1LsV

Download the python program:
https://gist.github.com/mmoyer2655/fdbf1aebe1db516f8c5893ae0cdbed8b