I have owned my Blazer for going on 5 years now ..In that time The girlfriend and I have traveled all over Canada with it in all types of weather The worse of which was a White out snow storm To the point we had to pull off a main road and wait out the storm to pass It was not because the truck could not handle the foot or two of snow But we could not see 3 ft in front of us We pulled over and took a nap 1hr later we could see a bit better and made it to where we had to go ...We been Camping a few times and some of which was too cold or rained out weekend and packed up We also done Drive-in movies and faced the truck around backwards and dropped the tail gate and lay down side by side with the Benji the Yorkie Which was a little tight with the 2 wheel wells in the way I also move stuff now and then and need the back to fill it up

I have seen Vans that converted into Camper vans And a few SUV's But everything seems so Bulky and takes up alot of room And its fixed in place
My idea is to be able to have a full sized bed 1 or 2 extra Marine batteries (160 hrs) for lighting and heating/cooling USB and 12v use)
The goal is to remove everything from behind the front seats to the tail gate ( Rear seats, plastic paneling, Carpet, Spare tire and brace,) A friend does construction spray foaming. And once i have finished removing and welding in my side bars in the rear and prepped the truck for him He will spray it in (2'-3' of closed foam) Giving it a great R value Next will be thin slotted wood planks tied in with PVC tubing behind for wiring for power.. The two metal rods on the sides Just above the wheel wells will be for the Aluminum cross bed slats which will fit into flanges to stay in place ..Removable when i need the truck to haul other things Memory foam for the bed and a few heavy blankets The batteries will be in a box tied into the floor where the rear seats were As i already have a upgraded HD 130amp Alt and wiring system

Anyone else done this?

 

Sounds like a fun project. Adding the insulation is a good idea. When I moved from my 2dr '92 to my 4dr '99, one of the reasons was so that I could sleep in the back. For me that consists of a heavy packing blanket as a pad and a sleeping bag. Have you given thought to adding storage on the roof rack?

I was going ask if you have seen those folding tents that live on roof racks or the ones that attached to the tailgates of SUVs but considering your interest in insulating the body, I'm guessing you are desiring a 3 if not 4 season set up.

P.S. For your GF, will you need to be bring a porta-potty or is she cool doing her "business" in the woods?

 

When you fold the rear seats down there still is a 2 inch drop Which ain't much but it bugs me I thought about all the times i needed the rear seats for passangers ...Never had more than the girlfriend and I
When we go camping We tend to go to a place not too far And the camp ground is rather big (350 spots) But has 9 porta potties in one area and a odd few here and there Plus Porta showers (25 cents 10 mins renewable) and the shower fits 2 people You have to shower early in the morning or evening busy all other times
If we head further into Northern Ontario we get into Bear country Nowadays there is a vast amount of 12v items for vans and trucks that use low watts to work ..Coffee maker, lunchbox size warmer, Drawer Fridge That shuts off at full temp and turns back on at lowest power setting after 7 degree loss which is said to be 2-3 degrees per hr So as your driving your Truck to the camp area Your truck is fully charging your batteries and the power is starting to cool the fridge You make it to your site the fridge is cold and you have a full battery That day you use a small percent of batt power on the fridge You still have power for a fan and lights at night Run your Laptop if you want a movie as it should be charged anyway from home Next morning you have your coffee maker handy and propane 1 burner for bacon and eggs Best part is if you are only running a single 2nd battery many camp sites do offer electrical plug in's for a extra charge We know the lay out of the park And can run 75 feet of cord over the back of the lot back into the hook up spot with 40 feet to spare lol : )
As for the roof I think that might be a stage 3 plan For a 100watt flexable solar panel Once i install the 3rd battery Still have a bunch of reading up on marine batteries that hold longer hours and are fully sealed ( Gases) And Finding a proper thin unseeable flexable solar panel that will absorb a higher rating of sun Then a cheap one or find 2 cheap ones that work better then just one
So for long trips Toronto > Sudbury > Thunder bay > Winnipeg> Etc Etc passed the flat lands in and over the mountains to the west coast we should be Ok Heck Ontario alone is 20hrs 32 mins from my area to the west end of it at the speed limit Taking a break with this set up and small dogs is perfect

 

Do you happen to have a link to this fridge? I have a 12V refrigerator now, but I'm kind of in the market for a new one.

 

Hey I came across this and I thought I'd show my install of a webasto last winter. This is a 2000 Watt 12v gasoline heater, max electrical consumption is just less than 30 watts.

So far I've had it out at -15°C, was only running it at about 30%.

See pics, ask away.