Welcome to The Crafty Blinders Van Life! We are a family who decided to explore and travel in our VW Crafter self built campervan. Our channel is all about showcasing how we built our campervan step by step, offering advice and guidance, bringing people together while building a community of like minded, that will hopefully inspiring others to live a life of freedom and adventure. Join us as we meet interesting people, share our tips and tricks for self build campervans & van life, and explore new destinations from stunning landscapes to cosy campfires Whether you're a seasoned campervan builder or just starting out, our channel has something for everyone. So come along for the ride and join The Crafty Blinders Van Life community. Don't forget to subscribe and hit the notification bell to stay up-to-date on our latest progress and adventures!
Sam, Lisa & Riley The Crafty Blinders info@thecraftyblinders.co.uk the-crafty-blinders.myspreadshop.co.uk/
Great content again Sam. Hope you’re both doing well. Not got a Camper… Yet ! But all your videos are saved and stored in the old brain box for the future. Top stuff mate.
Don't worry about the grunting they are called Dad noises and all all dads make them, or so I'm told!! I wish I had seen this video before I decided on the method that we have settled for its going to take us a lot longer to do our ceiling than you have So well done.
Hi mate, just found your channel! Watched your review on the 800 Aferiy. The fridge you powered was it a 12 volt compressor one? And was the power bank fully charged? Ive currently got a 12v apicool 35ltr compressor cool boxbin my van. So was wondering if the Aferiy would be suitable to power it. Kind regards Nigel
Hi Sam, glad you’re happy with your Fogstar batteries. We swapped our two Leoch lead-calcium 150Ah batteries for two 260Ah Fogstars in July and upgraded our inverter to 2200w when the Mrs wanted to use a two ring inverter hob and are really pleased with the results. We are on a six week tour at the moment staying around four days at each place and haven’t dropped below 60% even now with the heating on. Most draw I’ve measured with a shunt test is 180A with everything switched on. We already had a Votronic 1212 50amp B2B so takes about 3-4 driving hours to recharge both to 100% from 60% no smart alternator just standard 130A crafter. Only thing I’ve done differently to you is thrown away the main mega-fuse between my batteries and isolator and installed a BEP pro installer Class T Fuse holder and fuse as with the power of lithium it can arc a blown mega-fuse. Not cheap at £100 for fuse and holder but neither are our vans! Hope you have a great trip we’ve still got three weeks to get back but couldn’t wait to watch your videos 👍🏻
@@TheCraftyBlindersvanlife Sorry if I didn’t explain it very well but if you look on 12v planet under their description they probably do a better job of explaining it. It’s all to do with how the fuse blows faster before the battery starts to runaway and the heat builds V quickly! I’ve learned plenty from you Sam so happy to share. 👍🏻
Hi ya bud.. Just to say.. I tried the same test. 280ah Fogstar, 300w solar.. I have been in and out of hospital for the last 2 months.. I have left the Fridge and the Freezer turned on and it has not dropped below 70% it topps itself up every day even on british weather days, it back up to 100%.. also got a 100w solar charging the van battery.. ACE.. hard job to beat the Fogstar
I have two systems now a 12v up front with the old 30amp dc-dc charger and this 230v set up in the garage, I think I'm gonna swap that out after out trip
Hi all, I’ve a question. How do know if your van has a smart alternator? I’ve a 13 plate sprinter. Is there a test or will it say somewhere? If it is a “not smart” alternator is there an alternative. All advice welcome. See you all at Lawton 😀
A few ways to tell, on the main NEG lead on the battery there will be a small box, it's the shunt the ECU uses to tell battery state of charge, another way is if the alt has 3 small wires going into it it's likely a smart alt, non smart alternators only have 1 or 2 small wires.
You probably have a standard alternator, but the easy way is to check your output voltage at start up it should be around 14.4 the check it after 10 minutes, and it will have dropped back down 13.5 ish
@@TheCraftyBlindersvanlife I’ve checked my alternator today and it’s a “thick” alternator not a smart one. Will the Orion XS still work? Or would there be an advantage of swapping for the 180 smart alternator? I’m charging a 280Ah LiFePO4 battery. I’m quite happy to swap it over. I have vectron solar charger,mains charger and a smart shunt. So wanting to keep the system “blue” so it all works off the same app and in harmony Cheers Stew
Nice one bud , undegoing a power upgrade myself on the motorhome , it's expensive but quality kit . Where is the cheapest option to buy ,also maybe worth advise to check alternator outputs to see whether they are up to the job , I know you uprated yourd so your covered, gonna check mine first to make sure . Quality footage , keep it up pal .
Nice one bud , undegoing a power upgrade on the motorhome , it's expensive but quality kit . Where is the cheapest option to buy , , I know you uprated your alternator so gonna check mine first to make sure it will handle it. Quality footage , keep it up pal .
Another cracking video Sam. I have a quick question. The ‘Beast’ is a beast but what do you use the Roamer battery for? Sorry if this is a dumb question😬
Regarding the intercooler does it have a sensor on it? Mines saying this on a scan Charge Air Cooler Temperature Sensor Circuit High Bank 1 and some people says it’s where the intercooler is?
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/203546960348?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=Bld-qAWESCu&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=qkhVtACcQ9q&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY Try this mate
Hi Sam I have a Renogy 60a dc to dc. I have uprated my alternator for the 180a one same as you have. Brilliant stuff. Love you videos and always showing the safe way of doing things.
Hi Sam, i have noticed 1 thing that since 8 or 9 months u have changed. U dont love your subscribers. Is everything ok. Because when i subscribed to u in july last year, i found a very loving and fatherly figure like gentleman. I hope everything is ok with u. Lots of love and good wishes
Quick solar question Sam, I have 500w of solar (3 x 12v panels in parallel at 18v nominal). But the last week I have been getting ZERO solar. Like max 2watt. It's been cloudy, but is this normal? In the winter, do you get so little solar? I have checked the voltage of the line from the panels, and it's hovering around 14v, so not enough to kick in the charger. I washed the panels a week ago and jet washed the vans roof, and I am worried I have killed something. I never directly jet washed the panels but did brush them down with a microfibre mitt on an extension pole.
you will get reduce solar on a cloudy day, have you cleaned your panels lately? check all the connection too and if you have victron check the settings as sometimes this will reset the operating parameters
I am just getting round to redoing my system, and I am also fitting a 3kw invertor. Cheers for the video mate! I am pretty clued up on electrics personally (marine electrics on ships... not shore side), but this is still new to me.
hello Sam just found your channel and im currently binge watching your vids as im retired.(Ive subscribed etc.) Im doing my first camper convert, its an Iveco not a crafter but similar dimension wise. Im a retired spark myself and was wandering whether to just go down the route of an Ecoflow, instead of a fixed battery, Ive first fixed it 240 wise, with what I think I'll need, but Im now leaning to possibly using the Victron and fogstar route, as i maybe want to start going to the vanlife fests, next year but Its just me and my dog these days so was unsure what to do, as most vids show it as mainly family orientated, and if so should i just opt for straight 240 plug in and use campsites. Anyway, im rattling on here, so keep up the good work, its good to see a fellow spark helping other folk who maybe dont know electrickery.
Very cool, my friend. I do like the "color coordination" thing - never thought of that! Excellent point about the "cable fits installation" issue. To avoid bends on my 70 mm2 - really - short cables, I raised the isolator using a custom fit piece of ply to line up the mounting height. Love your setup - but we'll see if my 3 x 100Ah setup will suffice... Cheers and hugs to you, Lisa & Riley! 🚐☁🍀
Hi when you upgraded the rear springs did you have to get extensions for your shockers? I have done the same and the shockers are topping out great vid by the way.
