September projects

Furnace air ducts

Hot air from the furnace is ducted throughout the motorhome by two pairs of 4" flexible air hoses (similar to clothes dryer hose). The first pair of hoses run under the couch, in front of wich are two small vents where the air comes out. This couch, wich is permanently attached to the floor, can be transformed into a bed, and is also a useful storage compartment. The other pair of hoses, connected on the othe side of the furnace, run in the lower cabinets of the kitchen and then toward the back of the Travco.

The problem with these hoses is they take a lot of storage space. A significant volume of the couch storage compartment is taken by the hoses. Under the sink, the way the two other hoses are hooked to the furnace limits storage as well. So Dad decided to do something about this.

First Dad replaced the dual hoses under the couch with a single metal duct, that feeds both vents. Dad used old galvanized steel ducts. He had to adapt and modify some parts to connect them to the furnace output. The new metal duct is much stiffer and takes less space than the original flexible hoses. Dad spay-painted the duct, and it looks nice and clean.

This is the old hose adapter that connects to the furnace:



Here's a new adapter Dad made:


Dad painting the duct before installation:


Under the couch before installation:


New duct and adapter in place:


Under the sink, Dad kept the original dual hoses, but made an entirely new adapter that allow him to position the hoses in the back of the cabinet, freeing a lot of storage space.

Old hose adapter inside the cabinet:


New adapter completed:



Same cabinet, new adapter:


Drawer

Dad made this small drawer, enclosed inside the end of the couch, near the entrance door.


The drawer is used for storing gloves, a flashlight, basic tools (pliers, screwdriver, etc.) emergency flares, and other objects that may be needed quickly, as it is quicker to open this drawer than search for stuff in an outside storage compartment. It has sturdy metal slides, and the drawer slides into a wooden divider box that separates the drawer's content from the objects stored under the couch. An old piece of wood, a bit of sanding, some varnish, a locking handle, a stainless steel frame, some patience and lots of time!




Parking spot

Dad kept working on the Whale's parking spot, in his backyard. Since last spring, a entire tree was moved, limbs were cut, the Whale almost got stuck in the mud... now Dad bought about 100 ft of drain tile, wich should improve soil drainage. So there will be a lot of digging and shovelling over the next few days...