A cool project

With the ceiling done, we're moving on to installing the fridge and closet unit. This will go on the driver's side, in between the future bed and the future john. (Those features will be described in a future feature.)

The fridge and closet will sit above the already installed hot water and house heaters, as well as the main power distribution/fuse box.

First step was to construct the frame and shelf that the fridge will rest on.

 

Time for a sanity check. Probably still sane(ish)
The shelf height is set by the  height of the H2O heater. Its top is 17" above the floor.
There will be a couple of drawers, one over the fuse box, and one over the heater vent. They will be built later in the build.

 

Then with a lot of grunting, and even more help from the aesthetics committee, got the fridge into Annie and up on the shelf. The fridge is a Norcold DE0061 12V/120V compressor based unit. We'll be running it on 12VDC only.
We decided on a compressor fridge because it isn't sensitive to being tilted, like an absorption fridge is. If we are parked for a day at a sloped trailhead, that could damage an absorption fridge.Also, it doesn't require the external venting that absorption units need.

Looks like the depth measurement was right on. The fridge radiator is the deepest part of of the unit.

Added a rubber bumper, and tapped the sidewall mounting holes at 1/4-20

Installed the fridge drain hose. It drains through a hole I drilled in Annie's floor

I also swapped the doors to open with hinges on the left, and made up some door panels.

 

Next step is to attach wall mounting strips. These are 5" wide lengths of 1/2" ply. They will support upper cabinetry, and are attached to the wall by 1/4"-20 flatheads and/or bolts, and 3m 90. This is why I tapped the holes earlier.

They also have a couple of steel angles added that will be used to tie the fridge mounting frame to the wall. See in the pic:

Next, I finalized the fridge placement, and bolted the shelf to the floor. The pieces of beadboard are spacers in place of the final maple wall ply.

Then on to making the framework. First the member that ties the angle to the front frame:
It has a slot to sandwich the angle.

And bolted through.

 

The front frame is tied to the ceiling and a ceiling rafter. It is also glued and screwed to the shelf.
An angle bracket helps stiffen things up.

Same mounting method is used on the left side of the fridge.
The frame is installed, and the fridge is temporarily screwed in.
The frame will also be part of the john's aft wall system.
I'll be adding rigid foam insulation to the sides and back of the fridge once I have all the clearances for cabinetry and other hookups established.

Before I get onto the more finished cabinetry work here, I'm going to install the water systems. So part 2 of this chilling tale will be put on ice for a bit. Reason is that I want the easier access to route the piping before buttoning up and making pretty.

Ceiling the deal, part 3, or The Ceil is dealed

In order to install the side panels, we first needed to find a way to mount them close to the walls without bumping into the roof ribs. This mount design also needs to present as much surface area to the roof panels as possible to provide maximum glue and brad support. The roof and walls do not meet at 90deg, so the mount design is a bit more involved.

So, I cut some 1.5"x1.5" wood strips that fit between the ribs. The strips are ripped with a 73 deg angle. That was empirically determined.
The strips:

 

The angle:

 

I pre-drilled holes to screw mount the strips and 3M 90 glued them to the walls.

 

They are screwed into the walls. Their height is set to just clear the roof rib metal.

 

These panels are mounted with a combination of VHB, 3m 90, and brads. 

The first panel is up:

 

 I would've said I was sure that the wood would fit like a glove, but as much as I need to give myself a rousing hand of applause, I could find no hands up there. So, although I would've said that if I could've said that, I couldn't say that, so I douldn't say that....(apologies to Ogden Nash)

OK, I now felt much better, so I installed the rest of the sides, except for the complex curve ones at the front. Those also have to fit around those foam blocks 

 

For the front, I had to cut the pieces into a weird shape. This is the driver side piece:

 In order to connect the front pieces,  I added some tabs to the existing ceiling with TiteBond III.

The front pieces need to be "convinced" that they want to spend the rest of their existence in a contorted shape. The convincing took place overnight with 3m 90 and brads used as incentives. Here's our redheaded  Irish convincer, Studs McSquash:

By the next morning, we, and the panel, found that Studs was quite convincing:

And so, excluding trim work (which will be done much later in the build), the ceiling and this chapter are done.