Reducing interior weight.

J4yman · Feb 14, 2023

So I currently have a stock 1.6 Dormobile conversion. I am wanting to replace the interior with the same but want to replace it with a lighter material. I think it's currently 15 or 18mm plywood which is seriously heavy. I am looking to see what others have done to replace the wood with some other material that is strong enough to support door hinges and doors. I was thinking of Polycarbonate roofing and supporting the edges with a wooden trim. It will be covered with vinyl so you wouldn't see the roofing and it would look like the original setup. Just wondering if anyone else has done this. I am thinking it will be less stress on the 1.6 and also better fuel economy and faster. Thoughts please.

sparkywig · Feb 14, 2023

Similar to Voehringer ply, but slightly cheaper.

https://www.jacksonsleisure.com/light/weight/campervan/morland/ply/

J4yman · Feb 14, 2023

sparkywig said:
Similar to Voehringer ply, but slightly cheaper.

https://www.jacksonsleisure.com/light/weight/campervan/morland/ply/

Top stuff that's exactly what I need. It will take the hastle out of strengthing Polycarbonate.

YellowBay69 · Feb 14, 2023

If you go ahead with this please start a thread as would be super interested to follow and see how it works out .. good luck

J4yman · Feb 14, 2023

YellowBay69 said:
If you go ahead with this please start a thread as would be super interested to follow and see how it works out .. good luck

I think it has to go ahead. I took out the cupboard behind the passenger seat and it's heavy, like probably 15 - 20kg heavy. If that can be reduced it's got to be good for the bus.

YellowBay69 · Feb 14, 2023

I’m with you- i nearly put my back out fitting my dormobile interior. It certainly does add up !!
Will you keep to the same design?
Interested in the cost though.

Dizzy T2 · Feb 15, 2023

Be great to see some pictures of the project as you go I need to update my dormobile interior for more storage; any suggestions welcome

davidoft · Feb 15, 2023

I would weigh everything first you may not gain as much as you think, obviously they need to be rigid enough to be practical too, I think dormobile stuff is more like 5mm with thicker edges

adri0nac · Feb 15, 2023

my van was empty when I bought it so my units are all new from scratch and I went to Moreland for some light ply. it is half the weight but its expensive

adri0nac · Feb 15, 2023

it took 2 sheets to build this and i have just enough to finish the overhead locker

J4yman · Feb 15, 2023

adri0nac said:
it took 2 sheets to build this and i have just enough to finish the overhead locker

Looks nice, I have to reduce the weight. The Morland material looks nice. For the price of it I will probably save that in fuel once the weight saving is done.

YellowBay69 · Feb 15, 2023

Dizzy T2 said:
Be great to see some pictures of the project as you go I need to update my dormobile interior for more storage; any suggestions welcome

Loving the colours there !!

Graham L · Feb 16, 2023

J4yman said:
Looks nice, I have to reduce the weight. The Morland material looks nice. For the price of it I will probably save that in fuel once the weight saving is done.

As above I would weigh what you already have and compare the weight to a sheet of the new material, I'm not sure you are going to gain much better fuel consumption as thats down to the design of the engine, don't expect a huge change.

gas1man · Feb 25, 2023

Moreland has to be cheaper than Voehringer, wish I had known at the time.

J & P

K@rlos · Feb 25, 2023

Graham L said:
As above I would weigh what you already have and compare the weight to a sheet of the new material, I'm not sure you are going to gain much better fuel consumption as thats down to the design of the engine, don't expect a huge change.

Weight is a huge factor in fuel consumption. If both engines were the same eg a stock 1600 twinport, an empty panel van will be noticeably better on fuel than say my pop top Westfalia camper

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