Windsurf1 Posted August 23, 2021 Share Posted August 23, 2021 Is it possible structurally and cost effective to put an additional window into a motorhome? The vehicle in question is a 2010 Auto Sleeper Devon. I would like to fit a window in the toilet area? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColinM50 Posted August 23, 2021 Share Posted August 23, 2021 Can't see any reason why not, just choose your type. Caktanks sell a range. https://leisurelines.net/seitz-windows-80-c.asp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John52 Posted August 23, 2021 Share Posted August 23, 2021 ColinM50 - 2021-08-23 2:52 PM Can't see any reason why not, just choose your type. Caktanks sell a range. https://leisurelines.net/seitz-windows-80-c.asp Fools rush in where wise men fear to tread :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 23, 2021 Share Posted August 23, 2021 A 2010 Auto-Sleepers “Devon” advert here https://www.motorhomedepot.com/vehicle/auto-sleeper-devon The toilet/shower cubicle appears to have plastic-lined walls, which will potentially make window installation trickier. My Rapido’s toilet/shower cubicle is somewhat similar, with white plastic-lined walls. It has no window in the side walls, but there is a 40cm x 40cm rooflight that (for me and my wife) provides adequate light given how much reflection there is from the walls. I assume a “Devon” also has a rooflight in its toilet/shower cubicle and - if that’s the case - I’d want a VERY persuasive reason to fit a window in one of the walls. The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geeco Posted August 24, 2021 Share Posted August 24, 2021 John,one other option to an additional window is to consider an exhaust fan in the roof vent. Could be an easier option to replace the roof vent rather than cut in a new window. Having said that our current Adria has a window and a roof vent and clears the air in the bathroom much more efficiently than our previous Autotrail with only a roof vent. Cheers, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John52 Posted August 24, 2021 Share Posted August 24, 2021 Geeco - 2021-08-24 2:13 AM John,one other option to an additional window is to consider an exhaust fan in the roof vent. Could be an easier option to replace the roof vent rather than cut in a new window. Having said that our current Adria has a window and a roof vent and clears the air in the bathroom much more efficiently than our previous Autotrail with only a roof vent. Cheers, Yes I find that too. The smelly air in toilets seems to be heaviest so stays low down - doesn't rise high enough to be sucked out by the roof vent even with a fan. I have a van with a powerful roof fan but can still smell the gas rings when the fan is running. I use propane which is smellier than butane - and the only way I can get rid of all the smell is to open the side door. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 24, 2021 Share Posted August 24, 2021 If removing ‘odours' from the Devon’s toilet is the objective, installing a SOG kit might be an alternative to an extra window. A SOG Type B kit for a Thetford C200 toilet costs £150-£180 nowadays and is one of the easier kits to fit and one of the most efficient. I added a SOG Type B kit to my 2005 Hobby motorhome (that had a big window in the toilet area) and it proved very effective. I’ve also installed a SOG kit to my Rapido’s Thetford bench-style toilet. That task was much more challenging, but a lot less so than cutting a big hole in the Rapido’s bodywork to fit a window. A photo of a Devon’s right-hand side is attached below. Presumably an extra window would be positioned directly above the toilet’s cassette-locker door (ie. it would be behind the toilet when inside the motorhome) and it should look OK if it matched the other window’s design. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted August 24, 2021 Share Posted August 24, 2021 The greatest risk in cutting into the side wall is that you cannot know until you have made the cut, what is actually in the wall. For example unexpected wiring. Maybe A/S could help with this. Second, to successfully install the new window you will need to insert a supporting frame into the void between inner and outer skins of the wall, meaning digging out some of the insulant all round the opening so as to be able to insert timber spacers, ideally with some form of corner joint for rigidity (possibly bridle joints with loose "tenons" inserted post installation for the last member), which needs to be secured in place before attempting to fit the window itself. Then insert, fix, and seal in, the window. So not impossible but definitely a job that will require some decent woodworking tools and a good workbench and, above all, a fully weather proof enclosure for the van (with adequate working and access space) while working on it. It would help if you could find out what lies within that wall in the area where you want to fit the window, both in the way of concealed services, but also timber framing members that you would need to cut through. It seems fairly clear that there is a reasonably substantial vertical member behind the hinge edge of the washbasin swing-wall, but whether there are also horizontals between that and the washroom wall beside the toilet is unclear. Would I do it? Emphatically not - at least, not unless I was confident about what I would be cutting into. You also asked whether it would be cost effective. That would largely depend on what present cost you attach to the odours you wish to remove. :-) The cost of the window can easily be established. The other bits, assuming you already have suitable working space and the necessary tools, are minimal cost items. But it would also depend on the actual cost of rectifying the damage should things go wrong despite your best attempts. You would then be into the £ thousands. Personally, I think the SOG kit idea is a far better prospect, and is probably more likely to succeed with odour removal. But if the main problem is clearing moisture after showering, possibly using campsite showers, at least some of the time (say in colder weather), would be a simpler remedy and, if also applied to toilet use, would take the odour problem elsewhere to boot. Of course it has its costs as well, but a lot less risky that cutting into the side wall of an otherwise very nice van. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conrad Posted August 24, 2021 Share Posted August 24, 2021 I think I'm right in saying all leaks in motor caravans are around windows or skylights. I'd go with the SOG idea (or Thetford's) if it's smell from the toilet you want to eliminate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 25, 2021 Share Posted August 25, 2021 The “Devon” has a Thetford C200 cassette toilet. Thetford offers an external vent-hose for the C200, but this is not an ‘extraction’ system. Certain Thetford toilet models have a cassette that vents through its underside and some of these can be fitted with a extractor fan located beneath the cassette. However, a C200’s cassette vents through its top surface and the only ‘extraction’ system for a C200 is the SOG one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John52 Posted August 25, 2021 Share Posted August 25, 2021 Derek Uzzell - 2021-08-25 7:31 AM The “Devon” has a Thetford C200 cassette toilet. Thetford offers an external vent-hose for the C200, but this is not an ‘extraction’ system. Certain Thetford toilet models have a cassette that vents through its underside and some of these can be fitted with a extractor fan located beneath the cassette. However, a C200’s cassette vents through its top surface and the only ‘extraction’ system for a C200 is the SOG one. Sounds ideal because the smell stays low and that would take it straight out before it spreads. A window could just blow it inside, and it doesn't seem to rise high enough to go out the roof - even with a powerful fan if its anything like the propane stink from my gas stove. And if you are going to cut holes better to do it lower down so the rain doesn't leak in and spread so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColinM50 Posted August 25, 2021 Share Posted August 25, 2021 Ah, didn't realise the objective was to get rid of smells, thought it was for the light. As others have said the SOG should be a good cheap solution for smells rather than potentially damaging the structure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 25, 2021 Share Posted August 25, 2021 I also thought that adding an extra window would be to provide more light (Windsurf1 did not say what the objective was) but addressing odours and condensation is probably more likely. Installation instructions for the standard SOG Type B kit for a Thetford C200 toilet (with the original non-wheeled cassette) are here https://www.outdoorbits.com/Brochures/SOGB_instructions.pdf Extraction of air from the cassette is via a fan-unit in the cassette-locker’s door, though an alternative SOG 2 Type B kit is available that allows extracted air to pass through the floor. https://www.soguk.co.uk/sog-2-kit-type-b-kit-for-thetford-c200-toilets/#20023 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windsurf1 Posted August 26, 2021 Author Share Posted August 26, 2021 Hi All. Thankyou for the advice and comments. Initial enquiries with some caravan/motorhome workshops was lukewarm to the idea of cutting holes into side walls. The Devon toilet wall above the cassette is not acrylic however as stated you never know what the construction is between the walls. Therefore the SOG is the best option. Since the objective was fume extraction. Two types seem to be available for the Thetford C200; ventilation through the door or down through the floor. Seem to remember the toilet compartment is plastic lined so door option is the best route. Thanks everyone for your help. J C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 26, 2021 Share Posted August 26, 2021 Windsurf1 I based my assunption that a 2010 Devon’s toilet/shower cubicle’s walls were all acrylic-lined on a photo in an advert. However, having looked more closely at the image (1st photo attached below) I realise that the wall behind the toilet is a different colour to the wall with the washbasin that is clearly plastic. Fitting a SOG 2 kit to a Thetford C200 toilet requires a cassette-locker with plenty of space behind the locker’s door (as will be evident from the 2nd photo below). A 2010 Devon’s cassette-locker lacks that space at its front (3rd photo below) and, although it MIGHT be possible to lead a SOG 2’s ventilation hose outside the locker to a ‘remote’ filter/fan-unit venting through the floor, fitting the traditional type of SOG fan-unit in the locker’s door would be much simpler. If you were planning to DIY the installation, this article should help http://www.motorhometour.co.uk/blogs/motorhome-maintenance/installing-sog-toilet-motorhome/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windsurf1 Posted August 27, 2021 Author Share Posted August 27, 2021 Thankyou Derek. Yes the wall above the toilet is of different material to the shower area. The DiY link you kindly posted is quite detailed in that clearance between the door and waste tank when closed is the only consideration. The rest fitment straight forward. The SOG is definitely the way forward. Cutting holes into Motorhomes or Caravans has never got me excited 8-) Again thankyou for your and other members inputs. Cheers John C. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.