We have started charging the batteries of the motorhome, cleaning and fixing the lights. Project FREEDOM 2.0 is finally up and running, and we are working hard to fix the campervan. Things are progressing at full speed, but we have also encountered some setbacks.
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Charge your campervan's batteries
We take the fix with the campervan and project FREEDOM 2.0 step by step. Our campervan has been stationary since last summer without access to electricity, so all the batteries had been discharged. So Peters immediately started to plug in the generator and start recharging the motorhome's batteries. However, this proved not to be easy.
In the beginning it was difficult to recharge the batteries, but after a while we realised that our (broken) underlights was on and drawing power... We cleared away all the lights under the motorhome including all the cables. Peter tried again and again to start the car, but it was only on the third day (yipeee!) that he succeeded.
However, the success is not complete. We managed to charge the camper's batteries with the generator every day to almost 100 per cent, but the next day we were down to zero again. We can't see that anything has been running and drawing power. No lights, no fridge, nothing... What could be wrong?
Cleaning the motorhome
While the generator has been on to charge the campervan's batteries, Peter has been cleaning. "We used it all last summer and parked it without properly cleaning it, so it was very dirty. We have also been collecting stuff for ten years to make it suitable for a family with children. Now new times are coming ...
Now Peter has taken the time to clean the car thoroughly. He has washed the outside of the car and gone through every drawer and cabinet. He has thrown away, vacuumed and scrubbed. Things that had to go to the rubbish room or tip included our broken outdoor furniture, a more than ten-year-old bed mattress, and duvets and pillows. Let's face 2020!
"When you lift everything out, you can clean better. Peter also unscrewed the panelling around the back bed, so he could access the vacuum cleaner. everywhere. What a lot of dust there was there ...
Fixing lights in your campervan
While the electricity company was charging the batteries of the motorhome, Peter also took the opportunity to fix the LED lighting. We have had a lot of cables that have been crossed, and now he made sure to sort out the mess. The cable tangle that you see in the picture below is gone, and instead you just switch on and off all the lighting on the buttons inside the front door.
Peter had a piece of string light (LED lighting) left over and decided to put it around the skylight over the dining table to get more light on the ceiling. Amazingly, the string light had exactly the right length (to the millimetre!). It turned out fine too!
New duvets and towels
A bed mattress and several duvets and pillows had really seen their best days. We had to buy a lot of new things (some pillows etc were ok, and we saved these), and at the same time we took the opportunity to buy new sheets. We bought everything at Jysk, and decided to get some blue in the motorhome.
There were also new blue blankets, blue towels for the bathroom and blue towels for the kitchen. In addition to feeling clean and fresh, it also smells it new. Great!
Washing the kitchen equipment
On Friday and Saturday I (Helena) was able to help. I set about cleaning the kitchen and washing out all the drawers. I also took in all the cutlery, plates and other kitchen equipment and washed the dishes in the dishwasher in the boat. Nice to feel that everything is really clean!
As I went through the kitchen equipment, I couldn't help but laugh a little. We almost have a more complete equipment in the motorhome than in the boat. For example, we have a blender, nutcracker, garlic press, egg slicer, knife sharpener and crab stick. If you have a motorhome, caravan, boat or holiday home ... do you have this in your holiday kitchen?
What happens next?
We take care of the renovation and the fixing of the motorhome. step by step. The next step is to take it to a FIAT workshop. We will do a major service on the motorhome, which includes, among other things:
- replacement of the cam belt
- replacement of the water pump
- oil change with filter
- changing the fuel filter
"We will do the service at Kihlströms in Spånga in Stockholm and have been given a price of just over SEK 18,000. They will also check a number of faults for us, and depending on the measure, the price may vary.
- checking the brakes
- check for faults with the clutch (clutch pedal sticking to the bottom)
- find out what's causing us to fail to charge our campervan batteries.
- new wiring for the fog lights (which was not done in Kristinehamn when the motorhome had a short circuit two years ago).
We've also decided to change the gas hose, fix all the stone chips on the windscreen (or replace the window), buy three new 40×40 sunroofs and a 50×70 sunroof without a crank. We plan to look for windows, shutters and maybe chairs and tables at the Elmia fair. We will also plastic convert the whole motorhome again and that will happen after Elmia, but info will come in a few weeks before Elmia.
In the last post we got lots of great tips (thank you very much!!!) but no one answered the question of how to order blackout curtains. Is it because it is difficult? How to think about it? How to measure? Which windows do I have? Is the information provided online too little and I don't understand? Is it interesting if we find out more?
We're grateful for all the cheers and tips, and we'll be back soon with more reports! Then we will also report on our expenses.
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Ama de casa says:
Wow, what a lot of work, I must go and rest a bit after reading this... 😉.
I had all that stuff except the nutcracker in my camping cutlery box when we were camping. Crab/seafood cutlery was a must since we camped so much in France 😀.
Good luck with the continuation! Hope the motorhome will be ready to roll soon now and then without too much cost as well 🙂 .
04 August 2019 - 9:24
Helena says:
Haha, yes we also need to rest sometimes ... 😉 And you must have had a real camping cutlery box in the tent! But, it is important to get into the shellfish!!! 🙂
04 August 2019 - 11:05
Eva Haraldsson says:
Good luck with improving your motorhome. I am sure you will be happy when you are done. Thanks for all the great tips you give from your travels.
04 August 2019 - 19:46
Husis blog says:
Wow, this is a complete renovation of FREEDOM. If the owners are not travelling with you, it will now be a motorhome renovation.
The battery cannot be dead. It gets a "thorn" when it becomes so discharged that it sounds like it is now not completely healthy.
My owners empty me before every winter and they always take away what they haven't used. So this is a convenient way that they like.
Good luck with FREEDOM 2.0!
04 August 2019 - 9:24
Helena says:
Thanks for your comment, you may be absolutely right! We also usually take the batteries out actually. This winter we actually had electricity connected, but at the end of the winter we had to disconnect the electricity. The last year has been a bit chaotic, and we have put too little time and energy into Freedom. We may have to get new batteries.
04 August 2019 - 11:06
Mr Steve says:
It's nice to have one of those total reviews. Preferably when it is fully completed.
04 August 2019 - 10:04
Helena says:
Very true! It's nice to be started, and of course it's best when it's finished! 🙂
04 August 2019 - 11:07
Across the board says:
Wow, this is fast! Blackout curtain. Yes, it's not easy. We have changed one in the bedroom. A guarantee thing so the dealer brought home the right curtain. Or no, it wasn't. It differed by a few millimetres. A new one was ordered but it was not right either!!! Third time lucky - and yes, it could finally be replaced. So my tip is to talk to an Adria dealer who takes them home (so hopefully you do not have to stand with half a stock that does not fit?)
Good luck with the rest!
And if I don't see you before, I'll see you at Elmia, when I want to do a house tour?
04 August 2019 - 10:08
Helena says:
Well, that confirms that it's not easy to find the right blackout curtain! We have looked at online stores, but it is super difficult to know what to order, and boring to order wrong ... Fun to see you at Elmia! 🙂
04 August 2019 - 11:09
Birgitta Strand (Bittan) says:
Hello?
Inge says that there is a short circuit in the batteries as they are usually destroyed by being completely discharged.
Hugs from us
04 August 2019 - 10:12
Helena says:
Thank you for your comment Bittan! That might be the case. We will check the batteries carefully, and it may be necessary to buy new ones.
04 August 2019 - 11:10
Across the board says:
I also thought about the engine battery. They usually have a lifespan of about 8-9 years and it sounds like it has done its job. You don't mention the habitation battery - might be worth checking/replacing it while you're at it?
04 August 2019 - 10:24
Helena says:
Our engine battery is not really that old, but it may have been destroyed by being discharged. The body batteries are 11 years old. None of the batteries seem to be working properly, so to speak 😉.
04 August 2019 - 11:11
Britt-Marie Lundgren says:
What a job, but how fresh and fun it will be when everything is finished. Batteries are a misery and when we came home from Germany, we got two new living room batteries because the old one discharged so quickly.
Now we are following your renovation and hope to see the Freedom on the road again.
Good luck!
04 August 2019 - 10:51
Helena says:
Yes, it's a lot of work, but hopefully we finally get a motorhome that can run for a few more years! 🙂
04 August 2019 - 11:11
Mr Nils-Åke Hansson says:
Was it only cleaning that was needed! I have also cleaned and replaced LED lights that came home after three months from the order date. One thing that is important with 12V is to have the right cables and to keep them in order to eliminate the risk of fire.
Now I wish you a good stay in the motorhome, see you at Elmia.
04 August 2019 - 12:22
Helena says:
This is just the beginning... much more needs to be done, promise! 😉 Absolutely true that it is important to keep the cables in order! We are going to Elmia, so hope to see you there!
04 August 2019 - 15:32
Tia says:
We have none of what you described in our box but lots of other things ?? Although an egg cutter was included this year but, why? It has not been used once. Even cold ones have travelled with us around Europe?
04 August 2019 - 12:48
Helena says:
An egg slicer is not totally necessary, haha. I also don't really know why we have one? 😉
04 August 2019 - 15:33
Ditte says:
A lot of work! But maybe a "total make over" is absolutely necessary to get "Freedom" in good condition again. Nice in any case that all the work is noticed when it is done.
04 August 2019 - 13:47
Helena says:
A lot of fixing is needed to be able to roll again. First and foremost, the car must be able to be driven of course, so we have to prioritise that first!
04 August 2019 - 15:34
Knut Night and Day says:
Hi, I'm sorry. What does it mean when you write that you are going to plastic convert the whole car? Take care, Knut
04 August 2019 - 14:28
Helena says:
Hi Knut! It was perhaps a little carelessly written by us. We have covered the whole car with a foiling (plastic conversion) to get the black/grey/red design, like you do with yellow taxis etc. This is now, after ten years, very worn and broken, so we need to redo it.
04 August 2019 - 15:36
Maria/Magnolia Magis says:
How good you are!!! Yes, it's wonderful when it's freshly cleaned and new sheets and towels!!! Now I got the urge to replace ours... No, first we have to replace the walking mats. Terrible what they smell after a year of sweaty feet...;D Do not know if you can wash them with foam wash (?) but when you live like this it is rare to be able to replace something so it can be fun! Fresh with blue! In our cabinets and drawers we have most things, but not seafood cutlery. Shrimp sandwich is probably at most what we eat in that category. 😉 Shrimp and crayfish tails, it's good! No now I will read about my carpets and if you can get them clean! Bye-bye Bye-bye to you!!!
04 August 2019 - 14:39
Helena says:
Isn't it nice when it gets cleaned!!!? There should be some kind of foam cleaner for carpets ...? Many thanks for all the cheers! 🙂
04 August 2019 - 15:37
Elissby says:
You seem to have a lot to fix, but you are handy, so it will be fine. Don't know what you mean by blackout curtain. We have loose padded thermofoli on the inside. We ordered it by the metre from Germany. We drew the windows on plastic, which came with it. I cut and edged with edging tape, which also came with it. It gets dark inside. They raise the indoor temperature by three degrees when it's cool and keep out the morning sun when you don't want the heat in. They are attached with suction plugs, which also came with the panet price.
04 August 2019 - 18:21
Anonymous says:
Hello, where in Germany did you order from? What is the name of thermofoil in German? Are you able to send a link?
Thank you in advance!
Greetings
Zanna
05 August 2019 - 7:49
Marita says:
Hello?
Wow, what a job you do, it will surely be super good? I hope to see the result when we come to Elmia. We will be there with the motorhome for the first time this year so it will be exciting to see how it is.
Good luck with the continuation?
04 August 2019 - 15:17
Helena says:
How nice that you are coming to Elmia! Then maybe we'll see you!? 🙂
04 August 2019 - 15:39
JoY says:
You really clean and turn everything upside down. It will be good when it is finished.
In our drawer there are a number of knives and yet we only use one in the same!
Jakob has fixed and replaced the awning lighting. There are usually some small fixes to do.
04 August 2019 - 18:24
BP says:
You have come a long way, Eloge! And it's so lucky that Peter is so incredibly handy and can do so much himself.
The batteries are a few years old and if they have not been used for more than a year, they are probably "used up" I think.
18,000 for all replacements including the timing belt is very affordable. I remember that we had to shell out more than SEK 10,000 when we changed the timing belt on our little Peugeot.
Ignore the blackout curtains and buy one of these eye masks instead. Cheaper and easier;-)
04 August 2019 - 19:44
Lena - good for the soul says:
My God, what a kick to get things in order and to get new fresh things! What a boost it will be!
Hug Lena
10 August 2019 - 9:32