Finishing interior strip down and starting to tackle the electrics

With one side of the GRP lining removed it was time to tackle the roof and other side. The GRP walls are about 3mm but the roof is about 10mm and has a honeycombe construction.  Behind the GRP on the drivers side was 3mm steel sheeting that was welded and rivited to metal batons. This all had to be removed so I could take out the old wool style insulation.

Got 2 of these fans which I think I will keep

The steel sheeting

Pretty much back to basics

Where does all this stuff come from, just when you think there is nothing left to remove!

Apart from the dodgy wheel trims this is all from the van. Not including 2 other tip loads and 2 scrap yard trips, I have had near on £50's worth of scrap out of it!

Stripping the wiring back to the contol panel

The tip of the iceberg

Electrics have now been sorted, as the loom can not be removed it has been made safe and ready to be tucked away.

Removing GRP lining and old insulation

The van will need insulating properly, not only to keep it warm but also keep in cooler in hot weather. The lining is being replaced by ply and the insulation will be a mix of Rockwool and Kingspan insulation boards.
So out with the old..

Fibre glass followed by plenty of filler to flat off the front corner

Looking better

The body work

First to go is the hidious lump on the rear that would have house the blue flashing lights. At some point someone had covered this in filler and fibre glass and just painted by hand.

There was quite a bit of weight in this

 Needless to say you get rid of one problem and another one raises its head. Nicely cut holes in the roof for access to the lights.

Starting to lose that ambulance look, but those back doors have to go.



As if by magic, new back doors a few minor dents but nothing a bit of filler wont cure

Thought id offer one of my new windows up to see how well they fitted in to the original hole. Luckily it seems they will fit without too much hassle. But these wont be fitted untill its had its respray

The front of the van had the same treatment as the rear lump that was previously removed. Fibre glassed and painted badly. So plenty of filling and sanding and filling and sanding to be done here. I'll be doing well if it ends up 100% flat and smooth

The story so far

Inside consited of a fridge and some old NHS green cupboards, orginally there was a bed on top of the cupboards but this was removed pretty quickly as the matress didn'y look to good!.

The false floor was raised about 3" and within this framework was a large pull out ramp which was used for stretchers. With all the excess metal weighed in I was £38 better off and the floor back to its orginal height. There was no rust to speak of which was a relieve as I had half expected rot had set in.

The metal frame work was held in by 4 bolts and loads of blobs of bond which was very stubbon to remove

Webasto AT32 desiel night heater in full working order.. I would have kept this in but the fan was very noisey, so leaving it on through the night would have kept you awake all night. Anyway it was deinstalled and sold on ebay.

The ambulance control box, this was for lights, heater,and extractor fans as well as all the fuses.

 Huge head ache as these wires can not just be cut and blanked off. Even if the black conectors are disconected the engine cuts out and wont fire up. So all this is knitted in some how to the main loom.. A job for later me thinks

12v electrics put in by one of the last owners, this will be getting removed when the new 12v electrics are fitted

240v main hook up and RCD

From ambulance to ambiance

1997 Fiat Ducati 2.5 TDI, started its life ferrying the dead and injured to Hospital. I first met the Ducato when a friend of mine had it for transporting his bike around various tracks. He then sold it to another friend of mine who used it for camping at festivals as well as her main mode of transport. It had its fair share of electrical issues of which 80% are sorted out now.