Gee I pondered on this for a few minutes, is this technical or general, no doubt I will be in trouble again, but I think its general. I am fitting a trades-mans canopy to our tray top ute, and trying to figure out the best way to organise storage. While I have considered different layouts, I keep coming back to the first design I did.
This is, against the front wall of the canopy (internal) a 75 litre water tank and pump. This tank is to be mounted on its side and fits in quite nicely. next the spare wheels for ute and van (one each) again on their edges, so I can roll them out when required. A rack made up to store 8-10 plastic bins (we have them, no cost) that will contain all that is small, including spares.
Next will be cargo track bolted to the floor, so picnic table, chairs, solar panels etc. can be stored on their edge using ratchet straps to secure.
I want to carry as much as I can in the ute, rather than in the van to increase its weight in relation to the van.
Now before all those that have well body ute chirp up, I can tell you if I had my time again, I would have brought a well body, I think storage would not be such a problem.
I am wondering if others have these canopies and how they organised their stuff.
-- Edited by iana on Saturday 20th of August 2016 10:41:59 AM
I have a twin Cab ute that came with a 'Tub' I then ordered a canopy for that, all works, BUT. If I did it again I would just get the ute and tray then get a Aluminium canopy with full length lift up side and maybe even the back lift up as well, I would decide at time. Expensive to change now I would guess.
I have found getting to stuff down the 'back' from the rear tailgate a little difficult but cope. I have lift up windows sides and back so they do help. To have full access to both sides would be so much easier.
I have only this week made a small modification in the rear so hopefully things will be just that little easier. Won't really know until I fully load up and leave Townsville but think it will help.
I think for memory you have a Dmax so not telling you, but just a comment, careful of weight in the rear of the ute mate, it's not as good as we all think. I have added only a few extra kg,s so will take another look to see if I can get rid of the same amount of kg,s. The Collie runs under weight so should be ok as is anyway. Wish I run under weight:)
Who said being retired and a grey nomad was easy? Hang the bugga :)
Keep safe on the roads and out there.
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Live Life On Your Terms
DOUGChief One Feather (Losing feathers with age)
TUG.......2014 Holden LT Colorado Twin Cab Ute with Canopy
DEN....... 2014 "Chief" Arrow CV (with some changes)
I have a DMAX with a 3XM canopy all 3 windoors (as I was told they are called ) open up and all 3 sides open down, I had a rodeo with the tub but is much better for access and lifting things in and out
BEAR
No Doug, I have a BT50 towing a Jayco Monolithe. Its an extra (crew) cab, so I can get the weight forward more than a 4 door ute. There are pros and cons with both bodies, but I would have thought you can just pile your stuff up on itself in the back, the walls of the tub restraining it.
Sorry Ian, not sure why I thought that. Here I was thinking I got up before Uncle Al today. All the utes are pretty close anyway really except for Phil C's that should really he kept away from :)
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Live Life On Your Terms
DOUGChief One Feather (Losing feathers with age)
TUG.......2014 Holden LT Colorado Twin Cab Ute with Canopy
DEN....... 2014 "Chief" Arrow CV (with some changes)
Can we have some photos to see what each member is talking about. One reason I ask is that next June we will be getting a new tug but not sure which way to go .cheers
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Our Rig
VAN December 2019 Goldstar 21ft
TUG 2017 Ford Ranger Wildtrak
Life Was Ment To Be Easy If You Have The Ability To Adapt
The purchase of the tow vehicle will depend on the application. In our case we were going to buy a 5th wheeler, but because of an impass with the manufacturer, we ended up with our monolith, but for half price. I think the specs for utes are based on the single cab, so the quoted weight the ute can carry is placed close behind the cab, all four wheels sharing the weight. When the weight on the back is moved towards the rear, moments and levers come into play, and you find the practical payload comes down.
So in order to make use of payload, but still have cabin comfort, i.e. being able to recline the seats and stretch out, we brought an extra cab. There is only the two of us traveling. The problems seems to begin with the dual cabs as the load now is placed behind the rear axle. Our ute in the picture has upgraded rear springs, and is sitting nice and level, but the canopy to go on weighs 140kg and all our stuff packed inside may (will) change that.
Dougwe, that is a very tidy unit, I think you need to think very carefully about changing over to a tray top, re-arranging your things and getting some racking or shelving made up to organise in the back may turn out to be a lot cheaper. I can tell you that if you want to sell a well body it is worthless, utes are coming into the country every day and getting them removed and taken off to scrap.
So before buying your tug, ask lots of questions on the forum, don't take any notice of the vehicle or van sales persons, as I found out they just feed you what you want to hear.
But back to the original question, I haven't had any replies back on how others are storing their stuff in their canopies.
Just a note re the above picture, there have been some comments on awnings and strength of, I haven't been game to open the awning up yet, I want to cut it in half, i.e. make it half the size so its just over the door, but the wife won't let me. the awning has the sail area of a medium yacht!
With a wellback and canopy you have difficulty accessing stuff that you store at the front. If you can afford it then a tradies back is the way to go. I had one built and it is now on its third ute. You access things from the side and you are standing up. Not up on the towbar and leaning in to reach. I have an eighty litre water tank, 240 volt power inlet, fridge slide, 2nd battery, solar panel on the roof.
I also had installed an eighty litre diesel tank under the body between the chassis rails, gravity fed into the main tank.
A mate of mine has set up the large (1 Tonner?) ally tray on the back of his Nivara so that he can leave the van & be self sufficient for 4WD bush camping.
From memory ........ he has a 75L water tank on its side behind the cab with a pump of some sort sitting beside a couple of batteries & the spare tyre. There is a fixed solar panel over the cab & he has a portable one as well. The fixed one constantly runs his Engel located in the rear seat area of the cab.
There are tradies storage units down both sides of the tray leaving a space in between where they can sleep in reasonable comfort on a foam mattress. The 'bed' area sits over a set of home made storage drawers. LEDs provide both internal & external lighting.
He has a shower/toilet tent too but not sure if they use it these days.
The whole tray is covered by a waterproof PVC canopy.
Ian. I had an alloy canopy made for out freestyle ute, 80 litre water tank fitted under the tray, and bought gear from Bunnings to make shelves. Suits us.
GarrynLyn, your setup sounds much the same as mine. The one difference I think is my ute is fitted with a standard tray, cause at the time I wasn't thinking about storage on the ute, but since plans have changed, I now have a canopy that bolts down onto the tray. Essentially that means once I bolt the canopy down, I no longer have access to under the floor of the canopy. So at this point of time its a matter of seeing what I need to bolt through the floor, what I can Tek screw afterwards.
I have tie down rings in the tray that are in the way of mounting the canopy, and may have to take the tray apart and move those panel sections to the rear of the tray so the canopy sits down on the tray evenly, if I do that I will have access to that area under the tray above the fuel tank. I can fit a 60 litre fuel tank under there, whether its worth it remains to be seen. It all sounds like work to me.
If I had my time again, and had set out to buy a van instead of a 5 wheeler, I would have brought a cab chassis, and had a tray/canopy combo made up, apart from being lighter, I would have access to under the canopy floor, then this work could be done at any time, and be so much easier.
Bearing in mind we intend to sell our house and just be on the road for a few years, all of our worldly goods must be with us. My goal with this in mind is to have as much weight as I can carry on the ute, and situated immediately behind the cab so the front wheels are sharing the load. My combined vehicle mass will be very close to its limits.
So while I have formed some ideas about how to store our stuff in the canopy, I am still open to suggestions.
GarrynLyn thanks for the photos, why don't you post them up in Dougwe's new thread? I'm sure I am not the only one looking at beating the storage problem. I have been eyeing off this cargo track extrusion, 2.4m length for $50. Then you can just clip the racks or tie down rings where ever you want them. There are the clamps that have a threaded hole in them, so you can bolt frames etc. to them.
