Van Smog Problems- Help!

HAAALLLLLPPP!  As per usual when life throws me a tricky situation, I turn to the Internet for help.  Here I am with the latest and greatest trial and tribulation of van ownership.  I thought buying a new van would free me from mysterious problems, but alas my luck follows me from van to van.  I will try to summarize this in the briefest and clearest way possible and if you have any experience in this department, I would love to hear your advice.

In January, I bought a semi-used 2014 Ram Promaster 3500 Cargo van from Reno Dodge.  It was being used as their parts vehicle and they sold it to me for a great price, removed the decals, and sent me home with a brand new looking van with 17,000 miles on it.  Everything was going well until I tried to smog it so I could complete my California registration.  It failed smog due to the presence of three incomplete monitors.  What does that mean?  When you reset a check engine light or disconnect your battery, the computers in your car have a whole bunch of tests they will run through to make sure everything is ok with all sorts of different components of your vehicle.  These tests take varying amounts of time, mileages, or types of drive cycles to complete.  One of the issues with these tests, is that no one really seems to know how to complete them.  For example, some of the monitors may complete after 250 miles.  Some after x amount of drive cycles, and some after specific types of driving- highway, city, stop and go, idling for a certain amount of time at certain engine temperature.

After I failed smog the first time, we determined that I needed to drive more because the check engine light had been reset right before I bought the vehicle after a part had been replaced.  So I drove more, failed, drove more, failed, drove more, and failed again.  At this point I had driven 5,000 miles and was beginning to think that driving more was not the solution.  I tried to get the van in to the dealer before we left for our ski trip, but they said they couldn't fit me in.  We went on the trip, adding another 2-3,000 miles to the van.  Midway through the trip we stopped at Dodge in Salt Lake for an oil change.  I asked them to see if we still had incomplete codes and they told me my PCM (some time of computer) needed to be replaced.  A solution to the mystery!  I was satisfied knowing this was under warranty and that when we got back from our ski trip we would breeze into the dealer, get our new computer, pass smog, and get our license plates.

A breeze it was not.  Because I needed to be mobile during the week after we got back, scheduling was very difficult.  I talked to a total of 8 different Dodge dealerships and either they didn't work on Promasters (um, what.) or they couldn't get me in until a week or two out.  Finally, I put my foot down and told Reno Dodge I was coming in first thing Monday.  Doing this meant sacrificing being in the Bay Area to pick up Brian when he returned from Taiwan after a two week trip, but it seemed like the only time I could squeeze this in to our timeline, and it needed to get done.

At the dealer, it was determined that the PCM was not the issue.  Chrysler HQ tech support was contacted and a case was started.  After leaving the van there for two days, I picked it up and was told that it was a known issue, but there wasn't currently a fix for it.  Apparently something was tried that might work, but there wouldn't be a way to know for sure until I had driven it a bit.  I drove to Truckee, but arrived just after 5 so I couldn't try getting it smogged.

I drove down to the Bay to pick up Brian and we decided to increase our odds of success by trying to smog the car during a long drive cycle, as was suggested by Carson Dodge earlier in the troubleshooting process (they told me to drive from Truckee to Sacramento and back to Truckee without stopping and then smog the van without turning it off, but I had better things to do).  We drove 210 miles straight to San Luis Obispo and into a smog shop.  We didn't turn off the van.  We plugged in the scanner.  And we had FIVE incomplete monitors.  FIVE!  So not only did taking the van in not help at all, it actually increased our number of incomplete monitors.  In theory, two of them will probably test out eventually as they apparently did before, but I'm guessing that at least three are there to stay.  Here's where you come in and answer my fun multiple choice question!

What do I do?

a) I've been told by someone at the smog shop and someone at CA DMV to take the van back and tell them to give you a new one.  

While this sounds like a good option in theory it is problematic right now because 1. This problem is not isolated to just my van, but has been showing up in several Ram engines and in other Promasters and could occur in a new van as well and 2. Today is April 13 and I need to be in Alaska with a completely built out van by May 1, so disassembling the work I've done thus far, driving back to Reno, getting a new van, starting over from scratch, building it, and driving to Alaska in 17 days?  Not going to happen.

b) Try to register the van in another state with different smog requirements.

Brian has a Washington address, we technically still have a Nevada address, and we have friends in Wyoming, which requires no test at all, we will also be in Alaska this summer, which also doesn't require a test.  If we do attempt to register the van in another state, it is possible that we will have to forfeit the money we have already paid to the CA DMV.  In addition, we will have to cancel our current insurance policy and start a new one.

c) Continue getting extensions on our temporary operating permit in CA until...

CA gave us 60 days to pass smog.  This expires on the 25th.  If we haven't passed by then they will give us an extension.  How many extensions you can have I don't know.  Regardless, we will be in Alaska until September, so we risk getting a ticket/fine/thrown in jail/who knows for having an expired temporary operating permit if we get pulled over up there.

d) Get some kind of exemption or temporary relief from having to pass smog

If anyone knows if this exists, please tell me ASAP!  I know when I was out of state for about a year, I got to delay my CA smog check on my last van.  If there is anyway to at least get our license plates without passing smog, that would be a great solution, even if we have to try again and go through this all again next year.

e) Fill in the blank.  Thoughts?  Ideas?

Basically, it would be great to have license plates and it would be great to know that we will be able to cross the border into Canada and then back into Alaska without problems.  Whether or not we will have problems with our current plate-less vehicle, I don't know.  Well, so much for brevity.  If you're still with me and have any thoughts or experience in this field, let me know!

Backcountry Basics

My goal for this winter was to spend the season in Tahoe and learn how to backcountry ski.  As I begin transitioning to the summer season and reflect on the winter, I think it is safe to say that I have accomplished my objective.  It isn't terribly hard to motivate oneself to learn how to do something that is fun and rewarding, but still, I feel good about how things went.

Birthday turns outside the Bradley Hut.  Photo by Brian Buckley

One of my favorite backcountry partners

 Learning to backcountry ski consists of obtaining your new gear and finding out how it works, and very importantly, figuring out how to travel safely in backcountry terrain to avoid the risk of avalanches.  Buying the gear was extremely fun, although wildly expensive.  Because I'm a bit small, I wasn't able to find a used set-up that would work for me.  I said to hell with saving money and went all out on some really nice gear.  It helped to go to a local ski shop where one of the employees listened to what my goals were, what type of skier I was, and what I was looking to do.  I walked out with a set-up that I'm extremely happy with.  You can see my gear list at the bottom of this post.  On to education!

At first, I was adamant that I would not go into the backcountry without first taking my Avy 1.  However, things didn't really go according to my original plan, and in hindsight, I'm glad they didn't.  I was fortunate to have two experienced backcountry travelers as roommates (one of which was my boyfriend, he's super cool).  They both knew my skills (or lack thereof) as a skier and took me under their wing to teach me the ways of the world.  Brian took every opportunity to point things out to me- terrain traps, cornices, wind features, and he took the time to dig some pits with me to teach me about the layers in the snowpack.  He taught me how to read the avalanche forecast, how to chose safe terrain, and how to travel as a group both on the way up and on the way down.  He gave me tips on skinning and tried mightily to give me skiing tips, which I successful ignored.  I was also fortunate to go on one of my earlier tours with my ski idol, Hutch.  This was helpful because she is actually a skier, not a splitboarder, and she's a badass, so she gave me lots of excellent tips as well as a bit of confidence.  Aside from learning about terrain, I learned about my safety equipment and how to use it.  There were lots of great events around Tahoe this winter, including an informative seminar on beacons, which I went to to familiarize myself with how they work.

Surface hoar.  Very pretty, but very dangerous if it gets buried.

Titan and Brian digging a pit

I ended up taking my Avy 1 in March, after I had about 25-30 tours under my bibs.  The reason that I'm glad I waited, is that I found all the information much more valuable after having experience seeing terrain, reading the forecast, evaluating conditions, and observing snow and how it reacted as I was in the backcountry.  I also already knew how to use my equipment, so I wasn't distracted by trying to figure out how to skin, transition, use my shovel, etc. during my class.  The most valuable part of the class for me was the beacon practice.  Although I had talked about doing more beacon practice during the season it never really happened, thus the forced practice was great and made me a lot faster.

Tahoe was the perfect place for me to begin this new facet of skiing.  There is so much skiing that is so accessible, and so much of it is nice low angle terrain.  As much as people don't believe me when I tell them this, I am NOT good at skiing.  I only began skiing about five years ago, and before this season I think my record was maybe 30 days in one season.  So it's safe to say I had well under 100 days of skiing experience going into this season.  I got into backcountry less so for hardcore skiing and more so because I like the whole experience of traveling in the backcountry, getting fresh tracks, and being able to ski with my dogs.  What I didn't expect was how much I would fall in love with it.  Winter has always kind of been an 'eh' season for me (unless I'm out in the desert climbing and it's not actually wintry), but after this year, I can see winter becoming 'the' season for me.

I am looking forward to moving up to Skagway in a few weeks and being able to tour into the summer months.  I feel like a whole new world has opened up to me, and I can no longer pass a snow covered slope without thinking about skiing it. It's amazing how much my focus has shifted from climbing over the past few years, but there are so many activities out there and I want to try them all!  I can't imagine much better than fresh, weightless turns with my dogs bounding down behind me.

Gear

I really like gear.  It was exciting to begin a new activity where I was required to get lots of new stuff!  Here is my gear list for this season:

Skis

Line Soulmate: I don't know much about skis, but I know these ones are sure pretty. 

Dynafit

Neo PX CR boot: Comfiest boot ever.  Right out of the box these things fit like a dream.  From day 1, I've never had any blisters or unconfortable rubbing.  Super light weight.  I can wear these all day, no problem.

TLT Radical binding: Practice transitioning your binding back and forth a few times before you get out in the field, and you'll have these things under control in no time.  Really light and simple. 

Backcountry Access

Float 22 Pack: Overall, I really like this pack and the way the pockets are organized, with a separate pocket for your probe and shove, and a helmet spot.  I wish you could choose which side your airbag deployer was on, like on the 32L pack.  This pack is great for day tours, but not big enough for multi day trips.  It seemed to have a 'manly' fit on me, wide in the shoulders, I really had to cinch it down to get it to stay on right.

Shovel: Pretty standard and shovely.  

Stealth 270 Probe: If possible, practice deploying probes in the store and find the one that is easiest for you to use.  This things snaps together really quickly and I'm happy with the length.

Tracker 2 Beacon: Really simple and intuitive.  I like this beacon a lot.

Black Diamond

Big ol Mittens: Not the official name, but my hands get really chilly so I like these fluffy mittens.

Little Skinning Gloves: Also not the real name but I've found my hands sweat too much in my mittens to skin with them, but they are often too cold with out mittens, so these liners keep me happy.

Skins: Yup.  An important part of the equation!

Smith

Maze Helmet: Lightest helmet on the market.  Need I say more?

IO/S Goggles: Made for smaller faces.  No gaper gap.  Superior anti-fog technology.  Reallllllly easy lens transitions.

Lowdown Slim Sunnies: I love these sunnies for skinning (and life) and because they are 'slim' they don't fall off my face.

Clothes

Patagonia Pow Slayer bibs: As long as you don't have to pee too often, these bibs are awesome!  I didn't realize how dirty this cool yellow color would get, so I would suggest a darker pair.  Good pockets.

Columbia Midweight Stretch Baselayer Tight (not pictured): These are bright pink and shiny on the inside! 

SmartWool PhD Ski Ultra Light Sock: The best ski sock there is.  Or so I think.

Outdoor Research Ferrosi Softshell Hoodie: I don't have an official ski jacket so I usually wear this as my skinning jacket until I get too hot and take it off, then I put it back on with an insulated layer on top.

First Ascent BC MicroTherm Storm Down Jacket (not pictured): This jacket is badass.  It's warm, it's down, it's water resistant, and it fits super right.  

Outdoor Research trucker hat: Keep the sun off the snoz.

Big Truck bucket hat: Really keep the sun off on those super sunny days.

Buff: Never leave home without it.  I wear a buff 100% of the time when skiing, whether it is freezing or super hot.  

Promaster Build- Solar Panel and Fan

HJust before leaving on our ski trip we intstalled our solar panel and fan on top of our roof.  This was the first scary project because it involves putting holes in the van.  Everything went really smoothly!  To be honest, the hardest part was getting on top of the van because we didn't have a ladder.  Brian climbed up on the bulding and then walked on to the van from the roof of the building, but that wasn't working for me.  My brother showed up with a ladder and things went well after that.

Materials: (I will link to the products when I get on a computer, typing on my phone!)

Solar

Goal Zero Boulder 90 solar panel

Goal Zero Hinge Base mounts

3M VHB 5952 tape

Rubber gasket

White silicone caulk

Fan

Fantastic Fan

White silicone caulk

Jigsaw blade for cutting metal

3M VHB 5952 tape

Rubberish weather stripping

Steps:

Solar.  On Silas I used two Boulder 30 panels, which was definitely sufficient for our needs.  However, the Boulder 90 is now available so I thought, why not?  When I did my first van, there were no mounting options that were pre-made so my brother machined some custom adjustable mounts for me which we screwed into the roof.  Now they make the Goal Zero bracket mount.  

1. Decide on positioning.  We decided to mount the panel on the front of the roof in case we eventually put a kayak rack on the back of the roof for Brian's  boat.  We put it on the side (vs. centered) so we can hopefully reach it to brush snow off, and we can fit another Boulder 90 next to it if we decide we want another.

2. You will want to clean the roof of your van and the bottom of the mounts with rubbing alcohol and a clean cloth.

3. Attach your mounts to the panel.  The mounts don't come with any instructions or suggestions for how to use them.  I figured out how they fit onto the panel and Brian tightened them down with an allen wrench.

4.  Mystery tape.  The Goal Zero mounts come with a bunch of GIANT screw holes in them.  If you were to use screws to lock them onto the roof you would be making a lot of big holes in your roof.  We had heard of another option- 3M VHB tape, which supposedly can replace welding in certain situations.  I saw examples of other people using it but couldn't really find concrete information on it.  My brother helped me choose one of the different formulas, 5952, which I think is good for painted surfaces.  There are a lot of different VHB tapes, so hopefully we chose the right one.  Anywho, make sure it isn't too cold out when you're applying the tape.  Stick it onto the mounts, then peel off the backing and stick it onto the roof.  Apply pressure and it will be sticky right away, so make sure you position it right on the first try.  I think it reaches full strength about 24 hours after you apply it.

5. Wiring.  After the panel was mounted, we drilled a 1/2" hole in the roof.  If you want a smaller hole, you can cut the fat end part of the wire off, thread it through the roof, and then reattach the end.  We put a rubber gasket around the wire, plugged the hole with it, and sealed it off with silicone caulk.  Done!

Fan.  Who is ready to cut a big hole in the roof of their van?  You are!  Well, I actually wasn't so I had my brother do it, just like I did on the last van!  

1. Positioning.  Figure out where you want your fan.  Based on where our windows will be and where our door is, we positioned the fan slightly behind the kitchen area and in front of the bed so it can be ventiliation for cooking and also keep us cool while sleeping.  Try to find a spot on your roof where the fan can potentially fit between ribs on the rooftop and definitely put it somewhere where you won't have to cut through the internal roof ribs/supports.  You can trace the fan hole (it should come with a stencil) on the inside of the van and then drill holes in the corners.  Once on top of the van, line the stencil up with the corners and trace it again.  (We actually didn't do this and just measured sort of how far it should be on the roof and we almost cut through a ceiling rib... oops).

2. Cut the hole!  We drilled a pilot hole and then put the jigsaw blade in and began trimming.  It cuts really easily.  You can line your hole with tape so you don't scratch the paint with the jigsaw.

3. Plop the fan in the hole.  Make sure it fits and make sure it is facing the right way so the dome doesn't get ripped off if you forget to put it down before driving.

4. Seal.  Once you've checked the fit you are ready to stick the fan in for good.  We had a bunch of leftover 3M tape from the panel, so we decided to use it on the fan to avoid drilling more holes in the roof.  We put some weather stripping in the low points of the ribs to try to make a more even surface.  I've also seen people pound down the ribs where the fan is so it is all flat.  We stuck the 3M tape on van, peeled the backing, and stuck the fan in.  We then used a caulk gun and sealed all the edges and the holes in the fan frame where the screws would have gone if we used them.  

An Ode to Silas

As most are aware, I sold Silas a few weeks ago.  It was SUPER SAD.  I actually had to try pretty hard not to cry when he drove away with his new owners.  The only thing that made me ok with it is that he went to an awesome home with an adventurous couple who has already taken him to Yosemite several times as well as the Eastern Sierras.  I know he will enjoy his new life and bring his new peeps as many adventures as he brought me.  Here is an ode to my beloved van:

Silas

You came in to my life at a difficult time
You were there to excite and distract me in a time of sadness
Building you and planning adventures lifted my spirits during a dark time

During our first trip together, we bumbled down dark dirt roads
trying to figure out the headlights, getting stuck in a big rut and spinning our wheels
and freaking out when warning lights came alight on the dash

Each time we set out, I fit better in the seat
and a giant cargo van became an extension of my body
seamlessly maneuvering down the highway to the next destination

You became a home for me and my best friend and my pups
You acted as our shelter, our transportation, movie theater, kitchen, and library
we set out to do whatever our imaginations came up with and you were the one to take us there

There were times of frustration
when it seemed like all you wanted to do was break
But then you came back to life and powered us up the next hill

The familiar smell of melting crayons that comes from your cockpit
became a lovely welcome home.
For a while, you even welcomed a family of mice home, that wasn't so good.

One day, you drove past a kayaker
I rolled the window down and asked if he wanted to hop in
He did.  And then we fell in love.  Thanks Silas, I owe you big time for that one.

You brought me so much happiness
and a life I had only dreamed of before
became my reality

Some people see you as just an old van
But I see you like an old friend
So thanks for everything.

I'll miss you.

AK

UT

Yukon Territory

UT 

CA

UT

CO 

UT

British Columbia

CA 

MT

WA

OR

NV

ID

WY

UT

WY 

WA 

British Columbia

AK

AK

Promaster Build- Insulation and Partial Siding

The next step after doing our floor was to begin insulation and siding on the van.  Again, we are going slightly out of order because of the timing and geographical locations of our build.  It might be more logical to do the electrical first, and we would have liked to cut the holes for our fan and windows first, but it has been raining and snowing, so we waited on that.

Materials:
2 rolls 2' x 25' Reflectix
1 roll 48" x 10' Reflectix
2 packages UltraTouch Denim Insulation (R13)
1 package 4mm plastic vapor barrier
1 4'x 8' sheet 1" Thermasheath Rmax Foam Insulation Board (better R-value than regular R-Tech foam board that we used on the floor)
2 cans 3M spray adhesive
2 rolls Gorilla tape
2 sheets 4' x 8' Tri-ply underlayment plywood
Some screws

Time:
Ehhh, maybe two full days worth?

Cost:
If I get less lazy, I will calculate this later!

Steps:
1. Reflectix!  Reflectix is basically bubble wrap with foil on either side of it.  It is a good insulator and vapor barrier, easy to cut and work with, and not that expensive, so I didn't see any good reason not to put it everywhere.  We cut shapes to fit all the various spaces in the van and spray adhesived them on.  If you're building a Promaster, be prepared to be wowed by all the ridiculous shapes and blobs all over the van; there are almost no straight lines.  We popped off the factory panels on the doors and Reflectixed behind those too.  After you're done the van will look like a sweet spaceship.  If you're using spray adhesive you'll want to make sure to have good ventilation and wear a face mask.

Working into the night

Turning into a space ship

Shiny!

2. Denim insulation.  I used this in Silas and really liked how easy it was to work with.  It cut down on sound/road noise a great deal as well as obviously keeping the van warmer in winter and cooler in the summer.  Ripping the denim and stuffing it in crevices creates a lot of denim dust, so you will want to again wear a mask and have ventilation in the van.  Having a vacuum or broom and intermittenly cleaning up during this process will make things happier.  On the large panels, we put a bit of spray adhesive and then stuck up square pieces.  We would cover large areas with duct tape to help hold the big pieces in place.  You will also want to stuff all the nooks and crannies and crevices- of which there are many!  I like using a long flat head screwdriver to jam bits of insulation in.  We used denim on all the walls and doors.  I used it on the ceiling in Silas because it has a better R-value than other materials but it was such a huge pain that I decided not to do that this time.  One more note on the denim- they used to carry it at Home Depot and you could buy it by the package- that's what I did last time, but now you can only order it by the pallet (which is way too much!)  I was able to get it at Lowe's in the quantity I wanted.

A really easy, mostly square section

Taping in large pieces to keep them in place

3. Vapor barrier.  We wanted to make sure our denim was protected from any moisture.  The Reflectix on one side protects it from outside the van moisture and condensation and on the inner side we covered it with a plastic vapor barrier.  This is pretty simple, just requires lots of tape and some scissors.

Starting in on the vapor barrier.

4. Ceiling.  As I said above, trying to use denim on the ceiling was really hard and annoying, so I opted for foam board this time.  We found a type board with R-6, which is better than the R-Tech board I've used in the past.  We used 1" but in retrospect I wish we would have gone with 3/4" because it sticks down just a bit below the cross beams in the van.  We used a knife to cut squares that fit in between all the roof ribs.  For now, we left off the square where the Fantastic will go so we wouldn't have to cut through it later.  We spray adhesived (sense a theme?!) them on and we put up temporary furring strips across the boards to hold them on while we drive around without our wood paneling on.  We got the feeling they might pop off otherwise.

Ceiling insulation going in.

5. Siding.  During this step we also put up wood siding where all of our cabinets will go.  This siding will essentially be the back of the cabinets, and because it will be covered, it doesn't have to look perfect (which is good because as I said before, the shapes in this van are unreal).  For the rest of the walls, we will do tongue and groove paneling.  We used 3mm (I think.  I'll have to double check on this) underlayment.  We painted it with a waterproofing stain before mounting it to add an extra layer of moisture barrier.  We used a combination of circular saw and jigsaw to cut the shapes to match the walls and screwed them in.

A couple of panels up.  The rear one will be under the bed, the one closer to the front will be the back of the kitchen cabinet.  The un-Reflectixed portion above it is where one of our windows is going.

IGNORE THE BED..  No really, please don't look at our sketchy temporary bed platform.  This picture is to show you more siding and the strips along the ceiling to hold our insulation in.  Obviously if we were putting our actual ceiling in before going on a 3,000 mile road trip this wouldn't be necessary.

Alright!  Next stage of the van complete!  We are looking forward to having a well-insulated van.