Bigfoot B-17 1987 countertop bump

[jayoh999]

Hello,
I am new to this forum. I have a 1987 B-17 here in Nova Scotia. I wish to redo the kitchen countertop as it is badly damaged. It looks as though I will have to remove the appliances below, in order to have access to the hold-down mechanisms for the countertop.


As a woodworker, I will be crafting an NS curly yellow birch top with multiple layers of water-borne floor varnish [extra resins] as a protective topcoat.


My query regards the bump-up near the wall, over the fridge. What is the purpose of this and is it necessary? When I removed the louvered vent cover there seems to be no reason for this aside from a design idea by the creators for storing spices once camped.


btw, I have also been unable to locate a decently priced louvered vent a Dometic 1222. I saw a few on eBay for $400 US. Egads! hahaha
Thanks so much.

[cdn2a]

Hey,


I'm also new, and also a hoser from cannuckistan. lol.
Yes the bump up on the counter was originally for proper ventilation of the fridge. Dometic has clearance specs in the manual. If you want to flatten the counter, one could use some 120mm PC fans on the output to assist airflow.
Good luck.

[jayoh999]

Since these fans would only work when running A/C, how about when the fridge was using propane? Would I need to insert a switch, then remember to turn it on? hahaha If these fans are designed for 110V does the trailer converter automatically change that to 12V when using the onboard battery?



I have trailed before, a 12" Bobbie by Taylor Coach near Hamilton, ON. I drew it with a 100hp TDI VeeDub. I always switched it to battery when driving, so the car battery would run the fridge. The image is from the bottom of the Copper Canyon in Mexico circa Dec. 2007.



I'm also butyl taping some fly screen on the back of the louvers. I noticed a ton of dead critters at the bottom which could compromise the weight and subsequent fuel economy.


I had a local sheet metal shop make an aluminum frame, slightly larger than the original Dometic 12 x 22. I'll affix this to the fiberglass with some #10 x 3/4" stainless steel screws. All exterior fixtures will be either SS or aluminum rivets.


I suppose I should begin a new thread with my own NS reno/remodel. This is as far as I've got right now. The veg garden took precedent then we had the 9-day atmospheric river and it looks like we are in for 'nother. The climate is very unstable...