I know this has been done before..
Why do most people store boards flat in their van? I store mine on their edge.
Wouldn't that be more compact?
I'm going to get another van and want to fit it out so I can carry 4 /5 boards , 8 sails , 3 booms , 4 masts and associated stuff but still have room to sleep if I put one board on the roof?
Not sure I want to get a really large van. I have a compact VW Caddy which I love but my gear has out grown it..
Shortlist is a new Toyota Hiace or VW transporter.
Wonder if it's possible..

6 boards/8 sails and associated masts in mine, i could sleep in it with all of it in there but a bit cosy. Id generally take one of the bigger boards out to sleep.

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sboardcrazy said..
I know this has been done before..
Why do most people store boards flat in their van? I store mine on their edge.
Wouldn't that be more compact?
I'm going to get another van and want to fit it out so I can carry 4 /5 boards , 8 sails , 3 booms , 4 masts and associated stuff but still have room to sleep if I put one board on the roof?
Not sure I want to get a really large van. I have a compact VW Caddy which I love but my gear has out grown it..
Shortlist is a new Toyota Hiace or VW transporter.
Wonder if it's possible..

Never too many van threads!

A suspension filing system! Great idea.


Get the new HiAce. You can get them in petrol. not so the Transporter.

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Subsonic said..
6 boards/8 sails and associated masts in mine, i could sleep in it with all of it in there but a bit cosy. Id generally take one of the bigger boards out to sleep.

What sort of van? How have you fitted it out ?
My current van has a removable bed with fold down flaps . When I'm not sailing I can fit 2 bikes in it. Not sure whether to keep that idea with the next one.

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Ian K said..

sboardcrazy said..
I know this has been done before..
Why do most people store boards flat in their van? I store mine on their edge.
Wouldn't that be more compact?
I'm going to get another van and want to fit it out so I can carry 4 /5 boards , 8 sails , 3 booms , 4 masts and associated stuff but still have room to sleep if I put one board on the roof?
Not sure I want to get a really large van. I have a compact VW Caddy which I love but my gear has out grown it..
Shortlist is a new Toyota Hiace or VW transporter.
Wonder if it's possible..

Never too many van threads!

A suspension filing system! Great idea.


Get the new HiAce. You can get them in petrol. not so the Transporter.

Thinking of the Diesel. I live in a rural area so most of my travel is at highway speed and longer trips which should mean no issues with the particulate system. I want the fuel economy.
I still have to work out all the pros and cons though and a test drive ( + cargo space) will have a big bearing.
Current setup although not very well packed.

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sboardcrazy said..

Subsonic said..
6 boards/8 sails and associated masts in mine, i could sleep in it with all of it in there but a bit cosy. Id generally take one of the bigger boards out to sleep.

What sort of van? How have you fitted it out ?
My current van has a removable bed with fold down flaps . When I'm not sailing I can fit 2 bikes in it. Not sure whether to keep that idea with the next one.

Its an iload, started out with a 4 boards so sat them flat, sails underneath and double sized bed up top, which is where the booms generally lived. Put them on top of boards when i needed to sleep. I'd figured that'd be all i ever needed (silly me).

now ive still got the racks as they were but ive got two wider boards (85 wide slalom and a foil board) that don't fit the racks so they live up top in board bags. downsized the mattress to single.

I've toyed with the idea of putting them on their sides, but came to the conclusion that i would either have to pad things up between them really well, or put them all in board bags, which takes up more space and causes drying issues.

This is from a few years ago, so not as much gear as i have now

some clever person needs to invent a retracting jayco expanda "van edition" type pull out system with a "god knows how" canvas seal .
Prop up the distal end with milk crates then you have your van floor space back for night time antics

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HotBodMon said..
some clever person needs to invent a retracting jayco expanda "van edition" type pull out system with a "god knows how" canvas seal .
Prop up the distal end with milk crates then you have your van floor space back for night time antics

I think that would be easy. Have them in a horizontal rack that pivots at the bottom and folds out to be vertical racks, with canvas secured along it. I like the idea though. So much so, I might copy it in my next windsurfing trailer.

the new hiace vans are 20cm wider & half a meter longer, petrol is only a 3.5 v6
so economy gose out the window but it has 300hp, fun in a manuel.
5 star crash ratting though.

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FormulaNova said..

HotBodMon said..
some clever person needs to invent a retracting jayco expanda "van edition" type pull out system with a "god knows how" canvas seal .
Prop up the distal end with milk crates then you have your van floor space back for night time antics

I think that would be easy. Have them in a horizontal rack that pivots at the bottom and folds out to be vertical racks, with canvas secured along it. I like the idea though. So much so, I might copy it in my next windsurfing trailer.

In my fantasy driven diluded mind , I'm thinking like a giant filing cabinet drawer on two heavy duty floor rails that pulls out 8 feet or so - the actual drawer would be in its own environmental enclosure with various sealable access areas.
It would look funny and you would only really be bothered if you planned on keeping the van for a few years and you were a passionate regular camper.It's weather proofing the rear tailgate of the van that would be the challenging part

Yes just took one for a test drive and measured cargo area. Transporter test drive Wednesday..

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Subsonic said..



This is from a few years ago, so not as much gear as i have now

How do you find sleeping with that much headroom?

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Rus13b said..
the new hiace vans are 20cm wider & half a meter longer, petrol is only a 3.5 v6
so economy gose out the window but it has 300hp, fun in a manuel.
5 star crash ratting though.

Diesel is $3,500 extra on the petrol though. Take a while to recoup that in fuel. Petrol might have a better resale if the diesel stigma spreading through Europe filters over here.

8 boards, 9'6" SUP, 2 windfoil boards, 5 windsurf boards, 5 booms, 14 sails, 2 foils with room to change inside or bike. 2 SUP paddles.
ProMaster short.

I've hunted around some old threads and found a few good ideas.

1. Mast caddy.
2. Wet clothes drip rack and bucket
3. Wet sail storage half pipe.
4. PVC tubing rack instead of timber

Keep the good ideas coming!











www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Van-interior-fitout
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Windsurfing-Van-3
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Seabreeze-layout-ginormous
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Storing-sails-in-your-van
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Mast-storage-in-the-Van

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sboardcrazy said..

Subsonic said..



This is from a few years ago, so not as much gear as i have now

How do you find sleeping with that much headroom?

The sleeping bit's fine. Getting in and out is the interesting bit. I sorta had it set up mainly for ease of gear storage, with the idea that on occasion i may need to sleep in it. The beds quite comfortable

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Subsonic said..

sboardcrazy said..

Subsonic said..



This is from a few years ago, so not as much gear as i have now

How do you find sleeping with that much headroom?

The sleeping bit's fine. Getting in and out is the interesting bit. I sorta had it set up mainly for ease of gear storage, with the idea that on occasion i may need to sleep in it. The beds quite comfortable

Especially as you get older. I'd be worried about waking up in the middle of the night and bumping my head. We used to have a boat and I used to avoid low berths in it for that reason..

Nice job! ( I haven't read the others yet.)
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/General/Van-interior-fitout?page=1

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Rus13b said..
the new hiace vans are 20cm wider & half a meter longer, petrol is only a 3.5 v6
so economy gose out the window but it has 300hp, fun in a manuel.
5 star crash ratting though.

And 200mm shorter in the cargo area. It won't fit in my garage. I will stick with the old Hiace.

I'd still like to know why everyone stores the boards flat and not in bags on their sides? I feel I save space that way but I'm not sure?
I like to keep wet boards in the bags until I get home and then leave them out to dry. That way the van doesn't get touched by wet boards.. the sails are up on a bed and have towels under them , likewise booms. All taken out to dry and the van aired.

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AUS4 said..

Rus13b said..
the new hiace vans are 20cm wider & half a meter longer, petrol is only a 3.5 v6
so economy gose out the window but it has 300hp, fun in a manuel.
5 star crash ratting though.

And 200mm shorter in the cargo area. It won't fit in my garage. I will stick with the old Hiace.

The new van will be bigger so I'll need a bigger shed! That might have to wait for a year..

Vertical storage
A lot of vans have those long rails inside the cargo area. are there any kind of adaptors that can be used for making vertical board racks?

Tracks similar to these...
www.cargogear.com/Shop_by_Category.aspx?page=all&cat=655

Maybe like these I guess, then bolt on whatever you need!

www.cargogear.com/OneItemInfo.aspx?partnum=COBOLTS

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sboardcrazy said..

Subsonic said..

sboardcrazy said..
How do you find sleeping with that much headroom?

The sleeping bit's fine. Getting in and out is the interesting bit. I sorta had it set up mainly for ease of gear storage, with the idea that on occasion i may need to sleep in it. The beds quite comfortable

Especially as you get older. I'd be worried about waking up in the middle of the night and bumping my head. We used to have a boat and I used to avoid low berths in it for that reason..

Glue some styrofoam on the roof, just above where your head is going to hit it

Back to your question about vertical boards, you do end up losing space. I made a travel rack years ago, and the most I could fit into a LWB Hiace was 8 or 9 boards, all vertical, with sails on top, and booms jammed in wherever they would fit. If you need a sleeping area as well, you are going to lose at least 3 of those board spots.

Below is my latest van attempt. There is 42cm under the platform on the left and you can jam a lot of sails and masts under there. Above, you can fit 3 boards, and secure them with occy straps.

In practice, with the fold up panel folded back, you can fit another few boards in the middle.

The height above the platform is about 85cm to allow reasonably wide boards, but anything bigger has to go down the middle.

Petrol v's Diesel:

If the new van costs $3500 more for a diesel, that buys around 2690 litres of petrol at around $1.30/l

That is equal to 22.435km in the petrol version. this means that you will get at least 22.000 km of free km using your petrol van in comparison!

In the time you do 22,000 km in your petrol van you would still have to pay for fuel in your diesel. @ 8L / 100km you will use around 1760L of diesel. @ around $1.40/L this will cost around $2460. So now you are nearly $6000 worse off with the Diesel!

I guess it may take a lot of drivers between 1-2 years to do 22.000 km.

So if you do around 22,000Km a year you can save around $1000 a year in fuel cost. Therefore it will take at least another 6 years before you even break even on the difference in purchase cost, on the fuel saving. After that initial seven years and 154,000kms (it make take longer than 7 years if you do less KM/year), yes, you now actually save $1000 in fuel costs per year/22000km.

That's if you even still have that vehicle after it has done that 154.000km!

Bear in mind that Diesels typically cost a huge amount more to recondition or repair the engine when it gets to the end of it's life (worn out or broken). Balance that against the general longer life for many diesel engines, but it really all boils down to the fact that for most private, non commercial use owners, you may never get back the initial higher cost of buying a Diesel new.

And the pertol V6 version will go a lot quicker, quieter and smoother.

PS. I just realised that Toyota claim 8.2 and 8.4L/100 for their Diesels, so my figures are actually slightly optimistic.

New Toyota Petrol v's Diesel? No contest!

If I want a Vw (Drives more like a car than a van ) they only come in diesel..?

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LeeD said..
8 boards, 9'6" SUP, 2 windfoil boards, 5 windsurf boards, 5 booms, 14 sails, 2 foils with room to change inside or bike. 2 SUP paddles.
ProMaster short.

Mini Cooper Clubman, 6 boards, 6 sails , 2 booms, 3.5 masts, 2wetsuits, 2booties, 2 harness, 56 fins, 2tubs of assorted associated support bolts sandpaper etc, 1large Arctic tent, wood burning stove, kerosene cooking stove , gasoline generator, JVC stereo system, electric cooler, 12 varieties of beer, 2rum, 2 18 YO Scotch, 1/2 a steer , computer, printer, money , large bills fit in door sides, sunscreen, 7 hats, 7 board shorts, 7 tops, 22 tee shirts, 7 toothbrush, toothpaste large, medical kit, snake bite anti venom, alien abduction spray, bear repellent, fly cast rod, spinning rod, deep sea fish rod, shovel, Jack, 1 English mastiff, I Newfoundland, 1Leonberger, 1 Bouvier Des Flanders, 2 flying squirrels.
1Pvc blank, electric sander, epoxy, glass, carbon, paint, spray compressor, tape, spray gun, large painting tent. 7 railroad ties.
assortment of audio books 7, 17 music CD, towels 7, large bottle of ibuprofen, Rescue Remedy, Arnica, poison ivy cream,surgical kit, sutures knives, electric drill for tooth repair, super glue, duct tape assorted color, sail repair tape, tape to repair tape.
7 extra downhaul lines, 7 extra outhaul. 7 mast extensions. 7 Phillips head screwdrivers, 5 slotted, metic hex head wrenches, 2 adjustable wrenches, 1 right 1 left. One sky hook. Windshield washer fluid, oil 1 gallon, 1 oil filter.
large bag of peanuts, squirells. I 10 gauge shotgun, 1 300 Winchester Magnum, large skinning knife.

Is that your van or your house? Or are you one of those quaint sorts that lives in their van?

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sboardcrazy said..
If I want a Vw (Drives more like a car than a van ) they only come in diesel..?

Have you driven an iLoad? I rented one in WA one year and it drove much better than our usual Hiace rental van. It was much more like a car than the Hiace and much more quiet.

The only disadvantage with the bonneted type vans is the shorter payload area, but it looks like you have gotten used to that anyway and folded the front seat forward. The major positive I think is that the bonneted vans should be safer.

I think the iLoads are in petrol as well as diesel.

And 17 masts right now.