This is a very sad sale of Flora (the Explorer), our beloved off-grid, 5 berth family adventure van? We designed the layout of Flora to suit us as a family of 5 and we just love her, she was converted in 2018 and we have had some simply amazing adventures in her as a family. The plan was for this to be our “forever van” but an unexpected house move has forced us to make the difficult and very sad decision to put Flora up for sale. We are confident that she will provide another family with as many special times as we have had, so here is what you need to know. The Van Flora is based on a 2014 Citroen Relay L3H2 and is a beautiful yellow colour! She has full service history and has done approx. 95,250 (mainly motorway) miles. She was last serviced in August 2020 just before our summer holiday and the MOT is due in December, although we would be prepared to have it done early for the new owners. She has never let us down and recently got 38.8mpg when fully loaded on the way to our holiday in the Lake District. The Conversion Flora has been expertly converted by Mark1 Conversions in Devon. We worked with Lee at Mark1 to design the layout, fixtures and fittings and then left it with them, we were absolutely over the moon with the result! Mark1 provided us with a folder full of photographs (which we will include in the sale) so that you can see every step of the conversion – there really is nothing to hide and we couldn’t be happier with the result. It has been expertly finished to a very high standard, it’s hard wearing but thanks to the lightweight wood used for the furniture, not at all heavy. The van has also been reclassified on the V5 as a Motor Caravan so it really is ready to go! The Beds From previous experience with a high top T4, we knew what a pain it can be making up the children’s beds every night (especially when arriving somewhere late) and for this reason we specifically wanted 3 fixed bunks that could be made up permanently for the kids to sleep in as well as providing them with some space to chill out and play or watch films etc. Flora therefore has 3 permanent bunks at the rear of the van. Two of these are full size bunks which will comfortably take a grown adult’s weight and height (my husband is 6ft tall and has slept in there); the original plan was to last the kids into their teens. The third is perfect for kids as it’s super cosy and it has it’s own light! This bottom bunk also doubles up as an excellent storage area – when our teenager decides he doesn’t want to come away with us this area stores our inflatable kayak, SUP, wetsuits, awning, bbq etc etc. It could also double up as an area to keep a dog! The top two bunks both have curtains, usb sockets, lights and cargo net storage pockets. When it came to our bed, I was adamant from the outset that I wanted to be able to enjoy a cup of tea from bed in the mornings and enjoy the view. So this was our primary aim! In addition, we wanted to be sure that the conversion was as safe and comfortable as possible for our whole family. The solution here was for a two-part RIB seat which partners with the three swivelled cab seats to form a double bed. The RIB offers heaps of storage underneath for bedding so it’s a really simple, practical and comfy solution. We have included some pics of the view from “bed” so you can see the benefits of this layout. Travelling seats In all our research when looking for vans and then designing our own it was really difficult to find a van with 5 travelling seats. We have managed to get 6 forward facing and 3 point belted seats into Flora, all covered in a neutral vinyl which is an absolute godsend with kids! The front single and double cab seats all swivel to form a comfortable dining / relaxing area for 6 people (which then converts into a double bed, as explained above). The dining area has a removable table which is perfect for family meals and games (the table neatly stores away when not in use). We have also fitted an adjustable tablet holder in this area – great for watching films as a family around the table, or from the comfort of the double bed. The Kitchen It was important to us to have somewhere to prepare good family meals for five of us. Flora has a three burner Dometic gas hob with integrated sink, battery powered Dometic fridge with freezer compartment with ample space for keeping food cool. In addition, there is heaps and heaps of space to store food – we have just come back from a 10 day break and managed to take enough food for the entire holiday so avoiding the need to venture to the shops. A really useful feature in the kitchen is an extra section of fold out worktop which comes in really handy for dishing out the dinner and clearing up. There is storage space for 48 litres of fresh water within the kitchen area. The gas canister is secured in a gas-safe box under the work unit. The Storage We wanted to include as much storage as possible within the van so that everything has a place – Flora achieves this, she is like a tardis inside and it really helps to create stress free trips with plenty of room for everyone’s essentials and non-essentials! This includes 6 large enclosed shelves which are big enough to take the large plastic storage boxes we allocate one shelf per person and one for toys! In addition, there is overhead storage all along the drivers side which we use for food, books etc. Just to the left of the sliding door is a wardrobe with hanging rail which is great for storing coats, with shoes and boots underneath and an additional compartment for the porta loo. If the bottom bunk isn’t needed this serves as excellent storage space for bigger outdoor “toys” and we have had a tow bar fitted with electric so can bring our bikes along on a tow bar mounted bike rack. There is also storage space over the cab and under the false floor (laid to level the RIB seat with the cab seats) great for the window pads, wind breaks etc. Comfort Flora is like our little hotel on wheels and we have made her as comfortable as possible, she is sound deadened, fully insulated and has fully blacked out thermal curtains as well as insulated cab pads and this really helps keep the van dark in the mornings to help little people sleep in. We had a Maxair Roof Van vent installed to the rear of the van over the kitchen which is excellent for keeping moisture and smells to a minimum whilst cooking and is great in the hot weather for circulating air and giving a cooling breeze. Perhaps most importantly we wanted to ensure that we could use Flora all year round and so had a diesel heater fitted which is fed from the main diesel tank it has a safety cut out which prevents it from draining the fuel tank! Which keeps us toasty warm even through the coldest of nights and dries us out even on the wettest of days. We’ve found it an absolute essential for our vanlife adventures in the British weather. There are plenty of USB charging points which run off the leisure battery and thanks to the 100w solar panel on the roof the battery lasts for ages which makes it the perfect van for off-grid adventures. We have been to Scotland, North Wales, the Lake District and South / West Wales and have rarely needed to use EHU we recently spent 10 days completely off grid without even driving the van and leisure battery stayed in the green throughout! Just in case you want electric hook up Flora has the EHU and we usually give the battery a good charge before and after a trip to keep it topped up. The Full List of what’s included in the build. Fully swivelling front drivers seat and double passenger seat – Two part folding RIB seat with three full sized 3 point seat belted seats (all SIX seats have matching professionally made vinyl upholstery) – Suspended tablet holder for rear passengers when driving and swivels for use by all when set up as a lounge area – Electrical supply for TV if required – MV Airo 2 Air Heater (diesel fuelled) – Dometic Coolmatic CRX50 fridge/freezer 3 in 1 solution? Fridge, freezer or both at the same time – Dometic three ring gas hob with integrated sink/tap – Electric water pump below with storage space for 48ltr of water – Maxxair fan/skylight (incl remote control and manual override) – 100w solar panel with solar charger controller – 230v/12v inverter and Electric Hook Up – Leisure battery – Power Management Unit and Battery level indicator – 4 x 3 point electric sockets – 6 x USB charging points – Middle and Rear ceiling spot lights – 2 x reading lights (1 middle next to RIB seats and 1 in the rear over kitchen area) – Blaupunkt speakers in rear seat housing – Fire Safety Pack (Smoke/CO2 Alarm, Fire Blanket & Exstinguisher) – Camping Gaz 907 bottle within gas safe box. Finally we are non smokers and Flora has been carefully looked after and looks and feels like a newly converted camper. We also have a huge Outdoor Revolution drive away awning, Movelite T4 Highline, which has only been used twice (for a total of 14 days). We will include this in the sale for the right price or sell separately if interested. Hopefully this information provides all you need to know but if you have any questions or would like to see more photos we have loads! Then please let us know. We are based in South Wales and viewings are welcome. The item “5 Berth, Off Grid, Family Campervan” is in sale since Sunday, September 13, 2020. This item is in the category “Cars, Motorcycles & Vehicles\Campers, Caravans & Motorhomes\Campervans & Motorhomes”. The seller is “amy45632″ and is located in Swansea. This item can’t be shipped, the buyer must pick up the item.
- Gross Vehicle Weight: 3500
- Model: Citroen Relay L3 H2 Enterprise
- Colour: Yellow
- Safety Features: Back Seat Safety Belts
- Drive Side: Right-hand drive
- Sleeping Capacity: 5
- Features & Equipment: 12V Lighting
- Subtype: Camper Van
- Year of Registration: 2014
- Model Year: 2014
- Type: Campervan
- V5 Registration Document: Present
- Manufacturer: Mark1 Conversions
- Slide Outs: None
- Full Service History: Yes
- Vehicle Sub-Type: Camper Van
- Engine Size: 2200
- Transmission: Manual
- Axles: 1
- Fuel Type: Diesel
- Mileage: 95250
- Equipment: 12V Lighting
- Previous owners (excl. current): 1
