I’m a 58 yr old man transitioning to residential service. Did 1 yr. as a maintenance tech, and now into service. I thoroughly enjoy your videos and look forward to everyone you post.
Cool. I jumped into the trade at 35 after getting laid-off from a Pipeline company - sometimes the best way to learn is jumping in with both feet. RUclips helped a lot for me - learned as much as I could, as quick as I could.
I have painted the inside of back window on my trucks in the past. The last truck I had with windows in the rear I sprayed it with a frost spray that let the light in but not prying eyes
Gonna make a video this fall when I have time and it's cooler - I've been in it for two years now so I feel like i've had enough time in it to show a 'real world' van load-out. It's far from perfect, but it works pretty good for running service all day.
Getting the ladder issue shorted is most important - after that hoping to get some Packout (or similar) boxes for fuses and copper fittings, then figure out how I want to store my Seal-tite stuff and spools of wire...everything else will fall into place.
Build a false floor with 2×6's and 3/4 plywood then toss that rubber mat on the top. I love having my under the floor storage. Its were i slide my pipe in my 4 foot level, shovels, toilet auger basically all my long tools an material. Then on the sides i built my own pull out drawers an a slot for my 5 foot ladder. My truck looks empty from the back door but all my stuff is just hidden under the floor, and i dont trip on pipe anymore rolling around on the floor !
@@scrambler350 i built a slot behind my cargo divider for a 5 foot ladder. Saved the room under the floor for pipe, shovels, levels etc.. But i have double side doors so i can pull the ladder out from either side incase someone parks next to me.
Empty Mig welding wire spools work great for hanging extention cord an hose holders but ya in plumbing an hvac vans are nice but you would Ben from a cube van or box truck so can load full jobs on truck from all tools to the equipment an duct work an so on a mobile shop or buy a enclosed trailer works to lol
good luck with the Chevy. We had so many issues with out 2017 express. AC condenser and compressor had to be changed, two headlights, rear tail light, engine valve cover gaskets, rear passenger caliper sized, intermittent ABS sensor fault and now the differential is starting to leak. I'm sure we got a lemon because I cannot believe the amount of trouble we've had with this van with only 40,000km (24,855 miles)
Maybe so, this van has been great so far - the 2017 we bought used at the last company I worked at (in 2018) had some kinda issue with the A/C - it never cooled right. We got it in May, and I quit in September - never got a chance to figure out what wasn't right with the A/C....ironically....just too busy running calls or resting to bother messing with it - other than the A/C it was great.
We drive um at Mr rooter im a service plumber an I baby my long 2500 cuz when it breaks done they have a crappy reg size van we get stuffed in an a pile of tools on the floor but ya just got mine back again valve cover gaskets ,oil pan gasket ,timing chain an cover an oil pan an rear main seal all just done an guess what it's leaking oil again still but it dose run an get good gas mileage the 4.8 small v8 I love the long van looking to buy one for my self outside of my work van but ya its been a fight to keep oil in this one but it's got 288,000 miles an ru s great just leeks lol
Good choice on the Express. I love my 2013 3500. 185k and only a water pump so far. "Keep your dick beaters off my tools" cracked me the eff up. Gotta subscribe now.
I work for Mr Rooter an doing my own thing I drive a similar van an I love the long wheel base an looking to get one of my own but when I had to move to a short to me reg size van I was miserable while my daylight long van was being repaired long vans are better riding an room for all are crap for plumbing an cooling an ill tell ya the small 4.8 v8 in the long 3/4 ton guys gets great gas milage too
I had a 2017 almost identical to this at the first company I worked for, it had the 4.8L and it was just fine - the 6.0 is nice and powerful and I don't have to pay for the gas so the only pain I feel at the pump is slightly more frequent stops.
Not sure if you know, but when you open the side doors about 1/4 of the way, if you pull the hinge in the middle of the door toward you, it will allow you to open the door all the way. There's a little notch in the hinge for you to put your finger in and pull on both sides.. might make it easier when you're working in the slide out box. when you go to close the door, the hinge will automatically snap back into place..
I strap the 6 footer to the 8 footer on top. By the way your cooler idea with hose drain saved me a headache this summer. There a van update setup coming?
I primarily use my 6ft'er inside, so I ended up just keeping it strapped-up on the passenger side shelf that I don't use as much - stays out of my way and keeps it out of the sun. My 8ft'r is already sun-baked and the extension ladder had to be replaced last year because of cracks. I'm gonna do an 'End-of-Summer' update on the Milwaukee Icechest - it has work PERFECTLY for me this Summer. HIGHLY recommend it! Just this past weekend I unscrewed the hose, pulled the little lever to release it from the base-plate, pulled it out, loaded it on my truck, and used it to hold all my drinks and Ice while I was in Austin. Took it out on a tube in Barton Springs. Snapped it back in Tuesday morning, filled it with water and ice and hooked my hose back up - good to go again! I need to do a new video this Fall/Winter/Spring on a weekend when I have time - i've got it set up pretty much how I want with how the upfitters did everything. I'd like to change small things like the tank rack, bottle racks, and where I keep my torch cart - but not enough to waste a weekend doing it.
I forgot to ask you about the side doors. I know most of them are sold with the swing out doors instead of the sliding door I guess because you can put shelves on the swing out doors?
You can....but, I wouldn't - all I have hanging off the door is a back-up manifold with hoses. Shelving or a lot of stuff hanging would probably get in my way and annoy me...and probably wouldn't work well with the slide-out drawer. I WISH I could have gotten a sliding side door, but was lucky to get this van - which is 90% what I wanted.
Couldn't agree more, now that things are slowing down I need to start pestering my boss to have them installed one day while I'm off and can pull my tools out of the van and have it sent over to the lock place to have them done. Not having puck locks is the reason why I take 90% of my tools home on Fridays - don't trust then sitting at the shop with only some chain-link and razor wire protectecting my THOUSANDS of dollars of tools from thieves. AT LEAST with the puck locks thieves would have to drill out the locks to get at my tools instead of just jimmy'ing the normal door lock or prying them open.
On board cpu says 9.7avg...but haven't actually checked it by dividing the gallons into the miles. 90% around town driving; that's not to bad for the bigger gas V8, 6speed auto, and being shaped like a brick with ladders on top. I let it idle more than I should too, probably.
Ha! ..looking at the new pickups I'm actually kinda glad they didn't mess with it - looks fine, and if they keep making them the same businesses can just move their old shelving and storage setups from the old van to the new van, which is nice.
I just bought a new GMC van and I prefer rear windows but my van has solid doors. Looking to swap if anyone is interested, can add cash on top of the swap?...
I miss the side window from time to time when I have to back out of a driveway into a street and can't see...usually end up jumping out to check for oncoming traffic - but it's nice peace-of-mind knowing it's a little tougher for someone to get access to my tools inside the van.
It’s funny how they offered you a Dodge. I’m all up for options but I hate how a car stealership will try to persuade you to get another model when you already have a vehicle in mind.
I suspect they had ProMasters in stock and wanted to move those rather than haggling for the Express Van - according to what we were told they only make a set amount of vans each year (to order, mostly from Enterprise ((or some other large buyer of vans)) and that's the run for the year. Lots of dealerships and companies actually acquire their vans THROUGH Enterprise because of this - the last company I worked for we bought a 2017 van that was less than a year old from a dealership that got it from a rental fleet - no shelving, just the plastic interior cladding.
It was the Express or a ProMaster....hated the cab of the ProMaster - not a fan of the new style vans - prefer the classic Truck Frame vans like the E-250 and Express 2500.
@@311hitwall It's not bad, I try to keep everything set up to minimize rattles and squeaks. Prefer a van over a pickup with a service bed - I can live with a little bit of noise.
@@scrambler350 I thought about the getting the crew van to have the extra seat because I want to use it for personal use instead of strictly as a cargo van, but then I lose the D rings to tie down stuff.
I had a econline and went to a transit high roof.. boy let me tell ya... I have no idea why Chevy is still able to sell these trucks. The high roof vans blow these trucks out of the water. The ability to stand fully and have all the extra space. Like night and day. Sorry you didn’t get to experience it.
Yep, luckily GM doesn't change them much - keeps companies fleet looking consistent and makes it easier for companies to move the shelving from the old can to the new one. Luckily the headlights are MUCH better than the old, square, sealed-beam headlights on the 2006 I had previously. No need to update the body ever 3 or 4 years like the pick-ups to get Yuppies to stay on a car payment till they retire to keep up with the Jones's - all a van needs to be is a box on wheels to put your tools and materials in.
@@scrambler350 you're right it just needs to be a box on wheels. Looking for my first van when I get my master electrician license. It electrician probably be one of these. I prefer the cloth seats in the GM but they are harder to find. Guess I could find them at a junkyard.
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I’m a 58 yr old man transitioning to residential service. Did 1 yr. as a maintenance tech, and now into service. I thoroughly enjoy your videos and look forward to everyone you post.
Cool.
I jumped into the trade at 35 after getting laid-off from a Pipeline company - sometimes the best way to learn is jumping in with both feet. RUclips helped a lot for me - learned as much as I could, as quick as I could.
@@scrambler350 way to do it Mike, all the best. Take care.
thanks for the tour. You had some good ideas that I'm looking forward to adding to my set up!
Good to see another tech in texas🤘🏼 good tour by the way😁
I have painted the inside of back window on my trucks in the past. The last truck I had with windows in the rear I sprayed it with a frost spray that let the light in but not prying eyes
Dope ass set up! Can’t wait for the updated video!
Gonna make a video this fall when I have time and it's cooler - I've been in it for two years now so I feel like i've had enough time in it to show a 'real world' van load-out.
It's far from perfect, but it works pretty good for running service all day.
Nice van and well organized.
Like your videos.
Thanks for watching!
Nice new van Mike 👍 You'll have it decked out after some use & figure out how u want it setup 👍👍
Getting the ladder issue shorted is most important - after that hoping to get some Packout (or similar) boxes for fuses and copper fittings, then figure out how I want to store my Seal-tite stuff and spools of wire...everything else will fall into place.
Build a false floor with 2×6's and 3/4 plywood then toss that rubber mat on the top.
I love having my under the floor storage. Its were i slide my pipe in my 4 foot level, shovels, toilet auger basically all my long tools an material. Then on the sides i built my own pull out drawers an a slot for my 5 foot ladder.
My truck looks empty from the back door but all my stuff is just hidden under the floor, and i dont trip on pipe anymore rolling around on the floor !
I've thought about it since I first got the van, it would be REALLY nice to be able to store my 6ft ladder UNDER everything.
@@scrambler350 i built a slot behind my cargo divider for a 5 foot ladder.
Saved the room under the floor for pipe, shovels, levels etc..
But i have double side doors so i can pull the ladder out from either side incase someone parks next to me.
Texas man. Hell yeah. You know we need HVAC services CONSTANTLY.
For sure, there is no 'slow season' here - we're always working.
Lift the roll out box up on some 2xs give your some storage underneath and you can fit the vacuum pump
Beautiful service van.
Thanks, I'm very grateful to have been given a brand new van for the first time in my life.
Nice van dude. The latch is not tapered to prevent accidentally slamming fingers in the drawer.
Empty Mig welding wire spools work great for hanging extention cord an hose holders but ya in plumbing an hvac vans are nice but you would Ben from a cube van or box truck so can load full jobs on truck from all tools to the equipment an duct work an so on a mobile shop or buy a enclosed trailer works to lol
Nice job and video
Thanks for watching!
good luck with the Chevy.
We had so many issues with out 2017 express. AC condenser and compressor had to be changed, two headlights, rear tail light, engine valve cover gaskets, rear passenger caliper sized, intermittent ABS sensor fault and now the differential is starting to leak. I'm sure we got a lemon because I cannot believe the amount of trouble we've had with this van with only 40,000km (24,855 miles)
Must be a lemon cause I don't think most of them have that many issues?
Maybe so, this van has been great so far - the 2017 we bought used at the last company I worked at (in 2018) had some kinda issue with the A/C - it never cooled right.
We got it in May, and I quit in September - never got a chance to figure out what wasn't right with the A/C....ironically....just too busy running calls or resting to bother messing with it - other than the A/C it was great.
We drive um at Mr rooter im a service plumber an I baby my long 2500 cuz when it breaks done they have a crappy reg size van we get stuffed in an a pile of tools on the floor but ya just got mine back again valve cover gaskets ,oil pan gasket ,timing chain an cover an oil pan an rear main seal all just done an guess what it's leaking oil again still but it dose run an get good gas mileage the 4.8 small v8 I love the long van looking to buy one for my self outside of my work van but ya its been a fight to keep oil in this one but it's got 288,000 miles an ru s great just leeks lol
Good choice on the Express. I love my 2013 3500. 185k and only a water pump so far. "Keep your dick beaters off my tools" cracked me the eff up. Gotta subscribe now.
Thanks for watching!
Led lighting is a must for the back. Really easy to do these days.
It's nice...forgot to show those, but that was also installed by the upfitter - they're nice and bright.
I work for Mr Rooter an doing my own thing I drive a similar van an I love the long wheel base an looking to get one of my own but when I had to move to a short to me reg size van I was miserable while my daylight long van was being repaired long vans are better riding an room for all are crap for plumbing an cooling an ill tell ya the small 4.8 v8 in the long 3/4 ton guys gets great gas milage too
I had a 2017 almost identical to this at the first company I worked for, it had the 4.8L and it was just fine - the 6.0 is nice and powerful and I don't have to pay for the gas so the only pain I feel at the pump is slightly more frequent stops.
The ram pro master is a nice van. Front wheel drive is great if you get snow. I have a Ford transit 250 and the RWD is horrible in the wet season
Chevy is heavier, problem almost doesnt exist
Nice
Not sure if you know, but when you open the side doors about 1/4 of the way, if you pull the hinge in the middle of the door toward you, it will allow you to open the door all the way. There's a little notch in the hinge for you to put your finger in and pull on both sides.. might make it easier when you're working in the slide out box. when you go to close the door, the hinge will automatically snap back into place..
Thanks! Will have to try this on Monday.
I strap the 6 footer to the 8 footer on top. By the way your cooler idea with hose drain saved me a headache this summer. There a van update setup coming?
I primarily use my 6ft'er inside, so I ended up just keeping it strapped-up on the passenger side shelf that I don't use as much - stays out of my way and keeps it out of the sun.
My 8ft'r is already sun-baked and the extension ladder had to be replaced last year because of cracks.
I'm gonna do an 'End-of-Summer' update on the Milwaukee Icechest - it has work PERFECTLY for me this Summer. HIGHLY recommend it!
Just this past weekend I unscrewed the hose, pulled the little lever to release it from the base-plate, pulled it out, loaded it on my truck, and used it to hold all my drinks and Ice while I was in Austin. Took it out on a tube in Barton Springs.
Snapped it back in Tuesday morning, filled it with water and ice and hooked my hose back up - good to go again!
I need to do a new video this Fall/Winter/Spring on a weekend when I have time - i've got it set up pretty much how I want with how the upfitters did everything.
I'd like to change small things like the tank rack, bottle racks, and where I keep my torch cart - but not enough to waste a weekend doing it.
Make taper with angle grinder to that drawer lockpin
van is the way to go ... i hate utility bed truck
I agree...hate having to open, close, open, close, lock, unlock, and re-lock all those doors.
+ more usable cargo space in the same footprint.
mike_HVAC tell me about locking those box ... the guy alway forget to lock it since it not their money (tools)
And there is more privacy in a van, you can take a nap in the back, eat, watch youtube, and for those restroom emergencies ,,,, etc,,,,,,
I forgot to ask you about the side doors. I know most of them are sold with the swing out doors instead of the sliding door I guess because you can put shelves on the swing out doors?
You can....but, I wouldn't - all I have hanging off the door is a back-up manifold with hoses.
Shelving or a lot of stuff hanging would probably get in my way and annoy me...and probably wouldn't work well with the slide-out drawer.
I WISH I could have gotten a sliding side door, but was lucky to get this van - which is 90% what I wanted.
After you retire from the AC business keep the van and build it into a home on wheels.
Definitely could..!!!
need some puck locks on that van bro
Couldn't agree more, now that things are slowing down I need to start pestering my boss to have them installed one day while I'm off and can pull my tools out of the van and have it sent over to the lock place to have them done.
Not having puck locks is the reason why I take 90% of my tools home on Fridays - don't trust then sitting at the shop with only some chain-link and razor wire protectecting my THOUSANDS of dollars of tools from thieves. AT LEAST with the puck locks thieves would have to drill out the locks to get at my tools instead of just jimmy'ing the normal door lock or prying them open.
With so much stuff what’s the MPG on it? I am thinking of buying a NV2500, but MPG seems very low
On board cpu says 9.7avg...but haven't actually checked it by dividing the gallons into the miles. 90% around town driving; that's not to bad for the bigger gas V8, 6speed auto, and being shaped like a brick with ladders on top.
I let it idle more than I should too, probably.
12:07 😅
Check out my van, if there's interest I could make a longer more detailed video and answer any questions!
I hate how they kept the same style. If I took one look at the van I would thing it was like a 2005. Nice van though!
Ha!
..looking at the new pickups I'm actually kinda glad they didn't mess with it - looks fine, and if they keep making them the same businesses can just move their old shelving and storage setups from the old van to the new van, which is nice.
I just bought a new GMC van and I prefer rear windows but my van has solid doors. Looking to swap if anyone is interested, can add cash on top of the swap?...
I miss the side window from time to time when I have to back out of a driveway into a street and can't see...usually end up jumping out to check for oncoming traffic - but it's nice peace-of-mind knowing it's a little tougher for someone to get access to my tools inside the van.
It’s funny how they offered you a Dodge. I’m all up for options but I hate how a car stealership will try to persuade you to get another model when you already have a vehicle in mind.
I suspect they had ProMasters in stock and wanted to move those rather than haggling for the Express Van - according to what we were told they only make a set amount of vans each year (to order, mostly from Enterprise ((or some other large buyer of vans)) and that's the run for the year.
Lots of dealerships and companies actually acquire their vans THROUGH Enterprise because of this - the last company I worked for we bought a 2017 van that was less than a year old from a dealership that got it from a rental fleet - no shelving, just the plastic interior cladding.
Why did you pick that instead of the Transit? Have you had any issues?
It was the Express or a ProMaster....hated the cab of the ProMaster - not a fan of the new style vans - prefer the classic Truck Frame vans like the E-250 and Express 2500.
@@scrambler350 Is it noisy on the inside? I heard one without anything on the inside and there were a lot of rattles.
@@311hitwall It's not bad, I try to keep everything set up to minimize rattles and squeaks.
Prefer a van over a pickup with a service bed - I can live with a little bit of noise.
@@scrambler350 I thought about the getting the crew van to have the extra seat because I want to use it for personal use instead of strictly as a cargo van, but then I lose the D rings to tie down stuff.
I had a econline and went to a transit high roof.. boy let me tell ya... I have no idea why Chevy is still able to sell these trucks. The high roof vans blow these trucks out of the water. The ability to stand fully and have all the extra space. Like night and day. Sorry you didn’t get to experience it.
LOL @ Fat kid stuff...that is better than shoving all condiments and forks in the glove box...like the idea
Little giant both 6 and 8 foot in 1
V6 or v8
6.0 liter V8
Wow thats a 2020? Put a rip in the driver seat and its a 2010. Put rust on the door locks an its a 2003.
Yep, luckily GM doesn't change them much - keeps companies fleet looking consistent and makes it easier for companies to move the shelving from the old can to the new one.
Luckily the headlights are MUCH better than the old, square, sealed-beam headlights on the 2006 I had previously.
No need to update the body ever 3 or 4 years like the pick-ups to get Yuppies to stay on a car payment till they retire to keep up with the Jones's - all a van needs to be is a box on wheels to put your tools and materials in.
@@scrambler350 you're right it just needs to be a box on wheels. Looking for my first van when I get my master electrician license. It electrician probably be one of these. I prefer the cloth seats in the GM but they are harder to find. Guess I could find them at a junkyard.
non alchaholic officer