Point Five Ambo Build

[rlrenz]

I'm thinking the cleaner won't be a problem - you use it diluted, and you don't leave it on the aluminum, you rinse it off. By the way - they also sell a standard cap for those radio bases. My buggy didn't have any when I got it, with no leakage. I've heard that the antenna bases are very susceptible to leak if the antenna base wasn't installed perfectly, though - thankfully, mine were installed by Medic-Master instead of a city garage.

If you're worried about the gouge, you might try some marine fairing compound instead of Bondo - or maybe some epoxy resin with some filler (like fairing compound)

 

[patoz]

Bob, being the communications officer for the Fire Dept where I worked, I've installed quite a few of those antennas bases and you're right, they will leak if the inside 'feet' are not flush with the sheet metal of the roof. It causes the outer brass ring with the 'O' ring to sit crooked and let water in under the seal. Mine don't leak, so Im go to go there.

I have some of the plastic plugs to put in the .75" hole when an antenna is completely removed, but have never seen a cap for the base itself. I look at it like this, 10 minutes work and two more pieces of junk put to good use, so I'm doing good.

 

[rlrenz]

The caps are available from the folks who sell vehicle antennas, but if you have some spare antenna bases, and sheet rubber, you're there anyway. I found some caps through a friend of mine who handles radios for a utility company, so our end cost was comparable (unless you include the burger I bought him...). I wound up with a bag full of misc. antennas, from VHF to UHF.

 

[patoz]

Sometimes I wish you were my neighbor...you've got all the good stuff in that shop of yours!

 

[rlrenz]

Lots of stuff, with a lot of it due to restoring military vehicles for 20 years before an ambulance popped up, plus I grew up in a machine shop, plus working as a design engineer, plus working as a test engineer. Plus, lots of storage shelving and cabinets. Plus, having friends who are also into vehicle restoration (including one friend who buys and sells locomotives and railroad cars - you should see his storage...). Thankfully, it's also a very large 3-car garage, but like every garage, it should be a "little bit bigger..."

Lots of stuff, EVERYWHERE! Today's project is sorting out the garage. My wife will be having her retirement party on MON, and there is a chance of rain, so the garage would be PLAN-B. I'm not grumbling, though -- I just finished the battery project, and it's time to clean and sort before I start the 120 VAC panel.

 

[patoz]

Here is the top completely pressured cleaned and the antenna bases with their new caps.







One thing I didn't notice before when the roof was covered in black mold is, it's got a crown in the middle to assist with water runoff. It also has a flat almost recessed spot in each corner that holds water in little puddles. I walked around a little very carefully yesterday while I was installing the antenna base covers, and felt a little flexing of the roof panel, which I don't like. This tells me this roof will never be used as a walking or sitting deck for any reason other than maintenance. It's also probably going to get a coat of some type of white RV roll-on rubber roofing material for extra strength and better heat resistance.

If anyone has any suggestions as to what is the best product to use for this purpose, I'm all ears!

It also tells me, I will probably be looking to build or buy some type of low profile roof rack system to provide a strong flat surface for mounting any equipment, i.e. solar panels, etc.

 

[rlrenz]

WOW - it actually is white!!

The medium ambulances usually have 1/8" aluminum as a roof - if you know who built your module, their web site (or a phone call) might tell you how thick the roof is. You might also check the GSA's KKK spec, but since that is a performance spec and not a construction spec, it probably won't say anything about metal thickness. Everyone I know with an ambulance is planning a roof deck that is supported separately from the roof. You're in FL, so there should be plenty of aluminum fabricators who build boat bimini tops and flying bridges who can help out. By the way - the crown in the roof is normal - mine has a 1 3/4" crown for drainage.

Regarding roof coating -- take a look at the stuff they sell for mobile homes. I've used it in the past on MIL semi trailers

 

[rlrenz]

By the way - talking about antenna bases - the best way to drill for them these days, especially in a heavy roof, is to track down a Unibit (those step-tapered bits) that goes up to 3/4". I've used them to drill for antenna bases, and they do a great job - nice clean hole without all the garbage from a hole saw.

 

[patoz]

It's made by Wheeled Coach and every piece of exterior sheetmetal I've checked so far has been 1/8". The antenna bases are not the standard Motorola mounts and have some corrosion so they will be replaced, and when they are that will give me a chance to verify the exact thickness.

This is a cropped picture of the Fantastic Fan vent installation (by the original owner) in the roof of the Belafonte (now owned by Tom), which is identical to mine but a year older. If you enlarge it, you can see the manufacturer just added foam tape between the sheet metal and the roof rafters, probably to keep it from rattling. However, I doubt it provides any structural support for the crown area.

By the way - talking about antenna bases - the best way to drill for them these days, especially in a heavy roof, is to track down a Unibit (those step-tapered bits) that goes up to 3/4". I've used them to drill for antenna bases, and they do a great job - nice clean hole without all the garbage from a hole saw.

I have both step bits and a Chassis Punch set for that purpose.

The Chassis Punch Set works great for steel vehicle roof tops, provided you can get to the underside of the roof, but I've never tried it on 1/8" aluminum. I'm hoping the existing holes are already the correct size, because the mount is the same design as the Motorola. They may even be made by Motorola, but just a different model with a raised center contact.

 

[rlrenz]

I have one with a raised center - about a 3/8" or 7/16" fine thread. I haven't figured out yet if it's a scanner antenna, or for a vehicle cell phone. Thankfully, we don't have to only rely on hole saws - they make a hole, but it's far from a clean hole.

 

[tgreening]

Since you guys are talking radioy stuff, does anyone have a trashed nmo antenna mount? The base tha t the nmo antenna would screw onto. I'm looking for one thats trashed except for the thread portion. I want to rip it apart and mount the nase someplace in my truck so I have someplace to store the cap that goes on my current base when the antenna is removed. Otherwise I'm going to lose the stupid thing.

Oh, and when can I expect my royalty checks to start rolling in for the use of my pretty sure copy writ picture of my awesome wire splicing going on all up in that fan hole? . Hehe. (No, seriously man. Where mah money?).

 

[patoz]

Tom, I thought that was one of the pictures Carl took when he installed the fan. But as I look closer, I see the areas that were spliced now.

So, I'll tell ya what I'll do. I have one of those NMO mounts in my hand right now, and I'll swap it and the center console you wanted for your set of rear wheel well flares and you don't put me in jail for copyright infringement. How's that sound?

 

[rlrenz]

I've bought just the NMO antenna mount (no cable) from EBAY for just a couple of bucks - probably Chinese. I use the no-names for receivers, but for a 2-way, I buy Motorola NMO mounts, and Larsen antennas.

 

[patoz]

Even though it was 93° with humidity in the upper 70's here today, I finally got a few things done on my Ambo project. I started by removing the remaining lettering from the front over where the cab was.

Then I cleaned the black mold from the surrounding Oak trees off of the roof, and the green mildew out of all the cracks and crevices on the sides. I pressure washed the sides when I first got it almost two years ago, but the top had never been done by me. And from the looks of it, it hadn't been done in the last ten years by anyone else either.

Working with a 2,500psi pressure washer with a 2"-3" wide pattern spray, it took all afternoon to do the top and sides. I was working off of a 6' stepladder instead of just getting on top, because I wanted to find out what was under the black gunk before I put any weight on it. I all looks OK, but I did find one fairly sharp gouge in the sheet aluminum over the area of the side walk-in door, but I don't think it will cause any problems.



View attachment 285746


The two antennas up there are broken and pretty much trash, so I made two caps to cover the bases when I remove them. I made them out of two old Motorola VHF antenna base covers, and two rubber disk I made out of some heavy gasket material. I will probably install new antennas for some of my communication gear when I get to that point, but in the meanwhile these temporary covers will protect the bases and keep them watertight.

View attachment 285747


Tomorrow, I'll wash the entire thing with brushes and a product that was recommended to me, called Jomax House Cleaner and Mildew Killer .

Since it's mixed with bleach also, I'll just have to see how it reacts with Aluminum Diamond Deck or any other bare aluminum. Anybody else ever used it or have any experience with it?

Yesterday evening, I got on top and sprayed the entire roof using the Jomax House Cleaner and Mildew Killer solution, using a pump-up sprayer that is designed for use with bleach. The instructions say to let it sit for 5 minutes and then rinse it off. I actually waited a little longer than 5 minutes, and used a sprayer on the garden hose that resembles a pressure washer sprayer and delivers a pretty good blast of water. It did a pretty good job, but next time I use this stuff I'll mix it up a little stronger and use a brush also before I rinse it off. BTW, it had no effect on the aluminum diamond deck, but I kept the sides rinsed pretty well while I was waiting to rinse the roof.

As you can see in the picture below, it did a good job of removing all of the remaining black streaks, and is supposed to help prevent the mold and mildew from growing back as quickly due to the mildewcide it contains. Time will tell...

Before...




After...



Walking around up there was a little scary because I heard some creaking here and there, even though I was being as careful as I could and staying out of the middle raised portion as much as possible. The picture is taken from the rear looking forward. Just ahead and to the right of the forward antenna mount, you can see the gouge in the roof metal. It doesn't go through, and the picture makes it look much deeper than it actually is. The little black spot to the left is a bug. When it comes time to put the roof coating on, I'll probably fill that gouged area just for appearances sake, and to keep any water and dirt from collecting there.

 

[Elbert]

great thread....I"ll be watching to pick up some ideas. I'm in the process of obtaining a very similar ambulance body to modify / setup as a camper shell. In my case its just the body, which has been removed from the truck chasis, very similar model with access from the front of the body to the cab..etc and of similar dimensions. Path forward for me is to close off the front and then gut what I can't use and then at some point figure out a good mount setup for mounting on a metal deck or wood deck GooseNeck. I'll have the body on the front half of the goose trialer and my trail truck on the back half. I'm ball parking something around 28Ft long (trailer deck).