Picking up our California T6 Beach this Friday!

[Kelvinoggy]

Hi All,

We’re picking up our 2017 California Beach on Friday, and we’re really excited!

We’re looking forward to getting to know the VW California community and learning from everyone’s experience.

Our van is the 3-seat version in the back, which converts into a bed. We’ll be looking to kit it out over time, including finding a good-quality fridge and a SpaceMate-style storage setup for the back.

We’d really appreciate any recommendations, tips or advice from fellow California owners!

Thanks in advance,

Kelvin

 

[Kayleigh]

Congrats and welcome to the Beach club

Any Beach related questions, feel free to ask

 

[Hawthorn37]

Enjoy it when it arrives !

 

[RedWhiteMonkey]

Hello, fellow Beach (T6.1) owner here.

In my experience there are a few things that are essential but quite a lot of stuff isn’t necessary or can turn out not to be as useful as you originally thought. Of the essentials for me are windows bags for the storage solutions (Van Essa or similar), a pull-out tray in the back (I bought one but would make my own now) and good quality fridge (Dometic). For most other things I would go away for a few days and see what you think is missing. Space in a California is limited so I think going as minimal as possible is best.

 

[Kelvinoggy]

Hello, fellow Beach (T6.1) owner here.

In my experience there are a few things that are essential but quite a lot of stuff isn’t necessary or can turn out not to be as useful as you originally thought. Of the essentials for me are windows bags for the storage solutions (Van Essa or similar), a pull-out tray in the back (I bought one but would make my own now) and good quality fridge (Dometic). For most other things I would go away for a few days and see what you think is missing. Space in a California is limited so I think going as minimal as possible is best.

Thanks for the Info! I am currently looking at the Spacemate pull out tray and a few people have mentioned Dometic fridges , what model do you have and how have you found it ? Thanks

 

[Kelvinoggy]

Enjoy it when it arrives !

Thank you!!

 

[Kelvinoggy]

Congrats and welcome to the Beach club

Any Beach related questions, feel free to ask

Thank you!!

 

[RedWhiteMonkey]

Thanks for the Info! I am currently looking at the Spacemate pull out tray and a few people have mentioned Dometic fridges , what model do you have and how have you found it ? Thanks

We have the Dometic CFX3 35 (https://www.dometic.com/en/product/dometic-cfx3-35-9600024617) which has a 36L volume (not sure why it isn't called 36 instead of 35) and find it plenty big enough for a family of four. It sits on an 800m deep pull-out tray (https://www.gruenthal-mobilcamping.de/produkt/heckauszug-vw800b-m/).

I can't find a great photo of it but it looks like this:



I went for an 800mm deep tray to allow me to use standard size Euroboxes in the back as well. It is also means that the fridge has a bit of breathing space for its compressor.

I recommend thinking about the layout you want in the pull-out tray before buying one. My set up meant I had to move the flexiboard a little bit forward in the van, but I decided that was worth it to give me the space and standard size on the pull-out tray.

 

[Kelvinoggy]

We have the Dometic CFX3 35 (https://www.dometic.com/en/product/dometic-cfx3-35-9600024617) which has a 36L volume (not sure why it isn't called 36 instead of 35) and find it plenty big enough for a family of four. It sits on an 800m deep pull-out tray (https://www.gruenthal-mobilcamping.de/produkt/heckauszug-vw800b-m/).

I can't find a great photo of it but it looks like this:

View attachment 151225

I went for an 800mm deep tray to allow me to use standard size Euroboxes in the back as well. It is also means that the fridge has a bit of breathing space for its compressor.

I recommend thinking about the layout you want in the pull-out tray before buying one. My set up meant I had to move the flexiboard a little bit forward in the van, but I decided that was worth it to give me the space and standard size on the pull-out tray.

Brilliant thanks for the info! Very helpful! Appreciate it!

 

[Perfectos]

+ 1 for Vanessa bags one each side.
+1 for Dometic cfx 35 - new model is essentially the same. - game changer - edit fridge has now failed so looking at far cheaper alternatives!
Solar panel 100w - Solar camper solutions

Edit :
These are the three best purchases you will make with a T6 beach.

Pull out tray , some swear by them.

Really useful boxes are exactly that, various sizes available but I find 35litre and 18 litre boxes the most usefull and fit under the MFB.


Top tip:

VIP Membership of this forum , priceless

Some form of internal or external black out from front screen and side cab windows will assist with black out when using the downstairs bed. The factory material blind are ok but after market do a better job

 

[RedWhiteMonkey]

A solar panel to run the fridge pretty much constantly in summer is great but it depends if you camp with or without hookup or move around a lot.

Solar solutions are designed especially for the California, I would have bought from there if it wasn't for Brexit making buying from outside the UK a pain. I made my own in the end, it was good fun to do and cheaper.

 

[Kelvinoggy]

+ 1 for Vanessa bags one each side.
+1 for Dometic cfx 35 - new model is essentially the same. - game changer
Solar panel 100w - Solar camper solutions

Edit :
These are the three best purchases you will make with a T6 beach.

Pull out tray , some swear by them.

Really useful boxes are exactly that, various sizes available but I find 35litre and 18 litre boxes the most usefull and fit under the MFB.


Top tip:

VIP Membership of this forum , priceless

Some form of internal of external black out from front screen and side cab windows will assist with black out when using the downstairs bed. The factory material blind are ok but after market do a better job

Thanks for the information it’s really appreciated!

 

[Kelvinoggy]

A solar panel to run the fridge pretty much constantly in summer is great but it depends if you camp with or without hookup or move around a lot.

Solar solutions are designed especially for the California, I would have bought from there if it wasn't for Brexit making buying from outside the UK a pain. I made my own in the end, it was good fun to do and cheaper.

Thanks for the suggestion! This is something that has crossed my mind as I really don’t know how long the leisure battery will last with say a dometic fridge , my van is a 2017 can you even see the battery voltage do you know ? Thanks

 

[Perfectos]

Thanks for the suggestion! This is something that has crossed my mind as I really don’t know how long the leisure battery will last with say a dometic fridge , my van is a 2017 can you even see the battery voltage do you know ? Thanks

Dometic fridges have a setting where you can Set a safety cut off at a certain voltage to avoid killing the battery. (Three settings low medium and high)

If your single LB is original I would think it wouldn't cope with more than a day powering a fridge, most definitely if you try and charge phones pads etc. unless you run the engine or use Electric hook up.
when new, the single LB will run the fridge for 3-4 days, this does deplete over time.
Driving will recharge thd LB quite quickly. (Avoid idling the engine whilst stationary on site )

Factors affecting run time from the battery: dependant on ambient outside temp (how hard the compressor has to work, and what temperature you set the fridge / freezer too). It's basically the same fridge freezer as at home, the lower the temp, the harder it has to work to maintain temp, the more current it requires.

You can mitigate some of the battery usage by initially cooling the fridge and contents fully at home b4 loading the fridge into the van (you can also add ice packs to ensure the fridge is using minimal power). We quite often taken frozen food with us for the first few days meals. Allowing it to defrost naturally and slowly in the fridge before using over a couple of days, this helps keep battery depletion to a minimum.
Similarly depends on how many times you open the fridge to retrieve drinks, food etc.

As far as reading the voltage, there are two easily accessible 12v sockets in The living area and one in the boot area, in the living area: one on the passenger B pillar , the other at the rear of the sliding door on the trim panel, by the useless cup holder.

Buy yourself a cheap 12v plug in charger that shows the voltage. These can be used periodically to keep an Eye on the LB voltage.

The 12v plug in voltage display (see image below) is useful for the front 12v socket as well as rears, when plugged in you can keep an eye on when the van goes into Regen (voltage increases to 14+ volts constantly, the engine revs at idle increase to 1000 instead of the normal 800 revs, also start stop is disabled during Regen , the use of all three can assist in understanding when the van is In Regen (look up post regarding Regen and allowing the van to complete a Regen regularly)

Solar will fully top up the LB even on cloudy days (not very cloudy or heavy rain)

Hope that helps a bit - plenty of reading to do!

 

[Kelvinoggy]

Dometic fridges have a setting where you can Set a safety cut off at a certain voltage to avoid killing the battery. (Three settings low medium and high)

If your single LB is original I would think it wouldn't cope with more than a day powering a fridge, most definitely if you try and charge phones pads etc. unless you run the engine or use Electric hook up.
when new, the single LB will run the fridge for 3-4 days, this does deplete over time.
Driving will recharge thd LB quite quickly. (Avoid idling the engine whilst stationary on site )

Factors affecting run time from the battery: dependant on ambient outside temp (how hard the compressor has to work, and what temperature you set the fridge / freezer too). It's basically the same fridge freezer as at home, the lower harder it has to work to maintain temp, the more current it requires.

You can mitigate some of the battery usage by initially cooling the fridge and contents fully at home b4 loading the fridge into the van (you can also add ice packs to ensure the fridge is using minimal power). We quite after taken frozen food with us for the first few days meals. Allowing it to defrost naturally and slowly in the fridge before using over a couple of days, this helps keep battery depletion to a minimum.
Similarly depends on how many times you open the fridge to retrieve drinks, food etc.

As far as reading the voltage, there are two easily accessible 12v sockets i. The living area and one in the boot area, in the living area: one on the passenger B pillar , the other at the rear of the sliding door on the trim panel, by the useless cup holder.

Buy yourself a cheap 12v plug in charger that shows the voltage. These can be used periodically to keep an Eye on the LB voltage.

The 12v plug in voltage display (see image below) is useful for the front 12v socket , when plugged in you can keep an eye on when the van goes into Regen (voltage increases to 14+ volts constantly, the engine revs at idle increase to 1000 instead of the normal 800 revs, also start stop is disabled during Regen , the use of all three can assist in understanding when the can is In Regen (look up post regarding Regen and allowing the van to complete a Regen regularly)

Solar will fully top up the LB even on cloudy days (not very cloudy or heavy rain)

Hope that helps a bit - plenty of reading to do!

View attachment 151286

Thank you for your very detailed response! This is super helpful so thanks for taking the time to write this!

 

[Perfectos]

Two more sleeps

 

[Kenb17]

+1 for Vanessa bags, slide out tray, fridge and decen front blinds, we use internal insulated ones but that’s a whole other debate.

 

[dripster]

Welcome to the wonderful world of the Beach.
+1 for the window bags, use up 'no' room and hold a good amount of stuff.
We have this fridge which just fits under the multiflex: https://www.dellonda.co.uk/products...eezer-cool-box-for-car-camping-led-12-24-230v

 

[Black Forest]

Welcome to the beach club!

VIP member discounts are very worthwhile.

For us two, we took the triple size bench out as it weighs the same as a small moon. Same for the mulitflex board and the mattress. We sleep upstairs. Got a third single seat instead opposite the passenger which swivels, now we have loads of space.
Slider, Dometic and Eurocrates. Hookup cables and you may consider after a while, a folding loo and cat litter.

Have a good read around the overhead display and functions for camping mode etc etc as these are very useful.

have fun!

 

[Perfectos]

This “shoe” box is very very useful, we use it for additional storage of everything we want to hand, cables, cork screw Charging station.
We even store crocs in it !
You can buy them
I made this out of 5 mm ply, made it a little bigger than the plans I’ve posted in other threads (one quite recent)
I’ve added net pockets and a canvas bag to the front.

I have a fixed 12v charger that plugs in to the cup holder 12v . It shows the voltage when plugged in.

When not on hook up we keep our cfx35 fridge in the van (lower bed can still be used fully )

View attachment IMG_5617.jpeg



View attachment IMG_5620.jpeg

View attachment IMG_5621.jpeg

 

[Perfectos]

Side table 18mm ply , brackets from Chinese seller (Temu or Ali , can’t remember which one).
Literally a few pounds (sold in pairs)
Stays in position all the time, can’t slide out unless lifted up fully

View attachment 151426

View attachment 151427

 

[Kenb17]

Side table 18mm ply , brackets from Chinese seller (Temu or Ali , can’t remember which one).
Literally a few pounds (sold in pairs)
Stays in position all the time, can’t slide out unless lifted up fully

View attachment 151426

View attachment 151427

Hi, any links or info for brackets, great idea.

 

[Perfectos]

Hi, any links or info for brackets, great idea.

I would use three or four to give it as much support as possible


I added the self adhesive soft part of Velcro to the curved face that touches the panel in the van

 

[pluc99]

Friday was yesterday. Where are the pictures?

 

[Perfectos]

Friday was yesterday. Where are the pictures?

Obvs out having Fun , did nobody tell them photos are obligatory?