Dive Vehicle

[BridgeDiver29]

My team is looking for a vehicle/truck/van for dive equipment storage and transport. We would like it to be able to transport up to 4 people, store and transport our gear, including our compressor, and have a freshwater rinse and other niceties. Towing capability and 4wd would also be plusses since we do some boat work and many ramps are slippery. So we have been thinking that a crew cab style pickup with a custom built box on the back would work well, or possibly a cargo/delivery van style vehicle.

I would like to know what other teams are doing for storage and transport and would appreciate any suggestions regarding style of vehicle, manufacturers, and customizers.

Thanks everyone!

 

[HammerNoMore]

I was rencently at a site where several fire departments from around the state were training and got to see a lot of these setups first hand. Some were quite impressive!

Almost all were using a box trailer for their compressor/storage etc. This wouldn't work for you since you want to haul a boat.

Might want to look at SWAB and PK Vans.

 

[medic1657]

I've been envolved with public safety agencies quite a while. In my area they have recently been converting used ambulances into specialty vehicles for dive teams, evidence units for law enforcement agencies etc. I've seen a couple converted for dive teams. The cabinets can be modified to the users desire or the vehicle can be stripped and re-equipped to their specific design.

A lot of the EMS agencies are looking for places to dispose of their old vehicles as an ambulance isn't something that most shoppers are looking for. Sometimes the vehicles can be obtained for a fairly low price. If the EMS agency has government ties, sometimes the vehicles are just reassigned to the requesting agency's inventory.

The ambulances that are preferable for conversion are the modular design and are usually van or truck fronts with diesel engines. Some still have an inverter for running lights, chargers and other A/C devices. Some of the chassis are 4wd, but those are usually the truck front designs. I've seen air compressors, generators, and even a cascade system installed into some of these conversions. During winter dives it gives the divers a place to warm up or change clothes since all the rear compartments are equipped with heat/air conditioning.

Just a suggestion in the event that you may have contacts in the EMS community.
Medic1657

My team is looking for a vehicle/truck/van for dive equipment storage and transport. We would like it to be able to transport up to 4 people, store and transport our gear, including our compressor, and have a freshwater rinse and other niceties. Towing capability and 4wd would also be plusses since we do some boat work and many ramps are slippery. So we have been thinking that a crew cab style pickup with a custom built box on the back would work well, or possibly a cargo/delivery van style vehicle.

I would like to know what other teams are doing for storage and transport and would appreciate any suggestions regarding style of vehicle, manufacturers, and customizers.

Thanks everyone!

 

[Gary D.]

Check out something like this.

http://www.scubaboard.com/t83490-.html

Gary D.

 

[mike_s]

The people who run Marthas Quarry have a school bus that they operate their "shop" out of. If you could find an old bus, you could do something similar to this. You'd have plenty of room and storage and could leave a few rows of seats in it for transporting people.

For the compress, they have theirs mounted in their bus on a chassis that rolls out the rear door for operation. Kinda a weird setup, but it might work for you. Theirs is diesel or gas powered, which is why I guess it's mounted to slide outside. Even if was electric you'd want it outside as the compressor and/or the generator powering it would extremely noisey. You could always weld on a rear deck and mount the compressor and generator on it to put it outside. You see this type thing common with NASCAR fans in "custom" school buses on the way to a race.

They used to have "pics" of it on their website (marthasquarry.com) but
they aren't htere anymore.


Since school buses aren't very "fast", a refitted RV might work just as well.