Decking out the inside of a canopy is the real benefit to owning one!
Inside you’ll have so much secure and waterproof storage space,
and the only limit is your imagination. A set of drawers facing
sideways is a popular modification for the inside of an alloy canopy.
Typically, they open to the passenger side, along with a fridge slide
that comes out the same way. That’s because, like with awnings
being most popular on the passenger side of the vehicle, when you
pull over at a rest-stop or on the side of the track for smoko, you’re
using the side of the canopy that faces away from the road and
passing traffic.
Second-hand canopies often come up for sale, and you can
hunt down a serious bargain if you’re on the ball. We picked up
this old-school steel tradie’s canopy for $1500 a couple of
years back, with the big bonus being adjustable mounts to suit
just about any ute. A couple of coats of white paint, a few
mounts for awnings and it was a perfect budget setup.
This is a perfect example of the importance of weight
distribution in an alloy canopy. The more heavy components are
hung right off the back of the tray, the more potential there is for
chassis damage to occur in moments like these. When planning
out your canopy, give proper consideration to how you can
centralise the heaviest components – particularly the spare
tyre(s), batteries and fuel and water tanks.
The headboard of an alloy canopy is the ideal location to mount
1 2v electrical system components. A common way to do it is to
use a piece of thick marine ply, securing that to the headboard
and then giving you an easy platform for mounting the
components. Other options include power boxes – swing-out
cabinets that you mount the components to the door of.
Hardware store first-aid kit metal boxes that are designed to
be mounted to a wall are perfect for this sort of use, allowing
you plenty of room to run the wiring behind the componentry.Plenty of 4WDers use their ute as a work truck during the
week, and a canopy can easily be decked out for both work and
play. The key here is to think ‘modular’ – what can be easily
removed when you need to go to work, or when you’re off on a
big trip? This permanent install of shelves and drawers within
this canopy also doubles as a handy touring setup as well –
those drawers are perfect for storing dry food and cooking
gear when camping.