I purchased a 2010 Transit Connect for my Daughter's budding Art Show career and we place all the tent (long stuff) on the bottom and then pile up foam with paintings in between. Clearly this is a problem on a lot of levels.
1.) We need to get the tent out of the truck first (and its on the bottom).
2.) The paintings just aren't secure enough.
If I build wood vertical shelves, then I need to have a space on the bottom for the tent to slide into so it will fit the length of the truck or I won't be able to fit the tent in.
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One thing that hasn't been mentioned yet: you should have a barrier installed between the passenger and the load compartments. It'll keep the load from shifting forward in an accident. You can see it slightly in Alison's second photo. If your Connect doesn't have one already, it's probably a good idea to have one installed or build something substantial.
Absolutely! You can see her in my old van (on the left) what I had was just a piece of heavy duty plywood which was attached to the ceiling and the floor, plus the shelf was attached to it.
The next step was adding a ULine shelf to the side. This configuration allows me to get everything I need to put up my display out of the back and then move to the side doors to get the art out.
My pictures are long and skinny so this might not work for you but if you don't have pro panels you could probably put a shelf over the false floor for your work.
Last year I got a new van and because I went from an extended length van to a regular length I had to do some reconfiguring. The first step was to add the false floor where I keep all of my poles and rug.
I have a 16 x 7 trailer that I use for long distance shows. Recently did Old Town in Chicago, which is a pain for the trailer. So I rented one of the new Ford Transit vans (not the Connect). I built a platform on the left side with 2 2x12 and a 16" wide length of 1/2 plywood. Had to cut out to fit it snugly against the wheel well. I use a Trimline -- the poles all fit in the space underneath, and my 13 ProPanels fit vertically on top. It definitely helped that the van had tie points and rails for ratchet straps. The tent duffle bags went on top of the load, so that they also were easily accessible from the side door.
I have one framed piece that is 73" x 36". That has a simple framed outer box made of 1x4s with a Masonite skin on one side. The piece goes into a Frame Destination gallery pouch and then gets strapped to the side of the panels.
I built a ramp that allowed me to use two of my smaller wheeled cases. Those carried smaller 24 x 30" framed pieces, about 25 of them.
Several other large pieces (37" x 53", 33" x 53) are in gallery pouches, interleaved between sheets of heavy duty cardboard, or preferably, Masonite. I had a box with two collapsible ProPanel bins on top of the right wheel well that provided good lateral support for these four pieces. Again strapped in using existing tie points and ratchet straps.
I also have a couple of very large padded bags that we originally bought to carry Hollywood chairs. Each of those carries 4-5 24x36 framed pieces.
Coroplast and pine boxes, or rubbermaid containers work well for matted prints. There's a post here somewhere with the Chuck Wimmer design for those Coroplast boxes. Here's a thread on that...
You can't see a lot from this picture, but it all fit. It'll be a little harder in the Transit Connect, but doable. Working around the wheel wells is one of the major challenges. Putting platforms over them so that you can stack on top of them is the key. Fitting in a full-size dolly was not possible for me on this first attempt at using a regulation size van. Many people have some sort of mount for it on the back end. It's a bulky, awkward piece of kit. Since we didn't need to dolly into this show, we didn't bring it.
What size are the framed paintings? Packing them loose is a good way to get them damaged. There are some DIY packing boxes and crates that can done easily.
Robert, I can pack the paintings and I have done exactly what has been shown above with the minivan. its just no longer good enough. I have a transit connect and I am in need of building a custom interior to handle the tent and the paintings. I think the false floor is not a bad idea.
Depending on the size of the paintings, I can suggest a DIY tub made up of two stacked 33 gallon Rubbermaid totes. That combo will carry 9 20x30 or 24x36 pieces that are 1 3/4 thick.
These GalleryPouch art transport cases wont solve your organizational storage issues, but they might help with you art protection issues:
http://www.framedestination.com/GalleryPouch_Bubble_Wrap_Bags.html
How to pack a van with a 2d show...leaving the hotel in Chadron, Nebraska, on our way to Ann Arbor Original in 2007. Van includes the show and three Maltese dogs.
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