[chrischarles]

Hey everyone! I cut up some unistrut for a roof rack over the weekend, and now i’m tempted to make a little wooden deck seating area for each side of my rear fan. I’m a little bummed that there’s quite a bit of flex while testing the weight with some scrap wood as I pushed down with my hand, but wondering if anyone has done something similar while keeping the overall height clearance down? I guess I could always go back and get the next gauge up for unistrut 🤷🏻‍♂️

 

[HarryN]

For most beams, the flex resistance mostly comes from the depth and shape, not so much the metal thickness.

For instance, a box beam would be more resistant to bending moments.

I have had pretty good luck with an 8020 material called 1515. Didn't try to sit on top though, it was mostly for solar panels. A lot of vans simply don't have the roof mounting point rating for sitting up on top - even though people do it.

 

[keeponvaning]

You can’t expect the 1.5" unstructured to perform as well as the 3" it just not heavy enough for your intended application. I used 1.5" aluminum Unistrut on my roof rack but all it does is support 2 solar panels and it is more than sufficient for that purpose.
You shouldn’t be sitting on the roof of your van no matter what. Van roofs are not designed for that purpose.

 

[Giz99]

You can purchase unistrut that is twice the height so it would be stiffer or add a second piece of unistrut. If you 2 x 4 was over to mounting location or if you use a sheet of plywood there would be less flex. Every product will flex to some degree

 

[diytech]

I agree with other comments. You'll want to go with standard (i.e not half height) strut channels, and also look for 12 gauge steel struts, not the more common 14 gauge. The 12 gauge 1.5" height strut channels will be up to the job.

 

[HippieGypsy]

Just an FYI, the max roof load rating per RAM is 150kg/330lb with no more than 25kg/55lb borne by any one attachment point.

 

[Wyoming07]

Just an FYI, the max roof load rating per RAM is 150kg/330lb with no more than 25kg/55lb borne by any one attachment point.

I knew it wasn't high...but wow!

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