This page is going to be a mess for a bit, bear with me 🙂
I’m beyond proud of what I accomplished. The build quality is not perfect by normal standards, but it’s solid, and perfect to me and that’s all that matters. I actually love seeing the quirks in the build.
I chose a newer Ford Transit Connect as I wanted a small van that I could use as a daily car too. I also wanted some of the newer car comforts a newer car could provide. It’s a 2021 and doesn’t have as high of a roof as older models but is a bit longer which I wanted so I could lay down and fully stretch out in bed. A lot of people use the 2013 Transit Connect as it’s cheap to find and has a high roof. After I transition to van life, I may or may not decide to upgrade to a bigger van, something like an F250 mid-high top. Note I’m 5’9″ and any smaller of a van than I have would be a challenge for me. The older high-top would probably be a must if you are any taller than me.
The inspiration came from a lot of YouTube videos, but this was a big one. Note it’s a 2013 high-top version. I wanted the “garage”, but wanted to be able to get into the back from the drivers side back door, and wanted to make use of the rear window on the passenger side so did a 1/2 garage for the electrical on the passenger side and put the TV on the front.
This was another as it’s the same dimensions as mine.
My goal though was to maximize storage space so tweaked as I saw opportunities.
The bones:
I used mainly plywood, 1×2 pine boards, and little “L” brackets and metal screws for the framing. It was a bit challenging with the interior shape as I wanted to maximize space and not just box it out (although in hindsight I cannot insulate as well as I would like). The roof was a (ingenious on my part lol) gravity fit that got locked in place by the knotty pine paneling as I wanted to maximize height and not screw into the outer roof.
The floor of the van was already insulated and waterproofed so I just laid plywood over it for the base.
I insulated with this:
and this:
although if I had the money at the time I would have used this: https://havelockwool.com/van-insulation-products/
The wood paneling:
I used 36″ knotty pine shiplap panels from home depot. It is intentionally knotty and rustic, I mixed and matched panels from different packs to make it look cool. Attaching was mainly with brad nails from a nail gun. Be careful with screws as it will split – pre-drill the holes if needed. I used a miter saw for the cuts mainly and a jigsaw occasionally.
The flooring:
I used a laminate flooring like Pergo for the floor so it would be durable, waterproof, and easy to clean.
Bed / Sofa:
There are a lot of ingenious ways people do van bed + sofa combos. I chose a pull-out as it seemed to offer more space when collapsed. I messed up the tolerances so it’s hard to pull out so I will fix when my wrist heals.
I used this design: https://seekinglost.com/van-life/stealth-camper-van-build/pull-out-slat-bed/
For the mattress/cushion I used a futon mattress, with egg crate foam underneath for extra cushion.
The bed height was based on my ability to sit on it without having to slouch. As such, the underneath storage was based on that height. Luckily I found these smaller cube organizers that fit perfectly under the bed:
Electrical:
This is basically how I wired it. I currently have a 100AH SLA battery and a 20AH LiFePo4 battery as a backup through battery switch. I’ll replacing it with two 100ah LiFePo4 batteries in parallel.
I went mainly with Renogy stuff as a lot of van lifers use it. Victron is another big brand but their stuff is horribly expensive.
I initially bought this solar kit, but changed to a different controller as I wanted automatic switching from solar and alternator charging. I went with two 12v, 100 watt panels as they would fit my roof perfectly and 200 watts should work well for my needs.
The controller I switched to is this. It’s awesome as it not only charges your camper batteries from solar or alternator as needed, but it monitors and charges your car battery from solar.
I initially bought a 12v, 100Ah SLA (sealed lead acid) battery as it was cheap, but I strongly recommend LifePo4 lithium batteries instead as SLA take forever to charge, and have a constant voltage drop-off that pisses off my refrigerator. They will also conk out at 50% capacity, where lithium will go to almost zero.
In my test trip, 100Ah held out overnight with the basics, but I wanted to be able to use bigger appliances, and fall asleep with the TV on so I’m in the process of switching to two of these (in parallel) for 200Ah total.
Absolutely get a battery monitor with a shunt so you can monitor voltage, usage, and remaining battery:
The inverter should be sized to your actual wattage needs. The bigger the inverter the more the current draw even with nothing connected. I went with a 1000 watt. If you wanted to ever run a 1800 watt induction cooktop, you should get a 2000 watt (I chose to use a butane stove as I wanted as many non-electric options as possible). Note you need the appropriate battery capacity if you use big stuff for any period of time. I saw a good chart on that somewhere I will link here when I find it.
I use this to charge the batteries and provide power when I have access to an outlet:
Environmental:
I used this rooftop fan based on being smaller than the normal versions:
I used a jigwaw to cut through the van roof and the interior shiplap at the same time as I thought it would be easier to do the roof wood first and cut it out vs framing it around the fan.
A diesel heater is really the only way to go to avoid keeping your van running and using van heat all the time. Electric heaters will kill your battery in no time, and using a propane space heater in a van could literally kill you as it vents CO to the inside and can cause fires. Chinese diesel heaters tend to be the norm as the name brand Webasto heaters are like $1800. It took a lot of looking to find one I could kinda trust.
There are lots of diesel heater quirks I will outline here eventually. Big thing is the clicking from the gas pump can get annoying and all the cheaper heaters seem to be the same way. Also cutting in and routing the intake and exhaust in the only space available for it was a severe PITA. Always, always, always have a battery powered carbon monoxide detector in your van.
I was seriously considering a wood stove like Foresty Forest, but the van is way too small to do it and do it safely. I also want to be able to do urban / stealth camping if needed like VanCity VanLife, and that would make that impossible with the smoke.
I did get a 100 watt electric blanket which is awesome during the day and short bursts at night. When I up the battery capacity, it may become a primary heat source.
I also found a little 200 watt electric heater I have not used yet:
Still thinking about cooling, but will be based on where I spend my time. Can still use the van AC in a pinch.
Entertainment:
I have a 24″ HP computer monitor as a TV, and a FireTV stick and Blu-Ray player attached to it. I wanted a computer monitor so I could also use it for playing games from my laptop as doing so on normal TV’s make me nauseous for some reason.
I have an Amazon Echo dot for music.
Internet comes from either my car hotspot or my phone, but the car only works when the ignition is on. My Xfinity mobile phone did not have the greatest coverage in Winter Park where I tested but the car hotspot was great (AT&T). Bandwidth may be a challenge as I stream a LOT and “Unlimited” does not mean unlimited for any carrier. I’m getting a Solis Wifi Hotspot to test next time I am out though. I’d consider starlink, but the company is owned by a transphobic, fascist, human turd so not an option for me.
Stuffs and Things:
I built the kitchen area specifically around this IceCo fridge + freezer
I used this portable toilet as Camco is a good brand, and the smaller one allows some head room. It uses a valve that completely seals the waste away when not using. It’s not too bad to clean, and uses enzyme packs that keep the smell away and turn everything to liquid. It’s not the absolute ideal location for comfort, but I needed to be able to use it with the bed pulled out all the way.
I used this sink setup:
Sink: https://a.co/d/cDKVdFu
Faucet+pump: https://a.co/d/iufWdh3
Note the counter top is just an old 18×36″ white shelf I cut a hole in for the sink as it is easy to clean, and I already had it.
I started with an RV water pump and faucet but the flow was way to high, and it was ridiculously loud so I used a rechargeable pump designed for 5 gallon water cooler jugs. I pull fresh water from two 2.6 gallon jugs: https://a.co/d/ax6S4uu , and the drain sticks into a 1 gallon water bag: https://a.co/d/8f5a0SI (I found you do not need like for like with grey water, there is a lot less waste water than used water and if given the chance, I chuck waste water out the back door.
I got a bunch of camp cooking stuff, like FireMaple pans and kettles:
Utensils:
I used these organizers as they attached really well to the contour of the wall. I just used wood screws directly into them to attach and cut the straps off.
I used stick-on carpet tiles to make the interior more cozy in areas that would be a challenge to cover with paneling:
I put an RV ladder on the back door, mainly to attach a bike rack to, but will be useful if I need to fix the fan or something while on the road.
I also put an amber/white strobe on the back in case of an emergency:
I have a couple collapsible camp chairs under the passenger seat.
I have a lot of emergency type stuff packed into various spaces like an electric chainsaw, an axe, auto emergency kit with tow strap, tire inflater, tire repair kit, camp shovel, tools, electrical parts, fuses, wire, electrical tape, tarp, rope, garbage bags, flashlights, batteries, matches, etc.