Choosing my van – being six foot three I needed a van that was as tall inside as possible. The Sprinter van provided 79.1 inches of height inside the vehicle. The next option was to decide on how long of a vehicle I wanted and with having to sleep front to back and not side to side I wanted the longest available. The need to sleep front to back is caused by the width being less than my height. I went with the turbo diesel option for the engine as a diesel will run “forever” when proper maintenance is performed. The four wheel drive version was not something I think I needed allowing me to choose the two wheel drive vehicle. Lastly the good folks at Mercedes was offering zero percent interest on a 36 month loan, icing on the cake.
Design – the most important part of the build of a van and is something that you should not take lightly. Me I bought some graph paper and went to doing some drawings of what I thought I wanted the inside to look like. After a few different layouts on paper, the next phase was the taping out of the van. Blue painters tape went on the walls and floor to show how things would look in the van. An idea that I did not use was to use boxes to show the 3D version of the layout and if I had done that things in the build would have been better. Tip from me is make your temporary layout in 3D. Reason for this is I was making a closet to hang coats, etc. and I put that right near the door. Well when I was seated I could not see out the door something that would be good to do while eating a meal or typing so my plans went out the window and an improvement was needed. Now I have no closet as it did not work on the other side of the van in a space that I had available. Let’s hope the closet is not missed during my journey. If you have things like CAD or other graphic design software then maybe the 3D is not needed but the tape on the floor should be completed.
Additional prep work on van for me was to remove the factory installed flooring as it was not insulated. If you have a used van make sure to remove all of the rust and get a good coat of rust proof pain on the spots where the original paint was warn off. Once you get to the bare metal you can begin the next step or in my case first step of insulation.
Insulation – is critical as it helps keep the van cool in the summer, and warm in the winter. There are a few types of insulation which you can choose from for your van build. I choose Rigid Foam Board, RFB, for the main insulation and then used foam insulation, Great Stuff. Great Stuff was used to “butter” the RFB allowing it to adhere to the walls of the van but also fill in the gaps. Tip from me, if you are going to use Great Stuff or other foam insulation please have rubber gloves on and clothes that don’t matter to you as this stuff is sticky and does not come off easily! The RFB is great stuff to work with and you can cut it with a jig saw. Tip from me, get some poster board, or paper to create a template of the area you are going to cover with the RFB in order to save on cutting multiple times as the saying “measure twice and cut once” is alive and well when using RFB. The floor also needed to get insulation and I used only 1/2 inch on the floor as I needed all the height I could squeeze out of the build allowing me to stand up, a prerequisite of my build. The walls and ceiling are 3/4 inch RFB proving a higher R value, or better insulation value. The third type of insulation I used was radiant barrier and it was used on the wheels since the RFB would require a box around the wheels. Others types of insulation are Denim, and wool which I did not choose.
Solar power – is one of the reasons why I am now in Dundee. I wanted to be able to recharge my electronic devices when I was in the “woods” without running my vehicle battery down or having to run the vehicle. My thinking started with a suitcase type panel and a battery pack. I looked at something similar to the suitcase at Harbor Freight which required a battery pack similar to the Goal Zero Yeti but after some thinking, I wanted to have much more power storage and generation. Renogy was the maker that I decided on for my solar system. They make a flexible panel which I used, but also they have panels that are framed. I chose a flexible panel due to the size (very thin) but also that it would allow me to put on the roof of the van and people could not see the panel. The panel was 100 watts so I decided to purchase two panels. Tip from me, Renogy has tons of information on solar panels and solar in general and is a great place to learn more about solar if you are going this way. Now that you have panels you have to purchase a controller for your panels. This device in a nut shell is the conduit from the panels to your storage bank. There are two types of controllers you can purchase one is a PWM, Pulse Wave Modulation, or a MPPT, Maximum Power Point Tracking. I chose the PWM controller since my application is not that large. Note: Renogy has kits that will have all the cables, controller, connectors and panel(s) that you need to get started. I went this route and am very happy. Lastly, you have to decide how you want to connect your panels and that is in parallel or serial. Parallel (Renogy’s parallel vs serial page is the link) connection increases your amperage, AMP, and volts remain the same while Serial increases your volts and keeps your AMP the same. I went with parallel due to me running a 12V system and wanting all the AMP the system would provide. Tip from me, before you decide on the size and quantity of your solar panels you should do a calculation on how much power you think you may need in your van build. You can do this by deciding what is going into the van that will use electricity and do the calculations of how many AMP hours you will need to generate and store, more on storage below. Here is some information on how to do the calculation on how to calculate the number of AMP hours you will need to store/generate. Yes it can get confusing but stay true to your desires and you can have a solar power system in your van.
Inverter – this is an item that will convert battery power (DC) to electric power (AC) like in your home electrical outlets. Here size does matter in that if you want to run a TV, microwave or other home device make sure you have enough watts in your inverter to handle the device. I chose to go with a Renogy Pure Sine Wave 1000 watts inverter but the size of the inverter can go up to 3000 watts. You can even get an inverter that will allow you to “plug in” your van to charge your batteries but I did not choose one of this type. Main reason for not choosing this time was I did not want to put a hole in the side of my van for the outlet to plug into, stealth mode van is my thought. Tip from me is go with the Pure Sine Wave inverter as it provides a steady stream of power to your electrical devices vs the modified sine wave which will send “pulses” of electricity to your device, steady is better in my opinion. The pure sine wave inverter will use a little power when turned on but it is minimal and should not impact your longevity of being off grid.
Battery isolator – this item is a bit scary at first but is really good for you and your system. A battery isolator will connect to your van’s starter battery on one end and the van’s “house” batteries on the other end. It will charge the “house” batteries only when the van’s starter battery is fully charged and like Pratt Street (Baltimore peeps will know this reference) or one way only. The starter battery will not get a charge from the “house” batteries nor will the “house” batteries drain the starter battery with this item. Tip from me is this device may seem scary but it is fairly easy to install and will supplement your van’s solar panels for recharging your batteries.
Battery / power storage – there are many types of batteries you can put into your van from lead acid, gel cell, AGM, and lithium to name a few. The lead acid is similar to an old car battery that you need to make sure water levels are covering the lead and produce a hazardous gas. The gel cell, AGM, lithium batteries are sealed batteries meaning you can’t add water and are safer related to spills. I went with the 12 volt AGM batteries and choose to put in 400 AMP hours of batteries, 4, into my van. Remember above when I mentioned you need to calculate the number of AMP hours you need in order to size your system and here is the second place you will use that information. Here again is a place you can do serial or parallel connections. I chose parallel meaning that I still have a 12 volts of electricity but have 400 AMP hours. Example: you have two 12 volt 100 AMP hour batteries. If you connect them in parallel you will have 12 volts but 200 AMP hours. Serial will increase your voltage not your amperage or putting these two 12 volt 100 AMP batteries together in serial will yield you 24 volts with 100 AMP hours. Clear as mud now? Tip from me is in my van being most items are 12 volt I went in parallel to get the added longevity in my storage. Note: the inverter runs on 12 volts creating the 110 like you have in your house.
Wood – is a big item for the van build as I used many varieties and types of wood.
First type, I used pine 2×4 lumber for the framing of the bed/garage area, seating, sink, fridge and drawer area. All of these areas are “modular” so I could swap out any of them and not have to do a complete rebuild of the van. Pine is not the lightest wood but was available for me when I was doing my buildout. Tip from me is to get the straightest pieces you can and make sure they are square when building the frame. Second type, was used for the floor of the van has 1/2 inch plywood on top of the 1/2 inch RFB, since I needed all the room I could get to ensure I can stand up in my van. The plywood was just regular plywood which is inexpensive and readily available at Home Depot. Tip from me is to start with the first full sheet on the floor at the door opening and then work towards the drivers side of the van before moving to the back of the van. The largest sheet will be by the door opening and provide stability when you get into and out of the van. Third type, of wood used was 1/4 inch Birch plywood. Birch is more expensive than regular plywood but it is stronger and better looking piece of wood. The 1/4 inch Birch was used for the sides and ceiling of the van so a bit more money was needed to be spent here. The walls and ceiling which I put a water proof stain to provide protection and color. Using 1/4 inch allowed the wood to flex with the rounded sides and roofline of the van. I also got the Birch at Home Depot but it was hard to find during the quarantine of Covid. Tip from me is to start with the drivers side front piece at the roof line first when doing the sides. This will eliminate the number and length of visible seams in the van. The top should start at the front for the same reason. Fourth type of wood used was 3/4 inch Maple plywood as it is cabinet grade but not as strong like Birch and much cheaper. The Maple is used for the platform of the bed hence the 3/4 inch to provide the strength needed, and Birch required 3/4 inch as well. The Maple was also purchased at Home Depot. Tip from me, Home Depot will cut the wood to length to “fit into your car” but if you are nice and they are not busy they will make multiple cuts for you. Fifth type of wood used is 1/2 inch Birch plywood. The 1/2 inch was used for the counter tops, seat tops and cabinet doors. All of these places required a bit more strength than 1/4 but not needed the 3/4 strength.
Lighting – Lighting is key to enjoying living in Dundee for months. I wanted to have multiple “zones” for lights so that I could have lights over the bed on but not in the front of the van or visa versa. I also wanted to be able to have these lights on dimmers, see switches, so I would not get a “sunburn” from the bright light. Lights are also under the cabinets since it is good in the home why not good in Dundee? The garage has two zones of light since the front of the garage accessed from the living area and the back accessed from the back doors. These zones are not really near each other when you need lighting and a 3 way switch was out of the question. Two switches it is for the garage and also have 2 lights in the front and 3 lights in the back. The lighting is run off of the batteries and are 12 volt LED lights to they should never have to be replaced. I do have some backup lights as you always need a backup or two since you always find new places for lights while on the road. Tip from me, install is super easy for these lights and they look good.
Switches – Dundee has two types of 12 volt electrical switches in the van. On is a 12 volt dimmer switch for most of the lights and the second is just a pure on off 12 volt on/off switch. Multiple dimmer switches are used for the overhead lights since they are in 2 zones (front and back) and then under cabinet lights. Additionally, currently the garage as dimmer switches but I will be changing them out for regular on/off switches. Regular on/off switches are used for the water pump and “night light” in the van currently but will also work the garage light soon. Tip from me is to use the dimmer switches as the LED lights which I chose are very bright and it can provide a bit of lighting while not making it bright.
Water – storage of water is one thing that I went with the low budget but easy to refill way. I am using for my “Clean” water two 5 gallon Jerry Cans which are attached to a 12 volt water pump. Only one of the two cans is needed to supply water to my faucet so I have to move the empty/spare into the main location when the main in empty. It can be a bit of maneuvering but I think that it provides me with flexibility to obtain water from various sources. I can get the water from a water source at Wal-Mart, grocery store that will fill up containers of water or I can use a faucet/hose connection at a campground. I am limited to 10 gallons of water in my van for cooking and cleaning but that is enough for a few days. Drinking water will be carried separately from the water used to cook and clean. I can use the cooking and cleaning water for drinking if I want but it is a personal preference.
Stove – my Coleman camp stove is what I used in my van. I already had it and it was working fine but more importantly I wanted to be able to cook outdoors or indoors and not have to have two stoves. It takes a few seconds to take the stove out of the storage area and hook up the gas but these seconds are not a big deal for me, personal preference. The stove uses the 1 lb Coleman canisters which can be purchased with ease at most sporting goods, or Wal-Mart stores. Tip from me when you see a good price on a 2 pack pick some up as they travel well.
Refrigerator – the fridge was by far my biggest headache in the entire van build! I wanted an Isotherm fridge and I wanted the Elegance 115 a newer unit from Isotherm. The 115 has a built in control panel and LED lights with a fridge and freezer compartment. My headache started with Covid shut down China and Italy causing delays in manufacturing and shipping. I could not get one delivered to me for many months and had to go out on my first trip without a fridge but only a cooler. It worked by was not optimal so I was very glad when the fridge showed up. I purchased the fridge from a 3rd party since Isotherm would not sell it to me but when I was able to get a hold of Isotherm they did tell me who would get the first shipment of the fridges since I was calling them for 6 months to purchase the fridge. When the fridge arrived it was easy to install to my 12 volt electrical system since I ran the wires when building out the cabinets and all it took to install was connecting the electric and screwing the fridge into the cabinet space with 4 screws. The Elegance fridge is one item that I did not skimp on but also think that it will pay for itself in the long run as ice can get expensive and you can see everything in the fridge easily. The freezer compartment will also make ice in ice trays in less than 24 hours, Dollar Tree as ice cube trays so now I make ice. Tip from me if you like to drink cold beverages it maybe good to have a cooler as opening and closing the fridge often could make the fridge run more often using limited battery power.
Heater- this is an essential item to have in your van, in my opinion. I can live without AC in my van but if I am cold I can’t seem to get warm I am miserable. Having an auxiliary heater for the van is important to me as it will allow me to have warmth without running the engine of my van. The heater I went with is a Webasto heater and it runs off of the fuel tank of the van. The heater does require 12 volt electricity to have the fan run so in your planning make sure you have room in your fuse block for the heater. The heat coming out of the Webasto is incredible and it can get my van to a nice and toasty temperature in no time flat. I choose not to make the van’s temperature in the 70’s or 80’s but this heater will surely do it for me if I wanted that done. The heater is designed for a school bus and it also has a special adaptation for high elevations. Installation of the heater I did outsource as it requires a fuel line to the Sprinter’s fuel tank but the good news is that the fuel tank does have an extra port for something link this heater. The heater also requires fresh air from outside and then it also recirculates air from within the van. Lastly, you need to have the heater exhaust so that means 3 holes in the van floor.
Screens – I wanted to have some screens to allow for nice air flow in the vans. I was going to do them myself but it was not going to happen. I decided to purchase some screens and found a company Rolef out of Canada. They produced two custom screens for my van and I love them! The photos below show the side door screen and it has magnets to close the screen door. The back rolls all the way up to the top of the van or you can expose the garage area if you want. Tip from me, They are a bit expensive if you want good quality they are it for you and easy to install.
Window coverings – having a work van there are not many windows in the van. The front windshield and door windows on the driver and passenger doors are it for Dundee. I was thinking of making some curtains, or window shades but came across WeatherTech shades. Well for the price of a WeatherTech I could not make it if you included my time/effort and supplies so I opted for the WeatherTech and have been very happy with them. Tip from me is these shades are good for summer and winter and are a great way to go if all you have is the standard front windows.
Ventilation – a key thing for any van is to have good air flow. I put two fans into my van one in the front and one over top of the bed. Tip from me, It was the most scary thing to do in my van build as once you cut a big hole in the roof that is where the fan will go! Fans were the also the only choice for me as I was not putting in a generator or having multiple gallons of water for an AC unit. I have a cousin who is upset that I did not put in AC but the lack of generator or multiple gallons of water prevented this luxury item. The fans which I went with were MaxxAir fans. They are multiple speed, multi-directional and best of all have a rain cover so they can run all the time. They also came with remote controls that allow you to control the units without having to touch the fan controls on the fan. The remote also allows you to open the fan and just use it to provide some fresh air like opening the windows of your home. Fresh cool air sleeping is nice and since you can’t leave you doors open at night, due to food smells this gives feature gives you some fresh air. Tip from me, I went with the white for “stealth mode” but think that the smoke one would allow the van to be darker as which lets lots of light into the van.
Note: The links are for reference purposes only and I don’t get any affiliate marketing dollars. The links are to items which I purchased for my van and would put into another van if I needed to buildout another.
