Let’s talk van conversion. To save you some time, I’ll start with the cost.

I bought my van in November 2022 for $6000, and included was:

framed bed and mattress,
walls,
subfloor
electrical set up

The conversion itself cost around $2000. I did splurge on some items, like the maxxair fan ($380) and my sink ($110), but I wanted it to last and was willing to spend a little more. The total conversions costs are below.

Home Depot/Lowes: $1200

Flooring
Wood (reframed bed, and built sink vanity and seating/storage area)
Screws & supplies
Tools (I used what I had and borrowed from friends and family, but I did purchase a circular saw and the odd small item)
Caulking
Handles for cabinets
Paint
Miscellaneous

Amazon: $700

Sink $110
Rechargeable sink tap $20
Maxxair fan $380
LED lights for inside $20
Seat covers (I used duct tape to keep my seats together and added seat covers) $40
Decorations for inside $70
Storage nets $30

TOTAL: $1900 + $6000 = $7900

**Exterior Paint**

When I bought my van, it was white and all my friends bugged me said it looked like a van that should have “free candy” spray painted on the side. Well, it stayed white and creepy for a full year and a half before I decided to paint it. I sanded.. A LOT, and used rustoleum paint for the whole van and a textured spray paint for the black strip at the bottom.

**Flooring**

I purchased whatever vinyl plank flooring I could find at Home Depot that was the cheapest. I’m hindsight, I wish I used a single sheet of vinyl and glued it down, because my floor wasn’t entirely even and now my planks are lifting and shifting.

**Sink & Vanity**

I built the vanity from scratch and bought a sink off or Amazon. I used a piece of 3/4 inch maple plywood for the counter, and finished it with a clear polycrylic. For my dirty and clean eager, I used large plastic water containers, and have never has an issue. The faucet is rechargeable, with a soft hose that runs from the clean water.

**Bed**

I have a memory foam mattress that is cut to size and have under bed storage on the left that is but enough to slide a tote through.
The bin underneath the bed is for dry food storage.

**Storage**

I then built a seating/storage area. I was trying to utilize as much space as possible. Unfortunately, when I bought the van, the previous owner didn’t frame the walls in, so the panels that made up the walls were screwed into the metal. This eliminated the option of doing any overhead storage as I had nothing to secure it to.

I usually flip the cushions up and set my cooler on top the bench when driving. I don’t need access to the bench storage very often as it holds all the emergency gear like booster cables, the diesel heater (the air out flow is what that black circle is), vehicle jack, tools, etc.

As for clothing storage, I either pack it all in my backpack and move it to the bed when driving and in the front seats at night. I’ve also used totes under my bed, but prefer to just use my backpack.

**Roof Fan**

I then attempted the daunting task of adding a roof fan. Have you ever had to cut a hole in the roof of a vehicle you just spent your savings on? Well it’s terrifying. I was up on my roof with my jigsaw, and drill and was really hoping luck was on my side that day.

All in all, I got the fan in (don’t ask me if the hole is straight, because it’s not), sealed it all in and used YouTube to become an electrician to wire the fan into my current electrical set up. I haven’t had an issue since, knock on wood.

Electrical

When I bought the van, the electrical was done and I’m very grateful for that as wiring the fan was stressful enough!

I can usually have the fan running all night for 2-3 nights before I need to go for a drive to charge it. On road trips this is never an issue with all the driving, but it has died while camping and it’s not ideal but I manage. I don’t have solar panels yet, maybe one day! I can charge my phone or any electronics I need. I also bring a Bluetti EB3A 600W portable power station for backup.