WE DID IT!!!! After almost 7 months of blood (not much thankfully!), sweat (the Texas heat is no joke!), and many tears (most Kathryn lol), we FINISHED OUR VAN CONVERSION! And holy crap, we are in love!!! Back in January we announced that we bought a Sprinter van that we were going to convert into our home so we could travel full time. And we’re not going to lie, every moment since has been full of lots of learning, challenges, and stress.
It has been an extremely tough experience building Brisket (our van’s name), but we are beyond proud of ourselves for tackling such a big project and it’s pretty dang rewarding to know that we built this with our own hands (and a HUGE help from Kathryn’s dad–we seriously couldn’t have done it without him!).
To learn some of the details of our build, such as the biggest mistakes we made and our van conversion cost, keep on reading! Warning: This is the longest blog we have ever written, BUT it’s loaded with info!
And to get the full van tour, watch the video below!
Curious how our first 6 months on the road were? Read this 6 month update where we share the things we love about our conversion, the things we would change, our favorite products, and the biggest challenges of van life.
Looking for resources to help you with your van build? Here are two guides we highly recommend!
Van Build Guide: We used Sara and Alex James’s guides and layout for our van. In their guide they list dimensions, products, and more to help you out!
Van Conversion Academy: This course from Two Wandering Soles is LOADED with helpful step-by-step instructions, such as how to install a fan, windows, water system, subfloor, and more! They’ve made it so you can spend more time building and less time searching the YouTube and internet black hole for information!
how long it took
We purchased the van on Friday, January 25 and finished the van on Sunday, August 25, exactly 7 months later. For the first 5 months of the build, we flew back and forth from Seattle, WA (where we lived) to Austin, TX (where Kathryn’s parent’s live) to work on the van. We built the van in Austin for a few reasons:
1. Kathryn’s dad has WAY more knowledge and skills and we needed his help
2. We had nowhere to build the van in Seattle
3. The van was going to have to be registered in Texas eventually anyways (due to it now being our legal address) and we didn’t want to pay the hefty WA registration fees just to switch it over later.
By building the van in Austin, we only got to work on it whenever we visited (every 1-3 weeks), so our 29 week conversion time is not working on it everyday during that time frame. Kathryn also had to work her full time job everyday when visiting, so our amount of time per day was limited. We had heard that everything takes longer than you think with a van build and everyone was right! We ended up finishing the van 3 weeks after we had hoped to due to a handful of setbacks and the brutal Texas heat slowing us down a bit.
guides we used
We purchased two van build guides before starting our build, which helped us a ton! Van building is a massive undertaking, so finding resources to help us get started made our lives a lot easier. The first guide that we bought was Sara and Alex James. We used their van layout guide to help plan our layout (which is almost identical to theirs) and to also get insight into products they used. While we would’ve loved to have a super creative layout, what they had fit our lifestyle perfectly, so we didn’t want to add another challenge by trying to reinvent the wheel.
We also bought Dynamo Ultima’s van guide. While we didn’t copy their layout, we got some really good ideas from their guide, like how to build a bathroom with the Nature’s Head, plus some great product recommendations.
mistakes we made
Although we tried to research the best we could, had a great resource in Kathryn’s dad, and bought van guides, we still made quite a few mistakes during our build. We have always wanted to be transparent about this process and hopefully these mistakes can help someone else in their own build!
1. We bought things too soon. We got a little too excited at the beginning of the build and bought A LOT of things. Our plans of what we would work on next changed daily, so we wanted to be prepared and have it all on hand. But this backfired a bit. We unfortunately did not need everything we bought and by the time we realized this, it was too late to return the items. We estimate we wasted about $300-$400 on items we couldn’t return…ouch.
2. We insulated too soon. In most build videos that we watched, people insulated right away. So we thought “hey, this is easy stuff that we are capable of, let’s do it!” Unfortunately the insulation did not need to go up as quickly with the way we built our van, so it ended up being in the way most of the time. Going back to mistake #1, we also bought one bag too many of the wool, which was a bummer. We are sending it back to them though and will get all of our money back, minus shipping.
3. Our ceiling. If you watched our final van build video, you saw that we struggled with staining our ceiling. The first round was blotchy and wayyy too dark, so we sanded the entire thing and 6 hours later applied a lighter stain. It looks WAY better, but man, that was a rough experience!
4. Fan location. We put our Maxxair fan above the entry area because that was the only flat spot on the roof, but in hindsight, we wish we would’ve put the fan above the bed or added an additional one above the bed. Others do it, so it is possible, but with our solar panels and the shape of the roof, it would’ve been trickier.
5. Adding more t-vent windows. We have a t-vent window in our sliding door, but we would’ve loved to add more in the back for more ventilation by our bed. Unfortunately the t-vent windows are double the cost of the plain windows, which is one reason why we only have one. The placement of the one we have though will be helpful for cooking and the shower and we bought a mini fan to put by our bed.
6. Painting the cabinets. Oh boy, besides the ceiling this was probably the worst part of the build. Painting cabinets is SO much harder than it sounds. We used Benjamin Moore’s Advance paint, which is supposed to be self-leveling, but it is really hard to get it to look smooth.
Our cabinets have an orange peel texture in certain lighting, which bums us out a lot, but we decided that it wasn’t worth redoing because we didn’t think we could do it much better. If you can spray your cabinets, do it! We hear that is the best way to get a super smooth finish.
7. Flooring. While we may have ordered too much insulation, we didn’t order enough flooring, which was a very big setback our last few days of the build. The flooring we bought was only at Home Depot and we didn’t have enough time to order more. We tried to order the same kind off Amazon for wayyy more money, but we got sent the wrong type of flooring.
In the end, we chose to go with the incorrect flooring, which we could get at Home Depot for a great price. However, we aren’t sure if we will keep the floor. While we love the look and color, it is peel and stick vinyl, whereas our original flooring uses a GripStrip. A few of the floor pieces aren’t wanting to stick very well and when the sun hits the floor, the pieces kind of start to pop up. So for now we will use this flooring, but we will possibly swap it out next time we are in Austin.
8. Not calculating our power needs correctly. We thought we had finished the van on August 20, loaded it up with all of our belongings, washed it, and were all ready to film our van tour. But we had a BIG problem–our batteries were overdischarged and shutting off overnight due to our refrigerator (which is a big power suck) and our inverter running at the same time.
We realized that while we had a lot of solar panels, we may have needed more batteries to power everything. So just two days before we planned to leave, we dropped another $900 on an extra 100 Ah Lithium battery. 🙁 We’re glad we figured this out before we left, but having a setback right as we finally thought we were done was tough (and not fun on our wallet).
9. Underestimating how hard van building is. “Let’s build a van, it’ll be fun!” we said 7 months ago. We knew it would be hard, but we definitely underestimated how hard it is, especially when you have zero skills and have a budget. We tried to make some things ourselves, like all of our window covers, but when you have zero sewing skills, it can be incredibly frustrating to do everything yourself and have it turn out nice.
So if you have some room in your budget, hire some people to help. We had someone make our cushions and it was the BEST investment we made! We ended up buying one nice window cover for our sliding door and while it sucked to spend the money, it was worth it since it will last much longer than the crappy homemade one we made.
total cost
And now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for…our van conversion cost! Disclaimer: this cost does not include the actual van, which was around $55k after taxes, title, fees, extra warranty, etc. This total does include all supplies and labor. And the grand total is…..
$23,374
So in total, our new home cost us about $78,374, which is definitely cheaper than a house in Austin or Seattle and is what we spent on rent for one year in Seattle.
We financed our van, so we do have a payment every month, but we paid for the conversion out of pocket. To give some perspective on our van conversion cost, we had gotten quotes from a few van build companies that were around $100K for everything we wanted (that DOES NOT include the van…yeesh!).
We got everything we wanted, plus a design that fit our style much better, for WAY less by doing it ourselves! We definitely could’ve done the build for less and we did go over our initial budget, but we tried to use high quality materials that would hold up over time, help us reduce weight, and also maximize the space.
We are super happy with how the van turned out and think it’ll fit our lifestyle perfectly and give us the comforts of a real home!
cost breakdown
So now that you know the total, we wanted to share what exactly made up this cost. Below is a breakdown of our van conversion cost by category, as well as some of the main products we used. We hope that this helps you get a better idea of what your van conversion cost may be, as well as what products we recommend!
Note: this blog post contains affiliate links, which means that if you use the links provided and make a purchase, we get a small commission at no extra cost to you. We will only ever recommend products we actually use during our adventures and think you can benefit from too!
insulation – $512
We insulated our van with Havelock Wool, which is 100% sheep’s wool from New Zealand. There are tons of benefits to this type of insulation, which we outlined here.
As we mentioned above, we bought too much of some items and unfortunately Havelock Wool was one of them. We ended up using 3 batts of wool for the walls, ceiling, and floor of the van. We are sending back our 4th bag, which we never opened.
Aluminess Ladder
MaxxAir Fan
Passenger Rear Windows
Back Door Windows
Driver Rear Window
Sliding Door t-vent Window
Window Covers
Sliding Door Window Cover
electrical – $5,032
Electrical is a tricky beast, but we tried to find other van lifers with a similar lifestyle to ours (working full time on the road) to get a decent idea of what we would need. We would rather have too much power than not enough.
Solar Panels (4)
Solar Charge Controller
Inverter
Batteries (3)
Outlets
Light Switches
Lights
Battery Monitor
Heater
DC to DC Battery Charger
Heater
DC to DC Battery Charger
safety – $300
Safety is a HUGE thing for us on the road! We want to be able to monitor our van and Kona with a camera, be notified if anyone breaks the glass, as well as detect the temperature if we leave Kona in the van to run into the store.
Simplisafe
Carbon Monoxide Alarm
internet – $500
Between corporate jobs, freelancing jobs, and our blog, we will be working tons in the van and needed to ensure we had the ability to get internet the majority of the time. We have two hotspots–our AT&T unlimited data plan with our phones and a Verizon unlimited data plan with a jetpack. We also have a WeBoost, which helps boost our cell signal (ex: can take it from 2 bars to 4 bars).
WeBoost
Verizon Jetpack
bathroom – $3,500
Having a bathroom in the van was a MUST for us! While we are simplifying our life in so many ways, we still wanted some comforts of a home. A toilet was crucial so we don’t have to scramble to find a bathroom, especially at night. And the shower is a nice bonus for quick rinse offs when we can’t take real showers at a gym.
Shower Pan
Shower Door
Hot Water Heater
Water Pump (2)
Shower Head
Shower Mixer
Compost Toilet
Water Tanks (13 & 23 gallon)
Water Hose
Tank Level Monitor
Gray Water Ball Valve
interior – $1,600
From paint to flooring to cabinet items, this section covers all of the items that help make the interior functional and in our opinion, beautiful!
Vinyl Flooring
Butcher Block
Dark Walnut Stain (Counters & Table)
Dark Walnut Stain (Ceiling)
Cabinet Lifts
Cabinet Latches
Cabinet Hardware
Bug Screen
Blackout Curtain
Headliner Fabric
Blackout Curtain
Headliner Fabric
kitchen – $3,300
While our kitchen is much smaller than the one we had in Seattle, we are pretty pumped about how we used the space and for the many meals we will cook with a view!
Sink
Faucet
Backsplash
Refrigerator
Stovetop
Trashcan
Tea Kettle
Pour Over
Burr Grinder
bed/dining – $1,700
We chose to go with a layout where the seating area converts to a bed and couldn’t be happier! We love having multiple uses for the space and the bed is super comfy!
Cushion Fabric
Cushion Foam (4″)
Cushion Foam (2″)
Table Swivel
wood – $2,100
We got the majority of our wood from Fine Lumber in Austin, TX, with a few pieces purchased at Lowe’s and Home Depot.
supplies/tools – $1,000
We were very fortunate that Kathryn’s dad owned a lot of tools that we used for the build. It saved us a lot of money! It would be impossible to list all of the tools we used, but here are some of the ones we used many times and consider to be must-haves!
Plate Joiner
Electric Sander
Router Bit
Jigsaw
Mitre Saw
Table Saw
Mitre Saw
Table Saw
We are SO excited for our new life on the road and cannot wait to share it with all of you! If you have any questions about our van build, van conversion cost, van life, or any of our travels, let us know! We’re always happy to help!
planning your own van build?
Pin this blog to help plan your conversion!
So much useful information that took a lot of time and effort to put together. You are so thorough! Great job!
We really hope this can help someone else on their van build! Thank you!
Great job. But how did you get thru life up to this point without ever touching a tool? Not judging, just kind of amazed. I can’t go a week without some DIY job at home.
Hahaha well we have done some Habitat for Humanity projects and other small projects, but the van was a whole new beast!
Kathryn and Adam – this is an amazing post and love what you guys are doing! My wife and I just started our van build a month ago and we are taking a very similar approach. We bought Sara and Alex’s van guide layout and plan to build out the outdoorsman layout, in hopes to finish by June 1, 2020.
So far we completed the backdoor windows, the ceiling fan, and back up camera. Next up wee have our side panel windows as well as the t-vent sliding door window, then the roof rack.
Thanks for providing the lessons learned/mistakes you made along the way, it definitely helps us as we move forward on the build.
I may be reaching out via Instagram for further questions as we get deeper into the build (if that’s ok)!
Thanks so much,
Kevin
Kevin, thank you sooo much!!! We are so glad that this helps a bit and you can learn from our mistakes. Feel free to DM us or email us anytime, we are happy to try to help 🙂 The scariest part is cutting the holes in the van and y’all already have some of those done–woo! Good luck to y’all!
Congrats on the finishing the build out (and officially starting van life)! For whatever it’s worth, the ceiling looks gorgeous. That extra work was totally worth it!
Thank you so much Sarah! We are SO happy we redid it! It was worth the crazy shoulder workout we got lol!
Just spent a night watching all of your conversion videos and then reading this post.
Can’t wait to dig in further–can’t thank you enough for putting it together!
You’re so welcome! We hope that some of it was helpful. Thank you for watching and reading! ?
We are in the process of beginning a van build, same model and year, including a bathroom as well as seats and beds for four. We are currently ordering everything needed to begin the build but won’t get the van until late December, so still plenty of time to make some changes. Can you PM me with more information about your plumbing, pictures or videos of installation would be great!
I am curious about the split of freshwater and greywater tanks and how you interconnected them as we are running into the same weight distribution issue.
Hi Bill! We didn’t really film the installation, as we were rushing to get it done then, but we will send over some photos later today 🙂
Hi Guys,
I recently discovered you on Instagram and all the sudden it was 1 am and there I was reading details in your Blog, watching your youtube videos, until my wife started complaining next to me because how late it was 🙂
I’m planning to buy a brand new Mercedes Sprinter 170 (hopefully a 4×4 if budget allows). I have very particular needs since I’m an avid kayak fisherman. My Hobie Pro-angler 12 kayak is long, wide and heavy, but it is my baby and I’m buying the van because I want the freedom it will give me to fish on my kayak in many different places.
The above restrict me a bit in terms of my layout but I think I have figured that part since I don’t plan to live in the Camper van full time, but extended weekends or two weeks at a time (for now)
After reading your blog and some of the comments posted I have a couple of questions.
(1) One of your regrets was putting the isolation way too early. Was that because you would rather have layout electric cables and plumbing before starting to put the havelock wool? or it was something else you thought it would be better to do it prior to putting the isolation?
(2) Plumbing & Electric. I saw a comment where someone else was asking for additional plumbing details. Could you please also share those with me. I’m planning to buy the Building Van Guides you used. Is there any other one you found in the interim. I definitely like one Sara and Alex James put together.
(3) I’m buying the van brand new, just like you guys and I hope to keep it for a long time. Any suggestions when it comes to negotiating with the dealer, dos & don’ts? I noticed there are very stiff about pricing and want to give you the impression that with Mercedes vehicles is pretty mutch sticker price and there is no room for negotiation. Was that your experience as well?
Thanks in advance,
Tomas
Hi Tomas,
We’re so glad you found us! Tell your wife we’re sorry for keeping her up lol! 😉 Your kayaking van sounds so fun! We can’t even imagine how many cool places you’ll get to kayak. Here are some of the answers to your questions, we hope it helps! Feel free to ask us any others you have too 😀
1. The only reason we really regret doing the insulation so early is because it just got in the way. The wool can be a bit messy at times and having to screw things in with wool underneath would sometimes cause screws to get twisted in the wool. However, I am glad that we insulated the nooks and crannies early because those spots would’ve been hard to get to later! We could’ve waited to do the walls and ceilings until we were closing up those areas.
2. I will email you the notes and photos I sent Bill (who commented below). To be honest, my dad did almost all of the plumbing himself, but we did use Sara and Alex James and Dynamo Ultima’s guides to get an idea of how to lay things out. But I believe we were the only ones who connected two tanks together across the van from each other.
3. So we did get a slight discount on our van, but not huge. I had reached out to Mercedes dealers months before we planned to buy just to get an idea of how their inventory was and to explain what we needed. I worked with one particular sales rep at Mercedes Benz of Georgetown for a couple months and tried to make sure they would have a van the weekend we had bought tickets to fly down. We ended up getting one of the first 2019s they had, but Mercedes had shipped all of the cheaper Cargo vans without radios. So we used the lack of radio as a way to get a little bit of money off (we got $1,000 off if I remember correctly). Without that, I doubt we would’ve gotten much of a deal.
Hope this helps! I’ll email you right now 🙂
Kathryn
Kathryn,
Thanks a lot for the quick and complete response. I got your email. Thx again.
I figured that was the case with Mercedes, just checking. I rather -1K than a radio 🙂 That takes me into this followup question. Since you bought a brand new van, are there any of the multiple features they offer, and now looking at things in highlight, that you guys found one could bet a better & cheaper in the aftermarket or any package options you wish you have added to your build from the gecko? Those features here and there can add up to a substantial amount, but my commitment to the Van is longterm, so I’m wondering and debating on some of them. Thanks again.
Tomas
Hi Tomas! We ended up not even putting in a radio and instead just have a bluetooth speaker, which has been working pretty awesome (and we got to keep that $1k savings!). Our van is basically the lowest end model. We did have them install the rails for us so we could mount our solar panels and the price wasn’t too bad if I remember correctly. We had heard that it was best to just get this done right away from them vs. waiting.
The fanciest features we have are a backup camera (which I believe comes standard) and cruise control. Both are totally worth having, but there isn’t much we wish we had, except maybe the blind spot detectors. We haven’t had any blindspot issues, but it’s nice to have extra peace of mind when changing lanes. If there are specific features you’re looking into and are curious about, let us know and we can try to give insight based on our experience!
Hi Katheryn,
Thank you for your prompt reply. There are some that I have been wondering if I should get them from Mercedes when ordering the Van or just look around once I get the Van. They are:
(1) Front engine bracket for the additional alternator $442
(2) Driver Convenience Package (Cruise Control; Keys, two additional masters; 12 V power outlet, driver seat base; Electrically folding exterior mirrors; Hinged lid for storage compartment; Attention Assist; Heated and electrically adjustable exterior mirrors; Blind Spot Assist) $1140
(3) Swivel Seat Package ($546)
(4) Comfort Package (Comfort Head Restraint, Passenger; Comfort Overhead Control Panel; Comfort Head Restraint, Driver; Comfort passenger seat; Armrest, Driver’s and Co-Driver’s Door; Lumbar support, driver seat; Comfort driver’s seat Lumbar support, co-driver’s seat) $710
And in a distance 5 (nice to have if extra budget at least advised otherwise):
(a) Premium Package (Wet Wiper System; Rearview camera (head unit display); Active Brake Assist;
Active Lane Keeping Assist; MBUX Multimedia System with 7″ Touchscreen; Rain sensor
(b) Exterior Lighting Package (Even more skeptical about this on$ in terms of value for $) (Fog lamp with cornering light function; LED High-Performance Headlamps; Partial LED Tail Lights) $1520
There are some other minor add-ons that are not worth mentioning. The above are the main ones that I would like to hear from others with experience before deciding.
Thank you again!
Tomas
Hi Tomas! Here is some insight for you. This is just based on our experience, so it may vary compared to others 🙂
1. What are you hoping to use a second alternator for? We just have one alternator and use it to charge our batteries with an alternator charger from Renogy.
2. Ours came with cruise control, but we would’ve loved to have the blind spot assist. I am not sure what hinged lid for storage means, but all of our storage areas in the front are exposed, so having some sort of cover would’ve been nice, although we cover the windows anytime we leave the van.
3. Some LOVE their swivel seats, but with our layout we really wouldn’t have a huge use for it. If we had a table we could swivel to that would’ve been nice. We thought about adding this down the line, but I don’t really see us ever adding it after living in the van. I think this depends a lot on your layout though!
4. We do not have this and it feels pretty comfortable! It’s definitely not fancy seating, but we sometimes drive 8-15 hours a day and haven’t felt super uncomfortable.
5. So ours came with a rearview camera and we had the lowest end model, so I’d look into that! Ours is in our mirror though, as we do not have a radio (which the ones that have radio sometimes have the camera in the radio console). We had active brake assist and lane assist in our SUV before the van. It was nice, but the blind spot was way more useful (since we always try to brake accordingly and stay in the lanes 😉 )
6. We have yet to wish we had exterior lighting. The lights do look cool, but our lighting has been totally fine!
Hopefully this helps some!
Kathryn,
Thanks again for sharing your opinions and experience. Really appreciated!
Tomas
I’m just starting my build and I want to quickly say thank you. I’m loving this build and greatly appreciate you sharing. Happy Travels!!!
You’re welcome and thank you so much for reading! Good luck with your build! 😀
I have watched hundreds of videos for van, bus, and box truck conversions and yours is by far the most helpful and has the best layout and features I’ve seen for a live/work van vs. an adventure van. Even if I decide to go with a larger vehicle I think I would keep your plan and just stretch things out a bit. Thank you for putting so much thought and time into your information.
Hi Jason! Thank you SO much! We really appreciate it 🙂 We can honestly say after 5+ months on the road, we LOVE our layout and think it works great for both full time living and full time working. The flexibility with the bed/table has been so nice to have (even if we are sometimes too lazy to convert it haha) and the bathroom is super nice for privacy and quick showers. Thanks again for the kind words! 😀
I have watched a LOT of van layouts (trust me ;)) but yours is by far the best I’ve seen and it completely fits our requirements in a van! We’re still in the planing everything out process and we’re kind of stumped in electricity and wiring in terms of where to place everything and where to conceal all of the wires. Do you by any chance have a plan of all of that as well as all of your electrical components? That would help us out a lot because we’re kind of stumped to be honest…
Thank you for posting and uploading youtube videos because e they’ve helped us so much!
Thank you so much Lucie, we’re so glad it has helped! We are still very happy with the layout and design we went with for our van! I wish I had an electrical document to share with you, but to be honest, my dad did 90% of that part since he knew how to do it already. 🙁 Sara and Alex James do include some electrical documents in their guide though that may help. We wish we could help more!
Thats alright ! Thank you so much for taking some of your time to respond!
Of course! Good luck on your build!
Hi, Love your van! My husband and I are working on one of our own and I was wondering if you could tell me how you made your seat/bead cushions. Did you have them professionally sewn? They look better than all the others I have seen. Your color scheme is very pleasant. Thank you so much for sharing. You have been inspiring.
Phyllis
Hi Phyllis! Thank you so much! We did have them professionally made by a local upholsterer in Austin. It was the only task we hired out and we’re so happy we did! I tried (and failed) to sew some window covers, so cushions would’ve been too much for us to handle haha 😀
So how often do you need to dump your grey water and where do you dump it I didn’t see any hoses
We have to dump it around once a week since it’s not very big. We can easily attach a small hose to it or we will empty it into a bucket to dump it properly.
Hi you guys did an amazing job! I saw a section called Cost breakdown but the only item I saw broken down was insulation… I don’t know if it’s just incomplete or I’m having a problem loading the page?
Hi David! So sorry about that! We just did some updates to our site and this post got a bit messed up. Adam is working on fixing it and hopefully it’ll be better by tomorrow. I’ll write another comment here when it’s fixed so you can check out the rest!
Hi David! The page should be fixed now. Sorry again about that!
Great job! Thank you for the information and resources. How and what did you build the cabinets with? what wood or did you buy them built? do they shake while driving? Over time, are staying together well?
Thanks again for your honesty and experience.
Hi Raquel! According to my dad, who remembers which wood we used a lot better than us, for the cabinets (not including the benches) we used 1/2″ maple plywood and 1″ by various widths for framing and for the cabinet doors we did 1/4″ plywood and 1″ by various widths for framing. They are holding together great! We have some creaks in the kitchen, but nothing shakes (the items inside do if we hit a bump) and everything still feels super solid almost a year later. Hope that helps!
Y’all so amazing for putting this info all together! THIS is exactly what I have been dreaming about and only found your site because you were featured on the Mercedes website. I was going to buy a camper over a F-150 truck bed but much preferred a van. Initially, wasn’t sure it was possible to get what I wanted in my head but you’ve proven the concept. First question is there protection or fear of hitting something that will puncture the grey water tanks? Second, are you able to tow or you’re maxed out on payload? I want to have an ebike, ATV, and small boat motor for an inflatable boat. Thank you.
Hi Heather! Thank you so much for checking out our blog and van! We really love van life and highly recommend it if you want to get out and explore more, whether it’s just for weekends or full time! As for your questions, we haven’t had any issues with the grey water tank. I think it’s up under the van enough where even if we bottom out (which happened once so far haha) we wouldn’t risk hurting it. As for the payload, we have about 1,000 lbs left if I remember correctly. The eBike would work fine, we even put some rental ones inside our van for a day, but the 3500 Sprinter may be a better option for you for a ATV, since the payload is higher on the 3500 dually models. Hope that helps!
How has the internet been working out for you? Are the two hotspots and the WeBoost good enough to manage your corporate jobs on the road, as well as your freelance/social media work? I also have a corporate job, and want to commit to van life, but worry that the unreliable internet would force me to give it up since I can’t sacrifice my job.
Hi Gabby! So far it has worked really well! Since COVID, we now work 100% in the van (vs before when we would go into libraries, coffee shops, Whole Foods, etc), so we are using our hotspots 24/7. The only time we don’t use hotspots is to upload videos since that takes a ton of data, so we awkwardly stand outside a library or Whole Foods to use their wifi, but that situation definitely doesn’t apply to everyone. Adam is now teaching english online and using video chatting and we haven’t had issues with that yet either. For us, we just plan to be in places with cell service during the week. We work a lot at parks or in random parking lots, but it’s worth it for the freedom of van life. Hope that helps!
:How do you guys like your tank level monitor? Seems like a very interesting system.
Hi Ryan! It’s great! We sometimes run into issues with it sensing things wrong on the grey tank if it’s a bit dirty in there/gets stained (despite us trying to be careful with what goes down the drain), so we need to flush those out more to keep them cleaner. For the fresh water tanks, it works perfectly!
Hi guys, we’re so happy we found your blog! We’re in France, but it’s so helpful. I was wondering, how did you put a button to empty the grey water tank? Thanks 🙂
Hi! We wired the ball valve to a button inside the van, but to be honest, it keeps getting loose and doesn’t work reliably anymore 🙁
Hi, guys, my wife and I love watching your vlogs and posts. You have mentioned a couple of times that you don’t drink – very cool, we’re with you – but what is your reasoning? Why don’t you drink, if you don’t mind us asking? Keep up the great work!!
Hi Veronica! Thank you for watching! We don’t really have a clear reason why we don’t drink, we just don’t have any desire to!