VAN TOUR + CONVERSION COST: Self-converted 170 WB Sprinter with a full bathroom!
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- Опубликовано: 1 окт 2024
- WE DID IT!!!! After 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!!! Thank you to everyone who supported and encouraged us during this time, we appreciate all of you so much!
Read more about our van costs, products we used, and mistakes we made here: adventuresofap...
VAN TYPE: 2019 170 WB Mercedes Sprinter 2500
VAN BUILD GUIDES USED: 40 Hours of Freedom + Dynamo Ultima
LENGTH OF CONVERSION: 7 months
CONVERSION COST: $23,374
TOTAL VAN + CONVERSION COST: ~$78,000 (we cover all of the costs in our blog)
VAN TOUR TIMESTAMPS
3:37 Closet
6:23 Heater/Fan/Windows
7:36 Bathroom
8:36 Kitchen
12:47 Dresser
16:00 Office/Dining/Bed
18:36 Electrical
18:55 Plumbing
21:18 Solar
VAN BUILD SERIES: • Van Build Series
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ABOUT US
Hi y'all! We’re Adam and Kathryn, an adventurous married couple living in a Sprinter van! You can often find us scoping out the best coffee shops, eating tacos, climbing mountains, cuddling our fur child Kona, and dreaming about Hawaii.
We created Adventures of A+K to help busy, budget conscious, and adventurous travelers maximize their vacation time and money wherever they go through detailed travel guides, vlogs, and resources. Our goal: to help you spend less time (and stress!) planning your trip and more time enjoying it!
We will be sharing 1-2 travel vlogs a week, so please SUBSCRIBE to follow along on our adventures! :)
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Note: We’ve linked a handful items so you can see exactly which products we take with us. Full disclosure--if you click on these links and make a purchase on Amazon, we get a small commission at no extra cost to you. We will only ever recommend products we truly love, actually use during our adventures, and think you can benefit from too!
I think her father deserves another shout out, that's the work of a experienced carpenter/builder to my eyes. Just curious, that so?
portnuefflyer He deserves tons of shout outs and I think he is sick of us thanking him haha. He isn’t a professional, but he has built cabinets, a deck, and a 1956 Ford f100 truck to name a few!
@@AdventuresofAplusK so talent!!!
Measure twice cut once and buy professional tools. Take care of them and always use sharp blades.
I need to borrow your father for a few months 🤣. Looks amazing guys!!
Just watching the first 5 minutes this has been one of my favorite builds ever. The tour around the van is detailed and filmed in a very good way and you two are great at presenting your van!
Thank you so much! We are super happy with how it turned out and we’re glad you enjoyed the tour! 🤗
You know they're passionate about RUclips when they're still active in the comments even after so long
It’s super important to us to chat with everyone who takes the time to watch our videos! 🤗 We appreciate it so much!
@@AdventuresofAplusK who's here in 2021? :)
Yours is in the top 5 of all I've seen, and I've seen A LOT
Thank you so much! That means a lot to us!
Cool security system
It has been really great to have to keep an eye on our pup!
😂😂😂😂
I'm just starting my van search! Loved this one! Can you send links to your other top 5 vans? Many thanks!
That's it. I'm selling everything and getting a van
Doooo it! It’s pretty amazing (most of the time)!
Hire one, take a weekend trip, then take a longer vacation in say winters or summers. Then get into it. Should be well thought decision, not taken impulsively or in emotion
Great advice Amit!
Totally agree. I've been doing research and it's a huge investment if it's not something that a person can manage.
Haha I know that feeling, Every time I watch one of these videos I want to turn my work van into a camper!
I like the way you can fit both toilet and shower in. Love the conversion. One of the best I’ve watched. Good job
Thanks a bunch Anita! We love our little wet room/bathroom 🧖🏻♀️
A couple things we forgot to mention in the tour/wanted to highlight:
1. We insulated our van with Havelock Wool. We did a whole video about why we chose them, which can be found here: ruclips.net/video/uCbw4nAPuIM/видео.html
2. We have gotten a lot of questions about where we keep pantry items. Those are stored in the upper cabinet above the kitchen. We eat mostly refrigerated foods (meat and veggies), so we don’t need a big space for those items.
3. We have a carbon monoxide detector and fire extinguisher in the van, as well as a roadside emergency car kit!
4. If you want more specific details about how we built the van, check out our van build series. We cover the materials, methods, and challenges we had in a bit more detail: ruclips.net/p/PLZKRTK1yCEM5PKa_B2tZJ5nWZOKsP1mLv
5. To see the products we used, our cost breakdown, and learn about the mistakes we made, check out this blog: adventuresofaplusk.com/blog/van-conversion-cost-tour-mistakes.
6. For our grey water set up, we used this electric ball valve: amzn.to/2L1ckO8
We will update this comment with any FAQS we get from the video as well.
Adventures of A plus K - don’t forget the first aid & roadside safety kit.
Ah yes, we have that too! Just forgot to show it (it’s by our dumbbells). Thank you for the reminder!
cabinet latches to keep them shut? i couldn't find a link on the blog or youtube for those.
Do people get mad that you just flush your grey water out where ever and what enviormentally safe products do you use? I am having some trouble finding some in my area!
We will only dump it if it’s legal to do so and typically only will do it on the road while driving. No one has noticed or said anything. We use Campsuds and are also trying this new Sea to Stream soap. We have to order it on Amazon and pick it up at Amazon lockers because it’s hard to find good options at stores.
I don't think I have seen a van that has such a well designed lines everything runs together so clean and fresh looking very good looking van you should be very happy at the out come.. very cool
Thank you Dave! We tried very hard to make the design seamless! We are so happy with how it turned out
I’ve fallen into the hole of van life and I’m not mad at all🙃 I really want to do this now!!!
The van life hole is a deep one haha! 🤗
I can admit that im totally obsessed with the van life, im the kind of person that plans out their life and this has become a major part of it.
Also these guys get all the love, like ever, because they be liking comments on a video that was almost 2 months ago, so gold stars for the fridge.
Thanks Lily! We hope you get the chance to experience van life soon!
Hey Lily you're not alone! I want to do this soooooo bad!
Same
I’m obsessed too ! I love it.
@@Firestarter078*
Would love you to show how you go “stealth” and how all your blackout and window coverings work. Is there light leakage viewable from outside the van? Thanks. This video was very thorough and informative.
We had some trouble with the homemade covers we made, so we ended up buying some covers that work so much better. There is maybe a tiny bit of light viewable at an angle, but we have only stealth camped once in two months, so stealthability hasn’t been the biggest priority for us. We will try to cover this soon!
I want to live like that! but im just 14.
We hope that you can someday! 😃
U can start saving so when U R ready 2 buy a van U have the money. 😊
I know U. R. 2. young now but one day U won't B so start saving now 😊
Keep the dream going!
Ben PH I’m 12 and want to 😂
After watching dozens of van build videos, this is easily my favorite! I'll be copying your design for sure! :D
Thank you Rob! We wish you the best with your build!
Looks amazing you guys!!! Love it!
Thank you guys so much! We are forever grateful for all of your helpful RUclips videos and layout guide and inspiring us to take a big leap like this! 💗
I felt your presence including Vanz amd the dogs when I saw it initially.. their van is soooo pretty❤❤❤❤
Van looks amazing, Thank you for sharing your videos. Your camera showa very professional image.
I love the way you look at each other, I’m sure you truly love each other
🥰🥰 We sure do! Spending 24/7 in a small space together has only confirmed it more!
I'm too lazy to make my bed, nevermind actually MAKE my bed, love the design though
Hahaha we actually haven’t minded it at all! And sometimes we just keep it as a bed for a couple days if we’re feeling lazy 😃
I am 20% in building my van and it has a very similar layout. Great job on your's. You two are very professional and fun. New subscriber.
Thank you so much Mike! 🤗
Amazing work you guys! The craftsmanship on this build is amazing! Can't wait to follow along on your new journey! =)
Thank you guys sooo much! Hoping everything is going smooth with yours! Can’t wait to see it when y’all finish!
This is probably the best van build I’ve seen thus far
Thank you so much! 🥰
My wife and I really enjoyed the walk-through of your van. We are buying our van here soon and will be starting on the journey of converting it ourselves. We really appreciate the information and references on builds and mistake content. Small things such as explaining the way you have the water distributed to balance out the weight and it still pulls from both tanks was SUPER helpful for our build. Thank you guys so much! 🙏🏼
Hi Austin! We are so glad that some of this was helpful for y’all! A big congrats to you and your wife for taking the leap 🙌🏼 Good luck with your conversion and let us know if you have any questions that we can help answer!
A suggestion: When you can afford it, consider setting up the ladder on a sliding rack on the van top. Unlock the lower connector, raise back and up while standing on a folding stool. Slide up and over the roof. Have a theft-locking system on the opposite side. Plus... think of a narrow storage system on inside both back doors, especially in the upper area.
TrickyRick
Thanks for the suggestion Richard!
Love to see vid about van life during seriously cold winters... Or is it assumed that van life is only in warmer climates unlike the North/South Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming areas? Just curious what van lifestyle might be if you happen to be in frigid north?
We typically avoid the cold (we didn’t really build the van for cold weather), but we have been stuck in some snow and single digits. We thankfully have a heater that works awesome, but the big issue is that we have to worry about pipes freezing. Some people do ski a lot with vans, but we are more warmer weather people. 🥶
@@AdventuresofAplusK makes sense. What about the solar panels? ANy ideas how durable are they on inclement weather? Hail specifically?
Thank you for sharing how much the conversion costs, and for mentioning that you went a bit over budget. I've seen a lot of van tours, and people refuse to mention money at all, and they act as if they have unlimited funds. Also - thanks for talking about how you make your living on the road. You guys are fortunate to be able to work remotely. Beautiful van. Now I'll have to check out your other videos because I want to see your dog.
Thank you for watching Zachary! We’re glad those pieces of info were helpful! It’s scary mentioning the conversion costs, as it was a lot of money 😅, but we saved hard to make it happen and we are very proud of the quality of work we did! Our pup Kona was at a training program during this, so she doesn’t reappear for a bit, but she is in some vlogs (including a few older ones too)! 🤗
I LOVE this van!! It is nearly perfect to what I would want!! You did a great job with the video. Thank you!
Thank you so much Karen! 🤗🤗🤗
I may just copy your build 😀. Great ideal on the grey water tanks/release valve and hole on the bottom of butcher block to reduce the weight!
Katherine, you brought a great point, your plans are to travel and not be a van lifer which is why I see this specific build suits your needs. The garage isn't really needed to store camp chairs and tables...toys. Look forward to your travel adventures.
Thanks so much Sam! We’re glad you like our van build. The grey water valve has been amazing so far. Super happy we did that! And the layout has been perfect so far for our type of travel!
Great job all of you. Wonderful use of the space and gives me ideas for my own build in the future. Thanks for sharing this journey with us. Happy trails and be safe.
Thank you Patricia! Good luck with your build! 😃
I love everything about this van as it’s exactly how I would want my van layout and design.Thanks for the tour!
Thanks for the kind words! We’ve been in it 3.5 weeks now and we are still loving the layout-it been perfect for us!
Hey guys, great looking build. I am looking at Sprinters and noticed you have a 2500. Most of the stuff I am seeing is built on the 3500 with the dually set up to support the weight. Have you seen any issues with weight on your setup? Why did you choose the 2500 over the 3500? Sorry if this was asked somewhere I couldn't find any mention of it in the comments.
Hi Aaron! I think you’re the first to ask! It came down to cost for us mostly and Sara and Alex had a 2500 so we were hopeful we could keep the weight down enough (since we almost have an identical van). We are about 1,000 lbs under the max payload, so we are totally fine on weight! We tried to be very conscious of the materials we used. Of course butcher block is heavy, but we would pick other lighter items to make up for it and balance the weight.
No issues with the weight! We get 19-20 mpg typically 🙌🏼
Adventures of A plus K Thanks for the reply, good to hear, I was leaning toward the 2500 to save the added expense of the extra wheels etc etc, Cheers!
I have been following Van People for a couple years. This is one of the very best builds I have seen ...really well done.
Craftsmanship looks primo.
Congrats and happy motoring.
From Normandy Park Wa.
Peace
Thank you so much Michael, Thank means a lot to us!
Hello everyone, everything good? Congratulations on your home. Very cute. I would like to know the name of the wood used in the sink, could you tell me?
Hi! It is butcher block 😃
I am 12 y.o. and have dreams about traveling in a van as my house. In my journal I am constantly designing blueprints and layout for my (hopefully) future van. What others call a mansion I call a vw bus- my dream house. I think many people say they want to take up tiny house life but many don’t fufill there dream. I hope that I actually will. This is an amazing van, very inspirational!
That’s so awesome Avery! We will be rooting for you and holler at us when you’re a bit older and it’s time to build your van. We really enjoy this lifestyle! It’s not for everyone and it’s not without challenges, but it’s a whole lot of fun. Keep dreaming big, save your money while you’re young, and we hope to see you on the road someday! 💗🙌🏼
Adventures of A plus K thanks so much for the reply, it meant so much!
Of course! We really appreciate people taking the time to watch our videos!
This is amazing, thank you guys for giving a tour and providing some great tips. I'm curious - what do you guys do for insurance for a thing like this? Is it just standard auto insurance or does it have a special policy since it's a camping van?
Hi Kaylin! Thanks so much! We have the van insured and have every dollar we put into the build insured as well (we provided a spreadsheet to State Farm). We also have a personal articles policy for any electronics and other items in the van. There are a few different ways to do it, but that’s what our agent suggested to us.
@@AdventuresofAplusK Thank you guys for the fast reply! Interesting - that makes sense to me. Thanks again and hope you guys are having fun on your latest adventures.
If i were to build a van like this on my own, would probably take me 10yrs. Wow what a van...
If my dad wasn’t there to help us and teach us it would’ve taken us that long 😅
That’s amazing, you guys are pro! The Van turned out so awesome. Can’t wait to see your future adventures.
Thank you so much! Definitely still huge newbs, but we learned SO much!
So proud of you two crazy kids! So glad I got to see it in person! Can’t wait til you visit me! I may let you use my shower!
LOL! If you don’t we will use your hose to fill up our tanks 😜 Kidding! Can’t wait to drive on up your way!
Love the van tour you guys! So glad we found you. Great job on the build and making it your own. Definitely gave us some ideas for our own build one day. Happy adventuring! 😊🏕️
Thank you guys! 🙌🏼
New sub here...this design is perfect...elegance without sacrificing functionality...having a bathroom within the van is a must for me...love this so much!👌👍🏼❤️❤️😘
Thank you so much! We can confirm after living on the road for a week that the bathroom was an amazing decision!
This is one neat van! It looks clean. Great layout. Wish you more adventures to come
Thank you so much! 😃
Thank you very much Adam and Kathryn for making such an awesome video and sharing many aspects of your life...As well as sharing this very beautiful ~ well planned out van build...I appreciate you both. :)) #SafeTravels
Thank you for the support and super sweet comment Mari! We appreciate it so much! 💗
Congrats guys! Your van came out amazing enjoy!!
Thank you so much Jen!
One of my all time favorite van builds. From decor, layout, water, bed, etc... you guys did great and should be proud. I’d love to do something like this!
Thank you so much! We are pretty dang proud that we were able to do all of this (with my dad’s massive help and guidance of course!) 🙌🏼
well designed and beautiful, I live in the dallas area and an a/c is a must, just a p-word I guess
Thank you! And if we were planning to van life mostly in Texas we would definitely need AC! But we plan to chase good weather so we don’t sweat to death lol!
I've yet to see a build with solar powered AC but I'd certainly try this on my own build.
I enjoyed the van build, you both including your Dad did a fantastic job! Be safe and much blessings!
Thank you so much! We all really appreciate it!
Your van looks very nice. I've looked at many videos of the same design layout and will chose something VERY SIMILAR for my future build next year. I have a couple of questions for you on my build that I am considering.
1) Your build is the only one I've heard about tying to separate water tanks together. How did you do this?
2) Did you ever think of reducing the size of the dresser by a foot and adding a pantry?
3), What about swapping the position of the refrigerator and dresser to get a bigger refrigerator? You wouldn't lose a lot of dresser space or counter top space.
Hi! We can send you more details about the water tanks and photos if you send us an email at hello@adventuresofaplusk.com. For the dresser, we use every inch of it between clothes, shoes, gear, etc. so we are very happy with its size! We don’t eat many pantry goods, so the upper cabinet above the kitchen works well for us! As for the fridge, the fridge surprisingly holds a ton! We mostly just eat meat and veggies, so almost all refrigerated goods and the one we have can store about a week’s worth of food. Although, it does take a decent amount of power.
I love your van... beautiful! And, I have those exact same Target dishes! :)
Ahhh the dishes rock! Super cheap and won’t break! 🙌🏼 And thank you so much Shellie!
Your build has inspired this old lady, you should be so proud of the job and of course we can't forget Dad's help (-:
Thank you!
so beautiful! congrats and safe travels guys!!!
Thank you so much!!! 🤗
So far the best design I found on YT. Like how you managed to make a bathroom and the shower, and some guys are like "you can't fit shower, it will take you a lot of space" etc., but you prove they are wrong. Good luck, and I hope you will enjoy it a lot. Cheers from web dev!
Thanks a bunch Stefan! The shower space is small, but it works great! For a 1-2 minute shower, you don’t need anything that big! And we like that it creates more of a closed off bathroom for privacy 😃
This project has only one word for it -----
OUTSTANDING!!!!!! ✌✌✌✌
You scared me for a second Tina! 🤣
Great idea putting the max fan above the shower. It will keep the moisture down. Many other Van people actually install a second Max fan aft and bow of the van. You might be able to recover some kitchen drawer space by mounting a spice rack or spice jars that stick with magnets on the upper cabinet. Where is your Air conditioner? Avoid Mexico. They stole my fathers van.
One of our regrets is not having a second fan or t-vent windows in the back for extra ventilation. But the fan in front works great for cooking and shower moisture! We don’t have an AC beyond the standard one in the cab, just the fan. Thankfully we avoid hot temperatures so it works well!
THE BEST van build video I've seen - thank you - wishing you two all the joy, love and laughter life can bring - Safe Travels
We appreciate that so much! Thank you! 😃
I am SO jealous. Now that I'm retired, if I ever won the lottery, I know now one of my first orders of business...buy a van like this outright, and hit the road! Nothing better than #TravelLife, but hotels are SO expensive! If I had a van like this, I'd grab the pets and hit the road half of every month of the year!
The van is so awesome for many reasons, but we LOVE basically staying for free every night while traveling (minus the occasional paid campground). It seriously saves so much money and gives us the ability to live on the road for cheaper than having an apartment + traveling!
Such an amazing amount of time, work, and planning. I’m so glad to see that it worked for the both of you so well that inspires anyone interested in Van conversion and outdoor lifestyle. Thank you for sharing. So enjoyable to watch your enthusiasm and accomplishment.
Thank you so much for the encouraging words Wanis! It was a lot of work and a lot of learning, but we’re so proud of all we accomplished and happy to be living life on the road!
awesome job asnd great detailed explanation of functions of equiptment. Thanks so much
Thank you for the kind words!
Great van. I love the layout. Now you get to go build some memories.
Thanks so much! We have made so many incredible memories so far!
Really glad to see someone using the Simplifsafe system on the road as that's the same one I'm considering. Google also has one with ADT, which is probably better but also costs $5 more per month. How's it been working for you guys so far?
It’s working great! The only downside is it takes a lot of our hotspot data, so that’s something to keep in mind. We only plug it in and turn it on when we actually want to use it vs. having it on 24/7 (like when we drive) to save data.
@@AdventuresofAplusK I remember you mentioning the data issue in the video. I was hoping that turned out to be not true after being on the road! 😅 Do you have any issues sending out a new ping to confirm your location when you move spots? And thanks for the info!
such an incredible van! I want to have one like yours someday but most of the materials you used aren't available here in Ph 🇵🇭 ☹️ also, Adam is fvcking HOT sorry Kathryn
Hahahahaha I totally agree 🤣🤣🤣 😍
Greetings from Australia. Thanks for sharing. Wonderful van.
Thank you Harriet! 😊
The van looks incredible!!! 😍
Thank you so much!
Thanks for sharing costs. I don’t know why you are cringing as lm a remodeling contractor and that’s the cost of a decent bathroom in a house and it’s hard to live in a bathroom. Great budgeting. Enjoy the adventure of travel and great work.
Hahaha we cringe because most people love to be trolls, especially on van videos lol! But thank you for the kind words! We are super happy with how the van turned out and still love it 16 months later!
You all are the perfect couple! Enjoy your beautiful van and your travels together! 🤗
Thank you so much for the kind words! ❤️
No wonder this set up cost 22K+ you guys got pretty much all the top end stuff. The solar and water set up is almost RV level. Have fun on the road guys hope you keep it a longtime because the van alone is very expansive.
Thank you! We are having a great time! And the plan is to keep the van as long as we possibly can! 🤗
You guy's sold me...I love your van it's just what I want. I will be following..Thank's
Thank you Joe! 🤗
Thanks for the Information and Happy Travels… 🚐… 🛣🌄🏖🏝🏜🏞💝💝
Thanks so much!
Do you guys plan on naming the van? Just in case, I vote Picard!, Schooner, Uber;)))
Hahah we named it Brisket! After our love of BBQ and since it’s a Texas van 😃 And maybe one day Adam will get his dream of opening his own BBQ stand haha. Love the name suggestions though!
Your home is lovely.
Thank you so much! 😊😊
Bloody love the setup of this van!
Thank you so much Alexis!
Great job, the van looks beautiful. Very inspiring. Random question: does it help you-tubers like you guys if I watch the advertisements in full instead if skipping? If it does, i’ll stop skipping just to help you guys out a bit. Keep up the good job A+K my family and I love watching your videos.😊
Thank you so much! And we thiiiink it does? We do get paid for ads, but it’s super little and we aren’t totally sure the exact requirements to get paid. We appreciate you wanting to help us out! 🤗
Adventures of A plus K if watching the ads in full helps, it’s the least we can do to help to you guys. RUclips earns $ from your content, make sure you get your “fair share” , every penny counts. More power to you two 👍🏽
You’re awesome, thank you so much!
Congrats y’all 🎉 I’m super impressed on the quality of the work. You two seem like so much fun! I need to convince my wife to buy an RV (I’m not dedicate) to build a van. Cheers!!!
Thank you so much! 🤗 An RV would definitely be the less challenging way to go! And you could still make changes to make it more your style too!
First time I've ever seen toilet paper in a van and I've watched a lot of van life vids :-D
Hahaha not sure what they’re using, but also not sure we want to find out 😜
I've seen it in a lot that I've watched, so maybe I've just watched more...though mostly it's just showed in the bathroom. I'm already wondering where I'll put the giant bag of Mega Charmin!!
Sometimes we really gotta shove it into a cabinet haha. Always good to have multiple on hand though lol!
Great van build! How did you setup the gray water switch and drip? What parts did you use?
Hi Joshua! We used this electric ball valve: amzn.to/2L1ckO8 and hooked it up to this switch: amzn.to/2NwIyDy. To be honest, my dad hooked it all up, so I am not sure the exact steps, but it works awesome and we are sooo glad we did it this way!
Hey friends!. When you come back to México?, I love you videos.
We hope to come back soon!
If I have a van such as this beauty ... I will be smiling every time I'm in it. Stuck in traffic will be thing in the past. Btw.. this is my second time seeing this video...repeat
Thank you for not only watching once, but twice! 👏🏼 We sure do love our van and appreciate the kind words! 😍
Hey guys! We've subscribed for a while but just started trying to watch all of your videos!! We just recently thought about doing van life for a while in the future, and obviously yours is realllyyy nice, which is enticing. With such a big investment (obviously replacing rent for a couple years makes it worth it) have you thought about how much you'd sell it for in the future? Like after everything how much would you have really initially invested? I hope this makes sense!
Ooo this is a good question! And to be honest I’m not 100% sure! I’ve seen similar vans sell in the $60-80k range, factoring in the labor that went into it, but also the mileage that was added. I’ve also seen people try to sell for $100k+ (but I’m not sure how that worked out lol). If we ever did sell it, I could see us trying to make back as much of our investment as possible, as the labor is something we didn’t put a price tag on before, but truly is worth a ton!
Hopefully that kind of helps answer! 😅😅
Adventures of A plus K yes it does! Thanks for your answer! I think I’d feel better investing such a huge amount of money knowing I’d get a good portion back. It’s something we are sooooo interested in
We truly love this lifestyle! It can have some challenges at times, but the ability to explore new places, see friends and family around the US, and visit places we love make it all worth it!
Great idea counter top and just plug in the cooktop when using!!!! Love love love that idea!!! Bravo whole thing.
Thank you! It’s so nice to have that space clear to get ready in the mornings or charge electronics and not worry about a stove.
Would you like to share mileage information please. How many miles per gallon.
We get about 19 mpg!
This is great! I would love to have a Sprinter van instead of our big 5th wheel so will be showing this to Hubby for sure. As a fellow Texan suffering in the heat, how do you stay cool at night?
To be honest, we don’t plan to van life much in Texas for that reason (and we have lots of people we can stay with). We headed north right away to escape the heat and plan to chase good weather around the US. But we will
be back in Texas in the cooler months and are excited to see how much better it is for the van!
Hi guys, I like what you did with your van. Here in Israel we do not have motor home like you guys have in the U.S, hey we are the size of NJ. I even checked how much will cost to import one, well at least i will have to pay 75% tax! so my next option is TDY so i have been watching videos here and there and you are the only one i did not skip to the end:-) So i pretty much have an idea of what I want and specially cost:-( yes everything here in Israel is so expensive! Any way, if i may ask, may be you said and i missed it, no one i have watched seems to be talking about it. How do you cool and heat the van without the van running? In Israel get both hot and cold. Even when we are very small, the topography and geography changes dramatically, that is why it nice to move around and chill out. I have been thinking how to put the bed, I am 6' but my wife is 5', so certainly it isnt an issue for her:-) I aint planning to have a working space like you, but be more out door and chill out in the evening. Also how do you pump the water to the shower and sink? I am a tour guide, so i know the country pretty well, also a photographer and blogger, so I just need it to go all over the country without having to sleep in a tent all the time. I thank you for our time and insight.
Thank you so much for watching! To answer your questions, we have a heater installed under the passenger seat that heats the van if it’s cold out. We do not have a special AC unit in the van, but we have a fan in the ceiling and also a small fan we can plug in if necessary (but we don’t use it much). If we have the window covers on, which help with heat, plus the MaxxAir fan, and our t-vent window cracked it stays pretty comfortable. But we do not typically go to places that are too hot or too cold. We try to chase good weather. Adam is about 6’ and he fits perfectly in our bed! As for the water, we have water pumps that pump the water to the shower and sink! Hope that helps 😄
@@AdventuresofAplusK Yes it did. Thanks a lot! I wish you successful trips but above all, Safety! God bless you both! P.S I guess you have it build it rather doing it yourself. I certainly can't do it😅
Thank you so much! Building it was super hard, but we are so glad we built it. Without my dad we would've taken much longer to build it and probably done a much worse job haha
Thanks for the tour! Two questions for you: What are the dimensions of your shower and are you satisfied that the size is right or do you wish you had gone an inch shorter or longer? Second, where did you buy your trash and recycling bin drawer? That is a nice size!
Hi Lisa! The shower pan itself is 24x32” and the actual shower room is just slightly bigger than this to fit the toilet in there. It’s actually the perfect size! We were worried it would be too cramped, but for a quick shower it’s not bad at all. I think shorter would be harder, but if you had space to make it larger, you would definitely not be mad about more space! This is the shower pan we used: amzn.to/2GWCW1q
As for the trash and recycling bin, we got it off Amazon! Here is the link: amzn.to/2H0dRCH it’s honestly one of our favorite things we put in the van! We cook a lot, so having a large enough trash can makes a huge difference if we are boondocking for days.
We did link to most products we used here (you have to scroll down through all of our “lessons and mistakes” rambling haha): adventuresofaplusk.com/blog/van-conversion-cost-tour-mistakes
Let us know if you have any other questions!
Way too high. Nice build. I have sent too many without a comfy place to relax.
We love our seating area!
Congrats guys! Beautiful build, I’ve always loved Alex and Sara’s design, You did a great job on the video too- good info and explanations without all the fluff and drama. I’ll be following along :)
Their designs are amazing and such a great use of space for those who work and live full time on the road. Thank you for the kind words! 🤗
Impressive overall. You didn't mention your blackwater setup.
We actually don’t have a black tank. The sink and shower water go into the grey water tank (just biodegradable soap and water) and then we have the compost toilet for any other waste. 😄
@@AdventuresofAplusK Thanks
Looks amazing and the fact that you did it all yourselves will give you such a sense of satisfaction that you will enjoy your adventures even more! Have fun!
Thank you so much! We are definitely going to appreciate it even more because of all the work we put into it!
Thanks for the great tour, it's definitely given me some ideas for my own van build. I'm very torn between wanting a permanent bed and wanting the amazing open living area you have created. As a suggestion, sandbag workouts are great and would be very compatible with the storage limitations of van life. I've had a Brute Force sandbag that has withstood years of abuse.
Hi Jay, thank you so much! We are loving the convertible bed to living area. We love the flexibility of it! We have weeks where we convert it less, but this week we have converted it daily. It’s just nice to have the option :)
And that’s a great suggestion! We have thankfully had many gyms nearby recently (as it’s been cold and working out outside hasn’t sounded as fun haha), but I’d love to add a second weight option so we can each do something more easily!
We are in the process of having our van built and are designing a hydraulic lift on the bed so when it's up we have a dinette underneath. The best of both worlds.
Hi guys I’m new to your channel, you have a lovely fresh clean layout I love it. I look forward to your adventures. Stay Blessed.
Thank you so so much! 🤗💗
thật tuyệt vời, chị rất xinh đẹp
Now this is what smart living lifestyle.. this is the best van I have seen. Loved it. By the way, thank you for being so kind to the environment with the thought of recycling.
Thank you so much! And we absolutely love that trash can/recycling bin combo! 🙌🏼🌍
Sometimes seeing things like this can be very depressing and demotivating; $78,000 for the entire project (including a brand new van and thus without issues / anxiety over it being reliable), being able to afford that, still living in your own apartment, being able to fly back and forth between helping do the work (mind boggling expenses), having a place to store the van and a family member with loads of skills to do a lot of the work. All of these are huge hurdles that to most people (like with anything in life), stops you from ever starting anything because when you've got life to contend with, it just seems like too much. You're super lucky and I wish the best for you, of course! Thanks for the details you've provided to help with others starting their builds.
Thanks a bunch Robin! 😊 It was an incredibly rough 7 months building the van. Many tears, stress, lots of time spent apart, etc. We’re very thankful for my dad’s help, the ability to work remotely, tons of airline miles that helped make flying very cheap, and saving money the last few years to make it all possible!
@@AdventuresofAplusK Thanks for the reply and the added perspective! Definitely helps having two people as opposed to one! Best wishes :)
This build suits me perfectly ....I LOVE IT!!!!
Thank you so much!!! We are about 4 months in and still absolutely love it!
I'm not a picky person I can definitely live in a van like that, actually that van look way better than the place where I live right now.
It truly feels like a little home! We love it!
Super nice build. Love the clean lines and the way you've set up storage.
Thank you so much Jinnie!
I’m building. Y van based on the same layout
Nice!!! We love our layout, even 18 months later
Congratulations! It’s beautiful! Love the home gym. :)
Hahaha gotta get those squats and curls in on the road! 😜
How much money do you spend on water electricity and food products what your monthly expenses are and is it better than a regular home
We would have to crunch some numbers to give you a total expenses per month, as it really does vary month to month, but here are some of the big ones:
Water: usually $0 but sometimes $10-20 if we can’t find free water
Electricity: $0 since we run off solar or our alternator
Campsites: usually $0 per month
Gas: Really varies depending on how much we drive, but I’d say probably between $300-500
Food: We cook a ton and probably spend around $700-800 for both of us, but that’s with a lot of meat and healthier items.
We have quite a few monthly bills, like our van payment (the conversion we paid in cash), insurance, student loans, our cell phone plan, our hotspot, our SimpliSafe, gym membership, etc.
Overall, it is cheaper, but it’s not necessarily cheap. It all depends on your lifestyle and how much you want to move around, the type of food you buy, etc.
Hope that helps some!
You guys are amazing! Beautiful and brilliant planning and design.
Thank you so much Chris! 😃
Awesome van guys! Fantastic craftsmanship. Ya'll went for the same color scheme I'm going for in mine :)
Wooo! Color scheme twins!!! 🙌🏼
Excellent workmanship. The entire build is great. Like they say, you get what you pay for. All of your hard work shows in the quality of the build and beauty. Congrats guys.......
Thank you Eric! 🥳
If you want to add extra security, rename your WiFi as ‘police-covert-surveillance-unit’. I suggested this as a joke, but it might not be a bad idea? Also, how about using wheel clamps and a steering wheel lock when you leave the van unattended? So if the very worst happens and your van is broken into, at least it won’t be driven off by thieves.
I love the wifi idea lol! And it’s probably isn’t a bad idea to add some extra security too!
Adventures of A plus K If you also raise an ISIS flag every day, you’ll be watched by at least 3 separate government agencies, 24/7! You can’t BUY security like that!
I am curious about putting a thermostat behind a cabinet door.
Hi! Our SimpliSafe thermostat is on a wall, but we have our electrical monitors behind a cabinet, which are wired to devices that live outside the cabinet. I’m not sure if that answered your question, so let me know if you have any additional ones!
@@AdventuresofAplusK It's OK, it is just that you identified in your video a gizmo behind your cabinet door as being a thermostat, so I was scratching my head about that.
You also have a different way than the others to install the struts under the seatings, over your water tanks: does it work fine? I have to install some in my travel trailer built project.
Ah I see! You’re referring to our heater thermostat that we mentioned. There is actually a small, black sensor that is right under the cabinet. You can see it when I am talking about the kitchen, but we forgot to mention it.
The struts have been working great! We had some with a higher weight rating (40lbs) at first, but it was too hard to open, so we switched them out for some lower rated ones (28lbs) and those worked a lot better. They are a huggggeee help to have when going in and out of the benches!
Does "Dad" branch out and help others? We're a 60ish couple living in Georgetown, Tx. Actively shopping for a van to build.
Unfortunately he is now deep in a backyard remodel! We hope y’all find a van soon! We got ours in Georgetown 😃
@@AdventuresofAplusK I'm handy and have many tools available to me...and...my wife Sarita believes in me...lol.