Ideas to get started. My blank canvas.

[East]

So I purchased a 2000 Ford E150 Mark III with a 5.8l Triton V8. I'm going to keep a lot of the interior intact and build around the current setup but remove all rear seating + belts. There's two 12v plugs in the rear and a place to hang clothes built in already in the rear. I'm thinking of building a frame at the very back with a mattress that does not exceed the height of the wood trim on each side. I've heard of people cutting their pillow top mattresses, removing springs and re-sewing. Does anyone have experience with this?

I will keep this updated with progress, I'm open to your ideas and help, along with products I may be missing.

What I've picked up so far
Skeeter beaters for the front windows
160w energizer cup inverter
Coverking custom sunshade
Rain guards for the driver + passenger
16w + 28w solar chargers with USB outputs
Energizer 120w Cup Inverter for Laptop Charging Etc
Nikon Rebel T5 Camera + 32GB PNY Memory
Coleman 2 Burner Propane Stove
Solar Camp Shower
Sleeping Masks + Earplugs
Portable Change/Shower Tent for privacy
Camco Portable Toilet 5gal roughly
2 LED Clip-on Hat Lights
2 LED Pen Lights
2 LED Headlamps
3 LED Regular Flashlights
Eagle Creek Backpack
Esbit fuel blocks
Internet Access / Wi-Fi Hotspot (LTE, unlimited data.. grandfathered plans cost an arm and a leg)
Tablet x2 Phone x1 Laptop x1
Mounts for phone and tablet while driving (for GPS)
Camcorder + Polaroid Camera
Mr Buddy Heater Propane
2x Sleeping Bags
1x Mess Kit (Dinnerware)
2x collapsable Fishing Poles + Fishing Gear
Blankets/Pillows
2x Ponchos
First Aid Kit
Acoustic guitar + uke
Nintendo 3DS
Whistles x2
Headphones/Earbuds
Umbrella x2
Augason Farms 30-Day Emergency Pail
2x carbon monoxide detectors
fire extinguisher

I'm thinking that I might not want to build the bed to the very rear but looking at the space I might have to, it needs to sleep two. The van is equipped with a ladder and roof rack but I currently need ideas for that as well. It would be cool to get something easily collapsable to throw up there as a platform sitting indians style up there wherever we end up. I also have 3m velcro male and female for fabric, so I'm curious about the best kind of fabric to place behind the front seats as a barrier.

Anyways here are some shots of our future home on wheels!

 

[MikeRuth]

Looks as though you have a nice platform to start with there. Sleeping two will be a space squeezer.
Boy it all depends on how well we can pack stuff in.

Mike R

 

[Wabbit]

As far as gear goes, have some money you can tap into so you can buy what you're missing. There are quite a few things we use that others might not, and things they use we do not. We skip refridgeration, many folks need their fridges/coolers. Although we do have a small cooler, it is storage area unless we are having some beers, then some ice goes into it for the night(or 3 day drunk lol).Different strokes for different folks. You might want to look into how much solar you might need for your electronics. We do a lot of campfires, so my collapsible saw is a must for us. Also some welding gloves for managing the fire is a nice convenience. A weather radio with AM/FM is also a must for us. Decent quality coffee travel mugs are something I appreciate everyday also. They work for both hot and cold drinks. Cards/dice are small along with a small book on new card games. I'll stop lol, but have some money set aside to spend on what you find you need. We bought a crap load of stuff before we started extended camping, and half if it went to the local Goodwill's as unnessacary. The storage space was worth more than the items. G'luck!

 

[HarmonicaBruce]

Will all that stuff fit in the van? I've found it's easy to lose stuff in the van, it's got to be really well organized. You need a cooler unless you're eating in restaurants a lot. I think 12 volt chargers are more efficient than using an inverter and 120 volt charger. Good luck and welcome to the forum.

 

[SoulRaven]

The main thing that jumps out to me in your list is the inverters. It's much more efficient to get the car chargers for everything.

Good Luck!

 

[East]

Looks as though you have a nice platform to start with there. Sleeping two will be a space squeezer.
Boy it all depends on how well we can pack stuff in.

Mike R

Hopefully it pans out well! Ideally we will be spending more time out of the van than in it.

As far as gear goes, have some money you can tap into so you can buy what you're missing. There are quite a few things we use that others might not, and things they use we do not. We skip refridgeration, many folks need their fridges/coolers. Although we do have a small cooler, it is storage area unless we are having some beers, then some ice goes into it for the night(or 3 day drunk lol).Different strokes for different folks. You might want to look into how much solar you might need for your electronics. We do a lot of campfires, so my collapsible saw is a must for us. Also some welding gloves for managing the fire is a nice convenience. A weather radio with AM/FM is also a must for us. Decent quality coffee travel mugs are something I appreciate everyday also. They work for both hot and cold drinks. Cards/dice are small along with a small book on new card games. I'll stop lol, but have some money set aside to spend on what you find you need. We bought a crap load of stuff before we started extended camping, and half if it went to the local Goodwill's as unnessacary. The storage space was worth more than the items. G'luck!

Thanks for all the useful advice! I've gone without refrigeration in the past (around 6 months) and it was a painless experience for me, so that's really no problem. I think a cooler on the odd occasion is a great suggestion though, keeping in mind that it will double as a storage container when not in use as you stated. I'll add the radio, travel mugs and cards to the list. We have a good bit put back in case of a transmission failure, wreck or engine failure/etc, along with some extra spending money. I work online so anywhere I can find a connection (which is most places these days) there will be money to be made. I'm thinking a van presents extremely low overhead in comparison to the alternatives so we should be alright on that front with any luck!

Will all that stuff fit in the van?  I've found it's easy to lose stuff in the van, it's got to be really well organized.  You need a cooler unless you're eating in restaurants a lot.  I think 12 volt chargers are more efficient than using an inverter and 120 volt charger.  Good luck and welcome to the forum.

Thanks for the welcome! Well, most of it is already in the van and it seems pretty manageable thus far. I just worry things will get chaotic unless we both cut down on clothing dramatically. As for the inverter, I'll look into more 12v accessories. The inverter was mainly to charge a smaller laptop while on the go. Unfortunately everything I've read about 12v MacBook chargers seems to point to their unreliability. Most 12v adapters seem pretty affordable for everything else. Got to blame the proprietary MagSafe 1 here. I'm going to look at a X-Cargo Sport 20 Carrier tomorrow. Not really stealthy at all but I think it expands possibilities in other ways. I really like spending time in more rural areas over cities so hopefully this doesn't negatively impact me too much, considering the vehicle is already the opposite of stealth mode.

The main thing that jumps out to me in your list is the inverters.  It's much more efficient to get the car chargers for everything.

Good Luck!

Thanks for the luck! Will look into getting more 12v accessories. The only things that I have right now that absolutely require a wall plug are my canon battery and the MacBook. I'll see if I can knock those out. If anyone has suggestions for a 12v magsafe adapter feel free to recommend it.

 

[HarmonicaBruce]

Ok, now that I know how to "search", I was able to find the thread I was looking for.

This thread has everything you need to know.

I'm going to "move" to South Dakota.  You don't have to ever go there to be a legal resident.  But I'd like so see Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse so I might actually go there some day, but there's no reason you have to.

 

[Chancebond]

Before all else, try sleeping in it for a couple of nights! Get a feel for how it feels! Like it, then take it from there! Don't like it, then use it as an emergency vehicle! Just for God's sake, make Sure THAT IT HAS AIR CONDITIONING!

 

[Chancebond]

Maybe even get it re-upholstered! Or try adding a wooden floor! Just make sure that there are no splinters! Oh, maybe even try adding an expanding mini side room to the thing! Kind of like how rv's have them! Best of Lick!

 

[Bdog1]

Camp chairs. Or did I miss that on the list?

Some kind of shade structure? In the living outside theme of things.

 

[East]

Thanks for the heads up bruce, that is definitely useful information if I ever get stuck without a permanent address. Right now my family seems happy to let me use theirs for the foreseeable future. I'm just going with the flow here I guess. Slept a few nights in the van and it was fine, now to try double occupancy. I was surprised to see everything fit fine in the van, but access is another story. Had my first repair, a leaky transaxle, fixed that in a jiffy. Oil smelled roached so it's a good thing I got to it anyway. Got some blackout shades hanging on curtain rods. They roll up and tuck above them when not in use, tested them out and didn't get any light leaking in at night. Right now I'm thinking soft storage would be a good idea for easy access to things. Got some inspiration from this ( ) . Bench is still in, middle seats are out though. I think I might keep the bench, but I'm not sure. For me it's fine, but for two people it probably won't be unless I make some creative modifications. I like how it feels safe in the event of an accident. X-Cargo Carrier fits fine, a bit small though in terms of the width of the van. Works though for our needs. I was really really surprised to see my gas mileage didn't take a massive hit from it, and thankful.

I'm somewhat worried about the Triton spark plug issue, not sure if it's been fixed or not, not sure how to tell either. I guess it's been around for a long time though, so hopefully it has been. I'd like to seclude the portapotty in its own space but that's looking like it will eat too much into the area as a whole.

Oh and one last thing, skeeter beeters fit perfectly. I'm looking forward to using them.

 

[steveh2112]

like to know how the Solar Camp Shower works out. i was thinking just warm up some water on the camp stove so can use in the morning, but solar for afternoon on sunny day could be good too

 

[SoulRaven]

Here's a floor plan a friend of mine did with a similar van.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

for the bed, if you make the width go along the back, it will be like a queen. Make it 6 feet long, but make the platform accessible from the top and slide long boxes under for storage. Counter/cabinet behind driver seat to the bed.

Here is an example

 

[East]

like to know how the Solar Camp Shower works out. i was thinking just warm up some water on the camp stove so can use in the morning, but solar for afternoon on sunny day could be good too

Will do. From what I've seen so far I may have to reinforce the handle. I think the ability of it to hold up 5 gallons of water looks questionable but I may be wrong.

Here's a floor plan a friend of mine did with a similar van.

Thanks, I'd love to use this plan but I don't think it would be appropriate for two dwellers. It looks like a really good setup.

for the bed, if you make the width go along the back, it will be like a queen.   Make it 6 feet long, but make the platform accessible from the top and slide long boxes under for storage.  Counter/cabinet behind driver seat to the bed.

Here is an example

Definitely what I'm going for, hopefully when I tackle the bed completely things will look as good as this one. I think this is really the only layout for the van to really work for two people comfortably.

Didn't do too much today, installed 3 led puck lights on the ceiling and got that soft storage set up. Lots of it. Blackout shades are down in the photos, still need to remove those pesky seatbelts.