New member/intro

[punkbek3886]

Hey guys, my name is Brian.  I've been lurking for a few months while I've been building up my van, but figured I would finally come out of the shadows so to speak.

I'm not a full-timer yet, but plan on living in it for a few months next winter while my gf does clinical rotations up in the PNW.  We live in southern NV currently.

Our van is a 2001 Chevy Express 3500 with the 6.5 turbo diesel.  Got it from an auction and have been piecing it all together as cheaply as possible.  The dresser on the passenger side was $10 and the armoire on the driver's side was $5, both from a Goodwill clearance center.  Although they took a lot of modifying to fit, it was still way cheaper and more time effective than building from scratch.  The bed and aquatainer platform were built from scratch, as was the reflectix pocket mounted to the rear door.

Next up is installing a roof fan, figuring out the house electrical system, lighting, and finally paneling all the exposed portion of the walls. All that comes after a bunch of preventive mechanical work. The mechanical stuff is no fun but I have to stop putting it off.

Now on to the photos:

 

[Wabbit]

Recycling those furniture pieces looks like it's going to work great in that build! Are you securing any of it to the floor? If so, how was that done? Also, what type of tools have you used and is there a tool/s that you think might be helpful that you didn't use? Thnx and best of luck on your build!

 

[punkbek3886]

Recycling those furniture pieces looks like it's going to work great in that build! Are you securing any of it to the floor? If so, how was that done? Also, what type of tools have you used and is there a tool/s that you think might be helpful that you didn't use? Thnx and best of luck on your build!

Thanks!

And regarding securing the stuff down, yes!!! I'm a bit of a safety nut these days so anchoring everything down was definitely a priority and I put a lot of thought into what would happen if we ever crashed.

The dresser is thru-bolted through the floor with 4 steel angle brackets, 4 bolts/screws per bracket. It is also attached to ribs on the side of the van by two similar angle brackets and self-tapping machine screws. I'm planning on securing the aquatainer with tie-down straps that will be also anchored to the ribs on that side of the van. That way the aquatainer hopefully won't become a 50 lb projectile in a crash.

The armoire base is made of 2x4's, shown in one of the pics. It's secured to the floor of the van by 6 angle brackets. Then the armoire was slid on top and screwed to the base in 6 places. I might add some more screws to that, I ran out. The armoire is also attached to the ribs on the driver's side with 4 angle brackets and self-tapping machine screws. I'm still somewhat worried about the armoire doors coming off in a crash, still trying to brainstorm something to beef those up. Will also be adding a locking system to all the drawers.

The van came with a metal cab partition. I'm still wondering if I should put that back in. It's heavy, but would provide some extra peace of mind. Plus with a blackout curtain behind it nobody would know that the van isn't a commercial vehicle.

I did almost everything with a drill, circular saw, hacksaw with both metal and wood blades, and screwdrivers and ratchet/sockets. I finally broke down and bought a good jigsaw when I was modifying the armoire. Would have been next to impossible to curve the back properly with what I had. I actually already had a jigsaw, but it takes proprietary blades that aren't sold anymore. What a waste! If I had had the new jigsaw from the get-go I wouldn't have needed the hacksaw and the back of the dresser would have come out neater. Also, all the cuts I did with the circular saw could have been done with the jigsaw, albeit slower and not as perfectly straight. So I'd say the jigsaw is an indispensable tool for this kind of work.

 

[Almost There]

It sounds like you've got the cabinets themselves more than adequately tied down to the van. The cabinet doors and any drawers will need to be secured to keep them from flying open going around corners.

You can raid an RV that's being demolished for the cabinet latches used on them or you can pick something up at someplace like H/D. If nothing else suits the latches that are made for kid-proofing a kitchen should work!

 

[Theadyn]

Hi and Welcome!!

 

[punkbek3886]

It sounds like you've got the cabinets themselves more than adequately tied down to the van. The cabinet doors and any drawers will need to be secured to keep them from flying open going around corners.

You can raid an RV that's being demolished for the cabinet latches used on them or you can pick something up at someplace like H/D. If nothing else suits the latches that are made for kid-proofing a kitchen should work!

I'm using roller catches at the moment and they are good enough to keep the drawers from opening during driving, but I like the idea of using the kid-proofing latches for backup. The roller catches are not very strong. I'm really surprised they're even doing as well as they are. Good idea, thanks!

Anybody have any advice for mounting a house battery inside the van? I was eyeing the everstart batteries from walmart that seem to be pretty popular. Not sure what the best way to mount and vent them is though?

 

[highdesertranger]

hi there and welcome. what type of mpg are you getting with that 6.5? btw the 6.5 and the 6.2 are basically the same motor. if you ever have a hard time finding a part let us know I kind find anything for these motors. highdesertranger

 

[punkbek3886]

Thanks highdesertranger, will let you know if anything comes up. So far so good, there are still a few online vendors that specialize in these old diesels.

So far I'm averaging 18.9 over 771 miles, loaded with 2 ppl, a dog, and snowboarding gear. Those were all winter trips. Hopefully should get a little better with the warmer weather and the new injectors I'm putting in next weekend.

 

[highdesertranger]

good deal punkbek. I love the old iron. highdesertranger

 

[4GNomad]

Welcome punkbek,

Great setup you have there with the furniture. Look forward to see your progress. Cheers!

 

[sisterearth]

Hi, cool progress, cute dog! Welcome!