9 REGRETS of our Van Build // What would we CHANGE?? 

To shower in van. A foldable dog swimming pool. It has a drain hold on the side. Was going to have it near the side door, with a drain to a grey water tank. I can shower with 2 liter plastic bottles. Paint them black and have them in the sun. Use a hula-hoop to hold a shower curtain up for privacy and not splashing water ever where. Even have a pump up bug sprayer, for extra water and another option tool to shower with. Drain water into grey tank, wait for everything to dry and folder everything back up for the next shower. Number 2 in a bucket toilet seat with plastic bags. Dispose as soon as possible. Use cat litter or sawdust until then. Yes have a big and great rooftop vent. Comfortable bed and a place to pee. Funnel into a bottle, dispose as soon as possible as well. Live as comfortable as you can.

Shower - open the rear doors, hang your solar shower from one door, get a shower curtain, stitch in a few magnetic strips, attach it across the doors and you have a nice shower cubicle.

For showering do it like they do in southeast Asia, heat some water, fill a bucket and use a scoop or enamel mug to ladle water over yourself. It works really well and you can have a full wash in hey little water. Any leftovers just tip it over your head, it's great!

Thank you so much! We are building our van and any tip we can get is really useful! We are definitely going for the high roof!

Thanks guys! Super helpful - happy travels!

I missed your vlogs glad your back.

Thank you guys so much! We are starting a new round of build-out, this helps in our decisions!!

I can see how much you regret these things. So, I thank you very much for sharing them. Great learning points.

It’s been a minute. Your back!! - Good stuff. Nice to hear your thoughts after living in the van for some time.

Great post!! Thanks a lot for sharing your findings so honestly! FANtastic 👌

Thank you! Look forward to more.

I really like how you had a summary in the description. Many of us take notes and this makes it so much easier.

Thanks for taking the time out of your work as professional models to make this video

With only 30 days to convert a van, that is very impressive work!! Also, I can relate to your list! Thanks for sharing!!

Just found your channel and loving your van conversion- Foley is awesome. We're currently exploring Europe in our van- we love the lifestyle. Hope you guys enjoy it and maybe meet you out on the road somewhere! 👍😀

Thank you so much for sharing you're ideas... They are really helpful.

Thank you guys to be honest that helps a lot 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼💥💥💥💥💥💥💯💯💯💯💯💯💯🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

Super honest, love it guys! Safe and adventurous travels!

Thanks for all these tips and hints, really helpful and honest! It's still a beautiful build!

BTW luv your vid guys its so inspiring to see couples sharing a happy life together and living the dream :) so, Shower suggestion..........depending on your budget, you can buy a portable shower unit from either BCF, Rays outdoors etc...., attach onto rear door next to cabinets, can use water from bucket, power the unit from cigarert lighter, and have a removable curtain for privacy. Good luck.

Ventilation is big..looks comfortable..enjoy

I love that table! I'm trying to figure out a way to get one that size. I'm in the layout part of the build. I don't think you can avoid regrets. You don't know how you will like something until you get out there. I'm trying to keep them to a minimum but I'm sure there will be some. I love the open, clean look of your van!

Thanks for sharing the mistakes, appreciate the transparency :-)

Thanks for sharing.. great points to learn from ..

Really good insight. Thanks guys

I think you guys did an AMAZING job considering your time restraints and landing in a foreign country having to source products, a van, and do an entire conversion with no prior experience or help from fam or friends. Seriously, well done. Also, your awesomely-nerdy expenses spreadsheet has been SUPER helpful. Thanks and good luck with all your travels! :)

you guys have a great way of showing us your life. super jelly.

Thank you so much for the information.

Love it, very helpful thanks guys!!!

High roof is the way to go. Thanks for this.!

Great video and build. I am waiting for the snow to clear in Canada before I start my build. I really appreciate your list and thank you for stressing the importance of not cheeping-out on a fan. Enjoy your ride.

I love showers! How about a shower curtain track that allows the curtain to tie against the wall then pull out to circle a 24" plastic tub? For pressure hot water how about a kettle of hot water in a 3 gallon Hudson sprayer hooked to a RV hand held shower? Very effective!

Really nice conversion !! There will always be things you could of done in hindsight ! But that’s the nature of the beast !! Well done !

Hey guys, just two things about the van. 1. Joe mentioned a longer van being too hard to get around towns, we have a 20 foot Sprinter and it's not an issue driving around towns, ours drives like a sedan(love it) 2. Try getting a garden pump spray and garden hose nozzle for your shower, just pump it up and shower away. :) Love what you guys have done so far, now get off them lazy arses and get out there and have fun. ;)

Nice video/conversation! Treasure your experiences and each other.

Very useful thank you.

Nice lookin’ van and thanks for sharing 😀

Very helpful video thanks!

So beautiful!

OMG, you are talking about the (very practical, very handy etc) battery lights!!! Its a taboo among vanlifers!!! All the vans have to have absurdly complex electric system which is always breaking down. IT MUST BE!

You are both photogenic people I hope you're enjoying your trip yeah there are better roof vents if you're still in the van check out overload Springs for the balancing problem. Also one of the cheapest shower Solutions is go to a hardware store can you buy pump up sprayer. Then just put hot water in it

Thanks for the upload. Maybe cover some of the down lights with something ornate/decorative like a picture or pattern, or even some dark tint film. You have a really nice van looks great, reliable, dry and comfortable. Enjoy it, I've not even purchased my conversion yet. I can't wait to be doing what you are woohoo 😎😁😃 all the best and thanks again

You always learn how to do it better..later! Always a learning curve. I am trying to make things modular because you can’t make all the right decisions in the beginning. Also, there is always a compromise. You will be able to go off road more easily... but have less room inside. For a 30 day project you did very well!!

hey guys thanks for the tips, they are really helpful, i hope your enjoying oz

This has been the most helpful video by far. Admittedly, it popped up in the feed, but it’s helped with some of the questions I have about my future build. You still have an awesome van, but I get what you’re saying. 😊

from being in the rv sales you have your table folding upwards if you mod your table folding down you can add some cabinets above your table and for showers they make portable showers and when using that type of shower in the RV camping world we call them navy showers and for A/C units there's a lot of videos on you tube on how to make your own A/C unit that works good to keep you guys cool on hot days and cookware the best cookware i have seen was 12 volt cookware since propane BBQ is a hassle to clean and to pull out and put away and if i didn't have a daughter my dream van would be a ford chevy or dodge van and extended it with an tandem axle and that would add an extra 2 or 3 feet of space

Great video! Thumbs up!

Lol, I am in research mode for van life right now. Searching all the bad sides of van life. That bear was entertaining, made me laugh, thanks.

Thanks for the honesty 🤙 super helpful!

Hey guys, don't be regret. It just a learning experience amd you could make it better....enjoy the trip and be safe. Takecare. Btw...i like the set up of the mobile home. Though they are some issues of the set up... Again enjoy the journey..

Great video, thanks for sharing!

That your videos !!! Can’t wait to see more !:) You guys are helping me with my decision to get a van.

I've been enjoying how these various van life video's show that it's not all wine and roses. I figure you two are on a rather tight budget but I'm thinking when I retire I'd give serious consideration to a converted van, but would stay in a motel every four nights or so for a big bed, full-on shower, laundry and grocery shopping. That is every four days get out of the van for 24 hours. Now, I do like these vans for their maneuverable size. So I'm okay with some compromises.

I appreciate everyone who shares, and can learn from all. But, hands down, the genius build is VanLife's Irish build. The issue of the bed blocking the walkway is resolved with a simple slider, and that same genius for simple solutions permeates the entire build. And it is incredibly luxurious, he even includes gourmet camp recipes and food photography to shame five star restaurants. Really a must see, it is not a cheap build, but a very balanced, well thought out and very rational build that would make it hard to justify moving to an apartment, you would need a detached house to have something enough better to bother about.

An option for the table might be to cut it in half lengthways and fit a piano hinge - then you can have a half-width or full-width option - plus you can store it half-width and have the option of some overhead cupboards above. You could use some wire or chains from the wall to support it instead of the leg.

Hey I think you did an awesome build , and yes you now have some regrets , but don’t beat yourself up over them . If you ever find yourself in QLD , pop around for a shower , and we can trim down your table , and me being a sparkie we can swap out that fan for something a bit more powerful , in a matter of minutes . [ ok 2 regrets as you can’t take the shower with you ]

for your shower problem, check out evershower.com they are an Australian invention. You can have a 20 minute hot shower with just 20 litres of water. folds up into a tiny little box you can fit under the bed or anywhere really. I highly recomend 10/10 :)

Thanks for sharing

The same fan you get on the little water squirters.... Too funny!

Thank you both for the input! I'm in the pre-purchase planning stage to getting a hightop extended length Promaster 3500. Have been soaking up tons of very valuable info from all of you that are already out there, and it is much appreciated! Enjoy Australia, I was down there for a month years ago and truly loved it. When we told them we were Canadian, we were treated like family! ❤❤ Safe travels. 😊

I think you did a remarkable job of building out a van in 30 days, very tight constraints. Good job on meeting your deadline! Don't beat yourself up over mistakes. You always redo a lot of things, even experienced van builders say this. You discover materials existed too late, and techniques that could be improved. Its a huge learning curve, and takes a lot of time to soak it all up, plus ... not everything is possible in a foreign country within short time frames. Pity I never got to see the inside of your van in this video - would have been nice. The weight balancing issue is a serious concern you should be paranoid about. Van can flip over, and tires will be damaged on one side. Not so much a regret as a lack of pre-planning your build design. When on a tight schedule, layouts have to be already planned out. This is a number one priority for next build. Be sure to warn the buyers of your van about that, or you could be held responsible for accidents. In hot places, instead of more roof vents, try cutting a hole in floor and making a manually closing vent space. This allows cool air under the van to circulate through the van and exit from roof vent or windows. Much more effective. I saw this on Dave Orton's van build on RU-vid, filmed by Kirsten Dirksen. Your choice of vent fan was not the conventional Maxxair or Fantastic Fan brand. These are highly effective. The mattress looks like a very heavy futon. A couple of air pads plus thinner mattress would cut down on bulk and weight. Again, see Dave Orton, and Lee Blake's builds, both of them experts at keeping it simple and highly functional. The tinting of windows - in some places like California, you cannot tint windshield or cab windows at all. Rear tinting is also regulated - no reflective mirror type glares. Could be same in Australia. I saw a lot of vanners use a solar lantern called Luci. Free power, super lightweight, compact size. FYI - to the female half of this team - decide whether you are making videos for public consumption or for your close buddies on Facebook. Sticking out your tongue and making faces is hardly conducive to being taken seriously and having credibility. For the duration of the video, you did not contribute verbally to anything of consequence, making faces like a toddler, and interjecting frivolous comments, and interrupting your partner. Why does he know all the tech details and you do not? Are you one half of this equation, or a tiny fraction? Why do you care whether you have no other men to help you with the van build as you stated? I did my remodels by myself, and you have a strong male partner. Isn't that enough? Women are already viewed as airheads, but you are cementing that view. Try to be more professional and look and act less like a spoiled child. Its passive aggressive behavior too. Contribute. Learn. Know. Be.

👍Thank you for your video. Your van is beautiful and your regrets valued for potential van builders. BUT the regrets are few in the grand scheme of things. X thx

I'm currently saving money for my van and i love videos like this because they're super helpful for me trying to figure out what the heck I'm doing. I love the way you guys set up your van so thanks for the inspiration ❤

I have a low roof and have no regrets...I don't spend a lot of time in the van once I'm parked...the gazebo goes up and I'm mainly outdoors...so the stealth is great...for me...and the low roof is inconspicuous when parked in the city...but everyone has their own priorities and likes and wants and needs...if i was with a partner I might like the high roof for the feeling of more space...LOVE LOVE LOVE the part of you wishing for more room at the end of the bed...that made me rethink my fold out click couch and a little more room at the end of the van...THANK YOU FOR THAT....what part of Canada?...I'm just east of Toronto...great video, thanks guys.

You guys are great!!

Just an idea.............cut off a strip of your table and add a long strip hinge to attach that piece back on, then you can have it folded over when you want more room to walk or folded out to the size it currently is to have more table area. Would be easy to do and give you more options........and give you room for shelves above the table when against the wall. The hinge won't support as much weight as the solid table but a support leg underneath or support cables on each side would do the trick. You did a great job with the time you had, it's all about learning. No one builds anything for the first time and has it the way wish they would have done it. It's a process :))

Happy travels

I made a two gallon garden sprayer shower, it's awesome and super low tech!

very nice！

I like the music on your video..nice choice!

You are both awesome , love your van :)

you still have a nice build, you can still cut the table down but i think you should make your bed a permanent bed so you can have more storage!!!

I love that car! I searching web for ideas and that is perfect!

PVC tube solar shower . Easy to make

I like your suggestions

This is suuuch a great build!!! Will be taking a lot of inspo. So simple and beautiful. Thanks guys.

Ahoy Wandering Wagners, I just started to worry if their would be any new video's after i subscribed this channel a few weeks ago :) But here it is nice to see you back!! hopefully Kristyn is feeling fine now, i hope the both off you will find the motivation to go one wit h your plans, Kind regards and love from the Netherlands

Having done a van build ourselves recently......yup I agree with roof height! My knees tell me this.....daily!! Fan.....yes I need a better fan!! Sweaty nights are to come!! It’s only spring here in the UK. And for us........Better seats in the front of the van! Swivel and armrests!! Thanks for the video! X

Very good tips! Thank you. :))

I was thinking of a low roof, I do believe I changed my mind...

Awesome video guys, very helpful. We are in the middle of our build right now, wiring lighting this week. Now I might rethink the 9 light set up I had configured haha. Also very glad we opted for the big fridge hearing you guys don't regret it. Safe travels!

One of the issues I ran into when it came to Van Living, is that if/when the vehicle itself needed to visit the mechanic shop(keeping the van overnight), I was like: "Where am I going to stay?!?" Solution! ...I still have a van, but I also tow a box trailer. So if the van ever needs to visit the garage again, I'll still have a place in the box trailer(which was parked in the shop's lot), instead of having to find a motel or sleeping bag it.

9:56 - I knew it! I was sure you were from #Canadastan with those accents from out west! Nailed it!

Thanks - I've found some very nice LED strip lights that I'm using and I agree the strip lights are a better choice.

great timing with this video. We watched your van build vids and loved it. We just got back from our first trip in our bus. we went to Esperance (in WA) check out Twilight beach it is gorgeous. We are a family of 5 and are going to convert a 7.7m mitsubishi rosa bus into a motorhome. for our recent trip we just threw in some mattresses and took off but now we are home and time to get serious about our bus build. we will be re-watching for build videos as they have been really helpful. we hope you love WA.

I like David Jones' showering idea.

Showers are nice, but boondockers use 'baby wipes' to bathe in between showers and dry shampoo. With screens on your openings, you could use perhaps a generator and clip on desk fan. There are also portable A/C's that might help. Hey, you have learned what not to do on your next van. The lifestyle is awesome, now to get by until you can get on with a taller van.

New Sub, we are converting our van to a campervan so out here in RU-vid land learning planning etc Thank You for sharing! - Stacey & Bill :) :)

I'd be concerned, too, about the weight balance. And it's not just side to side, but from front to back. I can't believe you didn't do a little planning before arriving in Australia to start your plan. I would have done some research at home, so I would be prepared to build (design) the van. Good luck in your travels!

G day I have two of the same fans in my van one above the bed blowing and one above the kitchen to suck out any smoke (when I'm cooking there's always smoke!!) and when its hot like lately mid-30s no worries at all apart from the noise nice and cool. ;)

Build DIY shower with a pleasured chemical bottle with arm. Substitute the spray nozzle with a low flow head. Spray down, soap up & shampoo. Shower off. You can buy these sprayers in different volumes to suit your needs. The plus is that you can move it anywhere you wish.

Your lady is hysterical! Love her

You guys will be big vloggers one day I believe in you guys

I hope you feel better soon! Also, I see you changed the latch on the table from the plastic one to a more secure metal one! Great :) Keeps me from worrying that it is going to fall on you one night as you sleep! Great video!

Get the largest car umbrella you can find. it should help with the heat. The Lanmodo is 4.8 m and should cover a big part of the roof.

It’s a bit pricy but I love the Nemo camp shower. You pump it up with air and water!

Oh, and I laughed so hard at the creepy teddy bear on a stick! Locals probably did it to scare away the foreigners, ha. ;)

Where in Australia are you? Here in Huskisson New South Wales (NSW) we have free showers in our public toilet blocks on the beach - it's a gorgeous part of the country if you like the beach and really good coffee, also Hyams Beach is just down the road with some of the world's whitest sand and easy driving to Queensland and Victoria. If you're ever in the area let me know; we have plenty of room for free overnight stay and hot showers too - it's our dream to do what you're doing but with a self sufficient caravan (trailer) and 600 watt solar etc... (in the process of sourcing one at the moment). We're a family of four (2 kids) and we can't wait to get out there and see our beautiful country. Good luck to you both - enjoy it!!

You can buy a camping shower. It's a coil that is heated by propane camping tank and a water pump that circulates the water. You run the water through the coil and back into a bucket. Until it is to the preferred temp. Than you turn off the propane and take your shower. Or get a pressurizing sprayer that you can pump and add hot water to it then pressurize.

Cabinets above the fold down table would help with the concern of weight distribution as well.