I just wanted to say thank you. I have watched so many videos and it just does not show me very good detail as to how to get started and what I need that doesn’t cost so much. Your videos are nicely informative. I appreciate it. I am trying to do this on a very limited budget and your videos really help. Trying to do this without having to buy all the tools to add to my budget is not what I was looking for.
I love how you both are wearing masks during your entire build. Your the only ones I've seen in all the van builds that I've watched. Also wool is the best insulation for a van build, it doesn't mold, it's antimicrobial, antifungal, it can hold up to 40 percent moisture and still provide 100 insulation value. Your the only one I subscribed to. I can't wait for more videos, also very good explanation during your process. You should be very proud. Thank you
Nice! Really easy to understand. Also, the chill jazz music really makes it seem like a relaxing van build took place (which I am sure it was not 100% the case. hahaha) You make everything seem really doable.
Leaving raw wood inside your walls or floors is just inviting mold and mildew into your van. Every piece of raw wood needs to be sealed with either mold resistant primer (battens & backs of wall and ceiling panels) or spar urethane on exposed wood where you want a natural finish such as bed slats, component compartments or cabinets (plumbing, LPG, electrical, etc), garage storage, etc. I would not seal surfaces that are going to be glued together. When gluing battens to metal, wipe the metal down with denatured alcohol to remove any contaminates or oil and let dry before gluing. I would also not use any paint or sealer that is oil-based. I used oil-base paint on my house porch trim and couldn’t understand why we always had so much mildew - had to scrub it every year. Oil-based products are great “sealers” but mildew thrives on the oil. Use 100% acrylic paint instead.
What a nice build out. What are those sticky things that help hold up the insulation? Can you give a link or what they are called? My husband and I are getting close to that stage in our build out and they look really handy.
It looks like you had access to a woodworking shop? Do you have any info on where people can access these kind of places? I have some tools at home but nothing like what I saw in your video. I like the techniques you used in the framing of the walls. Another great video!
If it was me I put some killmat on the floor to help with sound deadening and more on the walls I just bought a 2017 Mercedes-benz sprinter that is my plan but everyone has their own ideal on building a van build
It seems to me that plugging up the drain holes is probably not a good idea. They are called "drain" holes for a reason. If moisture somehow gets trapped under the newly installed floor at some point, (and you can't guarantee that that won't happen), then there is nowhere for that excess moisture to go because the drain holes are now blocked.
Yes it was definitely the most challenging part of the build. We used 3 large panels and the edges did not meet up well with the walls. We think using tongue and groove panels instead would be easier
awesome video! although I'm missing the part where u prepared the electric wires? I see some wires coming out on top. So I was wondering when u do the electricity... Before the walls or after?
What I don't understand is why the wheel wells are fully covered in killmat. But the roof (which will make a lot of noise when it rains) has almost no killmat at all.
Hey guys, congrats on your work 👏 I’m curious if a year on, did the Havelock Wool cause any smell issues? Heard a few complaints that a ‘barn’ smell remains.
Hi! We don't have any smells from the insulation at all. The barn smell is apparent when we first removed it from the packaging and initially installing, but after a few days and especially after we finished the build there's no notable smell. Thank you for watching!
Hi, I am just about to start on my 2005 140" wheelbase Sprinter. May I ask you about the furring strips you used on the floor. I think you said you used 1x2 boards. Are they thicker than the groove they are sitting in? I was wondering about using something at the same height as the ridges because I am using rigid foam board for insulation, Thank you in advance for your reply!! I love what you guys have done to your van and thank you so much for sharing your adventure!
Hi 👋 Thanks for such a great video! I have the same size T1N sprinter that I'll be converting soon. Just curious how much havelock wool did you use for the insulation? Thanks 😊
Question! Thank you so much for putting this together. We are in the process of building our van right now using your video. For the glue you linked, It says that you need to wait seven days for the glue to cure. Do you know if you had to wait that long? We are thinking if we put the plywood on top of it it should weigh it down and secure it pretty well?
Thank you for watching! You do have to wait 7 days for it to completely cure, however it's holds well after several hours. We did exactly as you're trying to do - after we laid the plywood down, we kept the project moving and we haven't had any issues at all!
Let me get this straight. You framed the walls before you did electrical and you framed a curved space and made it curved again? I love the fact that you guys work so efficiently together but I don’t necessarily agree with the steps. I see this a lot with people who do not actually live in vans. Do you live in vans? Any insight on the steps? Any thought of heated floors and/or flares or additional windows? Any track devices you like for cabinets, shelves, etc.?
Yes we worked at a workshop for part of the build. It's a makerspace in the city, which we pay about $200/month for the space and access to all the tools. It's such a great option for van builds!
I see a lot of wasted space.. just below the rear windows there is a large space that could have been utilized and everyone i talk to says you need to put in a Vapor Barrier walls and floors...The video does give me a few ideas for my future build..
Thanks! We did consider, however the wool manufacturer stated that a vapor barrier would hinder the effectiveness of the wool's ability to remove moisture should it be exposed to any. So far so good though!
Thanks! We're using 3mm plywood for both the walls and ceiling. We want to minimize the weight added to the car so we though this was the better option
I'm up north in Canada and I'm wondering what temperatures ( it can get as low as -22 F up here so insulation is a must ) you are living in with the van and how the havelock wool is performing. And thanks for the content I appreciate you guys taking the time to make it.
The coldest that we've stayed so far is about -10C. The insulation did great retaining heat generated inside the van (i.e. cooking and propane heater). We would recommend adding more insulation on the floors than we did, because we found it got the coldest. Another tip would be to double check any gaps along the door and window seals because our van isn't very aligned and we lost a fair amount of heat through those areas at first until we plugged them up using weather stripping. Otherwise the wool performed great. Hope this helped! Thank you!
