I bought knee pads off of your recommendation and I’m absolutely loving the way they look. My neighbors think I’m a wanna-be skater who may also builds things. Sometimes I put them on even when I’m not doing floor work just to feel cool, plus it makes me feel like I could fall off the roof while doing solar, just aim for the knees. Thanks man! Skate on!
Very good video it’s crazy because I seen so many other RU-vid videos where people are ripping out the flooring that came with their van and I was thinking why when it’s such a nice floor but I guess they wanted installation and sound Dampening.
Thanks for producing good videos. I like your presentation style and the details you show and tips. I was curious about this topic. I subscribed to your channel. The finished floor and the color you picked look very nice. Well done. :)
I have 2 artificial knees! So important to protect yours :) Yes, staggering the wood joints has so much more of a beautiful and natural look. Paint all surfaces of wood so it doesn't absorb moisture, so the inside of the boxes also. Or even paint them before putting the box together. Tell me how I can send you the funds for your rubber mallet!
I went to the Homedepot site to look for weight of the Pergo flooring you used. I found a few facts I needed to know: It said that for 75sqft that 5 cases were needed (they provide total of 84sqft). As of today (January 31, 2021) the cost of those 5 cases was $236. I also wanted to know how much weight this flooring would add to the van. I also wanted to know how much weight this flooring would add to the van. Each case weighs 31 pounds. So five cases would be 5 x 31 = 155 pounds of flooring added to the van.
Great vid, thanks man. I am about to start laying the flooring on my 2017 PM. I have two questions: -What is the point of the wheel boxes? I don´t want to make them since the wells wont be visible anyway, unless there is a good reason to do it. -Why put the flooring before the furniture? maybe you could save some money on flooring if you put it after (My van came with half inch plywood flooring) Thanks a lot for these videos and for taking the time to answer comments!
Those are great questions! It’s all personal preference so there’s no wrong answers. The boxes can act as a shelf or be used to attach things too, they also help reduce road noise! And I put the floors down incase the people buying the van make modifications to the cabinets or whatever, they can do that without having to change buy flooring!
Enjoy your videos and leaning a lot. Curious to know why you chose not to put insulation in your floors. Any concerns? Or did you in a previous video;). Thanks!
Hi!! That is a great question! In my opinion insulating the floor is optional, I did not insulate my first van floor. The main reason I don’t is because of sacrificing heading room. After framing, insulating, laying a subfloor and THEN laying your vinyl, you have already lost 1+ inches of head room. Another reason is because new promaster come with a factory subfloor that is 1/2” thick, perfectly flat, and borderline impossible to remove. And provides a perfect surface to lay floors directly onto. The simplest and most cost effective way to keep your feet warm is to throw down some rugs (which everyone does anyways regardless of weather) Hope this helps!
@@AnkeneyVanBuilds Hi. Good. I can save some money... But will the heat and cold come through without insulation? What are your thoughts on Stick Vinyl Planks
Love your videos and information you share. Appreciate you and your time. Putting vinyl flooring in my van over 3/4 ply. Was gonna use sheet vinyl. Has your flooring moved around at all over time?
Again, Loving your detailed videos. You mentioned the issues with expansion with changing temperatures. I am curious about this expansion after the floor is installed? I live in No. Arizona and we will get very cold temps at night, below freezing in the winter and then very hot during the day inside the van. Will this be a problem with this type of flooring? I am nervous about buckling. 😬 Thank You!
Yes! The floors will expand and contract as it gets hotel and colder! For example my first van I installed the floors in 100° weather. Now that it’s winter I can see a 1/4” gap in one of the rows by the back door. So to prevent that, leave so room for it to move along the edges that you know will be covered up!
Thank You! I will plan to leave a gap all along edges then. I have 3/4” birch plywood flooring... with primer on top... it doesn’t go right up to edge of van metal, so leaving a gap will be easy. Hope this works! I look forward to all your video posts! 👍😁
Questions. I have questions! You went with laminate flooring over vinyl. Was this because of durability questions? I would I imagine a vinyl rip would be very difficult to repair. I’m concerned about separating planks with temperature fluctuations. If I choose over-wheel water tanks, do I install them before or after flooring? What determines your bed height? I won’t be transporting bikes, backpacks, or other adventure gear. Thanks!
All great questions. 1) I prefer laminate. But have nothing against vinyl. If you leave a 1/4” gap before the walls it gives it roof for expansion 2) I’d install the water tanks after 3) if you’re not worried about bikes or gear. I’d put it on the same height as the main structure of the van ( I have a video showing how) it comes out to be around 30” high and is a good height. Thanks :)
Thanks for this video. How did you go about filling in the small space that runs horizontally closest to the drivers area? Since your first plank doesn't start at the furthest point of the van
Hi good question! I used pocket screws into the floor, the bit for pocket screws is pretty long and there was just enough room for it to fit. Also, when I put the walls in, that helped secure the boxes
I'm trying to put my flooring in now and was having a hard time but I'll try your idea of screwing down the first board to help. That might be the answer. I know the floor is suppose to be floating. So, it doesn't hurt the floor to screw things down into the floor like the wheel box? The floor is no longer floating at that point, right? I am new to flooring and just wondering how that works screwing things down like my bed post to the floor.
@@AnkeneyVanBuilds Was there a reason why you didn’t insulate the floor? I would assume that this is one of the most important things to do since cold air rises rom the ground up to the van floor..all the van build videos I have seen, everyone mention that it’s very important to insulate the floor.
@@AnkeneyVanBuilds I enjoy all of your videos. Nicely done and well laid out where you explain everything for those new to van life or wanting to build their van later on, could understand. Could you also discuss the planning process in your future videos (i.e, tools you used like sketch up or any van apps) to plan out the build, and give us an idea of the pro/cons on why you chose to do it that way? Also if there is a pro/con on they type of vans you chose, or preferred to build/use…I know sprinter van are common, but are they easier to work on? Do many pick the sprinter due to the fact they can easily tap into the diesel gas tank for their wabasto heater install since the van already comes with a fuel splitter adaptor?
I see you went with factory flooring, did you take out and insulate under the flooring or do you think the insulation that is part of the subfloor is ok?
Just bought a new Promaster that has a factory wood floor in it. Do you see any problem with leaving that floor in and adding insulation and new flooring on top of it?
I guess it depends on how much head room you’re able to sacrifice! I’ve seen people removing the factory floor, insulate, then put the floor back on. If you insulated on top of the factor floor, you’d need to add some sort of subfloor on top of that and you’ll lose a lot of headroom!
Hi! I'm trying to decide on when to do the flooring. Since flooring expands and contracts, does it matter that you put it in before your wheel boxes and cabinets? Is it better to have it down in all spaces for protection? Thanks!
I prefer to have the entire floor in place and put the cabinets on top! Mainly so that the floor is seemless and your not making awkward cuts to go under toe kicks and stuff leaving gaps!
Question? My used promaster 2016 159 ext came with what appears to be a plasticized black coating on the floor. In some scratched places the paint shows through. I can’t find any videos showing flooring being done on this coating. Does it need to be removed or do we go straight over it with plywood? Help! 😱
@@AnkeneyVanBuilds No it did not come with a subfloor...just a painted or sprayed on rubberized black coating. You can still see the ridges in the floor. There are a few areas around the sliding and back door that were probably scraped off when they were loading/unloading ( it was a work van)I tried to see if it would peel up but it seems to have adhered pretty well. I had not seen this on any videos...I was planning to build floor as though it were metal but was not sure if there would be a moisture problem.
How did you fit your impact driver in to drive the screws to attach the wheel well boxes to the floor? I have the 6 in kreg jig drill bit and still can't reach.
Hi! I didn’t put a moisture barrier for a few reasons. 1) the floors are waterproof 2) the subfloor was a factory subfloor and coated in a water proof plastic material 3) I didn’t use a vapor barrier on the walls either since the 3m thinsulate is also waterproof Thanks! Cheers
Hi there! Do you feel like not having floor insulation makes the van itself colder overall or moreso just the flooring because you have the thinsulate on the walls? Or did you not notice much of a difference?
@@AnkeneyVanBuilds thanks for replying! In my first build I insulated with 1 inch foam, but the floor was still cold and I felt that it wasted precious inches. Wondering about to reasoning for skipping the floor insulation?
Good video on this topic. I am concerned about how much weight is added during a van build. For that reason I hope you will publish how much weight your van builds add to the van, and total weight of the van when it has batteries, solar, cabinets, and water in the tanks (and propane if used), etc. I would like to get an idea of the total weight of typical van builds. I ask each builder when I see a van build video, as I think it is an important aspect of the build. I went to the Homedepot site to look for weight of the Pergo flooring you used. I found a few facts I needed to know: It said that for 75sqft that 5 cases were needed (they provide total of 84sqft). As of today (January 31, 2021) the cost of those 5 cases was $236. I also wanted to know how much weight this flooring would add to the van. Each case weighs 31 pounds. So five cases would be 5 x 31 = 155 pounds of flooring added to the van.
Hi!! That is a great question! The main reason I don’t is because of sacrificing heading room. After framing, insulating, laying a subfloor and THEN laying your vinyl, you have already lost 1+ inches of head room. Another reason is because new promaster come with a factory subfloor that is 1/2” thick, perfectly flat, and borderline impossible to remove. And provides a perfect surface to lay floors directly onto. The simplest and most cost effective way to keep your feet warm is to throw down some rugs (which everyone does anyways regardless of weather) Hope this helps!
@@AnkeneyVanBuilds I'm enjoying the videos, and have just started my promaster build. Mine has the same subfloor. I've seen other videos where it was removed, insulated, and a new subfloor installed. I don't blame you for not wanting to remove it, but it looked do-able. My concern is regretting not having the insulation in the floor. I've never lived in a van, but have lived in a camper, and the floors are always cold in the winter. I considered installing the heated floor, but don't think I'll get my monies worth of winter camping. It would be interesting to see hard data, on temperature differentials between an insulated floor and a non insulated floor. If I decided to insulate, maybe we could meet up and compare floor temperatures.
@@AnkeneyVanBuilds that's great to hear. I have been watching a few videos where they have lifted. Any thoughts on it? We're about to put the boards down in a 12.5m coach :)
@@AnkeneyVanBuilds thanks a lot for your answer. We're now in the middle of figuring out how to build a van for our small family and your videos are so usefull!!!
Step 1: don't use laminate! The core of laminate is not waterproof like vinyl is, and water vapor will condensate underneath your floor and soak into the laminate, slowly warping it over time. Laminate is cheaper and looks nicer though so if you're selling your van to some sucker definitely use laminate!