Week 9 - Lights & Plug

This week I started by fixing the lights in place, being careful not to damage the wiring. Drilling through the carpet causes problems as threads get caught around the drill and strip out in a line, something to be aware of. The end product here looks good though.

I also added a light switch on the back of the cab divider near the side door. I wired the light back through the switch to the front passenger seats. My plan is to fit the leisure batteries under the front two passenger seats (providing there is enough room).


Next to the light switch, I fixed the single UK mains plug socket which I robbed out of the old caravan. It has a protective box on the back which looks neat and, more importantly, protects the mains cable wiring and the person who may otherwise come in contact with it. You can see in the picture below that the drill caused some of the carpet fibres to strip out when fitting the light switch - Grrr, I know this will annoy me a bit in the future...  
        ...it does.

I finished the week by strengthening the bunk bed panels and they now support plenty of weight and fit snugly between the sides of the van. There is not much clearance to the roof but I have no problems sleeping up there. This formed the finished structure of the bunk bed.

Week 8 - Laying The Floor

Laying the wooden floor was the next task and it went really well. Two packs from B&Q (about £30 in total) was enough to complete the whole floor. Additionally, it allowed me to cover up the holes drilled in the floor by the previous owner. 

Note: Some people will also insulate the floor and wheel arches to stop warmth escaping, something I didn't realise until after the floor was laid.

 The packet suggested laying the floor “loose” without fixing it down due to potential expanding or warping in the heat. I decided that over such a small area though, I would rather have it fixed in place so it was glued down with PVA wood glue. It has come out really well.

To finish off the floor, I used a gold edging strip at the side door step and the same at the rear doors in order to give a nice protective border and conceal where the wooden floor finishes.

I also covered the bunk bed panels with left-over carpet and they now fit neatly in their frame.

The basic walls, ceiling and floor are now done and the van is starting to look more like an empty home rather than an empty white van

Week 7 - Wall Carpetting

Time to carpet the walls! After emptying the van out, it took 4 of us to fit the carpet to the sides. First, I ran the wiring to the lights which I planned to fit at each end of the van. Then, starting at one side, the carpet was rolled up the wall and across the ceiling bit by bit, using the spray glue to bond it to the plywood. It is hard work to do this with a thick carpet as it needs to be supported to stop it pulling off the wall. The finished result (excluding a couple of small areas) looks great though. The wiring to the lights could then be pulled through, ready to be connected up.

I had decided on 2x 8w fluorescent bulbs at the front and a single one at the back. These could then be fitted in place and tested

Since this stage of the project, LED lights have become less expensive, brighter and more efficient. If I was starting a new project, I would probably look to fit LEDs over fluorescent bulbs.  

Week 6 - Bunk Bed Panels

This week I cut the panels which would form the base of the bed – allowing a little bit of room for the thickness of the carpet to be applied. The result was good and allowed for the panels to be removed and stashed away when not in use. Headroom was at a premium though, about 45cm to be precise – you might get more clearance if you slept underneath the van.

The panels would now require some extra timber beams underneath to deal with the potential weight of the occupant.

Later that week I took a trip into town for supplies. I measured up the van and went into DFS for carpet. After deciding against their cheapest/thinnest carpet (because the foam backing didn’t look like it would stick very well) I picked a length of creamy beige carpet which was a bargain price as it was the end of the roll. I also picked up plenty of contact adhesive spray (from Homebase £5 per can) to fix it to the walls.

Note: It took about 6 cans in total to do my van. Spray glue generously onto both surfaces, wait for it to go tacky, roll carpet on carefully as creases are hard to get out.