A Shower That Lives in a Drawer: Fitting a Real Rinse Into a Small Van Without Losing the Aisle
A collapsible tub base, a sink diverter and a curtain give our small van a full shower that folds into a drawer when we are done.
Gear
Ten Minutes of Heat: Why I Put My Campervan Water Heater on a Timer
Put a campervan water heater on a timed 110V circuit and wrap it in polyiso so you get hot showers without leaving the heater on all day.
One Bag, Two Holidays: The Airplane Hoodie and Carry-On System I’m Flying With This Season
One-bag packing for Thanksgiving and Christmas: the airplane hoodie, a carry-on that fits real sizers, packing cubes, and the small kit that skips checked-bag fees.
Sleep-Ready Beats Finished: The Van Build Milestone That Gets You on the Road Sooner
Why a half-built campervan should be sleep-ready first: privacy windows with built-in shades, ducted AC, a smart fan spot and a fast day-to-night swap.
Scuffs From Someone Else’s Kitchen: Giving a Secondhand Van Sink a Second Life Before the Road
How we refreshed a scuffed secondhand sink already installed in our ProMaster van, plus masking, paint and timing tips for road-ready van builds.
Nothing Hits the Dirt: The Floor Drain That Turned My Van Into a Real Off-Grid Shower
How a floor drain, P-trap and grey tank gave my campervan a real hot shower off-grid, with nothing dumped on the ground, and how to live with it.
Why the Best Seat in My Van Sits on Empty Space
Every van conversion reaches the moment when the empty metal shell stops looking like a cargo hold and starts answering questions. Where will we eat? Where will the gear live? In my build, both questions got the same answer, and it took me a few sketches to see it. The dinette seats needed a floor … Read more
Rocks Are Free, Cushions Are Better: Building Van Seats Worth Sitting On
Every van build hits the same wall eventually. You have the floor, the walls, the wiring tucked neatly where it belongs — and then someone asks the question that quietly decides whether the whole rig works: where are you actually going to sit? For a shockingly long stretch of our ProMaster build, the honest answer … Read more
Fourteen Pounds of Winter Insurance: The Car Kit I Build Before the First Freeze
The forecast app on my phone flipped this week. Where it used to say rain, it now says snow possible above 6,000 feet, and that is my annual cue — earlier than most people’s — to rebuild the winter kit that lives behind the driver’s seat of whatever I’m driving. Mid-October sounds paranoid if you … Read more
The Van Life Table That Changes Jobs Three Times a Day
Every square inch inside a camper van has to earn its keep, and few things earn harder than the dinette table. In the morning it is a desk with a sunrise outside the window. At lunch it is a prep station for sandwiches assembled between trailheads. By evening it is the place where two people … Read more