Top 6 Things We Love About Our Campervan Conversion

Emily and I built our own self-converted campervan with minimal skills and budget. But it has served us well for over 5 years now. This post shares the Top 6 things that we love most about our campervan conversion!

Emily and I spent almost a year preparing for our campervan conversion. We watched youtube videos, read blogs, and found inspiration and guidance anywhere we could.

When it came time to finally convert our old shuttle van into our custom campervan, we had a great vision of what we wanted. We think our preparedness resulted in a final product that we are ultimately really happy with. It’s designed just for our needs. 

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1) Slide-Out Table

We knew that we wanted to have a large table in the van that could comfortably fit two people for dinner, and also serve as a desk.  The problem is that a large table takes up a lot of space.  So we decided that the best design was to have the table slide underneath the bed.  With the table stored underneath our bed platform, it is a really efficient use of space.

For a mechanism that allows the table to slide in and out, we looked at some heavy-duty drawer slides but were quickly turned off by the prices.  So instead, we opted to have the table roll in and out on 4 caster wheels, assisted by wooden tracks to guide the table.  Then to support the table when it is slid out, we built our kitchen drawers with a custom slot that holds the table.  Then we finished the design with a latch to make sure that it doesn’t move during travel.

After the design was completed, we discovered that the table could also slide backward out the rear doors of the van.  Now we also have a quick outdoor table or tailgate.  Or our favorite discovery is that we can watch movies from our hammocks with a computer on the table.

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2) Sink With Water Filter

One of the things we love about our van build that helps us feel more at home, and less like we are camping is our sink and water filter.  We opted for a nice large sink because we love to cook, so we inevitably have lots of dishes to wash.  The plumbing runs on a 12v pump so we can have water on demand without manually pumping.

And we decided to include a water filter in the system so that we could have more confidence in our drinking water.  We often don’t have ultimate control over the source and quality of water that we fill our tanks with.  So having a water filter allows us to be more flexible with where we fill up, but still having safe and great-tasting drinking water!

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3) Freezer

Sometimes living in a vehicle can be really hot, so having a freezer was a must!  We have the Vitrifrigo VF51 Fridge/Freezer combo. 

The freezer is quite small, but it has just enough room for ice cubes and ice cream. 

If the weather is hot, then our water tanks get warm, and it’s simply not that refreshing.  But being able to add ice cubes to our water is a necessary luxury for us!  And we also sometimes indulge in some cocktails, iced tea or smoothies.  And ice cream, well that’s non-negotiable. 

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4) Stationary Bed

When planning our campervan, we saw so many incredible layouts that included a convertible bed.  There are lots of cool designs to convert your bed into a couch, or dining table during the day.  What a clever use of a small space! 

But we were never big fans of making the bed (sorry Mom), so for us, converting the bed every day would become incredibly annoying.  Ever notice how most people show off their convertible beds as a timelapse?  Hmmm…..

We only make the bed when we take photos of the van, haha.

For us, the stationary bed is just so much better.  It requires no set-up time, and it’s just ready to go whenever we are exhausted.  I should note that we have an extended Ford E-350.  So we have extra length to accommodate our stationary bed, and still have space left over for our living area.

Learn more about unique bed designs for a camper van conversion.

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5) Cassette Toilet

Having a cassette toilet inside the van is a HUGE improvement in our lives.  And we only use it for #1.  But that’s all we need it for.  We simply don’t have to go outside every time we need to pee in the middle of the night.  But honestly, it’s so much more than that.  Less stopping during road trips, a quick place to relieve ourselves in a congested area when we can’t find a bathroom, and numerous other helpful situations.

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6) Storage Space

Moving our entire lives into a van was challenging.  But having an abundance of storage space definitely made the transition a little easier.  And even better, it’s pretty well organized between various drawers, cabinets, and our closet. 

So even though we were able to keep many things for vanlife, it still feels somewhat organized and not like we’re just swimming in our stuff.  For the most part, everything has a place, so we can keep a somewhat tidy tiny home. Learn more about storage hacks for vanlife.

Our raised bed means that we have loads of storage space under our bed, in our “garage”.  And the real cherry on top is the cargo box on the roof (sorry, I couldn’t resist). Learn more about external cargo boxes for camper vans.

In addition to all the normal everyday stuff like clothes, kitchen wares, etc., we manage to carry an unexpected amount of other fun stuff.  We have an inflatable kayak, 2 paddles, a skateboard, backpacking gear, Kan-Jam, camp chairs, tools, and more!

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Takeaway | 6 Things We Love About Our Campervan

After the first year of living in our campervan, we have found it to be surprisingly comfortable. Our obsessive planning definitely paid off!

What do you think of the top 6 things that we love about our campervan?

Admittedly, not everything about our campervan is perfect, there are still some things that we didn’t get right. But that just leaves room for improvement.

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