overview
Faced with the need to travel from Montreal to Vancouver for school, I decided the best way to make the journey was to convert a cargo van into a camper van and drive across Canada. Though I had no experience with a project of this scale, I spent weeks researching, designing, and meticulously planning every detail.
Subfloor. Insulation.
After grinding off as much of the rust as I could and patching all the holes in the floor, I was able to construct the subfloor. Using construction glue, I created a grid of 1x1's and foam insulation. Plywood was fit atop to create an even surface to which flooring panels were fastened.
3M's Thinsulate was used to insulate the walls and ceiling.
Noico sound deadening pads were installed along parts of the metal cabin to reduce vibrations.
Walls. Ceiling. Couch/Bed.
Tongue and groove wood panels covered the walls and were later painted white.
Two large white 1/4" MDF panels were fastened to the ceiling as a backdrop for the slatted ceiling design.
The couch was designed to transform into a bed by unfolding onto a centre footrest/support. The two sides of the couch opened up to reveal storage space underneath.
Plumbing.
A foot pump draws water from a removable fresh water tank. The water flows out of the faucet into a sink made from a recycled stainless steel salad bowl. The dirty water finally drains into a removable grey water tank.
Electrical.
A 100W solar panel was fixed to the roof of the van in order to provide charge to a 110V/500W electric generator.
This electric circuit was capable of providing power to a 12V car refrigerator and motorhome fan, and could charge personal electronic devices.
The electric generator could also be charged via the van's 12V power source if extra charge was needed while driving.
Couch/Bed.
Couch mode. The pillows were completely hand upholstered using fabric and four slices of a memory foam mattress.
Bed mode. The two couches unfold onto the centre footrest and transform into an almost entire queen-sized bed.
Cabinetry. Kitchen Space.
All of the carpentry was done by hand. The cabinet design was created from scratch and all of the wood used was repurposed.
A beautiful piece of live edge maple was stained and varnished to be used as a countertop.
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