Blog
Recommended Tools for Converting a Camper Van
Now that I’ve converted three Promaster vans into tiny homes on wheels I’d like to offer up some recommendations on tools and gadgets that make the process quicker and easier. It’s often said that the right tool for the job makes a huge difference and I agree. I’m providing links to specific products below but, of course, these are tools that are made by many companies. I’m trying to link to tools that provide a reasonable balance between cost and quality – a good value. In other words, I’m not linking to the “best” or highest quality tool since I’m assuming you are not a professional and won’t be using these tools every day for the next many years. Many folks may have a reason to buy a more expensive and higher-quality brand. So, I would suggesting thinking of this for what it’s intended to be – a list of recommended tools rather than specific product recommendations. Jig Saw A jig saw is perhaps the most quitessential power tool for a van build! You’ll use this for cutting all those curves in everything and making giant holes in your van for windows and fans. I recommend some fine metal blades (for those giant holes in your van’s sheet metal) and “down cutting” wood blades that create clean cuts in wood and laminate when cutting from the “top” of the piece. Hydraulic Lug Crimper You need seriously thick electrical cables for things like connecting a battery bank together or powering a large inverter in a van. This crimping tool works great for these hefty crimps like working with 2/0 AWG cable wire. Heat Gun Speaking of wiring, you should always use heat shrink on your cable terminations (lugs/etc.). These heat guns really do work better than a hair dryer. Another tool you’ll use a ton and be glad you invested into. Wire Loom Insertion Tool It’s a good idea to protect your van’s wiring by putting it inside wire loom. I did this in areas where the wires were exposed to the elements or to areas of the van that might harm the insulation. However, getting the wire into the loom in a total nightmare. These tools make that process so much easier! 10″ Contour Gauge Nothing in a van is straight and a huge part of building a camper van is making things that fit into all these crazy shapes like cabinets, wall panels, etc. A contour gauge helps you capture these curves and contours with relative ease and are not expensive. Mini Kreg Jig Kit This jig for pocket screws is pretty much essential when converting a van. Pocket hole joinery helps you build all sorts things with ease and strength. I also recommend this assortment of pocket screws in varying lengths and, of course, you’ll need a long T20 driver bit to screw them in. Plusnuts and Plusnut Installation Tool Plusnuts (also called crossnuts) are an excellent way to add strength to your build. In essence, they allow you to add a “nut” into any part of the sheet metal of your van so that you can bolt things to the van vs. screw them. To use them, you can either use an existing hole in your van – there are many of these along the support beams in cargo vans or you drill an appropriate size hole. Then you insert the plusnut into the hole and use a tool to compress the “bulb” onto the back of the sheet metal that you drilled into. This creates a “plus shaped” support for the threaded insert which is the “nut” part that you can bolt into. You can use a variety of tools to install these. The fanciest is a Pneumatic tool but I’ve had good luck with this simpler and less expensive tool which is quite a bit smaller as well which can be handy in a van. You can even use common tools you already have but it’s a bit more difficult. I’ve also seen plusnut installation tools that work with a drill. I tend to use the 1/4″-20 size of plusnut and various lengths of 1/4″-20 bolts. A Rechargeable Headlamp Building a van means working on precision projects in tight, often dark spaces. Inside a cabinet, underneath a van, behind obstacles, etc. I pretty much wore this thing all day during my build. It’s like having a tiny super power! Impact Driver There will be much screwing around in your van build. You think that, if you have a drill, you don’t need an impact driver. While that’s true, you’ll be amazed how much better these work for screwing stuff. It doesn’t have to be an expensive one. I bought this particular one which works great and is only about $60. That’s like one penny for every thousand screws you drive. Totally worth it! 24″ Quick Grip Clamps Another tool I used constantly. I like these larger clamps but it’s good to have a few small ones around as well. From drilling pocket holes to the 10 extra hands you need every day, clamps like these are indispensable. 11-Piece Oscillating Multi-Tool Kit This was a new tool to me during my latest build and I was actually surprised how much I used it. It was great for cutting openings in plywood for outlets and electronics panels. I used it to cut PVC and hose for plumbing. I used it to sand in tight spaces. I used it to shorten fasteners. I used it just about every day. This kit comes with a nice variety of “blades” but there are even more options available which further extend the utility the tool! Center Punch This one isn’t really “essential” but it sure is handy and only ten bucks. You put the tip of this tool right where you need a hole in something (metal, wood, etc.) and press down to “punch” a tiny indentation into that spot. This allows you to start drilling in that exact spot without the drill bit “drifting”. This is particularly useful when needing to drill into metal but these little indentations are also very helpful when putting in screws that might also “drift” without that little “starting point”. Step Bits Speaking of drilling, a set of step bits is super handy. These things are designed to enlarge a hole as the bit drills through the sheet metal. Each step on the bit is larger in diameter than the step before. Smaller step drill bits are self-starting and no pilot bit is required to start the hole. On larger step drill bits, you need to have a hole pre-drilled that is equal in diameter to the smallest step on the bit. These bits generally create cleaner holes and you don’t need as many standard bits since the step bit can create most size holes! A Good Caulking Gun I’ve used dozens of caulking guns and this is the best one. It’s worth paying a few extra bucks for. Don’t know what else to say. So, there. Pex Crimper If you’re doing any substantial plumbing in your van for a sink, shower, etc. you’ll probably want to use Pex for these water lines so you’ll need a crimper. Nothing special here but necessary unless you decide to use something like Shark-Bite fittings. I’d also recommend a proper pipe cutter to get clean cuts on your Pex (and other) pipes.
Learn more
Great Things for Vanlife. Stuff That's Worth the Space It Takes Up!
Our entire store represents the items I've used (or would use) for my DIY Promaster camper van. So, I figured I’d write another post about the things that go inside. There isn’t a lot of space in a tiny home on wheels so the things that you take with you must be awesome and useful. Below is my list of things that I think are worth the space they take up in the van and do the job well. Flat-Jack Air Leveler It’s much easier to sleep and cook and generally not go insane when the van is reasonably level. For years I’ve used the (evil) plastic leveling blocks that stack up and pretty much hated them. They were hard to set up, even harder to drive onto and always got smashed up by the weight of the van making them even bulkier to store and harder to use. BOOO! The Flat-Jack solves all this! It is *flat* so it can be stored away just about anywhere without taking up space and also so much easier to drive onto. Then you just inflate it to the height you want. Check out our silly video comparing the Flat-Jack to leveling blocks! Kikkerland Rhino II Step Stool Great little step stool that folds up to take almost no space. We use it to get up into the bed loft, in and out of the van near the slider, to stay off the ground when using the outdoor shower, as a sort of chair up against the wet bath wall in the van and so on. Super handy! Bike Rack Unless you store your bikes inside the van (in the so-called garage area), you’re going to want to have a bike rack because bikes are the best way to get around when you’re van is at camp! I’ve researched this extensively and used many racks over the last 4 years and I can recommend this one: the Fiamma Carry-Bike is a great option. 8.5′ Aluminum Telescoping Ladder You’ll get a lot more juice out of your solar panels if you keep them clean and if you don’t have a permanently mounted ladder this thing will get you up there. It’s extremely small when collapsed (30.75″ x 18.75″) and versatile. Joseph Joseph DrawerStore Kitchen Drawer Organizer This is a really clever space saving organizer for your silverware. The knives, forks (and so on) slide into the various stacked compartments and there is a little icon next to each one so you know what’s what. BlueDriver Bluetooth Pro OBDII Scan Tool The nerd in me likes to monitor stats like engine load and coolant temperature – similar to the way I’m always looking at how much energy the sun is giving me through the solar panels or how much fresh water I have using the tank monitoring system. This gadget plugs into the OBDII port on the van (below the steering wheel) and transmits all kinds of data from the van’s computer to an app for your mobile device. It also allows you to read any “check engine light” codes. And, if you have a Promaster at least, you might notice that the engine temperature gauge in the van is always slightly below the middle. According to this video from an Promaster owner whose engine blew up, that gauge is only there to make you feel good and it’s not at all accurate. Casabella Dustpan and Brush Set When you’re living in a van you’ll be cleaning a lot. This is a broom and dustpan that is nice. What can I say, it does the job and doesn’t take up a bunch of space. OMNIA Stovetop Oven Kit Most vans don’t have an oven and sometimes an oven is what ya need for making delicious food. Think baked goods, nachos, pizza or garlic bread. Yum! This thing is an oven that work with most cooktops. However, since it’s make of aluminum it does not work with induction cooktops. The link is to the kit that includes the rack and the silicone “insert” which makes it way easier to clean. 12V DC Portable Air Compressor Pump Super handy little air compressor. Can fill up your van or bike tires or any inflatable things like tubes for riving tubing! Sometimes it’s helpful to let some air out of your tires for enhanced traction and this pump can get you back to full pressure when you need to. Thetford Curve Cassette Toilet Some folks don’t want a toilet of any kind in their van. I think it’s a worthwhile luxury (along with my shower). This is the unit I’ve used and it works great. It has a water tank at the top for flushing and a built-in “black tank” for your evacuations 🙂 You can empty it in a variety of ways and it’s not nearly as bad as you think. I wrote more about it and the wet bath in my van in this post. You should use special RV/dissolving toilet paper. This particular toilet paper is soft but, eh, sturdy enough for the job – highly recommend. Magma Nesting 7-Piece Stainless Steel Cookware Set I don’t have this set but if I ever upgrade my cookware this will be the one! They work with all types of cooktops – including induction stoves, they nest into a small footprint and appear to be really well made with non-stick coating. They seem perfect for vanlife. Ultimate Ears BOOM 2 Phantom Bluetooth Speaker A high-quality, durable and waterproof speaker really is an essential for vanlife. I have the “last version” of this and it’s awesome. I can only imagine they’ve improved it for the new version! Camco TastePURE Water Filter Many times the source of your “fresh water” is a little less fresh than ideal. This filter connects between the water source and your fresh water tank inlet and to filter the water as you fill up! 4-Way Multi-Functional Utilities Key Speaking of fresh water – sometimes it’s hard to find. Many gas stations, office buildings and other commercial structures have water connections that are hidden away behind access doors. This handy “key” opens most of those. A great thing to have in a pinch. 15 amp to 30 amp Adapter If your van has a 30 amp shore power connection (and cable), you’ll probably want this little adapter that allows you to plug into a standard 15 amp outlet. Of course you’ll have to be mindful of how much AC power you’re pulling but in my experience, 15 amps has been plenty – even when running the rooftop AC unit. USB-Powered Goosneck Light This tiny gooseneck light with an LED bulb and power switch can be plugged into any USB jack and provide a little reading light. It takes up no space and has a to of utility. I installed a USB power outlet in the headliner of my van between the two seats in the cab and routinely use this light to read maps/books/whatever while sitting up there. Rechargable LED Headlamp A headlamp is a true essential for vanlife. Great for camping, fixing things, finding things, lighting up things. I like this particular headlamp because it’s bright, fits well, can run of standard batteries or use it’s built-in rechargeable battery that charges from any USB jack. Bike Lock That Uses Your Van Key (Promaster and others) Less is more in vanlife. This bike lock uses your Promaster van key instead of a combination or separate key. One less thing.
Learn more
Installing A Propane Tank Underneath a Promaster Van with Remote Fill Kit
Note: this post references the propane system in my second build. There is a list to all the parts and materials at the bottom of this post. You can also see more about my latest build, Miles Van Camper v3. Important disclaimer: propane is explosive and therefore very dangerous! This blog post describes how I went about installing a propane system in my van only. For your safety, you should do your own research when installing a propane system and be sure to have the results inspected for safety by a qualified professional before using it. You can read codes for propane systems in RVs here. There are many ways to add a propane tank to your van build. The simplest approach is to use the the disposable, 1 lb cylinders which are inexpensive and can be purchased in many places. Others use a small tank that can be refilled such as this 5 lb capacity tank. These are most often installed in a box inside the van. These storage boxes must be fully sealed and have a vent on the bottom that flows through the floor of the van so that if there are leaks, the propane gas – which sinks because it’s heavier than air – can escape. In my first few builds, I chose to use an RV-style “Horizontal” tank that is ASME-certified and permanently mounted underneath the van. I purchased this replacement tank for Volkwagen Eurovan Winnebago campers that were built between 1995 and 2001 from GoWesty. It’s a 5.9 gallon capacity tank manufactured by Manchester Tank but really only holds about 4.6 gallons. Propane tanks are normally only filled to 80% of their capacity. These horizontal tanks use a special “fill valve” and a “bleeder valve” that is designed to let liquid propane come out when the tank gets to 80% full and signal to the person filling the tank that they should stop filling. There are many of these types of tanks available for RVs but I chose this particular replacement tank because the round tank area is only 8″ in diameter compared to all the other tanks I could find that are 10″ or larger in diameter. This size is important because, even at the smaller size, the tank barely fits where I placed it which is just in front of the rear axle underneath the van. There is an nice opening there that isn’t close to any of the exhaust lines and didn’t interfere with my grey water tank and plumbing which is also located underneath the van on the passenger side. Advantages Since the tank is designed to be mounted underneath the vehicle, any high-pressure leaks are outside the van. All three of the Volkswagen camper vans I owned had these external, horizontal tanks and they always worked great and have been proven safe from years of use in these VW campers and tons of standard RVs. By being outside, it didn’t take up any interior space in my floor plan. This tank includes a fairly accurate gauge that you can “see” (if you crawl up to it under the van) but also connects up to my SeeLevel II tank monitoring system. The other tanks I considered did not have any gauge and the available gauges didn’t have any interface to a centralized tank monitoring system. Despite its location tucked under the van, with the remote fill kit that I added, this tank can be easily filled at any propane filling station without needing to be removed or moved. Start By Wrestling It Into Place The first step was to wrestle this thing into place. Not only is it a tight fit in that cavity under the van but the emergency brake cables are also in the way. I used a jack, blocks of wood and plenty of colorful language getting up there. Then, I marked the the locations for the bolts. There are mounting brackets on both sides of the tank itself. I bolted it into place with heavy-duty galvanized bolts (through the van floor), locking washers and nuts. Below you can see the tank mounted in this location from the front and the rear. Next, I moved onto installing the Nashfuel Remote Fill Kit. This kit replicates the “fill valve” and “bleeder valve” built into the tank itself to a remote location. Often these types of tanks are located on the side of a vehicle van (such as on Volkswagen campers) or inside a compartment on the side of a RV which means that the propane filling station can access the tank, and these valves directly. In my case the remote fill was necessary since nobody is going to crawl under my van to fill the propane tank! The kit comes with all the fittings you need as well as 6 foot long lengths of high-quality hose for the fill and bleeder valve extensions. Essentially you’re using these two hoses (and the various fittings) to extend the valves on the tank to where you want to mount the remote fill. The first step of the installation was to attach the provided fittings to the remote mounting bracket. This kit comes unassembled. In the illustration below you’ll see that on the “back” side of the mounting bracket you need two fittings/adapters to screw into the threads on the bracket itself. This gets you two 1/2″ male flare connections on that “back” side for the hoses. On the “front” side of the bracket you attach the remote fill valve and remote bleeder valve into the threads of the bracket. I used Permatex 80631 Thread Sealant with PTFE to seal all the threads. Honestly, getting all these fittings onto the bracket tightly was the most difficult part of the remote fill kit installation process. Next I had to remove the bleeder valve from the propane tank itself and replace that with an adapter that also has a 1/2″ male flare fitting for the hose that will connect this to the remote bleeder valve. Then I took the plastic cap off the tank’s fill valve and attached up a few fittings from the kit that allow the tank’s fill valve to be connected to the remote fill valve using the second supplied hose. At this point it was time to mount the remote fill bracket. I installed it directly below the fresh water fill and shore power electrical connection on the passenger side of the van at the very bottom of the van wall using rivnuts and two bolts through the provided mounting holes. The paint quality on the metal bracket was poor so I just spray painted it with Black Rust-Oleum. With all the fittings in place, I needed to cut the provided hoses to the correct length and add the flare connectors to hook up the remote valves to the tank itself. This particular kit came with 6′ lengths of hose for both the fill valve and bleeder valve but you can order longer lengths of hose if necessary. The process for installing the flare connections to the hose is pretty well detailed in the kit’s documentation. It was a new experience for me since I have never used that type of connector system. Basically you place part of the fitting into the hose itself and then there is another piece that sort of threads onto this to compress the hose to the fitting. It took me a while to wrap my head around the process but, after completing the first one, the remaining 3x went very fast. Next I connected these hoses from from the tank’s fill and bleeder valve to the same valves on the remote bracket. This was refreshingly simple! To wrap things up I installed this pressure regulator on the outlet of the tank itself. Like most propane appliances, my two devices (Propex heater and cooktop) require pressure-regulated gas. The regulator screws into the tank outlet and I used a 90 degree elbow 3/8″ male NPT to 3/8″ male flare fitting on the regulator’s outlet. From there I used a variety of Marshall 3/8″ flare supply hoses to connect the propane up to the actual appliances. There is only a few feet of this supply line outside the van before it goes up into the van (through a protected PVC sleeve). That exposed section, below the van is protected with a heat shield that protects it from the heat of the exhaust pipes of the van and also protects the hose from rocks and debris. Filling Up The Tank The last step was to fill up the tank! It’s pretty easy to find propane filling stations with Google. I’m always a little bit nervous when I first fill up a brand-new tank/propane system but everything went well. The bleeder valve indicated the tank was full at exactly 4.6 gallons as expected and I drove over to a remote section of the parking lot to check for leaks with a spray bottle of water and dish soap and, of course, my nose. Overall the installation was sound but I did find a very small leak at one of the fittings on the “rear” side of the remote fill bracket that was resolved with a bit of wrenching. Parts & Materials Manchester Tank 5.9 Gallon Capacity This is a replacement tank used on VW Eurovan Campers from 1995-2001. It has a smaller diameter than the other RV style Manchester tanks (8″ versus 10″) which is essential for where I located it underneath the van – just in front of the rear axle. It was quite difficult to wrestle it into that spot and I had to sort of bend the emergency brake cables out of the way but it did fit and is nice and tucked away without affecting the van ground clearance at all. By putting the tank in this location you need a remote fill kit like the one listed below. Since you can’t fill propane tanks up completely, it really only holds 4.6 gallons. Nashfuel Remote Propane Fill Kit with Mounting Bracket Because my propane tank is installed deep underneath the van I needed this “remote fill kit” to be able to fill the tank from the side of the van. The panel is mounted at the bottom of the van body on the drivers side (that side has the water fill and shore power inlets as well). I found it difficult to install this and test for leaks but it does work well and the kit comes with all the parts you need. Manchester Tank G12846 LP Gas Tank Remote 90° OHM Sender This thing is installed onto the tank (above) and sends the tank level to my SeeLevel tank monitoring system. Super handy! Mr. Heater Two Stage Regulator Does the job… I like that this one comes with a plastic cover. Dual Carbon Monoxide and LP Gas Detector/Alarm Great to have this two-in-one unit. It’s installed just front of the galley above the “step/heater cover”. Propane gas “sinks” so you want to install any LP gas detector low to the ground.
Learn more
Using a Marine Isotemp 20L Water Heater in Camper Van Conversion
This post details using an marine-style water heater in a camper van conversion. These are small, tank-based water heaters which are connected to the engine coolant lines so that water is heated “automagically” while you’re driving and have an electric heating element as a “backup” for when you’re not driving. Update! We sell these water heaters in our store – either stand alone or with a full installation kit for a ProMaster/Sprinter/Transit van that includes all the parts and pieces you need to connect the engine coolant plus a detailed installation guide and video. We sell the Spa version, the Slim versions of the Isotemp water heaters which, as you might guess, are a little slimmer (but longer) and the Square version which is, um, square-ish. They all work the same and the installation is pretty much the same – just different shapes and tank capacities. But, First Some Background In my first ProMaster build, I used this on-demand, propane fired water heater. It was installed underneath the refrigerator just behind the main galley area on the driver side of the van. It worked very well but had some drawbacks. On-demand water heaters are triggered to turn “on” when there is adequate flow. So, when you turn on a hot water tap the unit should “sense” this flow of water, fire up, and begin heating water up to the desired temperature (there were three temperature settings on that unit). The problem with this is that you need to turn the water “on” quite a bit – or have a lot of “flow” – in order for it to trigger. In many cases, you just want a little bit of hot water in order to be conservative and maximize the water you have in your tank. For instance, if you’re washing dishes, you don’t need “full flow” just to rinse the dishes. In this type of situation you’d have to use more flow/more water than necessary with an on-demand water heater just to “trigger” the unit to fire up and therefore you basically “waste” water. The other thing I didn’t like is that this “sensing” takes about two seconds. So, you turn on a tap at a high enough flow to trigger the unit and then it takes about two seconds of water flowing (strongly) before it turns on. While this seems minor, it does take a toll on water conservation efforts. Also, if you turn off the water – perhaps while showering to save water (between soaping and rinsing for example) – this startup delay results in cold water flowing in-between these on/off cycles which really isn’t ideal in that situation. I think these on-demand style water heaters are better suited for larger RVs where you have much larger water tanks and hot water demands. It would also be very nice if you spent a lot of time in campgrounds/RV parks where you were connected to a “city water” connection and sewer connection. In that context, the lag in getting the hot water and need for higher flow wouldn’t be an issue and the strength of the on-demand unit – which is continuous/virtually unlimited hot water supply – would be a real benefit with long showers and so forth. We do NOT recommend installing the Isotemp units outside of the vehicle and it would, unfortunately, void the warranty. They are designed to be inside a boat/RV and can be damaged under the van – even with the protection you’re proposing. For winterizing the Isotemp, you really only need a shut-off valve on the cold water supply going into the unit. If you close that and drain the tank with the built-in pressure release/empty valve, that would be enough for winterizing. You could also turn off the coolant line loop valves (shown in green above) for winter but that isn’t necessary since the coolant can still flow through this additional loop – even when the water tank is empty inside the Isotemp. The Upgrade: Isotemp SPA 20L Water Heater After much research, I decided to install an Isotemp SPA 20L in my latest build. This is a 5.3 gallon capacity unit. It’s connected to the Promaster engine coolant lines with one hose supplying the heated coolant and another returning the it back to the engine. In addition, there is a 750 watt (115 volt) electric heating element that can heat the water if you’re not running the engine from an inverter or shore power. When driving, the water heater will heat the water in the tank to 190 degrees or more (up to 160 degrees when using the electric element) which is much hotter than average shower temperatures (110 to 120 degrees Fahrenheit). But, here’s the clever part! The water heater employs a “cold water mixing valve” that allows you to dial in the desired output temperature and works by mixing in unheated water from the cold water supply line. This system vastly increases the actual usable volume of hot water and reduces recovery time. Also, the combination of heating the water to such high temperatures and a very well insulated tank keeps the water in the tank plenty hot for hours after driving. In fact, in my initial testing, the water will stay hot enough to use for up to 12 hours in the warm Florida weather. All of this means that, as long as I’m driving reasonably often, I should only need the electric heating element to raise the “already somewhat warm or hot” water temp up to maximum temperature when stationary. Another benefit of the tank-based water heater (compared to an on-demand option) is that I effectively gain another 5.3 gallons of fresh water since, whenever the water pump is turned on, it keeps the water heater’s tank full as part of pressurizing the system. So, this extends my water capacity from the 33 gallons in the fresh water tank to over 38 gallons. What You’ll Need We sell water heaters with an optional installation kit with all the parts you need to connect to the engine coolant. Note: RAM sells a “rear heater connection kit” that has some of these parts. But I understand it is expensive and you can just purchase equivalent parts. These are additional the parts I used on a 2017 RAM Promaster, 159″ WB. If you’re installing into another type of vehicle/van, you’ll likely need other things! 3x 1/2″ PEX Female Thread Swivel Adapter. I used two of these for connecting the fresh water supply and hot water outlet (using adapter fitting below) to my PEX plumbing. The third one was used for the overflow outlet, but see the notes under Water Lines below for more info about the overflow connection. 1/2″ PEX Tubing. I used white-colored PEX wherever I could for my fresh water plumbing and color-coded the hot water supply lines with red electrical tape. Extra coolant to add to the system – Mopar part number 68163848AB. Installation To be honest, I was a bit daunted by the installation. I had never cut into coolant lines or done anything with the actual van/engine. But, like most times, the internet came through and I cobbled together the information I needed to tackle the job. I’m writing this post because I didn’t find anything comprehensive – mostly bits of information from various sources that I had to piece together. The first step was to cut into the van’s heater lines near where they go into the “firewall”. If you open up the hood, you’ll see these hoses just to the left of the coolant reservoir. I’ve circled the area in in the photo below. You need to cut both of these. One hose will branch off to supply the water heater with coolant and the other will be the return line. This is a messy process so be prepared for a fair amount of coolant to come out of these hoses. After cutting into the lines, I used the two Brass Barb Reducing Tees (3/4″ x 3/4″ x 5/8″). The two 3/4″ sides of this tee were used to repair the existing 3/4″ coolant line. Then I used a short piece of the 5/8″ heater hose to connect the 5/8″ ball valves onto the remaining 5/8″ side of this tee. These ball valves allow me to completely turn off the coolant flow to and from the water heater which effectively returns the coolant system to the standard, factory design. Next, I ran the 5/8″ heater hose from the output of these ball valves down to the bottom of the engine compartment and all along the driver side of the van to the water heater’s location and eventually up into the van itself. The hose is clamped to the van in many places during this run so that it’s secure. Where the hoses enter the van, I drilled holes through the van floor and glued in 3/4″ PVC “union” fittings. This provides a durable and smooth surface so that the hose is not damaged. Keep in mind that these hoses get VERY hot so be sure to keep them away from anything flammable or that might be damaged by this heat when routing them from the engine compartment to the water heater location. Once inside the van, I used the two Brass 5/8″ Barb to 1/2″ Female NPT FNPT Fittings and the 5/8″ Brass Elbow to connect the coolant lines to the inlet and outlet of the water heater and sealed the gaps with the Permatex 81160 High-Temp Red RTV Silicone. It’s recommended that you use Loctite 592, High Temperature Thread Sealant on the threaded connections. I used the Gates PowerGrip hose clamps on all the 3/4″ and 5/8″ heater hose that connect to barb fittings. In my van, the water heater is located behind a drawer underneath the refrigerator which is just behind the galley area and just front of the bed loft. It’s installed directly onto the subfloor and comes with brackets to mount it to the floor. I used most (about 35′ of the 50′) of heater hose. Coolant Connections Under the Hood of the Promaster Coolant Hose Runs from Engine to Water Heater System Illustration from Manual Testing and Adding Coolant After all the coolant lines were finished up I called the manufacturer to ask if I could run coolant through the unit before there was any water in the tank since, at this point, none of my water lines were in place. They told me that was fine so it was time to test! I made a note of how much coolant was in the reservoir and started up the engine knowing that, with the new 35′ of hose, I’d have to both add some coolant and somehow purge any air that got into the system. When the engine was running, but before the coolant had heated up significantly, I wrapped the area around what I’m calling the “air bleeding valve” with a rag (see this in the illustration above) and “opened” this valve by turning the cap on the top of this mechanism counter-clockwise. As expected, some air and coolant sort of gurgled out. I discovered that it took quite a while for the coolant to make it all the way through the newly added hoses and that it only did so when I started driving slowly. So, I would drive for about two minutes and then let the engine (and coolant) cool down and then check the coolant level in the reservoir and refill as necessary. I also used the “air bleeding valve” a few more times and, each time, less air came out until there was only coolant. I repeated this several times and eventually, I could “feel” the coolant running through the entire length of the newly installed hoses and at the fittings entering and existing the water heater. I ended up adding most of the gallon of coolant that I ordered. Water Lines It took several more weeks of the build process to get around to the actual water lines. I used white 1/2″ PEX for nearly all my fresh water plumbing and color-coded the hot water lines with red electrical tape. You can check out a detailed diagram of my plumbing system here. My goal was to limit the length of the hot water plumbing to the fixtures (sink and show) so that they were as short as possible thus minimizing the time (and water “waste”) it takes for hot water to arrive at the fixtures. The location of the water heater in my build is extremely close to the galley sink I can get hot water at the sink in about two seconds! The shower takes just a few more seconds. The water connections are very straightforward. I used a 1/2″ PEX Female Thread Swivel Adapter on both the fresh water supply and hot water outlet along with standard PEX tubing and connectors to route the hot water lines to the galley faucet and shower mixing valve. As I wrote above in the parts list, all the threaded connections are 1/2″ NPT male except the hot water outlet which is BSP (British Standard Pipe) thread. Note that Isotherm recommends that you use a “single handle” type faucet for effective mixing of hot and cold water. I used this faucet in the galley. Update 12/2021There was some confusion about the BSP threading on the hot water outlet. I wrote to our rep at Indel/Webasto and here’s what I heard back to clear this up. All of the fittings coming off of the water heater should be NPT thread which is used here in the U.S. The mixing valve (hot water outlet), is the one item that is not a standard NPT threaded part and for this reason at the manufacturing level we put on an adaptor. Some product manuals have dated information or some are almost flatly translated from Italian into English or other languages. For that reason we lose the important information that in the U.S. we use NPT and in Europe and elsewhere they use BST. This should be reflected in the corresponding manuals. Everything shipped to the U.S. should have all U.S./NPT fittings coming off of the tank. You’ll also need to connect the built-in pressure relief valve on the water heater to a drain on the exterior of the van. In my installation, I simply used another 1/2″ PEX Female Thread Swivel Adapter and a short length of PEX hose that goes through the van floor. This allows any release of water from the valve (to relive pressure) to run onto the ground. This valve can also be opened manually to drain the tank for winterizing or repairs. Update 4/2025Some customers have trouble getting a 1/2″ NPT female fitting to seat well on the overflow aka pressure relief valve. According to IsoTemp, this valve is actually 1/2″ tapered BSP, and it is quite difficult to find a fitting that seats well on the shallow overflow valve threads. IsoTemp suggests a simple workaround by clamping braided tubing to the overflow valve instead. Once all the water lines are installed you can let the unit heat up water and adjust the “mixing valve” so that the output temperature is at your preferred temperature. Electrical Connections The electric heating element draws around 750 watts at 115 volts AC. So, you must have either an inverter or shore power to use the electric heating option. The Isotemp unit comes with a standard AC power plug. I wired this switch into the circuit that the water heater is plugged into so that I can leave it plugged in and control it with the switch which has a red LED indicator light when in the “on” position. I wanted this indicator light because I don’t want to leave the unit on unless it’s necessary since it draws a significant amount of power. I positioned this switch just behind the driver’s seat (near the galley) so I can turn it off when driving. I knew that I would forget to turn it off sometimes and want to do so when underway! How It Works I am super happy with this water heater! Since I tend to move a lot/drive a lot, it’s awesome to have essentially “free” hot water. I find that the water in the tank stays plenty warm for long periods of time including overnight most of the time. So, I rarely have to use the electric heating element which is great because it’s a pretty significant 750 watt draw on the inverter when turned on. One thing to be aware of is that, after you heat the water with the engine coolant, if you turn on the electric heating it can sometimes “trip” a built in “high limit thermostat” that is installed to protect the water heater when in electric mode. This can be “reset” with a tiny button near the mixing valve but, by default, it’s located under a plastic cover. So, I drilled a hole in the plastic cover so that if this happens, I can use a pencil or screw driver to reset the thermostat without having to take that cover off.
Learn more
Building a Tiny Shower: A Camper Van Wet Bath
Update May 2021. During the Covid-19 pandemic I got sort of “stuck” at my home in Panama. I was planning on being there for about 5 months and then traveling back to my van that I had left at my dad’s house in Colorado. Long story short, the borders closed, the airport closed, the entire world changed and my van sat there for about 13 months. Hang on, there is a point that has to do with van wet baths… It’s super hot in Colorado during the summers and super cold during the winters. Bad things happened with my wet bath. The plastic material that I used to cover/waterproof the plywood walls bubbled up in many places. My guess is that the heat caused some expansion and for the adhesive to fail. In addition, about 40% of the stick-on tiles had pealed off. It was outrageously cold (defined by me as below 50 degrees Fahrenheit) in February when I first saw all this and I pushed on a sheet of the tiles to put to see if they would stick back and they cracked into pieces like sheets of ice. So, I was very disheartened and realized immediately that I would have to start over on the bathroom finish. While ugly, everything worked in the web bath so I waited until I arrived in Florida so do the work. I document the “remodel” below in the post and you can skip to it here. Don’t want to bother with a dedicated wet bath or take up the space in your build? Check out this other post about the Tetravan folding shower system. One of my favorite features of my Promaster conversion camper (Miles Van Camper) is the wet bath with a shower and toilet. For many people this is just wasted space and they prefer using showers at campgrounds or having a gym membership for showering. For others having some sort of toilet than can be tucked away under a bench when not in use is plenty and others can’t imagine using a toilet in a van at all and prefer to use bathrooms “wherever” they are since they are so plentiful. For us, a hot water shower and a toilet in the van is a necessity. I hate the idea of having to leave the van to take a leak – particularly in the middle of the night. Also, my (amazing) girlfriend has the world’s tiniest bladder and needs to pee all the time (many times a night), so she wouldn’t even consider not having a toilet. It’s also worth thinking about the logistics of using a stowed away loo. When you pull it out do you really want to be in “out there” doing your business with no privacy? Putting the toilet into a wet bath gets around this concern as well. In any case, one of the best things about building a DIY camper van is that you can design it for your personal preferences and how you’ll be using it! Maybe You’re More of a Folding Shower Kind of Person? Some people feel like a dedicated shower/bath takes up too much precious space. I love the luxury of having it. the great thing about DIY van conversions is you can design them to your preferences! One clever approach to a compromise is Tetravan’s folding shower system. You might also be interested in another post that details all my plumbing including a PDF diagram. Shower Pan I started by building a frame that the 32″ long by 24″ wide shower pan sits on. The frame itself is slightly longer (33-1/4) to allow the walls to fit into a “gap” that goes below the shower pan (see illustration below). I wanted the “Hepvo trap” that I used on the shower drain to be inside the van instead of underneath it. This special kind of trap provides the utility of a traditional “p-trap” – preventing odors from escaping from the grey tank – but can be installed horizontally to save space and also has a mechanism that prevents water from the tank from back flowing into the shower pan. If needed, I can access this trap/plumbing by pulling off a “panel” covering front of this shower pan frame. You can see how the frame is elevated off the van floor a bit as well as the access from the front in the photos below. Elevating the shower pan in this way also enables you to determine where exactly you want the drain line to go through the van floor. Often there are obstacles below the van floor right where your drain would be – things like metal framing, exhaust lines and so on. I wanted the shower pan as low to the floor as possible (while still being elevated) so that I didn’t diminish the available standing room in the shower. So, I put this frame directly onto the van floor versus on top of the plywood subfloor. Therefore the subfloor sort of goes around this frame. Every 3/4″ of an inch matters in a van! I also used Noico noise deadener below the shower pan. Note: the photos below are from my first build. The frame is pretty much identical in my later builds (Miles 2 and Miles v3) but the plumbing is different and detailed in this post. Shower Pan & Walls Illustration Constructing The Bathroom The wet bath “room” is made of three walls: 1) front – facing the cab, 2) rear – facing the rear doors and 3) the back wall – the one up against the passenger side of the van in my layout. The door to the opening (forth “wall”) is a ”disappearing” and self-cleaning Nautilus shower door. The construction process begins with the “back” wall that is up against the passenger side of the van (behind the slider door). This area of the van is very complicated with many contours and curves. So, the first step is to “even out” this space by using a bunch of wood framing. There is a photo that illustrates this below. The goal is to create a frame that is essentially “straight” for about the first threw quarters of the wall and then curves inward toward as it meets the ceiling. Once this “framing” was completed, I cut a piece of 1/4″ plywood to be used for this back wall and screwed into into the wood framing. The 1/4″ plywood was flexible enough to conform to the curve of the van but sturdy enough to feel solid. Next, I glued 1/16″ white plastic material to the back wall’s plywood using FRP adhesive.The material is “Plas-Tex waterproof wall panel” and is made by Parkland Plastics. I bought it at the Home Depot. It’s thinner than standard FRP and less glossy as well. Just a reminder here that this all failed and had to be redone – more on that at the bottom of this post. The forward and rear walls are framed with 2″ x 4″ and 2″ x 2″ lumber. The vertical framing is attached to the van floor and upper metal “ribs” on the van with metal angle brackets and is also screwed into the shower pan frame. The horizontal framing is fastened to the vertical pieces in several places. This created a 2″ cavity in the walls which was necessary on the front wall for electrical wiring/boxes and the panels for the battery monitor, inverter and tank monitors. On the rear wall, the cavity is used for the hot and cold water lines and shower valve. Next I attach 1/2″ plywood to the front and rear walls. These walls are “straight” on the side facing the opening/door and curve to meet the “back” wall on the other side. The plywood exends down into the “gap” between the wall’s framing and the shower pan itself (see shower pan illustration above). Then, the same 1/16″ white plastic material was glued onto these plywood walls and also goes “below” the shower pan into the “gap”. Once all the walls and plastic material is installed covering the plywood walls, I caulk all the gaps and seams between the walls with white Loctite Polyseamseal. Eventually, the door is installed according to the instructions they provide. That is a simple process but I do recommend using silicone caulking as adhesive on the “cassette” side of the door. It comes with some double-sided tape to hold it up but, in a camper van, I would recommend something more durable. The silicone provides enough adhesive power while also allowing removal if necessary to repair or replace in the future. Accessories In my wet bath I have a mirror and bar soap holder on the front wall and the shower mixing valve, shower head and a soap/shampoo dispenser are on the rear wall. The back wall incorporates a waterproof toilet paper holder. At this point, the wet bath/shower looks something like this: I decided to go one step further and enhance the style with some stick-on tiles. These brighten up the space and I think they look great! However, they are not waterproof which is why it’s important to use the plastic sheeting and make the shower water tight before adding the tiles. The stick-on tiles are somewhat translucent and quite thin. So, the white plastic and the smooth surface of the plastic really helps the finished look of the stick-on tiles. Just a reminder here that this all failed and had to be redone – more on that at the bottom of this post. After about 6 months, one of the “sheets” of tiles started falling off. I suspect that I didn’t get that section of the plastic backing clean enough in that spot when I was installing that particular sheet. I repaired this by removing that sheet, cleaning the plastic behind it with denatured alcohol and then replacing that sheet with a new one. I have heard from others that, if you coat the entire walls (all the sheets of stick-on tiles) with polyurethane this helps them stay “stuck”. I have not tried this and I would want to test it on a spare, single sheet to see what it looks like but thought this tip might be helpful to others who are using the stick-on tiles. Below are some photos of the installation and the finished shower walls with the tiles. The Toilet The toilet I used is a Thetford Curve cassette toilet. I utilized the mounting plate that is sold specifically for that purpose. The plate is secured to the shower pan (as far back toward the rear as possible to make room for standing in front when showering) using stainless steel screws. The toilet latches into the mounting plate and can be easily removed from the wet bath area to make more space or to empty. Our experience with this cassette toilet has been very positive. The primary benefit of a “cassette” toilet is that it eliminates the need for a “black tank” that normally stores sewage waste. This is typically separate from your “grey tank” which stores waste water from the sink/showers, etc. in an RV. Black tanks are typically drained with what is often referred to as a “stinky slinky” – a 3″ sewer hose you connect from your rig’s black tank to a sewer line at an RV park or campground when emptying your tanks. This is no fun. In contrast, a cassette toilet uses a removable “cassette” as the black tank. On my particular toilet, the top portion is a fresh water tank has water for flushing (there’s an electric pump that dispenses water around the toilet bowel when needed) and the bottom portion is the “cassette” or the tank that holds the waste. When it’s full (there’s an indicator on the front), you simply pull of the “top” water tank, set it aside, and then detach the bottom (cassette) to empty directly into whatever you’re dumping into. This eliminate the “stinky slinky” and is considerably more flexible. Not only can you you can dump into a standard sewer, but you can also use things like a porta-pot or even a standard toilet at a gas station. To be fair, dumping the cassette is no fun either, but, in my opinion, it’s considerably better than dealing with a black tank. We’ve used this toilet extensively for both “number one” and “number two” and, as long as we use the right chemicals and leave a little fresh water from the flushing mechanism over the top of the “flap” that opens and closes to let whatever waste is in the bowl down into the tank, we don’t ever smell the tank! Also in the wet bath is a soap dispenser hanging on the wall and a small mirror with a shelf on the front wall onto which the toilet paper hanger is mounted. The Remodel I wrote about what happened to my wet bath walls while the van sat through the Covid-19 pandemic. Here’s what I did to fix it up! First, I pulled the stick-on tiles off. This was really easy actually because the adhesive was garbage and they were already falling off. Right into the trash they went. Then I had to get the original plastic sheeting off which took considerably more effort! What ended up working the best was using a razor blade and make vertical “slices” from top to bottom about 6-8 inches apart from each other. Then I used a heat gun to heat up the plastic/adhesive and a metal scraper blade to get a small section of the plastic off the plywood. Once I had something to grab onto, I could use the heat gun to heat up/loosen the adhesive for about 3-4 inches at a time and peel it off. This seemed to take forever but I did get it all removed. After doing quite a bit of research and checking out what other van builders had used in their wet baths, I ended up using “standard” FRP sheets (.9″ thick) on the plywood. I cut them to shape using a jig saw using a fine-tooth blade and glued them into place with FRP Adhesive which I applied very liberally! In addition to being a bit thicker than the original plastic that failed, the FRP is much “sturdier”. I actually like the look of the remodel better than I thought I would. This work was done in May of 2021 and it’s about to undergo the “Florida Summer Test” where the van roasts over the course of the Florida summer. I’m really hoping it doesn’t bubble up and stays up in place. If it can survive the “Florida Summer Test”, I think it’s going to hold up well in general. I will definitely update this post once I know how things turn out! Update May 2024: the FRP has survived many summers in Florida with no problems at all! Below are some photos of the “remodel” and the new FRP installation.
Learn more
Camper Van Plumbing and Grey Water Tank
Miles Van Camper has an extensive plumbing system with both hot and cold water supplying a galley/kitchen sink, a wet bath/shower and an outdoor shower fixture that is accessed off the back doors. Download my detailed plumbing diagram (PDF) Overview Miles Van Camper has a 33 gallon fresh water tank that is mounted on the floor adjacent to the driver side wheel well. There is another 5.3 gallons of fresh water that is essentially “stored” in the water heater tank for a total of around 38 gallons on board. Below the van, on the passenger side between the front and rear axles, is a 35 gallon grey water storage tank. The design of this tank is very long but “short” so it fits in this space without being too “low”. On Promaster vans, the rear axle effectively determines the ground clearance and my goal was to not have anything underneath the van hanging below this point. So, this grey tank and the propane tank on the driver side ended up being at approximately the same level as the rear axle. On the driver side of the van there is a locking panel that has both a pressurized city-water connection and a gravity-fed fresh water tube that is used to fill up the tank. When city water is connected (a hose from a campsite, etc.) the water lines inside the van are pressurized from that city water connection. Otherwise (most of the time), the water lines are pressurized with a pump which pulls water from the fresh tank (at the bottom) and pumps in into/builds pressure with accumulator tank that is installed just downstream from the pump. The accumulator tank ensures that the pressure is “even” to the various places it’s used (galley faucet, shower, etc.). There is a fresh water gravity drain valve underneath of driver side of the van near the rear bumper that can be used to drain the fresh water tank when it’s not in use. All the water lines are inside the van except for the few feet of drain lines underneath the van to assist in all-weather camping. The van also features a full “wet bath” with a shower and cassette toilet that I detailed in this other post. There is also “outdoor” shower that is accessed from the back doors that can be used outside. Hot Water! I used Isotemp Spa 20L water heater which can heat the water using the van engine coolant or an electric element if you’re not driving. Once heated, the water in the tank stays warm for a day or longer depending on ambient temperatures. The water heater is installed underneath the refrigerator which is very close to the galley faucet so you can get hot water there quickly without running the tap for long. I love this water heater solution for vans and I wrote an blog post about it and how to install it including hooking it up to the van’s coolant lines. Drains & Grey Tank The galley sink uses a small, RV-style trap under the sink. Water exits the trap and runs through a flexible 3/4″ hose to the grey water tank underneath the van. The shower drains into a special, 1-1/2″ Hepvo trap. This device provides the functionality of a standard “p-trap”, but takes up less space under the shower pan because it can be installed “horizontally”. It also prevents grey water from back flowing “up” into the shower. The trap is connected to the grey water tank using a combination of 1-1/2″ PVC and flexible PVC. In order for your drains to work properly and for the grey tank to empty quickly, you need to have a vent line that lets air in or escape if the tank is being filled or emptied. In my latest build, the vent line actually tees off the shower drain underneath the shower pan. This provides venting for both that drain and the grey tank itself. This vent line uses standard (rigid) 1-1/2″ PVC to extend past the shower area to the rear of the van and then goes “up” vertically toward the ceiling a few feet. At this point, where the height is sufficient to prevent any water from being in the vent line, I transition to flexible 1-1/2″ hose which continues over to the passenger rear side panel and vents through a hole in the van that is protected by a plastic vent cover. The grey tank has a 3″ outlet with gate valve that connects to a standard RV sewer hose for draining at a dump station or campground. I store my sewer hose in this handy storage tube which is attached to my hitch-mounted cargo/bike carrier. Here’s an illustration of the shower drain and vent line plumbing: Installing The Grey Water Tank The 35 gallon grey water tank is installed underneath the van on the passenger side. It spans from just behind the muffler in the front back to the jacking point just in front of the rear tire in the back. The tank has “rails” on each of the long sides molded into the plastic. I used heavy duty angle iron bolted up through the van floor to hold the tank with these rails. The 4x bolts that attach to each corner of angle iron/tank rails go through the van floor and they are installed before the floor insulation and plywood sub floor. I use extra large washers on the bolt heads to help distribute the weight of the tank/grey water against the sheet metal of the van floor. There are also three “u-channel” supports that go “across” the tank, perpendicular to the primary supports. These are bolted into the angle iron and support the bottom of the tank as it fills up with grey water. All of the metal and drain lines are painted black. Getting this tank into place and “fabricating” all the supports is a difficult process. Using a jack and a piece of plywood helps to lift the tank into place but it’s oddly shaped and not very rigid so it’s pretty tricky. I installed a large 12 volt DC heating pad on the outlet side of the grey tank. These are thermostatically controlled and designed to turn on at 45 degrees (Fahrenheit) and off at 68 degrees so that the water in the tank does not freeze. I also used two of these smaller pads, designed for drain lines on the sink drain line which is exposed, underneath the van as it travels across to the grey tank. All of the these heat pads are on a switch so that I can leave the system off unless I’m in a cold climate. Below are some photos of the grey water tank including the drain lines and heating pads.
Learn more