Some of you have been asking how I can get a whole house into a Sprinter van. Here’s my answer.
As you can see the driver and passenger seats swivel so they can become seating in my lounge area.
The sofa bed is twin size and comes with three seat belts for those who are drinking because they are not driving. If Dave should change his mind about going with me the sofa can be replaced with one that opens nearly to the cupboards opposite but this one is big enough for me and should provide better daytime seating than the larger one. I also plan to buy a folding ottoman that I can use to turn the passenger seat into a recliner.
That “custom cabinet” next to the sofa is a desk. I tucked a passenger seat under it in the drawing to indicate that my office chair will fit there. This is where I will do my computer stuff and also where I will eat. There will be several 110 volt and 12 volt outlets here for plugging in my various electrical items.
Next to that is a full height cupboard. It will contain a microwave/convection oven at my eye height with a storage cupboard above it and a hanging closet below it. The hanging closet door will be hinged on the right so when it is open it provides privacy to the dressing area.
Next to it is a full height pull-out pantry. Who knows what I’ll choose to store in it but it fit the space so why not?
Then the bathroom with its tiny corner sink. The faucet of the sink pulls out to become a hand-held shower.
Behind the bath is a five-inch space where I will store my broom/vacuum/duster handle, etc. Yes, I bought a vacuum that will fit in that space. I may have to open the back doors to get everything in and out of there, though.
Opposite the bath is an empty space where I will park my Travel Scoot. There will be an outlet here for recharging its batteries.
Next to the Scoot space is a full height cupboard with shelves for storing lots of stuff.
Next to that is the refrigerator cupboard. My frig will be a 7 cubic foot electric frig with a compressor so I don’t have to be as particular about parking level as most RVs have to be. As long as my space is level enough that I don’t roll out of bed I should be fine.
Then I have six-feet of upper and lower kitchen cupboards. This area will have several outlets including one with a separate 15 amp circuit for my induction hotplate. The sink has a pullout faucet that can reach through the door to rinse anything I might not want to bring inside otherwise.
There will also be upper cupboards above the Scoot space, the sofa, and the cab area.
Most people also have storage under their bed but I’m having a custom-sized 40 gallon fresh water tank put there so I’m not sure how much space will be left for storage. To offset the weight of all that water things like my diesel furnace and the charger/inverter will be in cupboards on the passenger side. My black and grey water tanks will be 20 gallons each. I’m hoping that’s enough to let me camp without hookups for at least a week at a time.
For energy while boondocking I’m having four solar panels put on the roof at the front with the equivalent of 4 AGM batteries under the floor at the rear.
My three big windows are awning windows which means I can keep them open in the rain if it isn’t blowing sideways. The two smaller windows are sliders since it is not a good idea to put an awning window behind the sliding side door. Add the ceiling fan to draw air through those windows and/or my little 12 volt fan which can sit on or hang above my desk and I’m hoping to seldom need the air conditioner. I also have the option of putting screens in both the big side-door opening and the rear door openings if I really want to bring the outdoors in without the bugs joining me.
No, you don’t see a TV anywhere. I never watch TV. The closest I come is checking the weather and I do that on my computer.
So, there you have it. All the comforts of home in a 24-foot van.
TTYL,
Linda