Adam Croft and Nikki Pepperell of Gloucestershire in Southwest England purchased a $5,000 Ford Transit Luton from eBay and spent a year converting the vehicle into their new dream apartment. Croft told the MailOnline that “…the main idea behind it is that we found it far too expensive to rent here.” Once they sell the rest of their belongings, the couple plans to travel around Europe in their new home.
The Ford van (once an empty space for shipping purposes) now has a beautiful kitchen, a lounge, loft bed, wood burning stove, shower, toilet, and solar power. The couple also cut out windows and a skylight and created plenty of storage. A small porch with a Dutch door is located at the back of the van. The couple spent just under $10,000 to convert the vehicle.
The couple’s new home started life as a Ford Transit Luton bought on eBay.
Adam originally hashed out the design with Google’s SketchUp 3D modeling program, and then drew the plan on the floor of the van with chalk. The walls of the van were insulated and a frame and plywood sheeting was placed over that. The finished walls have pine siding stained with Danish oil. The solar setup is a simple 12 volt system with a 180 watt solar panel on the roof that charges a 115 amp hour battery through a charge controller.
Inside the van is a cozy kitchen, living room and loft bed.
The shower is powered by a 12 volt pump that sits in a bucket of water warmed up on the stove. The toilet is a portable Thetford cassette version that can be pulled out and emptied.
The solar panel powers several LED lights and a water pump.
This wood burning stove provides the van with plenty of heat.
The wet bath contains a Thetford cassette toilet and a shower.
Adam and Nikki saved money for the build by moving in with their parents and working part-time on the renovation outside of their regular jobs. Croft owns Cotswold Bells, a canvas bell tent rental company and is also a landscaper. Neither he nor his partner had much experience with building or electrical work and learned nearly everything from YouTube and DIY websites.
Adam and Nikki plan on blogging about their van travels on their website, The Van Diaries.
Photos by Alastair Johnstone/SWNS.com and The Van Diaries
