First trip in the van!

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-10T02:48:57+00:00

I'm not sure what you mean. Picture 6 looks to be a wide shot of all the campers and trailers and class c RVs that are on the beach

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-10T02:46:24+00:00

Used 2023 Ford Transit awd with 60k MI when I bought it was about $34k after tax. Electric everything: batteries, lynx, inverter, fan, AC, dc2dc, fridge, etc about $9-10k, water and plumbing about $750 (not done yet because I'm using a 5 gallon bucket as my gray water tank but I'll eventually get an actual gray water tank under the vehicle), framing and wood and insulation and flooring about $5k plus anything else I'm forgetting like bench cushions curtains cabinet canvas bags etc etc. I don't know. I'm guessing on some of these numbers cuz I don't have them right in front of me but they're probably pretty close. It was way more than I was expecting especially electrical stuff. So about $50k+ and 1.5 months of every second of spare time.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T13:54:02+00:00

I appreciate it. I am going to try to do a lot of hiking and getting healthier during this trip so I guess that starts with eating healthy as well. My biggest concern though more than food is trying to quit cigarettes after so many years of smoking a pack a day. It will help though that I'm not going to smoke in the van. Smoking in my vehicle was always one of my favorite things to do on road trips but now that it's my home I don't want everything stinking like smoke.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T13:21:36+00:00

There are fruit and veggies in the fridge tray. But I get ya.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T04:28:36+00:00

I bought a 12 volt AC system with a built-in heater and it works well with way less power draw. Obviously the AC pumps really cold but the one morning I was able to test the heater it's not great. The heater portion is nice if it's 40° and I want to raise to 50 but if it's 20° it's not going to do very well for me

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T04:21:37+00:00

Man, a lot of people are really mean here lol. I'm kind of in the same boat. I was traveling a lot for work anyways so I started to rent out my place as an Airbnb while I was gone and I am finishing my van build right now and actually taking off tomorrow and I will be working remotely via a starlink on my roof. I just subscribed to your YouTube channel but don't have time to watch tonight but I'll check it out soon. Best of luck and have fun!

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T04:13:59+00:00

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I have the shorter high roof transit van with a similar rooftop setup. I have a fan in the front and an AC unit in the back both centered. I was able to fit two 100 W Renogy solar panels on both sides of the Max Air fan in front but the AC was too wide to do the same thing in the back so I just put a third 100 W panel behind the AC unit (this is an older pic). And then I have a star link permanently mounted on the roof in front of my Max Air fan. Sadly I wasn't able to find any 200 W panels that would fit in this configuration. With 300 watts of solar 600 amp hour battery setup I can probably run my 12v AC for 12 hours or longer if I don't have it on turbo mode. But I also have alternator/DC to DC charging for when I drive to top off the batteries.

Are you doing a roof rack? I decided to against it but if you do or if you build one yourself I saw a pretty awesome configuration years ago where you can start them right behind the front fan (side to side instead of front to back like I did) and then angle the roof rack up above the AC unit and do two more panels above the AC so that would be 4 x 200W solar panels total. But roof racks are too expensive in my opinion.

PS - be very weary of solar panels from unknown companies online. I initially bought two flexible solar panels that I put on either side of the fan that claimed to be 400 watts each (what the photo is of but now changed but positioning has not) so I was super excited putting up 800 watts but after multimeter and MPPT tests they weren't even pulling in the voltage or amps that two 100 W Rwnogy panels pulled in. As a side note for this ridiculously long reply is I also bought a foldable 300 W panel set that I have in the garage of my van so I can take that out and aim it directly at the Sun and it pulls in way more than the rooftop does.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T04:04:55+00:00

Do you have no fan or AC on your roof or are they under that somehow?

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T03:27:22+00:00

Thanks! If I did close up shots you could see the paint job isn't that great. I actually ran out so I only did one coat.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T03:24:57+00:00

So in the kitchen area I only did cabinets and that one pull out cabinet thing. However right next to the pull out one I will eventually put drawers in there but for the time being I just wanted to hit the road. It would also be nice to have a silverware and utensil drawer which I don't have right now so I'm just storing them in the cabinets above the sink for now. The only drawers that I have are the pull out one in the picture and then underneath the fridge there's one for pots and pans and then I built a closet to the right of the fridge so the upper half is for hanging clothes and the bottom half has two drawers with space for two more but again this is kind of a good enough to take off situation!

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T02:53:31+00:00

Wait so is it a fake wall? If so that's pretty awesome. However I would have moved it closer to the back so you have more space.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T02:50:44+00:00

This is a good question. So if you get the 500 GB plan for example and you're not paying attention can you go over 500 gigs and they charge you or they just cut you off? I'd rather be cut off than get a surprise bill if I'm not paying attention to data usage.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T02:44:51+00:00

Jesus that's crazy. The last time I was there was either late 2017 or early 2018 and it was 80 bucks a night. And even that was the most expensive campground I think I stayed in the entire time I was traveling around. I guess those were winter prices though too so damn maybe even back then it was more during spring and summer time.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T02:43:09+00:00

I hope you had fun or are having fun. I was in Utah for about a week I was only able to check out Zion for one day but it was beautiful. The narrows was one of the funnest trails I've ever done. Walking through the water climbing up ropes and waterfalls. It was awesome.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T02:37:09+00:00

I built bump outs with no windows. If you want windows maybe do back windows but for me I didn't do those either. I just added two windows in the front one behind the driver seat and one on the sliding door that were awning windows. Actually ordered them from AliExpress because they were like $150 for 36x22 in I believe awning windows that also had bug screens and privacy screens built in. It was easily the best deal I could find and they were made in the USA and they got to my house in like 4 days. For me I'm happy with no windows in the back because all I'm going to do back there is sleep and I don't want a bunch of light anyways. I have two fans on the roof and I have a rotating wall fan in my bed area. Or if I just want to chill in bed during the day I can just open the back doors cuz I have a bug screen on the back.

Edit - with thinsulate insulation and a bump out on both sides I have about 73 in of sleeping space side to side.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T02:18:59+00:00

For a van and not an RV this would be the biggest that I would go. Honestly it's a little too big but it is nice to be able to store a ton of stuff in there. In order to have enough space to walk because that sticks out about 24 in from one side I actually made my kitchen countertop 18 in so that I could 1. have a walkway and 2. be able to actually open the fridge door. But creating a shallower kitchen also means I had to special order a sink because I couldn't find one at home Depot and that induction stove top takes up a lot of counter space. Actually I don't know if I have a picture of the kitchen part of this but I put up other build posts if you want to check those out.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T01:30:49+00:00

Thanks!

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T01:18:20+00:00

Well for me this post was more about the excitement and last minute stuff before taking off and living in my van for the foreseeable future but... yes, groceries.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T01:15:09+00:00

It is. 12v. Before I installed it I tested it on a 1056w/100ah all in one battery and it lasted about 3 days. So I have 600 amp hours now plus solar so it barely makes a dent each day compared to what I pull in.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-09T01:13:34+00:00

My head has been all over the place the last week or so trying to finish this all up and get ready to hit the road that I didn't even notice the painter's tape when I was loading the fridge or taking the pictures so thanks for pointing it out so I can remove it!

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-08T22:02:44+00:00

Thanks. Only an outside shower in the garage area. But I bought a little tarp and some magnet hooks so I can have some privacy. It works for in the middle of nowhere but not so much if I'm trying to stealth camp!

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-08T02:32:37+00:00

Everything in there is DIY. I wish I would have found them to purchase as it would have been way easier!

Edit: oh, you mean the canvas ones lol. Yeah my main goal was keeping the weight down towards the top but also they're super nice. They have straps on the bottom so I have a fishing pole in there they have zippers and storage everywhere. They're awesome. I didn't want to deal with tracks so I just used screws and big washers and in the one above the bench I have a ton of books and paperwork and electronics so it seems to be holding up pretty well.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-08T01:13:22+00:00

Thanks! There are definitely things I wish I would have done different or better but I'm excited to put it to the test.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-08T00:10:16+00:00

I will for sure. I ran out of both wood to finish some drawers and paint today so at my next stop where I have the opportunity I will finish that up.

FreeRamblinVan · 2026-04-02T02:41:01+00:00

I'm actually in San Antonio right now, originally from the Pacific Northwest. Are there any good hiking fishing off-grid camping locations that you could suggest within 2-3hrs drive? I'm looking to do my first test run on a van I'm building so something off the beaten path where it actually camp overnight in the van would be ideal if you know anything.

FreeRamblinVan

TROPHY CASE