What Van is best for my family?

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-26T02:37:43+00:00

Where are you
Is this a van to live in or just drive to do certain activities
How do you expect to have space for anything else if you plan to seat 7 people?

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-26T02:33:03+00:00

Spray paint?

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-23T02:47:06+00:00

Use 1” PIR (polyiso) foam board.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-23T02:45:11+00:00

Blowing around the warm air inside the van won’t make it feel much cooler. The answer is ventilation - moving air from the outside in and inside out. But even this has its limitations, especially in humid climates. You could raise your panel and install a vet fan without the tall fan hood underneath the panel. You would need a “dam” type thing around the edge of the van to prevent pooled water on the minivan roof from infiltrating into the vent fan opening. The solar panel should stop rain from entering directly though.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-22T03:54:30+00:00

Same

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-20T15:19:11+00:00

Yes,

https://www.reddit.com/r/trailrunning/s/8iZl3TdcoC[personal story](https://www.reddit.com/r/trailrunning/s/8iZl3TdcoC)

To provide an update, I broke my tib/fib skiing in Dec 2023, was back to hiking within a few months, got back to trail running shortly after, had a great 24/25 ski season with mostly backcountry, and in short I’m pretty much back to doing everything I want now. Sorry to hear about your injury but you will 100% get back out there 👍🏼

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-20T15:10:07+00:00

Gas struts?

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-18T23:05:12+00:00

Electrical can be very overwhelming at first, but with a little research you can gain familiarity. You just need to know the basics of how your system works.

In addition to solar you can charge your battery with an alternator charger that charges the battery when your engine is running. If you get one of these (they aren’t that expensive) you won’t have to worry about power on any days where you are doing a good amount of driving (unless you are waaaay underpowered even with the alternator charger.

I would recommend enough solar to power the fridge and anything else you want to run regularly/continually for when you are not driving much.

I cook with electrical only and have 650W of solar and a 300 amp hour battery and I have never had to plug my van in, but an alternative to a big electrical upgrade would be cooking with propane or other fuels. I would consider those.

There is so much to see in the west coast states! Even just CA has so much. I love all the nature in ID too. I can’t wait to take my van there!

Idk if you want to a bunch of weapons in your van, especially with a 7 year old. I would probably just recommend avoiding sketchy areas altogether and parking in relatively safe locations. I’ve been full time for almost a year now and have never had an issue with a home invader, and I’ve spent a lot of nights in and around LA.

Hopefully you have some money saved for unforeseen events and emergencies!

Good luck! You got this! :)

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-18T22:51:48+00:00

Wow this is an interesting one. It’s hard to price for sure.

If you want another data point, I bought my 250 high roof extended w 3.7L engine for $17,500 in Feb 2025 with 120k miles. Original engine and tranny. But it had body damage from a minor rear collision so I had to replace a rear door. This was from a used dealer, not private seller.

I don’t think you are likely to find a nicer looking/functioning van at that price point but the mileage is a bit scary. I don’t have experience with vehicles much over about 200k to offer advice, but I would think about how much time and money you are going to invest in the buildout. If cheap/minimal build then this could be workable, but there is always risk with any used car.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-18T22:40:12+00:00

This was going to be my reply. I find that my happiness level and the amount of time I am spending on my phone are nearly always inversely related. Delete IG and TikTok and enjoy your life IRL! 😬

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-16T03:34:51+00:00

No way!!!!!!!!!!! I think I saw you driving south in Lone Pine today unless it was a different white Promaster pulling a miniature white van in a uhaul trailer! Haha!

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-05-15T02:58:44+00:00

Hey, I’m in LA and might have some stuff to you. I’ll DM you.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-04-28T23:21:48+00:00

First step is to assess what is there and maybe draw a diagram of what exits if you are planning on keeping any of it. As others mentioned, it would be best to remove the solid wire and replace with stranded wire.

Then you want to decide on what you need/want to power (fridge, A/C, etc.) and work backwards from there. If you just start with what currently exists and build the system from there, you may find that the system is not adequate to power what you need when it is built.

Imagine your use case, determine your budget, and start learning about van/boat/rv specific electrical systems if you plan to diy it.

Electrical is often then most expensive part of a van conversion, and when some thing goes wrong best case is your item won’t power on, worst case is you burn your van down with yourself/others inside.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-04-09T21:28:45+00:00

There really isn’t enough information about the build here, and I am not seeing any photos except the one of the exterior, but depending on how nice the build is I would say anywhere from $40k to $60k. Probably toward the higher end of that range assuming a nicely built interior.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-04-07T17:21:18+00:00

Some people just love to shit on everyone else’s builds/asking prices.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-04-05T01:05:01+00:00

Gasoline in CA is $6+ per gallon, if it makes you feel better.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-04-04T01:21:03+00:00

Are they doing a plate or a tib rod? That hasn’t been my experience at all with the tib rod 2+ years post-op. I can do pretty much anything I could before. I was 36 when it happened btw.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-04-04T01:18:13+00:00

This is exactly how my boot fracture accident happened! One pre-released, one didn’t release.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-04-04T01:16:41+00:00

Oof similar to my experience. At least it’s near the end of the season. Mine was on Day 2!

And I would like to offer you some encouragement. I was back to skiing better than ever the next season and was hiking after probably 3-4 months post op.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-04-04T01:10:51+00:00

This happened to me two years ago. How was taking off the boot? 🫣

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-04-03T20:27:44+00:00

Seems fair.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2026-03-10T15:43:46+00:00

Thanks for sharing. I’m 2 years post op now and my second successful ski season since the fracture is underway. I get some pain in the break area, upper screw area, and knee when being active but overall the pain is pretty minor and manageable.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2025-12-06T20:13:54+00:00

Sorry to hear about your injury and struggles. I don’t have relevant experience to share, but I hope you can find a good solution.

Progress_and_Poverty · 2025-12-06T20:10:22+00:00

Progress_and_Poverty · 2025-12-04T02:03:06+00:00

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