The Van
2019 Ford Transit 148" high roof, 92,000 miles, bought from a plumbing company that kept immaculate maintenance records. Purchase price: $16,400. That's not included in the $6,247 build cost below — we're talking build only.
I had zero construction experience. I'd watched probably 80 hours of YouTube across 3 months before buying the van. I still made expensive mistakes. That's exactly why I'm publishing every receipt.
Week 1–2: Demo & Prep
First two weeks were mostly free — just labor. Removed the factory cargo liner, cleaned 3 years of plumber grime off every surface, identified two rust spots near the rear doors (manageable), and made a cardboard mockup of the floor plan.
The one expensive decision in week 1: I bought a cheap angle grinder to prep the rust spots. It worked fine. I almost bought a $280 Makita when a $47 Harbor Freight unit did the exact same job for prep work.
Week 3–4: Insulation (and the $340 Mistake)
This is where I made the most expensive mistake of the entire build. I bought a 2-part closed-cell spray foam kit from a brand I won't name (you'll find it on Amazon) that advertised 200 board feet of coverage. Actual yield: 110 board feet. The foam also didn't adhere properly to the bare metal ribs, peeling off in sheets when it cured.
I had to scrape off everything I'd sprayed, order a Froth-Pak 650 from a proper supplier, and start over. Total spray foam cost ended up being $340 more than if I'd just bought the Froth-Pak first.
Week 4–5: Subfloor & Walls
Cut a plywood subfloor from two sheets of 3/4" birch. Used 1.5" XPS foam underneath for floor insulation (R-7.5 — solid for a van floor). Walls went up in cedar-paneled tongue-and-groove strips that I ripped from 1×6 cedar fence boards — cost about 1/3 of pre-made shiplap.
Week 5–6: Electrical
I went slightly over budget on electrical because I upgraded from the 200Ah AGM I'd planned to a 200Ah lithium from Ampere Time. I don't regret it for a second — the weight savings alone (103 lbs lighter) made the van noticeably better to drive.
Week 6–8: Furniture & Finishing
Built everything from scratch. The bed frame and kitchen cabinets are plywood — no IKEA hacks, no pre-made furniture. Total furniture lumber cost was $178. The biggest win of the build: making rather than buying saved at least $800 in pre-built van furniture prices.
Grand Total
| Phase | Cost |
|---|---|
| Week 1–2: Demo & Prep | $118 |
| Week 3–4: Insulation (incl. $189 wasted) | $812 |
| Week 4–5: Subfloor & Walls | $402 |
| Week 5–6: Electrical | $1,765 |
| Week 6–8: Furniture & Finish | $1,176 |
| Tools purchased during build | $484 |
| Random miscellaneous (returns, shipping, etc.) | $290 |
| TOTAL BUILD COST | $5,047 |
| + wasted / mistake money | $189 |
Note: I published $6,247 in the headline — that includes the $1,200 in tools I purchased during the build that I'm keeping. If you already own basic power tools, your build will run closer to $4,000–$4,500 for a similar setup.
What I'd Do Differently
- Buy the right spray foam first — Froth-Pak only. Saved $189 in wasted product immediately.
- Design the electrical before the walls go up — I had to drill through a finished wall to run one cable I forgot. Embarrassing and fixable, but annoying.
- Get a bigger fridge — The CFX3 35 is great but I wish I'd bought the 45L. For $60 more it has significantly more room.
- Add a diesel heater from day one — I added a Webasto Air Top 2000 STC 3 months after moving in. Should have been in the original build budget.
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