Everything in Our Van America Custom Van Build

By the time we met All Advantures (now Van America) in April 2022, we were approaching four years of life on the road. We wanted to keep going and felt it was time to invest in a van built for us instead of us having to conform to our van. We finally felt like we gained enough experience to go the custom route.

In case you haven’t read other parts of our story, we started with an AWD Chevy Express passenger van for adventures on the weekend. Then the 2018 Winnebago Travato 59K became our first official RV when we decided to sell our condo in Lake Tahoe and take a stab at full-time van life. After barely being on the road for a half year, we decided to trade our Travato for a 2019 Winnebago Revel for improved winter living. We were in the Revel for almost four years by the time we took delivery of our van from All Advantures. We loved all of our previous vans, and we enthusiastically recommend each and every one depending on your van life needs.

If we had built a van from scratch before our Chevy, Travato, and Revel experiences, I think we would’ve had immediate regrets over our design choices. Some of the features that we thought were must-haves in a Class B RV, ended up being the parts that we wanted to rip out most like the shower and awning.

If you read about the three reasons we sold our Winnebago Revel, you already know that we wanted a “true” four-season RV, a more open and comfortable environment for daily living and working, and we don’t want to rely on RV repair shops anymore.

Here are the exact initial requirements that we emailed to All Advantures

Our goal is to design a modular van so it's easy to adjust as our needs and seasons change. As much as possible, features should not be permanently affixed inside the van. They should utilize the L-Track that is part of the Adventure Wagon system, so we can relocate components or completely remove them if desired.
We'd like to minimize moving parts that rely on electricity and stick to features that require manual adjustment. The van should be designed so we don't have to rely heavily on All Advantures or an RV service repair shop if things break. It should be easy to unplug the bad item and plug in a replacement such as a portable cooler, Goal Zero, etc. We do not want plumbing running throughout the van and would like to minimize electrical wiring as is reasonably possible.
The design should help give our outdoor gear and personal items homes so that we don't have things floating around the van. We would love it if we could keep all four seasons of equipment with us all year, secure and protected from outdoor elements. Primarily ski/snowboard and mountain bike gear.
The van should keep us reasonably comfortable from extreme weather conditions, hot and cold, and offer the primary means for full-time living, including a portable toilet, cold storage for food, cooktop, 5 gallons of fresh water storage with 5 gallons for gray waste. We would also like a design that will allow both of us to work comfortably, sitting upright with feet on the ground and our computers on a surface that is not our legs.
We'd appreciate a quiet ride when driving rough roads, and installed features should be selected to withstand constant vibration.
We don't want to sacrifice quality and durability and would rather discuss altering our feature list instead of going cheap.
Below is a list of desired features and items. It is not all-inclusive, and we're open to suggestions. We just want to give you an idea of what we want if it helps you determine if we can stay within budget and work together.

- Adventure Wagon interior system with L-Track
- Premium insulation for the best sound dampening and protection against extreme cold and heat
- Moab Traverse elevator bed with flares for sleeping sideways to maximize the amount of space remaining in the house for other features
- Mule bags
- Walls that can be easily wiped clean
- Durable flooring that can be easily wiped clean (we should be able to take a key to it without it leaving scratches)
- Espar heater
- Goal Zero
- Portable toilet
- Fresair
- MaxxAir fan
- Galley
- Cooktop - We'd love your thoughts about going with an induction burner that is integrated or not integrated into the counter or a portable two-burner propane stove. We'd like two burners if space allows.
- Deep sink that can hold a 12" skillet and Chef's knife
- As much countertop as the space will allow, given other desired items
- Portable cooler with freezer
- Wet/dry food and kitchenware storage (we don't use plates, cups, or appliances)
- 5-gallon freshwater container that can fit in most water refill stations at the grocery store
- 5-gallon gray water container
- Basic lighting
- Roof rack with telescoping ladder
- Windows that do not allow water to come inside when open and it's raining/snowing out like what is currently in our Revel
- Since we prefer not to have outdoor steps for clearance reasons, handles to help us in and out of the van.
- In our perfect world, a seating/couch area that is wide enough for us and Bruce to sit, work, eat, and lounge with an adjustable/removable table or tables.
- Swivel seats in the front with one or both having access to a table for working. We're happy to stick with the swivel seats we believe are stock with the Sprinter.
- Magnetic window covers.
- Removable screens at the sliding door and the rear doors. We like the Rolef screens in the new Revel.
- RAM mounts for mounting or iPad in various places throughout the van for entertainment
- Storage shelf above the driver and passenger seats
- Items we'd like to have that we assume we will need to acquire and install separately
--- Rooftop storage box
--- Extra fuel tank from Agile Offroad
--- Exterior storage box in the rear for tools and chassis fluids
--- Exterior bike racks if we can't determine a solution on the inside
--- Portable solar panels
--- Comfortable mattress - we like the custom bed we had made for our Revel and want to go with the same company

There were subsequent phone calls, emails, and texts with All Advantures along the way that uncovered more specific requirements related to layout, material choices such as upholstery and flooring, as well as product choices. Some adjustments were made throughout the build process but many were due to very reasonable suggestions by All Advantures which we were grateful for.

Here is a basic list of what went into our custom build

The van

–> Read more about why we chose the Sprinter and our 6-month review.

Interior foundation (ceiling, walls, floor, insulation)

–> Read more about our interior foundation and 6-month review.

Batteries, electrical, solar, and lighting

  • Goal Zero Yeti 6000X Portable Power Station
  • Wiring harness and Goal Zero integration by All Advantures
  • Thermal heat pad to warm the Goal Zero in subfreezing temperatures
  • 6 LumiCoin LiLu dimmable LED lights
  • 110-volt, 12-volt, and USB outlets
  • Exterior shore power port
  • Auxiliary AGM battery mounted underneath the hood for the Espar heater
  • Roof-mounted solar panels x 2

–> Read more about why we chose the Goal Zero Yeti for our power needs and how well it’s working out.

Heating and cooling

–> Read more about our climate control selections and our 9-month review.

Bed and flares

–> Read more about our bed solution.

Dinette and coolers/freezers

Galley

  • Custom galley by All Advantures
    • 4 drawers
    • 1 cabinet for fresh and gray water
    • Stained butcher block countertop
    • Double induction cooktop on the left
    • Deep black stainless steel sink with inlay cutting board made from the butcher block countertop on the right
  • Custom removable overhead galley cabinet with L-track mounting by All Advantures

Toilet

Interior storage

  • Mule Bag in Black
  • Mini Mule Bag in Black
  • Headliner Shelf
  • Custom box by All Advantures underneath the bed along the driver-side wall to encase the Goal Zero and to serve as a mounting point for one pair of skis, ski poles, and a snowboard

Windows, window coverings, and screens

Exterior

Miscellaneous

Quick Visual Tour

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Clbsi28O0JG/

Our One-Week Review

Here’s what I texted to Kent after taking delivery in November 2022:

Read more about our van story

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