Minirolls Musings

Diary of a camper conversion

Working around the insulation is a pain, but it kept Kai and I warm-er when we took the van out on its maiden overnight trip to Sussex. It did mean that the odd bit of fluff got covered in wood glue, but that’s not the end of the world.

Today David helped me start framing out the van with batons. These were ripped strips from 18mm ply because it’s structurally more consistent than plain wood, is thick enough to fill the depth of the van pillars and will be strong for mounting the bed to it later. It was counter sunk with a spade bit and then metal self tapping roof screwed into the ribs. We added a little glue behind it to prevent squeaks.

Diary of a camper conversion

I used this stuff in the last van and it seemed to go well. I didn’t open her up to check, but 11 years of service speaks for itself.

This is recycled bottle insulation. It’s cheap, readily available from B&Q, not itchy like the rockwool stuff, and doesn’t hold moisture so it’s widely used in camper conversions.

To install you just use spray glue and then whack it up. It’s very satisfying to see so much progress being made.

Diary of a camper conversion

My roller didn’t arrive in time so I built one from spare wheels I had laying around.

I basically spent the day peeling and sticking sheets of butyle rubber to the ping-ey parts of the van bodywork. This adds mass and reduces vibrations that are really noisy in the van. It’s a quality of life job, but I think it will be worth it in the end for a quiet van.

I used my DIY roller all day and prefer it to the “professional” one, for the majority of the install. Only when I needed to reach behind a panel was the handle useful.