Everyone doing a buildout of some sort faces the same layout challenge: Where do I put my stuff? If you’re going with something prebuilt, like a camper or an RV, the major parts of this have been solved for you. This is why, for this particular topic, we’re going to focus on the more challenging consideration, which is a built-out (or no-build) van where all of these issues need to be addressed from the ground up.
Layout Pieces
The basic van build comes in about four generic parts that have to be arranged to fit inside a van. These parts are the bed and galley, plus the water and electrical systems. Two other common systems are the toilet and shower, but they are not key parts of a layout for opposite reasons.
The toilet is usually a very small footprint and can be worked into many different places. The shower, on the other hand, has a very large (and complicated) footprint and is therefore usually located outside the vehicle to save space. Showers and toilets kinda deserve a post of their own, though.
Lastly, you need some sort of storage space and a living area of some sort for rainy days. These tend to be dictated by the main four pieces rather than the other way around. While you could do this in any order you want, I suggest following this particular order to save some time and headaches. Having said that, let’s get into the process.
Bed Layout
This is the cornerstone of your layout as it is the biggest footprint of all. There are two solutions to this: Across the back of the van or along the side. Let’s look at the sideways factors first.
Sideways Orientation
How tall are you, and how much room do you have? If you’re taller than six feet, you’re not gonna fit in bed. A large RAM Promaster can have up to a 6’3” width above the wheel bases, but insulation and pillows are going to cut into that. That’s also the top end. If you’re building in a minivan, sideways is out unless you’re very short.
If you can swing the sideways layout, the back of the van is the way to go. It’s the most out-of-the-way place to put it, and you’ll need to lift it above the wheel wells. This sounds like a major con, but the platform creates a great void space for storage that will come into play later.
Lengthwise Orientation
If you can’t do the sideways approach, this is your next best bet. The downsides are that it will most likely eat into your galley space. Also, you probably can’t get away with a nice, roomy queen-size. A full bed is about 54 inches wide, which gives you just under two feet to walk around it in a Promaster.
Most likely, you’re going to want to go with a twin for smaller vans for the sake of comfort. You can also save some space by designing a bed that can fold into a couch during the day. Doing so adds some complexity and a little repetitive work to your days, though. Something to think about, though.
Having said that, I have seen some great setups in some small areas using the lengthwise layout. You’re still going to want to elevate over the wheel wells, but that still gives a nice void space. If you strategically locate your galley, you can still have a pretty killer layout. Speaking of…
The Galley
In case you’re wondering, we’re talking kitchens here. No matter how much you plan on eating out, you’re going to need a place to prepare food, and it can’t just be outside. You still need to eat when it rains.
A basic galley needs to have a sink, a way to heat food, a flat surface to prep on, and a little bit of storage for dishes, cookware, and spices. This boils down to a countertop and some drawers. For that two areas along the side of the van make the most sense.
Driver’s Side Layout
If the bed’s a lengthwise layout, it’s most likely going to be on the driver’s side to accommodate the length. Bed lengths are between the narrow range of 75 to 80 inches. An average cargo space is probably going to be in the 96 to 156 inch range. On the large side, you have about 6+ feet, which is plenty for a galley and some good storage space.
On the smaller end, however, you only have a foot or two for the entire setup. Even if you don’t cook often, that is a cramped galley. If you have a sideways layout and a queen-sized bed, however, you have an extra 20 inches to work with, which is very serviceable. Now you can see how that sideways bed is so much more space-efficient.
Passenger’s Side Layout
With a lengthwise bed, this is probably the better layout. If you design a folding bed, you can sit on the couch and cook. This eliminates the bed versus galley tug-of-war for space. The real big limiting factor for space here is the side door, which is going to be about 51 inches. That leaves between 45 to 101 inches for a galley.
If you’re not keen on math, that’s between almost four feet and close to eight and a half feet. Plus, it’s common practice to extend the galley out into the door space. Doing so could easily clear an extra couple of feet if you need it.
With a sideways bed, you’re probably better off with the driver’s side approach as it gives a more open floorspace with the door, but you have your choice of location.
Electrical Systems
With your bed and galley in place now, you might be concerned by the lack of open space. Those two things soak up much of the free space of your rig. This is where those void spaces you’ve created come into play. No matter if you chose a sideways or lengthways orientation for your bed, you had to lift it above the wheel wells to make it fit.
That space is perfect for tucking away your electrical system. If you’re going with a split-up system of batteries, an inverter, and a charge controller, these can be tailored into an available space quite nicely. If instead you have a solar generator or the like, you’ll need to take some measurements and might need to build around it a bit, but it shouldn’t be too difficult.
Water Systems
You will need to tote some water with you for drinking, cooking, and washing, which means you need room for a tank. The size depends on how long you plan on dry-docking, but somewhere between 5 and 10 gallons should get you by pretty well, though I’ve seen some rigs that make do with less than 5, too.
So, where do you put it? Usually, your galley is going to have a nice-sized void area under the sink, so start there. If you want to keep a grey tank (water you used to rinse and wash with), you can separate your tank space into a freshwater and grey tank easily enough using square water containers.
Some of the commercial cargo vans also have a void space under the vehicle that can be outfitted with a larger water tank. There are aftermarket companies that make such tanks to fit perfectly into those spaces, which could give you a large fresh water tank to work with. The downside it you will need to figure out how to route plumbing into your van, plus a fill-up port.
Layout Weight Distribution
The last thing you want to think about is distributing the weight in your layout. The heaviest parts of your rig are probably going to be water and batteries, so try to fit those on opposite sides of the van for balance. Also, try and keep the heaviest elements close to the floor to keep your ride from becoming top-heavy. This is especially true for water that can slosh around.
The Wrap Up
So there is your guide to figuring out your ideal layout. Keep in mind these are guidelines and not hard and fast rules, so feel free to get creative. I’ve seen a guy build a full-on shower inside a minivan, so there is room to work outside the convention here.
Next post, I’ll be touching on how to make money on the road, so stay tuned for that, but until then, let’s keep finding Austrasia.
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