At the beginning of 2024 I made a list of 10 van projects I wanted to complete. Some got done, some will eventually get done, and some I will probably never do. Here’s the list of projects and their current status, in no particular order.
01. DASH CLUSTER REPAIR (RATING: F-)
The man who sold me my van conveniently forgot to mention that the dash cluster only works intermittently. I’ve searched online and this is a relatively common problem with Ford Econoline vans from the mid-2000s. The connector that the wiring harness connects to has bad solder joints. This causes the entire dash cluster (including the stereo) to lose power. Sometimes the cluster never powers up and sometimes it turns on and off multiple times in a single mile. The solutions I have found are to either replace the cluster ($600+ in parts), mail it off a a guy who does this repair ($250), or let my friend who’s pretty good with electronics try and fix it (free, but no guarantees). All of these solutions begin with disassembling the dash and removing the cluster, which renders the van undriveable. I simply haven’t found a good time to do without the van for an extended period of time and so I’ve done nothing. I track my mileage and speed using apps on my phone so I can monitor my speed and know when to add gas. On longer trips I use earbuds to listen to music since the radio constantly turns off and on.
This is on my must fix list in 2025. I can’t keep driving the van in this condition and I wouldn’t sell it to anyone else while it has this problem.
02. WALLS, CEILING, INSULATION (RATING: C+)
It’s hard to believe that in January of 2024 I was camping in a van with bare metal walls. In the summer of 2024 I added insulation and wood panels to the walls, but did not do the ceiling because that seemed hard. My goal in 2025 is to finish the ceiling, but the problem is I’ve made my bed a little too tall and lowering the ceiling even an inch is the difference between being able to sit upright or hunched over. The ultimate solution is to replace my mattress with a slightly thinner one. I honestly don’t mind the metal ceiling, mostly because I don’t really camp in really extreme temperatures and having metal exposed gives you a lot of places to attach magnetic hooks, lights, and Go Pro mounts, but it does have a relatively unfinished look.
03. REAR DOORS (RATING: B-)
Back in January, my rear doors had no panels and I could literally see sunlight through large gaps when I was camping. In 2024 I made custom panels out of wood and attached them with screws to the metal. I also added a shore power connection in one of the rear doors which works great. The rubber sealing around the doors was falling off and in bad shape and I was able to mostly get it put back where it goes. Before, the doors leaked water terribly when it rained.
The doors still leak, but not as bad. I need to add more sealing around the gap, I think. Also, one of the two rear door handles just stopped working. If I ever meet the person who designed the door handles on the Ford Econoline I will personally choke them. In my 2007 van I’ve had the sliding door handle and both rear door handles fail, along with two of the van’s four locks. I’ve been driving vehicles for 30+ years now and I have never had a door handle fail on another vehicle. Ever. The worst part about this repair is not just that I’ve attached a wood panel covering access to the door, but that the bed pushes up against it and there’s no way to remove the bed except with both rear doors open. It’s a logic problem I’ve yet to resolve. If and when I am able to get this door open I may just remove the handles and start taping the doors shut every day. I’m kidding. Mostly.
04. SOLAR (RATING: A-)
One of my goals for 2024 was to add a solar panel to the roof of my van… and I did it! I purchased a Renogy 200 watt solar panel and attached it to my roof using a combination of VHB adhesive and Flexseal tape. It’s been attached for nine months now and looks great. There’s a lot to solar and I don’t know much, but I do know that laying flat on a van’s roof is not the optimum angle for a solar panel. The best I have ever got out of my panel is 135w, or about 65% efficiency. While I wish I got more, I’m pretty happy with what I get.
Mostly due to my refrigerator and my CPAP the panel does not charge my battery back to 100% on a daily basis and so in 2025 I’ll be adding a second panel. I need to install a grommet on the ceiling of the van and make the wiring a little neater, but the goal was to add solar, and I did it!
05. POWER STATION UPGRADE (RATING: A+)
When I started building my van I knew I didn’t want to deal with RV batteries and would run everything off of a power station, like a Jackery or a Bluetti — the problem being, I wasn’t camping enough to justify (or afford) a Jackery or a Bluetti, and so I purchased an Imuto brand battery. (Ever heard of them? Me either.) I decided that 1,000 watts was what I needed and while the name brand units were selling for approximately $1/watt, I was able to get an Imuto brand battery for approximately half that amount. It was a price I couldn’t refuse and as the saying goes, if a deal sounds too good to be true… well, you know the rest. The first Imuto battery I purchased had some sort of major electronic failure that caused it to randomly reset, occasionally instantly dropping from 100% charge to 0%. Because the unit was under warranty I contacted the company… who never responded. Eventually I was able to get a replacement unit which also failed, this time just outside the warranty window.
In 2024 I bit the bullet and purchased an AllPowers 2,000 watt battery. Either I have bad luck with these things or they don’t have good quality control because within a month, it too developed an issue that required returning and replacing. For the record, repacking and mailing a 70lb battery is a real pain in the neck and will win you no favors with your local FedEx delivery driver. Additionally, AllPowers refused to cross shop, meaning I was without a battery for almost two weeks.
The good news is that the replacement unit works flawlessly. It is insalled semi-permanently in my van. While camping I run everything from my television to my microwave from the unit’s 110v powers, power my refrigerator and my CPAP from the unit’s 12v ports, and charge stuff from the USB ports. The solar panel is always connected and I can see how many watts are coming in or going out through the AllPowers app. The battery was expensive but it was everything I hoped it would be.
06. BUILD A DESK (RATING: A)
I literally cannot believe that in my first camping videos of 2024 I was using a TV tray and a cheap Ikea table to hold my stuff. In 2024 I built the desk I always wanted, six foot long with six feet of storage underneath. It’s made out of 2x4s and plywood so it’s heavy and solid. I painted the 2x4s gray and the plywood white. The shelf underneath holds my microwave, my AllPowers battery, and had lots of room for more storage. On top I have my television, random entertainment stuff, and tons of room for laptops, CPAPs, or other gear. It’s worked out great. Some people might think it’s too big but it’s exactly what I imagined and it turned out great.
07. ALARM / SECURITY CAMERAS (RATING: ?)
Based on all the vanlife videos I’ve watched you would think half of all vans are stolen or get broken into. If you’ve seen my van you know thinking anyone would want to steal it is a bit of wishful thinking. My van has a built-in security system in that ay any given time 50% of the door handles don’t work.
The reason for the security cameras is different. When I’m hunkered down in the rear of the van I cannot see anything that’s happening outside the van. On multiple occasions I’ve heard people talking or car doors slamming andwondered what was happening, but without opening a door or removing a window covering, I can’t see outside.
A solution presented itself this week when I saw a baby monitor for sale. It comes with two cameras and a small base unit with a 3″ screen. The cameras require power and I’ll have to figure that out, but I think this might end up being an inexpensive solution to my problem. If so, I made it just under the wire in 2024!
08. SPEAKERS (RATING: F)
The speakers in the door of my van suck. I’ve always been an audiophile and driving a car with a bad sound system is a deal breaker for me. Unfortunately due to the dash cluster power issue, the radio turns off and on constantly, which put upgrading the speakers on the back burner. Having a stereo and decent speakers would be nice for longer trips, but one of the things I’ve learned is that the more time you spend in your van the more you discover what your needs truly are. Originally I had wanted to install speakers in the rear doors and maybe even a subwoofer, but the reality is when I’m camping or hanging out in the rar of the van, the stereo is never on because the van is never on. When I’m in the back I’m listening to my phone, sometimes with earbuds and sometimes not, or watching television. I’ve never been in the back of the van and wished I could listen to music coming from the front of the van.
At some point I will probably upgrade the speakers in the front doors, but it’s a low priority until I get the dash issue fixed.
09. WINDSHIELD (RATING: A+)
One of the gifts my used van came with was a cracked windshield. The crack ran vertically, approximately 1/3 the distance between the bottom and the top of the windshield. It was on the passenger side of the van and didn’t block my view while driving at all. Of course, as cracks do, it grew and by the time it ran the entire length of the windshield, a second crack formed. I’ve always felt that the better condition your van is in the less reason anyone has to stop and harass you. Plus, blah blah safety hazard.
I ended up calling Safelite who came to my house and replaced the windshield in my driveway. I’ve used them in the past after Oklahoma hailstorms destroyed other windshields, and dealing with Safelite is always a drame-free experience. This was one of those not-so-fun repairs that had to happen and I’m glad it’s done.
10. RUNNING BOARDS (RATING: A+)
Driving a vehicle that’s difficult to get in or out of is no fun. It didn’t take long for me to decide my van needed running boards to help me get in and out. I’m not a big van of chrome (the color not Chrome the vanlife guy!) and so I had a very specific look (black) that I wanted. After finding the ones I wanted on Amazon, my buddy Andy said he could install them. It only took an hour or so from start to finish, and having them has been a game changer. I can now get into the van with ease and get out without fear of breaking my knees. I haven’t had a single issue with the running boards and they have made vanlife so much easier for me.
SUMMARY/CONCLUSION
Overall, 2024 was a productive and successful year for van projects. Soon I’ll be making my 2025 list. Is there anything you can think of I need to add to my van? Let me know!