Van Building Methods: A Guide to Optimizing Time and Money Through the Most Efficient Building Methods

Building profitable vans requires a wide range of skills across three major areas: carpentry, electrical, and plumbing. Each of these areas could take years to master individually, but fortunately, you don’t need that level of expertise to succeed in van building. Surface-level knowledge will get you far.

You’ll need to learn the basics of construction—things like cutting wood, installing fasteners, and sanding. These are best picked up through YouTube tutorials and firsthand experimentation. My goal is to help you take those foundational skills and apply them specifically to van building. Once you’ve learned the fundamentals, you’ll find that many of the skills overlap, equipping you to handle most of the challenges during a build.

In construction, there are countless ways to tackle a task, and it can be overwhelming to choose the right path. The key here isn’t to create the most extravagant product but a beautiful, practical one. To maximize your margins on a van flip, you need to focus on the most efficient methods in terms of time and materials.

This section delves into my go-to methods for the nuanced, yet essential tasks in van, covering:

• Scribing

• Fasteners and adhesives

• Cutting metal panels of the van

• Building a subfloor

• Framing the van

• Building cabinets

• Building a shower

• Creating round shapes from wood

• Plumbing freshwater

• Drainage

• Electrical connections