Van Renovation: Chapter 2...

"What do you think I should do with these holes in the van floor? We can see the road as we drive." - Me.

After ripping out the seats in our VW Vanagon, it was time to figure out what we were going to do with the empty-space the seat removal had opened up. Put a shag rug in and hang a disco ball? Add captains chairs or turn the seat around so everyone sitting back there can face each other? Leave and never come back to it because renovating anything is a pain in the ass? None of those options seemed right, so we went to Home Depot for some inspiration.

"You always grab a cart! It's a rule!" - Unknown

We finally landed on putting in hardwood flooring, like the kind you would put in your living room. We figured if it was good enough for a living room, it sure-as-shit was good enough for our Vanagon. We did some quick internet searching, and it did not look too hard. We measured and modified our plan, bought some materials and were on our way to put a new floor in our VW.

"Always look for good looking and cost effective solutions." - Unknown

We started by ripping out all the 30+-year-old, stained, shitty existing rug. Ripping up this shit-stained monstrosity felt like ripping up a large piece of beef jerky. The rug had lost all flexibility and covered 30-year-old stain-circles of god-knows-what spilled from years past. Once we had it all out, we had to sanitize the metal flooring, seal the holes where the seat had been bolted down so we could no longer see the road from inside the van, and installed some thick carpet cushion. Once we had that done, it was like playing building blocks. The flooring we got snaps together like Legos, it is a great solution for anyone doing a flooring remodel of any kind. We had to use our handy-dandy Ryobi jigsaw for this and cutting around vents and seats. It is worth it to take your time during this process, measure twice and cut once, patience is a virtue.

"Dangerously under-qualified" - We had to removed the door seam to get the carpet out.

"Where does this piece go?" - We had to remove a panel to ensure we coved the entire floor - super easy to put back on, it just snaps into place.

"Always clean up after you removed 30 year old carpet." - Einstien

Got some good carpet padding and filled in the rest with bubble wrap to create a soft and even base for the floor.

Measure twice - cut once. Had a few handy dandy tools to make light work of this project. Invest in a level, measuring tape, rubber mallet, and a good blade for your cuts. Then just put the panel back and screw down the door seam and you are good to go!

This whole process only took about 2 hours and added a ton of value. Customizing and getting creative with your van renovations is a huge part of what draws us to owning our van. Now we have space for all kinds of activities! 

We have a bunch more plans and ideas lined up so stay tuned!

-YourFriendMatt

They call me Bob the Builder...

"Oh shit, it's bleeding! Grab me a towel! And a beer!" - Me.

No household project is complete without some bloodshed. Nothing a beer can't fix.

Recently the weather has changed, and it has led Jamie and me from the black hole we get sucked into, most commonly known as the couch and Netflix, to adventure out and about through Nashville. Everyone in our neighborhood seems to be shaking the coat of winter off and working in their yards. We were inspired to start sprucing up home after a neighborhood walk. After watching some YouTube videos, we got an over-eager sense of confidence that led us to believe we could do just about any project no matter how big or small. Fix the sink? Check. Put in a raised garden? Check. Put on a glass storm door? Check. Fix and replace specific parts of the dishwasher? Uh, probably? Check. Rip up the walkway and put in a new one? Sure! That should only take me a minute! Check.

We decided the front door and the raised garden were the starting points this season. These two tasks seemed moderately simple; we have the tools to get it done, and are pretty cost effective starting points as far as home projects are concerned. After some more YouTubing, we were ready. We hit the hardware store, got what we needed and we were on the way.

Honestly, I wish I had a funnier story but putting on a storm door is a pretty straight forward process. It took me about 2 1/2 hours to install. I did hurt myself and left a little blood on the porch, but it was worth it. Any job worth doing is worth doing without any knowledge of safety.

When all was said and done this project was pretty cheap, and it added a bunch of light to our living room. This door also added value (at least for us) to our home and gave me a sense of pride. I mean just watch the video below.

-YourFriendMatt