Help... it's damp in here

This winter I've been all snug as a bug in my little house on wheels... God bless the diesel heater... However, every time I drove off somewhere I'd get water running down my wall on to my dresser. I searched and searched for a potential leak, but with no success. Then one day it dawned on me that it must be a build up of condensation. It had been a chilly winter and 5 hours a day of heating combined with an adult and two smelly dogs breathing in a metal box for 15 hours a day (plus guests on occasion and wet clothing trying to dry), was obviously causing a lot of moisture; not to mention the amount that cooking creates as well. It was time to attack the issue head on...

So, where to start? Well being my normal control freak, ummm I mean 'extremely organised individual', I drew up a plan to sort the issue and reorg the van whilst everything was out.

A week off work was booked, the van moved in to the barn and a project plan drawn up...

Job one - Remove the tongue and groove ceiling:

My poor Dad nearly keeled over when I told him I needed to take down the lovely ceiling that took the two of us days to put up. I still don't think his or my shoulders have recovered from that ordeal!

Uh oh... to remove the ceiling means removing the newly installed bulk head; to remove the bulkhead I need to remove the sofa... AGGGGHHHHHH

OK... Job one - Remove the sofa!!

So, after the fun and games of removing the sofa, bulkhead and tongue and groove, I could straight away see the issue. The Celotex over the bed was damp and hanging off. Underneath, the metal roof was dripping with condensation and even a little mold; not good.

I removed any damp Celotex, wiped down the metal and abandoned the cause for the night... fortunately Farmer Nick was on hand to put me up whilst my van was uninhabitable, and I was glad of the wood burner and warm house for the night.

Day two... after a night with an electric heater running, the ceiling and Celotex had dried out, and I set about wrapping the partially damaged Celotex with space bubble (that's what I call the foil based bubble wrap used for insulation and vapour barriers in vans!). Project plan adjusted, I set about reinstalling the Celotex, stuffing extra lambswool in any nooks and crannies, and then turning the van in to a spaceship, by covering the hole ceiling with space bubble... Wonder if it'll help my phone signal!

Feeling exhausted and chuffed with my progress, I rolled in to bed ready for a day of carpeting the doors the next day.

Carpeting walls... Apparently it's super simple and spray glue is your friend. Spray glue certainly was my friend but after a day of trying to carpet my side door, I think I had more glue on myself than the door and I had used every swear word I knew! If you are going to carpet your van, don't be a cheapskate like me, buy the 4 way stretch stuff... it'll be easier around stupid handles and corners etc... yes the handles are stupid! After another day of cursing and crying whilst rocking staring at the job in hand, I cracked the carpeting and although it's, ummm, 'rustic', it's done; I've done it and it'll do the job it's there for, which is to keep the cold metal and warm air from coming in to contact with each other. Boom.

Next job, wallpapering before the ceiling went back up... I love wallpapering; easier than carpeting! I went for a paper I've used before as I love the wood effect and the colours were bang on with my colour scheme. I literally papered straight on to the ply board using standard wallpaper glue. It worked and looks awesome; I kind of wish I had got more paper to do the other wall... maybe later.

Day 5... Tongue and groove day. Welcome Kev, who kindly stepped in to help, with Dad being restricted too far down the road. That was his excuse anyway! I tell you what; having the right tools make a job SOOOOOOO much easier... Nail gun; that is the best tool ever for converting a van (that, an electric drill and a jigsaw). 4 hours and the ceiling was back up, despite the slight jigsaw puzzle-ness of the activity and a few tweaks to tidy the finish up.

My last jobs for the week were to install an inverter (for my new bike!) and to extend the heater piping, so I don't lose as much heat under the sofa.

Both were simple tasks but again the right tools would have made things easier (!) but they are installed and will definitely make life smoother and save energy moving forward.

Now to put everything back in as I've run out of time to do anything else... Oh no; that means creating another list and plan... yippee!!

So here you go, the van update to date...

When I'm next free I'll be repainting the ceiling, reorging the garage, and I still need to build that storage beside my bed; but I'm getting there and before long Buttercup, the smelly boys and I will be back on the road living our best life... #vanlife

Hope you've found this segment of interest; I'm planning to set up a little shop area soon with links to what I've used in my van build, so watch this space :-)

In the meantime, why not let me know what issues you've had with your van and tell me about your dream van interiors.

Take care, stay safe and keep living your best lives x