We love creators that don’t gatekeep 👏This is the first van build video that is actually accessible and achievable for people - not just those with lots of $. Wishing you all the best on your journey soon.

you have no idea how lucky you are to have a friend like Eric! Invaluable! Treasure him always!

Ho ho ho let adventure begin ! 😃🎄 you are building your beautiful and fun dream , will be a very cozy tiny house on the journey , have wonderful adventures = )

I build full size sprinter camper vans for a living and after selling my full size transit van that I lived out of for years I bought one of these little transit connects. When I was getting inspiration for layouts I found your video and to me this simple set up is way better than most and I replicated a lot of things you did in there! I’m almost done with the project and am super psyched to put it to use! Anyways, I just wanted to say great job, thanks for the inspiration and hope you’re still enjoying it!

Ericcc has absolutely (probably without telling you) adopted you as an extra kid to look after.

Good for you👍❣👋👵🐢

I have a Ford Transit. I really like the functional bed preserving most of the floor space and still having a food/clothing storage area. Great idea of a portable table that is the bed support as well.

This is a good, basic build and makes you happy which is most important. I watch a lot of van build videos but never did it. Still, there are at least some van builds where people have a diesel heater but no insulation and are happy with the heat level, even people in fairly cold climates. It requires care with installation. Some keep the diesel tank on the rear outside because it sometimes smells. The vehicle is small and would be a challenge for me to make a build for full time camping. I could make it work, though. That would be for later in life, as I am now 55.

Your van conversion is so cute!! Simple design, nothing too over the top, I love it. Thanks for sharing

Hi dear Erin! Love your DIY personality and your TALENT. Now you added value to your van and "Erincized" it hehehe

good presentation, good camera and audio. and good content

Love your ideas, work and attitude!

You May Want To Look At Having A Small Diesel Heater And A Separate Battery System, That'll Charge When You're Driving If You Will Be In Really Cold Areas. Take Care And Travel Safe !!

That's actually really good. Tidy, cheap and user friendly.

YES! Memory Foam gets hard in cold weather. I have a pillow that turns into a rock...did not think about that hehe.

Your build looks super cool, however , how could you remove the butterfly door knob 😂😂 that was the best part 🤪

Thanks for sharing . I am getting start up plan again after seeing your build ... on my long been planned road trip/ camping.

Looks so beautiful ❤

Love this build.

Great music

Love this video! Really shows your personality and how creative you are. Not gonna lie, that chicken was one of my favorite parts! 😍

You seem like a cool young lady. It's not common knowdledge about memory foam. I just learned that 3 days ago watching another van build. So just keep going.😊 😊😊

I love this 😅 -you’re hilarious and so freaking cute! & remind me of Claire Danes. I love her. I only wish my tiny house build was proceeding with half as much fun and enjoyment as it seems like you’re having! 🥴

Love the simplicity to the approach - we went with the no build option so we could get on the road as soon as possible. Looking forward to your upcoming road trip! Within 9 months of us having our van we did a cross country road trip from PA to Grand Canyon and was on the road for a month and LOVED it and we were more than comfortable in the van. New subs here! Keep making memories & adventure on! ~Karen & Shannon WOY

Looks great. Happy travels.

Love❤

Nice setup!

A water proof cover so the memory foam doesn't absorb moisture might help

This is a cute functional build! 😊The white on brown looks very good! Nice work! 👍🏻

Very fun video 😂 simple and functional build

Your van build has been great so far; I’m going to subscribe so I can see where you go from here. It looks good and the bed works if you want it long ways, sideways, front ways, back ways, this way, that way, no way, or another way. 🤔. I like seeing the build done from the beginning forward. It clears up a lot of the questions that come up when I watch other creators. Ever forward…..>>>>

I like how simple and clean your build is. So great seeing you and Eric building it together. What I found interesting about your video was that the van was originally a mobile office. I'm going to look into one of those! Great video! Keep it up!

Omg this is so cute absolutely love it and h th and you for explaining in great detail 🫶🏽

Eric did a great job!❤

I love the simplicity and versatility! And that you are continually refining the design. Well done.

A single burner gas stove for oatmeal, coffee, cooking. A collapsible water jug, a power source(I use Bluetti 750wattbitll run a electric blanket-small heater- charge everything and has portable solar panel if needed. Lots of options, have fun, enjoy life, people are good just dont watch the "news", their job is 2make everyone afraid.🌝👍

You're great. very entertaining. God Bless and safe travels.

love this, great vid

That is so amazing! Can’t wait for the next video

I have almost the exact same van .. 2011 Ford Transit, 60K miles. Trying my build in such a way it can still haul large loads yet double as a painting studio on wheels .. kinda a challenge.

dude... that's the Gabby Petito car! 👀

Fairly simple yet VERY functional! I'm really impressed with the wood on the rear doors that turned out really nice and tied into the platform perfectly! Very cool you did a great job. Utilizing the dresser was pure Genius!!

Go Green! I like the “lounge” set, it offers way more functionality! Great work repurposing the wood that you already had on hand. 🏆🏆🏆

I need an Eric/Erin in my life!🤣

Instead of nob handles maybe use leather straps to get more clearance and not have them sticking out...and maybe cut a little hole in the plywood to help pull it up.🤔 I have a diy Transit Connect as well..I need to make some adjustments on mine too. Looks kool🤙

I'm subscribing cause you came up with some nice ideas which maybe I could try. You aren't afraid of a challenge so you will do great. In from Central Oklahoma.

Wow very plain and simple but very nice job! All the van builds you see are very expensive and not everyone has that kind of money. You did an awesome job. Wishing you the best on your journey. Safe travels

Nice and neat.

Great Job!!!

Thank you I didn't know that memory fome freeze

I love it!

Your design and build is innovative, charming and though unnecessarily heavy, stuck to budget-which is a huge win, so kudos! Even though you took precautions by selecting a wonderfully sprung mattress, to further safeguard against mold from growing underneath said mattress from the damp that in all likelihood will still accumulate, consider drilling multiple ventilation holes into your bed platform. Congratulations on a job well done!

Pretty simple, but very functional!!

Its going to be amazing when you do a large van build, but your van does around 50 mpg, and a large van probably if both diesel will be around 30 mpg it's a lot to loos but it can be offset by staying that bit longer somewhere.

Gorgeous!

Absolutely love your bed placement and ease of setup.. And you did a very nice job on floor and door panels. I can't wait to see the rest of your build/decor.

That is awesome Eric was teaching you stuff on how to build the base of the bed. Your van build would be so me. I need it cheap and ready to go. I didn't know about the memory foam thing.

Love the bed set up

I Luv Ur design idea.

Beautiful 💙💙

regarding handles on your bed set up: probably useful on the box for lifting. For the plywood extension, putting some finger holes in the wood will allow you to flip it open more easily without having hardware that gets in the way. Or you can use part of an old belt to make flexible handles that don't hurt if you bump into them. One other question--do you have any insulation in there? If you're a farmer traveling in the cold season, I imagine that could make your sleeping much more comfortable. Love learning about the ikea mattresses--great idea for these small vans!

Erin and Eric, I think it's terrific! Wish I was handy and could do that. Bravo!

This is an amazing and ingenious build!

Thanks for sharing your development process Erin and love that you are a part time farmer!

Unclear where you store your water. Like how you show the reality of van life. Stay safe.

Nicely done. I have the exact same Van that started as a mobile office. FYI - they were built in Baltimore under contract by Ford Motor Company. I also kept the white plastic panels; headliner and I use those heavy hooks a lot. Like you I prefer the platform bed with stuff stored underneath. You can get while plastic plugs to plug up all the holes where you took the security screens off the doors. I used the metal “extenders” of the floor behind your seats to store the Jack, jumper cables etc. since you cover the access up with the platform. Enjoy your ride.

Wow, just found you on my KZfaq feed. I'm 70 Yeats old slowly converting my 2004 suv mercury Mountaineer and you gave me some awesome ideas. Looking forward to more content on what else you've done inside to make it more comfortable and warm for you. God bless you. Traveling mercies.

Wow.. Memory foam freezes? I just came started watching your build and hit that fun fact. I love your design and am going to watch more over the coming days to get ideas for my future build - Dave from Canada. As we speak its -33C going down to -38C Brrr

Excellent simple build. And very versatile

That bed is Genius!

Looks great! working on mine right now! Definitely a different approach than what I did

👍🏽

You did a fantastic job. So cool with the resources.

Awesome thanks for sharing

love this but also curious what you do about food and toilet and temperature control

the big two pieces of wood, can be modified, so that you can access the storage on the drawers from the inside, say removable top, when say raining or really cold. Maybe you have done it already, I just saw your video, I have a Transit 350, certainly 3 times yours, because mine is extra large cargo van. But that is a fantastic idea, I will be using myself. Best. God Bless.

👍

This is a very good build and I think it would be okay in colder weather if you have a good enough heater because if you put installation in the doors and you keep the headliner back there. I think you're fine. There's no reason I think of a smaller Van too. Put wood on the ceiling and everything. I think it's just fine the way it is, especially it's so small.

The mattress has to be able to breath ie slatts underneath or brill some large hole's in the plywood

You're both talented and Eric is a good friend. Good to know memory foam freezes. All these people from the west side never say that.

Oh! Yes! That's the answer for me! A flippy bit!

👍 👍 💯

Thumbs up for having great taste in music

Super cool, I’ve got literally the same set up, though on my bed”support” is my battery boxes, feeding diesel night heater night heater & electriblanket ( a $12 heated seat cover lol) in Scotland its an achievement IF the temperature goes above 12* through the DAY, nighttime can go to -8 / -12*C So heating is essential Have fun ✌🏼💚🙏🏼🚛💨

If you want to put handles on the flip out Amazon has leather ones that I’ve used.

I could be wrong but that memory foam mattress you had that froze looks like a gel foam mattress. Those do freeze. Never had a regular foam mattress freeze.

GO GREEN💚!!!! #SPARTYGANG

Hahaha the 'creepy mobile office' is probably the set up I'll have in the beginning 😂 Also planning to get a Ford Transit Connect or Ram ProMaster City and it's awesome what builds people have managed!

Beautiful build! However, I didn't see if that box you move at night is fixed in place when you drive. If not, and if you get into an accident, even a low speed one, that will become a missile that can very very easily kill or seriously injure you. And it is mounted immediately behind your head. Do this as a mental experiment: imagine dropping this on your head from 5 feet. That is roughly equivalent to the kinetic energy it would have in a 10-12 mile an hour collision. A 25 mile an hour collision would be the equivalent to dropping it from about 21 feet. 35 miles per hour is a whopping 41 feet! The forces you experience in a car crash are unimaginable unless you have been in one. The very easy solution would be to secure this box to the platform underneath using a "french cleat". Using this, simply sliding the box towards the back of the van by about an inch "unlocks" it (no need to undo any bolts or unscrew anything). Check with your friend about the french cleat. He should be familiar with it if he is a woodworker. A modified version of a french cleat with through bolts (not just wood screws - the through bolts are very important) would hold the box in place during a collision, but would not make it any harder to remove at night at all. It is also almost criminally easy to make. Even a novice woodworker could make a french cleat system and install it in the van in less than 2-3 hours, including design time. Don't skimp on this. Seriously. I unfortunately have experience as to how violent and life changing even a "low speed" collision can be. Spending an afternoon now could save your or your passenger's life. Enjoy your travels!

Great job. I'm a grandma and a weekend camper in the process of buying a Connect. My concern immediately for you is insulation ... not knowing which months you travel (but you mentioned Montana), any plans to insulate your van? Happy trails. Hope we "connect" on the road. Great job again. 👵💕

LOVE! i thought the butterfly knob was so cute haha then u guys took it off 😭

This is great! I love the different design to the usual, having the living / seating space at the back. I wonder if the folding bed extension could have another joint / hinge on it, with a bracket on the floor to enable it to be used as a back rest on your seat?

Love your shirt 👕, Anne ARBOR waving. I just got my Ford Transit connect, no build rebuild. R u here still in mitten ? 😁

take out the hinges of the bed and make the board just sliding. it will 2 million times easier for you to set up the bed .

I just found my very own tiny Ford Transit connect. Mine has that really high white rack on top like yours. Did you replace it with something different and if so might I ask why? Thanks.

I wanna do it tooo but am under 18 rn 😂😅😢

First of all....POWER TOOLS! NICE! Second....you should have totally left the butterfly knobs on the drawers.

Thats a cool Video and car and country vibes 😅 Greetz from Germany 🇩🇪 i want to buy similar car , also to travel with Girl and my 125cc Scooter around europe

What year and make is your connect? Mpg?

How many miles and how much was your van? What year?