“I wanted to test my building skills by renovating an older van than I’m usually used to working with, so i decided to build this solar powered Urban Stealth Camping tiny house Van using the shell of a 1989 Ford Econoline 150. In this video I take you with me from start to finish and show everything that I built from the electrical setup to the details of each floorboard and shiplap wall panel. I was able to build this entire off grid tiny house with only $3,500. The van itself cost me $1,200.”
When you picture motivational speaker Matt Foley living in a van down by the river, what kind of van do you imagine? Before the era of Instagram ready Sprinters, there was a little thing called a conversion van. Far from the venerated status of the modern day social media hip overlanders, van life in 1989 was usually lived by travel team hockey moms and those on the outskirts of society. This 1989 Ford Econoline 150 conversion kept some of the original charm in the cockpit but is fully modernized from the captain’s chairs back. Pretty sweet ride.
This van is Set up as an off-grid stealth camper van. It is fully equipped with a solar power electrical system. There are two Solar Panels discretely mounted to the roof of the van.
All the rest of the electrical components including the Solar Controller, Pure Sine Wave inverter, and deep cycle Gel battery are mounted inside of the van. The batteries are also connected to the van’s alternator to maximize its charging capabilities. With this electrical system installed, you can watch tv, charge devices, and play video games for hours without running out of power. There are AC and USB outlets in convenient areas throughout the van, as well as super bright rechargeable magnetic LED lights with 3 brightness levels.
The living area of this tiny house has gas heat and a gas oven/stove. There’s also a fully functional sink and water system, as well a flushing toilet. For cooking and ventilation, the tiny house has a 3 speed Dometic Fan-Tastic roof vent above the kitchen area. There is a projector screen that can be angled on a swiveling wall mount which is connected to a DTV antenna and my PS4 video game console.
The couch can seat 4 people and converts into a king sized bed. There is a massive easy to reach storage space under the bed. There are 3 layers of insulation which makes it easy to regulate temperature inside the van regardless of the temperature outside of the van. All cabinets in the van are secured with magnets to make sure nothing falls while the van is moving.
There is also a Murphy desk that has integrated wireless charging for personal cellular devices, laptops, and tablets. The van is in excellent mechanical condition. I’ve driven it from North Carolina to California and back without a single issue.
I wanted to test my building skills by renovating an older van than I’m usually used to working with, so i decided to build this solar powered Urban Stealth Camping tiny house Van using the shell of a 1989 Ford Econoline 150. In this video I take you with me from start to finish and show everything that I built from the electrical setup to the details of each floorboard and shiplap wall panel.
I was able to build this entire off grid tiny house with only $3,500. The van itself cost me $1,200.