Living Freedom on the Road | Chevrolet Express Cargo Van Conversion Tour

[@alexanderweaver7066]

Hi Adam! I have the GMC Savana 2500 cargo van, and I have lived in mine over 2 1/2 years. Keep your van white. You paint it and add graphics you lose the stealth capability. Now you blend in with all of the other work vans. I added some custom pieces to make my van a little different but kept the white paint and the white roof rack. I will install two 200 watt solar panels on the roof rack. My two Jackery units hang from a clothes bar mounted close to the ceiling along with a Bluetooth speaker. I often park next to company vans in Home Depot and Best Buy parking lots without being harassed. Even after two years, I still find myself reorganizing as my needs change. Best of luck in building your channel.

[@AdamxSoldo]

That’s a great point the more I thought about it I think I’m definitely going to keep my van white. I haven’t had any trouble so far with being able to blend in places! Your set up sounds really comfortable - I think that’s awesome that you’ve been able to live in it for over two years! Thank you so much for your input I hope that you have many more years on the road as well! 🚐

[@isaiahcardenas520]

"i wake up and have no idea where I am" Story. of. my. LIFE! LOLOLOL And I live in an apartment LOL. Great setup! Very inspiring!

[@AdamxSoldo]

Yeah, sometimes that definitely happens. I’ll wake up and not remember where I parked. It takes some getting used to but it definitely adds to the adventure! Thank you so much glad you enjoyed it!

[@tonybalz2726]

Love your build. Forget trying to be "pretty" because I believe that functionality is more important! I built most of my cabinets and stuff and it works for me.

[@AdamxSoldo]

@@tonybalz2726 Thanks so much for the support, Tony! I totally agree - functionality over aesthetics every time! It’s great to hear your build works well for you. Keep rocking the DIY van life!

[@jasong8377]

I left my portion in. I just got a kit that turns the center section into a door. It work out very well

[@AdamxSoldo]

That’s awesome! Sounds like an interesting set-up glad it’s working out for you!

[@gtaylor1564]

At 6"5 you can't stand up in a house LOL the van is nicely done great video

[@AdamxSoldo]

Yeah, that’s very true. I can’t stand up in most structures let alone my van! Thank you! 🙏🏼

[@cIoudbank]

seriously, the amount of times i bonk my head on door frames or the stairs and cabinets at my child hood home IS CRAZY

[@jackiegammon2065]

I have the same vam although mine is an -07. I too, bought a service van, and do have the partition between the can and the back. It does have a door though, so I can get into the front quite quickly.I will say that it does make some noise, so have been thinking about taking it out... time will tell. Thanks for sharing!

[@chillymack2321]

U can put a pop top on it then u would b able to stand & still have stealth when its lowered

[@AdamxSoldo]

The pop top looks like a really cool idea! I’ve definitely considered that for future plans. I might have to look into that!

[@bigjoe2458]

I like the paneling.

[@AdamxSoldo]

Thank you so much! Home Depot has a great selection of stuff when I went!

[@briandrake9467]

I thought of a idea for a van like yours, solar ladders. A ladder with hidden solar panels. And the ladders still extend out to create more solar and a handy awning.

[@AdamxSoldo]

I could definitely see that being a huge advantage being able to hide the solar panels - the awning would be cool to be able to provide shade and a cool spot to hang out

[@mikevogdes3940]

I would keep the paint job white. There are millions of white Chevy Express vans running around and your van is very stealth as is.

[@AdamxSoldo]

That’s a great point! I think I will definitely keep the van white it’s really nice not having to worry about stealth with the van blending in!

[@wildcatoutdoors]

Heat reflection is much better with white

[@lamiego]

Great video, I noticed a fan on the roof, how are you cooling the back?

[@AdamxSoldo]

Thank you so much! Yes there is a 12 volt max air fan on the roof that is mounted on top that does a good job at bringing fresh air in I like to crack the sliding door and crack the windows as well and I feel like this gets plenty of circulation in - I also have a 12 volt double fan that pushes air and clips on the wall inside the van both running full power draws about 35 watts and I can run on the battery for about 3-4 nights 6-8 hours at a time before I have to recharge the 2000 watt Jackery

[@ThePlanet_L.I.]

You're talking about 1 particular partition. The other partition already has a cutout for the door, u can replace 1 for the other.

[@DJKandi]

Just bought my 2005 Chevy Express Cargo van like 2 days ago! Gonna be starting off super small as I will be leaving my apartment complex due to issues.

[@AdamxSoldo]

Hey, sorry to hear that you have stuff not working out well in your favor right now. I hope that it gets better for you! Hopefully the van will serve you well in this time of need. There’s nothing wrong with starting off small and working your way up.

[@DJKandi]

@@AdamxSoldo Yeah I have high hopes for Van Life to make a huge change in my life! 😁😁

[@vanlifewitKay]

I can wait to start my van life

[@AdamxSoldo]

It’s amazing! Good luck to you! Hope it goes well for you

[@lewisbale1]

Hello Adam 👋, just came across your channel today and now a New Subscriber. Looking forward to seeing more of your adventures. I'm trying to find van or Rv so I can start the van life.

[@AdamxSoldo]

Thank you so much! Definitely have more adventures planned soon! I’m so excited for you I hope you have a good experience on your journey!

[@perrymason8471]

I'm surprised u didnt run the bed lengthwise. Listen, there are a couple great videos where they installed a way to manually tilt the solar panels, and at your height, you may not even need a ladder to tilt them. Anyway, tilting increases the efficiency a lot, so you may not need a full 6-800 if you tilt.

[@AdamxSoldo]

I really enjoy having the bed in the back, I find it to be really comfortable! I’ve heard of those that would be ideal to get even more power when you tilt them definitely a project that’s coming in 2024!

[@thewilltejeda]

Hey Adam ! Solid build, especially fo rthe budget ! I'm looking at doing a similar con version to my 07' express i just picked up. Curious if you've had any issues with condensation ? That's my biggest concern as i did a quick conversion (just bed platform ) to get moved into it asap, but notice that in the cold pnw weather the cieling is usually very wet (drops visible) after a nights sleep. I don't have a vent fan yet

[@AdamxSoldo]

Hey, thank you so much! That is so cool that you are building a similar conversion! Before I had the the fan I had some condensation issues, but not that much because the ceiling was made out of this sheet metal and I had a 12 V fan circulating the air with the window cracked open and that seemed to help. Now that I have the fan it definitely circulates the air a lot better but you can probably pick up a 12 V fan at one of those trucker stops and plug it into a power source I use a 2000 W jackery and it has been my sole power source for almost a year now

[@campvanrvadventures]

NICE

[@AdamxSoldo]

@@campvanrvadventures thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed the video!

[@craftymulligar]

Calfornia may have good weather, you could have a wide wheel base maybe you got that doesnt look like it though. Thats what i would try to get a 2000 to 2008 below 100000 miles to 130000 miles around 8k to 10k usd.

[@AdamxSoldo]

Yeah, California has really good weather 90% of the time except when ever we get the monsoons. Yeah a wide wheelbase would be great but I don’t think mine has it.

[@sjastram]

Replace the curtain with a sliding door to keep the construction van look

[@norcalvandweller8401]

Love the build wish you showed the ceiling more, great idea Building mine now and like the idea Subscribed and following you from Sacramento,Ca

[@AdamxSoldo]

Thank you so much! I can definitely make another video featuring the ceiling more - can’t wait to see how yours turns out!

[@BiNumLi]

Rusting a little bit? Rusting a lot. Fix this before anything else. Check the wheel wells and under the sides. You have invested a lot on the build. The van needs to have a long life.

[@AdamxSoldo]

Yeah, definitely going to be a priority to fix the rust and paint!

[@BriteLake]

At around 3:00 you repeat yourself twice about so many vans looking like yours.

[@AdamxSoldo]

Yeah I realize this! Haha that was around the time I actually dropped my lens and had to get it repaired 😂 we had a little continuity error and I ended up putting it in twice by mistake

[@BriteLake]

@@AdamxSoldo It's still a good upload.

[@AdamxSoldo]

@@BriteLake thank you so much I’m glad you liked it! 🙏🏼

[@raulcruz6601]

VIVA VAN DWELLING 😚

[@AdamxSoldo]

🚐🏠

[@shaftmasterlathes]

One pint of Rustolium off white enamel paint from home depot and a 50 cent brush problem solved. Nobody see the roof or care! Problem solved.

[@AdamxSoldo]

@@shaftmasterlathes Thanks for the tip! That sounds like a quick and budget-friendly solution. Always good to have those practical fixes on hand - would I want to sand down the rust first?

[@johndavidgriggs]

To make a comment about your sleeping. Never sleep with your head facing north. It draws all the metal in your blood to your brain. Your brain has very small veins. The lower you go down in your body the bigger the veins are. This is because for a majority of our life we are standing. Sleep with your head to the east if you can.

[@AdamxSoldo]

@@johndavidgriggs I’ll have to try this and see if I feel the difference!