VAN BUILD SERIES | PREP & SUBFLOOR

We took our first big step in converting our new Ford Transit: the subfloor!
Everyone has their own approach to doing the subfloor and, if you find it helpful, this is ours.
Our wood base is made up of 1” furring strips in a grid, connected using pocket hole screws and wood glue. This acts as a frame for 1” XPS foam board. For the subfloor, we use 3/4” exterior grade plywood, traced and cut to the curves of the van, then screwed and glued down into the furring strips below. We cut our insulation and subfloor such that there is a ~1/2 to 3/4 inch gap around the perimeter to be filled with gaps and cracks foam to avoid squeaking of wood on the metal on the van.
Glue used:
PL 300 foam board adhesive for foam to metal and foam to wood
Sikkflex 221 to adhere wood to metal
Subfloor adhesive for wood to wood
We know the floor and insulation process is a highly debated topic so we aren’t suggesting this is the only way… but we found it worked great for our first build. To complete the floor we’ll be installing 12V heating pads and gluing in sheet vinyl floor.
We hope this helps someone :)
As always, please LIKE 👍🏻 this video, SUBSCRIBE to our channel, and COMMENT below!
Follow us on Instagram for behind the scenes content: @thetriointransit
Thank you for your support! 🙏🏻

[@RustyCas999]

That wire trick on the ‘buttons’ is brilliant!

[@gasolinewine801]

Here in 2024, and still using your advice. Thank's for posting this.

[@AshenEdict]

This is an absolutely awesome series you guys have here :) Van conversion is something I’ve been interested in for a while and most videos I’ve seen just breeze past steps, assuming you have prior knowledge, while y’all are being super meticulous who showing how things are done and explaining your process. Absolutely love it and can’t wait to see where it goes!

[@TimKatie]

Thanks so much! 🙏🏻 We’re so glad to hear you found it helpful and hope to share more content soon 😊

[@ianrobinson4501]

Our van was a factory conversion camper but I do enjoy and appreciate the work that goes into this van build

[@TimKatie]

Awesome! Thanks for following along! 😊

[@patrickmullen5529]

Really like, respect the air flow under floor...

[@paulp9948]

This was so great!! I’ve never watched a van build from scratch before! Really well done so far! I’m along for the ride, thank you! Paul

[@TimKatie]

Thanks Paul! We appreciate you following along 😊

[@aliciabroussard2801]

This video was a life saver for us. Thank you for making this video!

[@zafuriaminicamper]

Great video !! Awesome !!! Congratulations for the job!! Enjoy the futures travels !! Cheers from Spain

[@TimKatie]

Thanks guys! 😊

[@alfonsoreyes7554]

Thanks guysss!!! I can't wait for the finished van!!!

[@TimKatie]

Thanks! 🙏🏻

[@sassybackpacker1526]

Thanks for the video guys! You know... it's not always a competition of "who is right" lol. Good luck living with that every day...

[@pinoychester]

I’ve watched lots of van builds but you guys are way more in depth into your “how to”s and they are surely helpful for others, and I am not even building a van lol. Keep making more pls, we would love to see the finished product! You guys are so cool!

[@TimKatie]

Thanks for the feedback! We really appreciate. This van is nearly complete and we haven’t been able to document everything, but we do have more “how to” videos coming soon! (Just need to make some time to edit them 😉)

[@flyinhawaiian7226]

Heck ya! Sold both my Rvs and now moving onto Class B. Following

[@scdobserver835]

Can't wait to see when it's all done!

[@TimKatie]

Thanks!

[@shawnpatton]

Great series, love the details, so useful!

[@TimKatie]

Thank you, Shawn! We're glad to hear you found it useful. More videos are in the works!

[@si2tun]

Thank you ❤. This is absolutely amazing.

[@brahmincalgary9239]

This new van should take a 1/4 of the time to finish, compared to the old van. You're both professional van converter people and have lots of experience now. Can't wait to see what the new van looks like when it's all converted and finished.

[@colinandpaige]

Awesome! stoked to see how this progresses!

[@TimKatie]

Thanks Colin!

[@colinandpaige]

@@TimKatie you might need to sell me your floorplan soon 😊

[@TimKatie]

Haha sounds good - we are slowly working on putting the plans together into an eBook!

[@lukelongley7225]

Looking forward to the next video!!

[@TimKatie]

Thanks Luke!

[@i-d-m-system.5697]

Great job guys ❤ thank you 🙏

[@alexwyler4570]

you make it look easy!

[@TimKatie]

Thanks Alex! 🙏🏻

[@nephetssnephetss1508]

Nice job, are you uploading videos on how you build the walls?

[@LetsJustGoTravel]

Thanks for this! We are starting our subfloor today! Just wondering if the furring strips was any special kind of wood? Or just regular 2x4 from Home Depot? I’m wondering if I should get marine grade wood for this and/or treat it with waterproofing sealant ?

[@priscillamariaarriazagalaz1984]

SON GENIALES!!!!!! SALUDOS

[@billyk7831]

Great video! I’m going to be building out a fire transit very soon. I like the approach you took for framing, insulation and installing your subfloor and would like to do the same in my build. Just would like to ask how you’ve founds it’s help up since the install? Any squeaking, warping, buckling or issues you’ve had?

[@TimKatie]

Thank you. We’ve used this same approach on 4 transits now and have not had any issue - we continue to do the same method 👍🏻

[@tallpaul1616]

Great vid guys!! So it's not necessary to do a vapour barrier in the sub floor?

[@TimKatie]

Thanks! Not in our opinion 👍🏻

[@ColorMyWorld]

This was amazing. You made it seem so easy! Do you screw the bottom wood into the van or do you use adhesive. I couldn't see that part.

[@TimKatie]

Thank you! 🙏🏻 Sorry if that wasn’t clear - we did not use any screws to secure the wood framing to the van floor, just the sikkaflex 221 adhesive 👍🏻

[@ColorMyWorld]

@@TimKatie I am in my planning stage. I put the recirculating shower on my must have list. Your videos are fantastic. So easy to follow. I see the channel is pretty new. Welcome to the world of content creation!

[@TimKatie]

@@ColorMyWorld Thanks so much for the kind feedback. We’re thrilled to hear you find them helpful. Yes! Only 8 videos so far but many more being worked on and hopefully coming soon 😊

[@theacase8738]

Would you show, or draw a cross section of the layers of your van floor? Include the van bottom. I am trying to visualize the air space and how things were ultimately layered. Thx.

[@northkcproperties4048]

Really looking forward to tracking along with your build as I plan mine. How much total height do you lose in the van, between the subfloor and the ceiling installations?

[@TimKatie]

Thanks for following along! 😊 The floor is 1 3/4” (1” XPS insulation, 3/4 plywood), and ceiling 17/16” (3/4 furring strip, 5/16” t & g), so around 2 3/4” lost total. Thankfully the Transit is 6’ 7” to start, and we’re building another 4 season van so we want it well insulated. But if you need more height there are definitely some easy ways to save on space (thinner floor insulation and plywood, side mount your furring strips on the ceiling ribs so you only lose 5/16” on the ceiling)

[@northkcproperties4048]

@@TimKatie Love it! Thanks for the detailed response. Being in the Midwest US, we can experience all 4 seasons in the same month. I'd like to be prepared and adequately insulated. I believe the height on my Ram Promaster will be a bit lower than the transit to start. I'm also trying to plan ahead for the shower pan height as well. Things get vertically squeezed pretty fast.

[@TimKatie]

@@northkcproperties4048 Ah that makes sense then! Ya it’s a constant battle of give and take eh. Good luck with your build and feel free to reach out if you have any questions! 😊

[@pieteb_nl]

Looking good! Just wondering why everybody seems to use a wooden beam frame under the floor. Why not only use isolation plates only and put the subfloor directly on it? Will it get pressed to much?

[@TimKatie]

Thanks! Lots of people do that but we wanted the extra strength and support of wooden battens underneath as we’ll be securing so much to it 👍🏻

[@David_11111]

yay

[@i-d-m-system.5697]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤love it.

[@MindBodyMuse]

Just curious, so you feel the air pockets are important between the ribs? Can you tell us why or how you came to this conclusion? And how exactly did you mark the floor framing on the board with the red powder marking string?

[@wanderingzythophile9083]

Curious how you used that chalk line tool to mark on your plywood where your furring strips were, considering the irregular pattern of the furring strip placements?

[@TimKatie]

For the horizontal strips we marked the strip center on each side of the van wall before putting the plywood sheet down. For the lengthwise strips we could still see the ends as we did one plywood sheet at a time then removed. I hope that helps!

[@wanderingzythophile9083]

@@TimKatie Yep, I was thinking as far as the lengthwise runs, that would be the way to go. Easy to put tape on the walls and use those as guides. Thanks much for the prompt reply!

[@TimKatie]

@@wanderingzythophile9083 You’re welcome. Good luck! 😊

[@savandlyns]

One more question lol! How many boards of foam and plywood did you end up using!?

[@dexanexa]

When did Bradley Cooper start doing van conversions?

[@whiskey.tango.foxtrot.1]

Thanks for sharing 🙏 One critique, the shaky camera was a little nauseating.

[@TimKatie]

Thank you for the feedback 🙏🏻 We recently purchased a proper camera grip/stabilizer and will work on improving this in future 😊

[@savandlyns]

And what length did you adjust the kreg jig to when creating the pocket holes in your skeleton strips?

[@TimKatie]

I believe we adjusted it to somewhere between 3/4" and 1 1/2" markers as the furring strips were ~1" thick

[@ahoyt18]

Does moving those wires up void the warranty?

[@TimKatie]

Not as far as I know - we don’t modify them in any way

[@lynseyvalverde8311]

What size screws did you use when screwing the skeleton frame together?

[@TimKatie]

We used the 2 1/2” long pocket hole screws 👍🏻

[@glennr9913]

I simply installed a layer of foam board under the factory floor. I didn't see any reason to install framing.

[@danielp.52]

Hey Tim, You are lucky to have a lovely handy woman girlfriend!

[@savandlyns]

What size screws did you guys use!?

[@TimKatie]

we used 1 1/2" long #6 screws for securing the plywood to the furring strips (3/4" plywood, 1" furring strips)

[@lost52733]

Build cost and time?

[@TimKatie]

We’re hoping to finish this van by April so hopefully ~7 months. And we’ll know the cost once it’s done 👍🏻

[@lost52733]

@@TimKatie thanks for your quick response 😁 good luck!

[@TimKatie]

@@lost52733 Thank you! 🙏🏻

[@osamaalabody8874]

What name of this car?

[@christinepearse5021]

Your camera is way too wobbly which makes its hard to watch the video.

[@thecharliegeorge2151]

Cringe 17:36

[@MELODYMUNRO]

Would be more helpful if you guys were using metric ....like the rest of the world.