Camper Van Conversion: Part One

   I like to joke with Dextre, that if he ever wrote a memoire it should be called, The Broken Van. Stories from his youth about living in vans, traveling across the country and performing his balancing act have always been my favorites. He's had LOTS of shitty vans, but he's never had a new one.

Until now! 

Say goodbye to our old faithful Chevy and meet Falkor!

The popular hashtag #VanLife is relatively new, and millennials are doing terrific things with vans these days, but the van life itself has been around since, well...vans! I skipped my living-in-a-van phase and went directly to trailer life when I hit the road in 2003. I'm overdue for some good old fashioned van forting at its finest!

We bought a Nissan NV 3500 hightop cargo van and we're converting it into a rolling dog fortress/home on wheels! This process involves insulation, solar power, a ventilation system, and crash tested kennels for our five rescued dogs. Why are we doing this really? It's not completely because I want to build a fort in a van, let me explain.

Working on sleeping arrangements for 2 people & 5 dogs in 1 van!

Circus Stella needs a safe way to transport our dogs to shows, on tour, and for adventuring to who knows where. Dogs that travel in secured, crash tested crates are much more likely to survive a car wreck unscathed, so for us, this is a must. We chose Ruff Tough Kennels and installed them inside the cab of our Chevy 3500. Here's a video of that process:

Now don't get me wrong, this has been great, but it limits us to only 5 dogs, and we'd like to expand our family. In order to make room for a 6th dog (7th dog? 8th dog!?) a more suitable vehicle was in order. We chose the Nissan NV for it's interior height and tow capacity. It's capable of hauling a trailer up to 9,400 pounds.

This van will serve many purposes for us. It can haul the circus show, safely transport the dogs, and literally be a back stage and a hotel room if needed (and did I mention, it's a groovy fort?). It's great for work, but it's also ideal for vacations! Finding a good dog sitter when you have your own pack of dogs can be tricky, now they can just come along!

Watch the first half of our build and see for yourself!

Below I've provided links to all the products we chose. If you click through our links to get to amazon, even if you don't purchase what we've recommended, Circus Stella will receive a small commission from anything you buy. The price will stay exactly the same for you. It's a completely free way to support our family circus, so thank you for using our links. Dog food isn't getting any cheaper!

Renogy 100 Watt Solar Panel Kit

Vmax AGM Deep Cycle 125ah Battery

Battery Isolator 

750 Watt Power Inverter                 LED Dome Light 

Rattletrap Sound Deadener            Maxxair Deluxe Fan

Stay tuned for Part Two! We're going to add panelling, beds, and most importantly, a coffee maker! Update, Part Two is live here!

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Louise out for a stroll. 

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