Here is how we built our sink & stove cabinet for our Ford Transit DIY camper van conversion!
A while ago, we brainstormed about our living requirements; below are the requirements specific to this cabinet:
- Propane range (stove/oven) will be used
- Pressurized Sink
- The cabinet must be easy & quick to remove (we never know)
- Big enough for storage, but not that big so it does not use all the “living room” space
TIME SPENT ON THE JOB: ~40-60 hours (This is approximate. Time has become a vague concept at this point. This cabinet was easier & faster to build than the Overhead Storage Cabinet, because there is less funky shapes to deal with.)
TOTAL COST : 280$ USD (approx. This exclude the sink and the propane range)
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MATERIAL:
- Framing Lumber, 2″x3″ (Bought from Home-Depot)
- Baltic Birch plywood, 3/8″ thick (Bought from our local shop)
- Titebond III Wood Glue (Buy on Amazon)
- Pocket Hole Screws kit. (Buy on Amazon)
- Karlby Ikea countertop (Bought on Ikea)
- Door Hinges 1/4″ overlay (Buy on Amazon)
- Door Catchers (Buy on Amazon)
- 1/4 fender washer (Buy on Amazon)
- 1/4-20, .280 Steel Cross Nut Prebulbed (Buy on Amazon)
- 1/4-20 bolts, various lengths (Buy on Amazon)
- #8 X 1-1/4-Inch Square Drive Flooring Screw, black (Buy on Amazon)
- Frame’s Blue color: Saman water-based wood stain
- Olive (18$ as of September 2016, Buy on Amazon)
- Azur (18$ as of September 2016, Buy on Amazon)
- Whitewash (12$ as of September 2016, Buy on Amazon)
- Finish: Water based flat varnish (18$ as of September 2016, Buy on Amazon)
- Baltic Birch’s Walnut color: Watco Danish Oil light walnut (10$ as of September 2016, Buy on Amazon)
- Low-E EZ-Cool (Buy on Amazon)
- Dometic Sink VA7306 with integrated folding faucet & cover (Buy on Amazon)
- JR Products 9490-215-022 Sink Strainer (Buy on eBay)
- Wedgewood (Atwood) Vision 17″, 3 burners & oven, with Piezo (Buy on Amazon)
TOOLS:
- Kreg Pocket Hole Jig Mini (Buy on Amazon)
- Skills saw (Buy on Amazon)
- Freud Finish Blade 60 tooth (Buy on Amazon)
- Jigsaw & Blades (Buy on Amazon)
- Power drill (Buy on Amazon)
- Drill bits (Buy on Amazon)
- 220 grit Sanding paper (Buy on Amazon)
RESSOURCES:
- Atwood Range Manual
- Dometic Sink VA7306 Manual
- Our Atwood Range long term review: faroutride.com/wedgewood-vision-range-review/
PRE-REQUISITE:
- Get a van!
- Modify your van by following our Build Journal!
Disclaimer
This is not a “How-To”. This is a “how-we-did-it”, following our own requirements and using our own (limited) skills.
First of all, we modeled and located the sink & stove cabinet.
We used the cutout dimensions from the Atwood Range Manual:
Here we go!
We installed the bottom plywood panel. The wheel well & frame cutout was trimmed on the spot.
To join the frame, we used once again the Kreg Pocket Hole Jig Mini as it makes the job easy and provide strong joints without fancy tools!
- The joints will be as straight as your cuts… our cuts were not perfect, but it’s OK; we straighten things up when we fastened the frame to the bottom & side panels.
And here is the frame!
We want the cabinet to be easy & quick to remove.
We located 2 existing holes in the van and we installed Cross Nut in them. The cabinet will be fastened with these 2 accessible Cross Nut (and 3 holes in the floor as well) through the back panel of the cabinet.
Not familiar with Cross Nut? That’s O.K.! Make yourself comfortable and read our Cross Nut post:
Thinsulate is doing a great job at insulation, but we still have some metal exposed. This metal is very conductive thermally, therefore we covered it with Low-E EZ-COOL.
You can see the EZ-Cool in the back. Meanwhile, we also started to prepare the wall for wood paneling and added the back panel of the cabinet
There is a big gap between the back panel and the Cross Nut; we filled it with 1″ thick baltic birch plywood to avoid stressing the cabinet while torquing the bolt. Basically, this act as a big fat washer…
The frame is ready to receive the countertop!
We want a nice & clean cut, so we’re using our friend’s epic skills and epic tools…
The countertop was then attached to the cabinet’s frame and the oven installed.
We were really into it, so we forgot to take pictures, but that’s pretty straightforward… we just screwed the countertop to the frame from below. Here is the result:
We then trimmed the countertop to receive the sink.
We wish the manufacturer instructions would include a 1:1 scale template of the cutout… the diagram is far from easy to understand, so we first made it in cardboard, tested it, then transferred the template to the countertop.
We then added a “groove” around the cutout periphery
This is to ensure that the sink rest on its gasket (see a few pictures below) and is water-sealed.
We applied Minwax Polyurethane on trimmed edges (as for all the countertop trimmed edges) to protect from water infiltration. (Varnish could be used as well)
Even with the template, it took some trial-and-error (a lot actually) to get the sink to sit perfectly…
We fixed the gasket around the sink periphery using vinyl adhesive strip (Buy on Amazon), then we applied GE Silicone II (Buy on Amazon) between the gasket and the countertop to seal the deal.
WARNING: Silicone is a MESS to work with, you might come up with a better solution. If not, ensure to have towels and soapy water at proximity…
The sink is fastened with four screws:
The sink basket was then installed
There seems to be two schools of thought:
- Use Plumber’s Putty (Pro = easy to remove, Con = I don’t have that at home right now)
- Use Silicone II (Pro = Leak is less likely + I have some at home right now, Con = very hard to remove)
Well, it looks like we will use Silicone:
We then added cedar doors to the cabinet:
We used 1/4″ semi-wrap overlay hinges (Buy on Amazon):
We added some cedar finish as well on this side:
We’re done, sweet!!
…actually, we still have to build storage (shelves, drawers, etc) but we will wait a bit later, until we really understand our needs and until we know exactly what will be stored in the cabinet.
ON SECOND THOUGHT…
Again, we used cedar planks for finishing. We’re aware that this wood is VERY soft and will scratch very easily. Time will tell if we regret our decision!
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Hello! We’re Isabelle and Antoine 🙂 In 2017 we sold our house (and everything in it), quit our engineering careers and moved into our self built campervan. We’ve been on the road since then and every day is an opportunity for a new adventure; we’re chasing our dreams and hopefully it inspires others to do the same!
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CHEERS!
I must have missed something, how did you attach the range to the cabinet/frame? I can’t believe it would be safe just sitting there while driving. I’d be concerned about the gas line getting damaged if the range slid out some.
Also what’s the depth of the finished cabinet?
The range have multiple point of attachement for screws: 2 at the front (below the oven), 4 inside the stove.
The depth of the cabinet is 20″. You’ll find all the interior dimensions here if that helps: https://faroutride.com/interior-layout/
Good luck!
Great info, your electrical write up was priceless for me. Well worth the fee. My stove question is did you add any insulation around the oven to reduce heat/burn transfer into the cabinet and wood surrounding the oven, have you had any problem with cabinet getting super hot when using oven – Thanks Kyrie
We didn’t add insulation, but we left an air gap (as indicated in the installation manual). No overheat problems; it works just fine 🙂
Just an FYI – when any propane appliance says it is not for indoors, it’s because propane appliance produce carbon monoxide when they operate; some produce more than others (I think it has to do with completeness of the burn, perhaps), so if it’s not rated for indoor use that’s because it produces too much carbon monoxide f0r safety reasons (short term over-exposure can be deadly; long-term exposure to smaller amounts can also be harmful).
How is the Ikea countertop holding up after a few years? I understand it’s a particle board core and they specifically mention not for damp environments.
Still in perfect conditions. With the Webasto heater, the inside of the van is not damp at all. Humidity is around 40% all winter.
Looking at that cutout diagram, does there need to be any additional space behind dimension A to run the propane line down the back of oven? or can you essentially place a wall directly behind it?
Thanks!
If I recall properly, there’s space to run the propane line without additional space; the back of the oven is uneven so that’s good enough.
cheers!
Looks like a nice job. Clean, neat, and functional.
We’re you ever concerned with adding all the extra weight using wood as your material? Especially the countertop.
I won’t lie we’re quite heavy (8850lbs, max weight of our Transit being 9200lbs), but we really wanted to feel home in the van since we’re full-time in it… We don’t regret it, but yeah maybe on our next van we could search for lighter materials…
Did you install the Mr BOSS water heater? I read the instruction manual and it is clearly stated to never use it insise a rv. If not, do you other heating system for water. I am considering a marine electric tank with 12 VDC heater. I love your site and I am using a lot of info for my future build that will start this fall. When you come back in Montreal area you might see a van very similar to,yours. 🙂
Thanks
Hey Daniel,
The Mr Heater is in the back so it’s well ventilated when we use it for showers. Also, we disconnect the water and propane when we’re not using it. So I wouldn’t say it’s “installed”!
However, we are switching for an EccoTemp to avoid having to hook up the propane and water each time; it’s irritating in the long run and we don’t need the portability of the Mr Heater anymore (we never used it outside the van). The EccoTemp is not approved for interior either, but we close the propane and water valve when we’re not using it…
For hot water (sink) we just use the kettle; it’s perfectly fine with us, except maybe for rinsing the dishes hot water from tap would be nice. I’m dreaming of a 2 liters point-of-use electric water heater, but I don’t think that exist…
Hey guys! Hope travels are treating you well. One quick question on your butcher block from Ikea: did you cut it both in width and length?
Did you use the “2 included edging strips” on the cut ends? Did these turn out pretty well? This is the one thing I’m hesitating on with tan Ikea/non solid butcher block.
Cheers!
Yes, we cut it in width and length (the sink/oven side) and we used the strips; it works! It doesn’t look like a sticker!
Antoine
Hey Guys! Is the range secured directly to the countertop via the mounting screws? This part of the install confuses me-thanks!
There are 4 screws on the countertop and 2 screws under the oven door.
So no broiler? Interesting, both Atwood Products online and Camping World state that this oven has a “built in broiler/toaster section”? May be a typo? The model I was looking at is the same as the one you linked model# 52373.
In fact, the rotary knob goes up to “broiler”. But in reality, there is no gas burner on top of the oven. So broiler = high.
Works as a toaster, but it will not broil cheese on top of a lasagna (as example).
Ahhh..yeah, I would expect it to have a top burner to be considered a broiler. Oh well, not a deal breaker. Thanks for clarifying!
I originally planned on just installing a 2 burner stove, but am now really considering going with this same oven. So how often do you use it? Any idea on the gas consumption for the oven?
We use it almost everyday.
In tree months living in the van, we went to restaurant 2-3 times only. Of course it depends on your cooking habits, but in our case we’re really enjoying that oven! We would definitely install the same if we had to start over. Only downside: it doesn’t broil (because there is no burner on top).
Don’t know gas consumption for the oven, but our 20 pound (BBQ) propane tank last for 1 to 2 month which is very decent. (that include consumption for oven/stove and hot showers).
Good day!
Sorry if I missed this, but did you guys contemplate an induction stovetop? I didn’t see it in your conversion notes…perhaps an over was a must?
oven*
Yes an oven was a must. We also wanted to minimize the electrical consumption and we don’t mind cooking with propane at all!