Storage is key in a van, so no need to say it is best to use every little space you can for storing your things. The space between our finished wooden interior wall and the exterior wall of the van we used to install extra cabinetry. Three cabinets on either side, a fourth is used to hold our electric switchboard and inverter and diesel heater control panel. As we wanted some structure in our interior walls and cabinets, we decided to work with 8mm poplar plywood boards in which we sawed lines to look like panelling walls. This was in fact pretty much the only way to be able to match the lines in the cabinet doors. The grooves were made using the highest setting on our circular saw. First we built the cabinets in 15mm poplar plywood, fixated them to our wooden slats for the interior side walls. Then the interior wall panel of 8mm poplar plywood was cut to match the cabinetry. And to finish it off the doors got the same grooves as the wall panels. A dimmable LED light strip and USB chargers were integrated in the back cabinets on either side as bed lights. These were fitted in a premilled groove to hold the LED strip profile.
Technical info:
Dimensions (interior measurements)
Cabinet1 W30 H42,5 D 9
Cabinet2 W41 H42,5 D9
Cabinet 3 W55 H42,5 D9
Cabinet 4 W51 H42,5 D9
Materials used
15mm Poplar plywood
8mm Poplar plywood
Soft close hinges
Dimmable LED strip
USB Chargers
Acegoo dimmer switch
Start of making our cabinetry
The fourth cabinet holding our electrics
Fitting in the side wall panel
Dimmable LED strip in our back cabinet
Finished result of our hidden cabinets
Soft close hinges and LED strip
