August 16, 2023 • 29 mins
Ready to transform your van into a dreamy home on wheels? We're bringing you something special with Steven Stolp, a pro in campervan conversions, who lays out the roadmap to help you envision and create your ideal van space. In our chat, he unveils the benefits of preplanning your layout, prioritizing your must-have features, and the unique edge you gain by sketching out your interior design with masking tape. And for those who are on the fence about what they want from their van build, Steven's got some golden advice, like spending some time in a van to truly comprehend the space.
But it doesn't stop at planning. As we go deeper into the conversation, we explore the heart of a successful van build - creativity. Steven opens up about the benefits of a modular design and the delicate art of balancing luxury and space, particularly in a 144 wheelbase Sprinter. He's got you covered with some common pitfalls to avoid in your build, and top-notch tips on enjoying outdoor showers, even in cold weather.
Whether you've been living the van life for years or just starting out, this episode is jam-packed with insights that can help you take your van conversion to the next level.
Follow Steven Stolp:
@stolp_solutions on Instagram
Book a van build at Sandy Vans
Connect with Kristin Hanes and The Wayward Home!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
So building out a campervan can be a crazy
difficult experience, especiallyif you don't really have an eye
for design, like me, butluckily I really like how our
Sprinter Van layout came out.
We have tons of floor space,which even allows me to do yoga
inside our van.
Well, you might be feelingstumped as to how to layout your
campervan conversion, and inthis episode I chat with
(00:21):
professional van builder StevenStolp, who has some great tips
on how to plan out your van'slayout and how to apply your
creative vision to your dreamhome on wheels.
Let's go.
Welcome to the Wayward Homepodcast.
All about van life, boat lifeand nomadic living.
We'll bring you tips,interviews and stories from the
road and on the water.
Now here's your host, kristenHaynes.
Hey there, I'm Kristen Hayneswith thewaywardhomecom and I
(00:44):
spend half the year in mycampervan and half on my
sailboat in Mexico.
My goal is to inspire you topursue your nomadic living
dreams.
So we've been building out ourSprinter Van for a couple of
years now.
It's often on, really, becausewe spend a lot of time south on
the border on our sailboat inMexico.
But the van is coming alongreally nicely and I just love
being inside our van.
Even though it's not quitefinished, it's still a great
(01:06):
place to sleep, live, work andcook.
My van feels just like home andI even prefer living in it to
living in a house, which I'mdoing right now just for a week
or so.
If you're also building out avan and wanting some layout tips
, this episode is for you.
This interview first appearedas part of the Van Life virtual
summit I put on with Project VanLife.
So, stephen, first of all tellus about yourself and what led
(01:27):
you to start building vans.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
Well, as you said, I am Stephen Stulp.
I am proud owner of StulpSolutions and St Evans.
Basically I got into vanbuilding kind of as an accident.
I converted in ambulancerandomly one year and got a lot
of positive feedback on the goodold internet.
So before I knew it, after Igraduated business school, I had
(01:53):
a long list of people wantingme to build Lutigird ambulances
for them.
And then I got well known inthe ambulance community, which
now propelled me into theMercedes Sprinter community.
Speaker 1 (02:06):
So very cool, so you mostly work on.
Do you only work on Sprintersnow?
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Yes, st Evans is a Mercedes Sprinter 144 wheelbase
only, and I kind of had to pullit on something, because when I
first started I was just like,yes, I will build you a rocket
ship and didn't have enoughplanning that went into that.
The builds turned out great,but it wasn't a sustainable
(02:32):
business for me.
So that is why I'm going to StEvans.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Very cool and tell me a little bit about why you
chose to go with the Sprinterover the other vans.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Well, I'm down in San Diego, so the market definitely
dictated that If I was in some,like you know, backwoods kind
of country or Colorado orsomething like that, I probably
would have done great atcontinuing the four by four
off-road ambulances that I wascreating.
But yeah, just strictly basedoff market being able to take
(03:04):
care of my family, I decided todo Mercedes Sprinters.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
Very cool.
Tell me a little bit aboutdesigning van build interiors
that's.
You know that's a difficulttask.
What are some things that youhave in your head before you
start on a new van and theinterior layout?
Speaker 2 (03:23):
I have this weird snapshot that happens that in
the end I look at the van afterit's done and I'm like it's like
a deja vu, so that's.
I know that's a really weirdway to describe it, but you know
, creatives are kind of weirdpeople.
But basically I just kind of Iget the layout and I think about
(03:47):
how the ceiling is going towork with the cabinets and the
wall material and the counters,and I can kind of all see it
once.
So my biggest challenge when Ifirst started build is like
telling people what I see as faras the entire vision.
So I don't do sketch up oranything.
I'm definitely a pencil orpaper kind of guy.
(04:08):
But yeah, it really helps tohave a customer that trusts, or
you know, my build team thatknows that I'm going to direct
them in the right path.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
Yeah, for sure.
And so if someone's buildingout their own van and they have
ideas in their head, how do theynarrow in on a layout?
Do you have any tips for liketranslating the ideas into an
actual layout?
Speaker 2 (04:32):
Yeah, and I mean I keep it very simple.
I just literally go through thevan.
After I put the subfloor andthe laminated flooring down, I
go through and just take maskingtape and tape everything off
and I kind of just stand aroundand navigate it and see, you
(04:53):
know, you got to have butt room,you got to have.
You know, I even tape on thewalls and stuff so I know where
all the cabinetry is and I justkind of go in there.
It looks like a little bit of amess in the beginning with with
masking tape, but it reallyhelps you visualize where
everything's going to go.
But that's, yeah, that's what Iwould recommend, that's what I
(05:13):
did in the beginning.
I don't do that stuff anymorebut as a DIYer it's just much
easier to visualize it if youhave that physical
representation right in front ofyou.
Speaker 1 (05:23):
Yeah, and I've heard some people say that you should
go and like live in the vanbefore building it out, or at
least go try it and see what itfeels like.
Do you have any recommendationsabout that?
Speaker 2 (05:34):
Knowing what you want is very important, especially
if you're going in to hiresomebody like me or build your
van yourself.
I definitely sorry he wants tobe in front of the camera for
whatever reason, but yes, it'svery important knowing what you
want.
So some people they're justlike I want the same here, I
(05:55):
want oven, here, I want this,and that's great for a builder.
I've been in situations wherepeople were not clear on what
they wanted as a layout and onetime it didn't go so well
because they didn't know whatthey wanted.
So I really strongly recommendyou go in, you go camping with
(06:16):
it or you hang out in anotherperson's van or you rent a van
and figure out the things thatyou truly want before you start
any sort of process.
Speaker 1 (06:26):
Right, that makes a lot of sense.
So people should think aboutlike their lifestyle and what
components they need.
What should they be likethinking about when deciding
what to put in the van?
Speaker 2 (06:37):
Well, creature comforts.
You know I could go pitch atent in the woods just about
anywhere.
So my personal van very, verybare-boned, simple.
It just has a whole lot ofcheetah print on the inside and
that's what I like, but yeah.
So if you're kind of more of abougie individual and you live
(06:57):
in like a high-rising downtown,you're probably gonna want no
heated floors and a showerinside and all that stuff.
But if you're trying to getmore in punch with nature, you
may decide that you went outdoorshower or things like that.
You just really gotta hone inthis kind of goes back to our
previous subject of knowing whatyou want and pretty easy to
(07:20):
discover that quickly if you'renot okay with just a plant of
fitness membership to go showerand stuff like that.
Speaker 1 (07:27):
So yeah, what are some like common questions you
get from people trying to decideon their layout?
I'm sure you work with them totry to hone in on their vision.
What kinds of amenities dopeople typically like, want or
ask for?
Speaker 2 (07:40):
I mean, I've done things as far as a bamboo steam
room inside of an ambulance oran athlete.
So I've had questions like allthe way over there I've had
people wanna put you know, biggiant soaps in the middle of
their bands and all sorts ofstuff.
And it's really theresponsibility of the builder or
(08:02):
yourself to know what works anddon't flew in on one thing Like
if you're like I absolutelyhave to have this, then before
you know it you have an entirebuild based off that one
attribute that you probablycould have sacrificed.
So it's good to take everythinginto consideration and not get
tunnel vision on this one thing.
That's what I do see a lot.
(08:23):
I see a lot of people say Iwant an oven and a
floor-to-ceiling fridge and ashower and this and that, and
then when it's done, they'relike oh, it feels cramped in
here it's like well, back to themasking tape.
But yeah, so yeah, just knowingwhat you want and being
practical about your ideas,cause it is a band, it's not.
(08:46):
You can't look at this like afive star hotel.
I'll make it look like a fivestar hotel, but it's still.
It's still gotta bounce downthe road, it's still gotta be
strong and it's gotta bepractical.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
Totally.
Yeah, I wanted to ask you aboutthat, cause I do see a lot of
luxury, you know, looking bandsand I have heard stories of.
When they're not builtcorrectly, they can kind of
break apart, especially if youwant to go down bumpy roads,
have you like?
What do you think about thatand how do you ensure that
components are like, not gonnafall apart?
Speaker 2 (09:17):
So other cabinets are definitely one of those scary
ones that I see a lot withpeople's builds.
I don't like seeing videos.
It's like kind of like hangingfrom the ceiling and I'm like
you have like a you have a childin the back of your van and you
have like cabinets hanging offthe ceiling.
So yeah, securing cabinets andthings like that is very
(09:37):
important, cause you have tobasically create an earthquake
proof home and not justearthquake proof like constant
earthquake.
That's how you have to treat itall.
So you know, securing yourcabinetry down properly I mean
that can kill somebody.
So that's why, as builder, Itry to.
(10:00):
When I do see issues, I don'tgive unsolicited advice, but
when people reach out to me, Iusually just like maybe like
drop it off in my shop, I'll fixall that for you.
But as far as the Sandy vans go, we tie all of cabinetry into
frame that Mercedes provides usso you could rest assured that
(10:22):
none of that's gonna come down.
I've seen inadequate likedrywall screws, folding cabinets
up and things like that, andit's just very dangerous.
So I do recommend people know athing or two about fastening
and glue and all that stuffbefore they go ahead and take on
being yeah, for sure, and I'mstill intrigued by you building
(10:45):
a steam room in someone's van.
Speaker 1 (10:47):
That's very interesting and creative.
What other interestingcomponents have you put in vans
that might be surprising topeople?
Speaker 2 (10:55):
Oh yeah, so this one called Amber Some of you may
have seen it on the interwebs.
I did a band tour with JaredTochi.
I hope I said that right, Jared, You're friends.
We did a tour and that had anRFID gun safe inside of it, that
it looked like regularcabinetry and you swiped a card
(11:19):
on the shelf on the bottom shelfof the cabinet and then the
entire hatch dropped open and itwas like oh, it was like this
long, obviously requested by theclient, and yeah, that was a
really cool feature.
I've gotten a lot of emailsabout you know people like hey,
(11:41):
let me, let me get one of thosegun safes in my van, and I'm
just like, well, that's, that'sa custom job.
My very first van I did, though, was a Ford Triumph that I
called Bandemic and it's becauseI built it during the pandemic
and that had a Murphy or not aMurphy, but it had a robotic bed
(12:02):
that folded into the ceiling.
So it literally like, as itlowered, it pushed into the
wheel or into the window wells,and then, when you had to go up,
it folded into the ceiling, andit wasn't a happy jack, it
wasn't anything like that.
It was literally like a $200thing I bought off Amazon and
(12:24):
made it work.
So those are some of the coolones.
Made robotic Murphy beds before.
That's a weird electronics on.
A lot of people know me for mylight features that I do as well
, so it's kind of across theboards.
Speaker 1 (12:43):
Cool.
So what are your light features?
What do those look like?
Speaker 2 (12:47):
So I I got into van building because before I was
into furniture making, I waslike kind of working a lot with
epoxy and fully winging it.
I like no formal training oranything.
I mean I was selling coffeetables for a good buck and I
would.
I mean I've done light featureswhere the like the actual epoxy
(13:10):
has lights cut into the bottomof it and like walk in the band
and all the countertops turn on,because they're like on motion
sensors and they're blocked, soif you're sleeping they won't
set off.
But just like you know, amixture between, like,
electronics and art, and it'salways been very cool to me, so
(13:32):
that's why I really enjoy kindof messing with lights.
I do like the strip lightingthrough through the ceiling and
it's all diffused and everything, and it looks indirect.
Um, which that is the scalabledesign that you won't be seeing
in more sandy bands movingforward.
But, um, yeah, my favoritelight feature I did, though, was
(13:56):
I did tire epoxy edge on acounter, and it looked like the
ocean crashing onto and I fancar about like sandbars and
stuff like inside, and then Ipoured the mold, and it wasn't
just a straight counter either,it was all like it was curved
and everything.
And then I put blue inside ofit.
(14:20):
That was fully diffused.
So then when it turned on, itjust looked like a glowing blue
ocean, like crashing onto awoodchower top.
It wasn't something that thecustomer asked for, um, it was
just something that I felt likeadding to there.
Speaker 1 (14:37):
That's really cool and that's inspiring for people
that people can be creative andartistic when, when building out
vans, it sounds like um, isthere anything they should keep
in mind?
Surrounding me, the artisticpart of a van build.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
Um, yeah, so careful also with the artistic stuff,
because you could hone in on oneartistic design or like like,
if you want, like a wall in acertain spot that correlates
with something.
If you, if you tunnel in onstuff too much with the art,
you're just going to build yourvan around one piece of bar,
(15:10):
which, if that's what you'retrying to do, that's cool.
But, um, beware of trying toincorporate one thing into your
entire van.
Um, but I think the best way togo about that stuff is to kind
of piecemeal it out and andfigure out like, have solution,
(15:32):
base creativity.
So, while you're doingsomething, you're like, oh, if I
add a piece here, it may likehide this imperfection or it may
, you know, make this lookbetter, rather than, from the
beginning, knowing exactly whatkind of art you're gonna put in
there.
Cause everything that I justdescribed to you in the previous
question was on the fly.
(15:53):
It was.
I was inside the band and I waslike kind of feeling the flow
of it and I'm like, okay, well,if this goes here and that goes
here, it'll look amazing, and Ithink that that is the best way
to harness your creativityinside one of these builds.
Speaker 1 (16:08):
Yeah, yeah, totally.
And you mentioned you work on144 wheelbase and that's what I
have as well, and there's onlyso much you can shove into that.
You were saying that somepeople want so much that they
have like no room inside.
It's not just curious, like howdo you balance like luxury with
the space to move around?
Speaker 2 (16:27):
So with Sandy Band specifically, we're doing
modular lights.
So this the whole back half ofthis band be kind of configured
however you want, because it'sbased off.
You know, all of the customjobs that I've done in my past
was SELT solutions and it'scombined into this 144.
(16:48):
One of the things that I reallylike about the modular design
is, physically, when you gocamping and stuff, there's a lot
of setup.
But if you have a van that'sdesigned to be set up and taken
down, it's not very inconvenient.
I've lived in a Sandy Van fulltime and it has a king side bed
(17:08):
in the back but it also hasdining for eight.
So I think keeping the modularaspect of the thing in 144
specifically is very important.
If you do a fixed bag, you'rereally kind of stuck with that,
but some people want to be thatway.
If you want more, then you needto get a bigger van.
(17:31):
But I personally like the 144sbecause I don't mind taking 45
seconds to set up my bed afterhaving seven homies sitting down
with me in the same location.
Speaker 1 (17:44):
So Cool, yeah, give me some more, some examples of
the modular.
So that's just with the.
Is it a bed, couch conversion,or what are some of your modular
components?
Speaker 2 (17:55):
So the table is just a simple U-bench dinette.
It's a very popular design thata lot of companies have already
done.
I don't think it's buddy's ideato steal at this point.
But yeah, it's as simple as thetable drops in and then there's
another read and then that fullback half of the actually more
(18:17):
than the back half of the vanburns into a king-side bed.
And I'm currently working onhaving the ability to take the
benches out as well and thenhaving a bench platform that can
attach to the L-track that isalready installed in the Sandy
Vans.
That can be a fixed bed across.
(18:39):
So then the customer has theability to customize the modular
portion of the design forthemselves.
So I don't have to sit therewith a pen and paper for hours
trying to pick my client's brainanymore.
This is, you know, I'm kind oftrying to make the Swiss army
eyes of a band.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Yeah, that's a great point to do the modular so
people can configure it how theywant.
And then there are so manyoptions.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Absolutely yeah, Right now, I mean, there's at
least like 30 differentconfigurations.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
So yeah, yeah.
Are you seeing that most peoplewant like a bathroom and a
shower inside?
I know that, again, the 144sare small.
What are you seeing surroundingthat?
Speaker 2 (19:22):
So toilets are.
Obviously a lot of peoplereally want toilets in their
band.
The reason I separate toiletfrom bathroom because you know I
try to steer as many people asI can away from having a wet
bath inside their band, becauseI am big fan of, like old school
(19:43):
vehicles and I've had old RVsand all sorts of stuff and every
single one of them has mold,mildew, all that stuff in the
wet bath area.
So it does not matter howtalented you are at installing,
how much you waterproof things,at some point water will get in
(20:05):
places that you do not want it.
It could be three years, itcould be 10 years, but
eventually it will happen.
So to increase the longevity ofyour build, I strongly
recommend outdoor showersolutions and things like that.
And if you're kind of worriedabout the cold, well, I've had a
(20:25):
diesel heater cranking in oneof the Sandy Vans, blowing heat
out the back, and I was taking ashower like in the snow out the
back.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
I had a curtain and everything.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
but yeah, so you can take an outdoor shower even if
it's cold out.
Speaker 1 (20:41):
That's true.
That's only what we do, so Ihighly recommend it, and so what
are some of your like outdoorshower options that people can
put?
Speaker 2 (20:51):
Well, I mean outdoor showers, it's Sprinter.
It's probably the easiest thingto do.
You run a hot water line back.
I mean, I usually run hot andcold so we'd find a mixer.
But yeah, you just run water tothe back and then you have like
either a hose or, if you wantto use fancy, I could put like
whatever shower head handle onit and you just hook it to the
(21:17):
door and the Sprinter width ofthe doors are actually the exact
same size as a standard showercurtain that you could get at
Target or whatever.
So really nice.
If somebody gets one of thesevehicles like you, don't have to
find it a poultry place to makeyourself a new shower curtain.
But basically they justmagnetized with little leg,
(21:41):
first magnets with carabiners onthem and then they just hook to
the outside.
In San Diego it's very popularto have the outdoor shower
because we build for a lot ofsurfers and things like that.
So it's a very common practicefor them already.
Speaker 1 (21:56):
Yeah, yeah, for sure.
When you look at DIY builds,what are some common mistakes
that you see that hopefullypeople can avoid by listening to
this?
Speaker 2 (22:06):
If you are not an electrician, if you have never
been certified or anything withelectricity sold, at least with
somebody I recommend hiring.
I have seen very, verydangerous things.
So to kind of cycle back mybackground, I was in the Navy
(22:27):
for six years in the advancedelectronic computer field, so
I'm well versed in electronicsbefore I went into building
bands.
So that's just one thing.
I just don't recommend peopletackling on their own if they've
never done it before.
There's a ton of stuff onYouTube but there are a million
(22:50):
mistakes you can make that thosevideos will not show you and
those mistakes could burn downyour vision.
God forbid, god forbid, you'reidiot if that happened.
So electrical is definitely astrength to know.
With me a little bit.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
Yeah, for sure, and I do have people writing to me
and asking I just need thiscomponent installed or I need
help with this part.
How do people go about findingsomeone to help with just small
build projects instead ofgetting a whole custom build?
Speaker 2 (23:24):
There are builders out there that are willing to do
just an electrical system.
Typically, I would advisepeople against just adding
something to your existingelectrical system, like
presenting that to somebody.
I think it should be worriedlike, hey, can you go through my
(23:44):
electrical system and add thispiece?
Because I've had pretty muchevery electrical system that's
come to my shop.
I've had a full year overalland it's very unfortunate
because I know they paid moneyto have that done or spent a lot
of time doing it and then theyhad to pay me to overhaul it.
(24:05):
But it's just safety, safety,safe.
So, yeah, I have all your ducksin a row with electrical and
plumbing before you go down toanyone, definitely.
Speaker 1 (24:20):
And I'm curious just off the top of my head have you
ever seen a bathtub in a van?
Has anybody ever done that?
Speaker 2 (24:27):
Yeah, so I've seen one of the SoCal builders one of
his first client builds theyput a bathtub in and I won't
name names because I thought itwas pretty ridiculous.
Just like you know, theclient's always right, but
that's something I think as aprofessional company, you should
(24:50):
really try to steer the clientin the correct direction.
The reason I think bathtubs arenot a good idea is because
you're looking at a tub and atub to fit its human is about
the size of a 55, 60 gallonwater tank.
(25:13):
Each gallon of water is eightpounds, so that kind of it's
still up that tub.
I mean you would need a hundredgallon water take in order to
support stuff, and in advance.
So, if you're a giant schoolleader or something where you
could do stuff like that, I'dlike go for it, but it'd be like
(25:36):
, yeah, it's just weight.
Weight is really the biggestissue, I think, with that.
For sure, sounds like itPracticality is a big one.
Don't put clock-quick pubs inyour springers, please.
Speaker 1 (25:48):
Just go to a hot spring.
That's what I would advisepeople Way easier.
Speaker 2 (25:52):
Yeah, that's what's the point of having a mobile
home if you can't travel to ahot spring to you know.
Speaker 1 (25:57):
Exactly, yeah, so what does the process look like
with you if someone wasinterested in building out like
a van with you and you workingwith them on the layout?
Speaker 2 (26:06):
Well, so with Sandy Vans, I kind of did all the
layout work for you.
I've designed a van that Ithink is very practical, and if
I'm not the right builder foryou because you don't like that
layout, it could probably be acustom build by all means.
However, at Sandy Vans we areoperating very affordable brand
(26:30):
new Sprinter, fully built out,fully financed, in 15 years.
So it's just yeah, I mean thewhole process.
To me it's a lot easier to doit this way because league times
are much less.
My custom builds were takingfour to six months and my Sandy
(26:54):
Vans builds can be gone in liketwo weeks.
So it's more about me beingable to help more people, and
that's why I dictate this layout, so that I can provide you a
van that I think will suit yourneeds faster.
Speaker 1 (27:11):
Very cool.
So are people choosing theinterior colors and stuff, or
does it?
Speaker 2 (27:15):
Absolutely yeah.
So if they want crazy fancylighting and they want a
different kind of countertop,they have customizable
attributes.
Absolutely, and they do lookvery.
They're CNC but they don't lookCNC because it's a very simple
layout but with all the lightingand I use real wood on the
(27:39):
countertops and all the areasthat well, I use real wood on
them, but I'm just all the areasthat are high visual, high
traffic.
They look custom and that's thewhole.
Goal is to still give peoplethe ability to make their van
the way they want it to.
But you'll have let me do thework, because I'm vending the
(28:01):
industry of telling you you'regetting an easel heater, you're
getting this kind of easelheater.
You're getting this kind ofwater heater, you're getting
this.
So I'm trying to do all thework for you, basically.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Fantastic.
So how can people find you onthe internet if they want to
work with you?
Speaker 2 (28:20):
Well, if you want a good laugh, you can follow me on
Instagram at Sculpt Solutions.
I do quite a bit of goofy stuffon there, and then, if you want
to look a build with me or evencome down and check out the
shop, I'd like you guys to visitwwwsantyvanscom and I'm hanging
(28:40):
out with us and check out ourvans.
Speaker 1 (28:43):
Very cool, all right.
Well, thank you so much forcoming on the summit.
Anything else you wanted to say?
Speaker 2 (28:51):
We also sell exterior products.
No, I don't want the salespitch, but yeah, I mean, and if
you have any questions that youwant to come directly to me, I
try my best to answer everybodyon social media.
So if you just want to DM medirectly at Sculpt Solutions,
I'd be happy to try my best tohelp you out in any way I can.
(29:12):
But yeah, be paid, you know,because I do get questions quite
frequently.
Speaker 1 (29:18):
So totally, Well, that's a great service you offer
and hopefully people go checkout your vans.
And thanks for all the amazingtips.
Speaker 2 (29:26):
Yeah, thank you for really appreciating this
opportunity.
Speaker 1 (29:29):
Well, thanks so much for listening to this episode of
the Wayward Home Podcast.
Remember to like and subscribewherever you get your podcasts,
so you don't miss the nextepisode.
See you next time.
So building out a campervan can be a crazy
difficult experience, especiallyif you don't really have an eye
for design, like me, butluckily I really like how our
Sprinter Van layout came out.
We have tons of floor space,which even allows me to do yoga
inside our van.
Well, you might be feelingstumped as to how to layout your
campervan conversion, and inthis episode I chat with
(00:21):
professional van builder StevenStolp, who has some great tips
on how to plan out your van'slayout and how to apply your
creative vision to your dreamhome on wheels.
Let's go.
Welcome to the Wayward Homepodcast.
All about van life, boat lifeand nomadic living.
We'll bring you tips,interviews and stories from the
road and on the water.
Now here's your host, kristenHaynes.
Hey there, I'm Kristen Hayneswith thewaywardhomecom and I
(00:44):
spend half the year in mycampervan and half on my
sailboat in Mexico.
My goal is to inspire you topursue your nomadic living
dreams.
So we've been building out ourSprinter Van for a couple of
years now.
It's often on, really, becausewe spend a lot of time south on
the border on our sailboat inMexico.
But the van is coming alongreally nicely and I just love
being inside our van.
Even though it's not quitefinished, it's still a great
(01:06):
place to sleep, live, work andcook.
My van feels just like home andI even prefer living in it to
living in a house, which I'mdoing right now just for a week
or so.
If you're also building out avan and wanting some layout tips
, this episode is for you.
This interview first appearedas part of the Van Life virtual
summit I put on with Project VanLife.
So, stephen, first of all tellus about yourself and what led
(01:27):
you to start building vans.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
Well, as you said, I am Stephen Stulp.
I am proud owner of StulpSolutions and St Evans.
Basically I got into vanbuilding kind of as an accident.
I converted in ambulancerandomly one year and got a lot
of positive feedback on the goodold internet.
So before I knew it, after Igraduated business school, I had
(01:53):
a long list of people wantingme to build Lutigird ambulances
for them.
And then I got well known inthe ambulance community, which
now propelled me into theMercedes Sprinter community.
Speaker 1 (02:06):
So very cool, so you mostly work on.
Do you only work on Sprintersnow?
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Yes, st Evans is a Mercedes Sprinter 144 wheelbase
only, and I kind of had to pullit on something, because when I
first started I was just like,yes, I will build you a rocket
ship and didn't have enoughplanning that went into that.
The builds turned out great,but it wasn't a sustainable
(02:32):
business for me.
So that is why I'm going to StEvans.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Very cool and tell me a little bit about why you
chose to go with the Sprinterover the other vans.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Well, I'm down in San Diego, so the market definitely
dictated that If I was in some,like you know, backwoods kind
of country or Colorado orsomething like that, I probably
would have done great atcontinuing the four by four
off-road ambulances that I wascreating.
But yeah, just strictly basedoff market being able to take
(03:04):
care of my family, I decided todo Mercedes Sprinters.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
Very cool.
Tell me a little bit aboutdesigning van build interiors
that's.
You know that's a difficulttask.
What are some things that youhave in your head before you
start on a new van and theinterior layout?
Speaker 2 (03:23):
I have this weird snapshot that happens that in
the end I look at the van afterit's done and I'm like it's like
a deja vu, so that's.
I know that's a really weirdway to describe it, but you know
, creatives are kind of weirdpeople.
But basically I just kind of Iget the layout and I think about
(03:47):
how the ceiling is going towork with the cabinets and the
wall material and the counters,and I can kind of all see it
once.
So my biggest challenge when Ifirst started build is like
telling people what I see as faras the entire vision.
So I don't do sketch up oranything.
I'm definitely a pencil orpaper kind of guy.
(04:08):
But yeah, it really helps tohave a customer that trusts, or
you know, my build team thatknows that I'm going to direct
them in the right path.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
Yeah, for sure.
And so if someone's buildingout their own van and they have
ideas in their head, how do theynarrow in on a layout?
Do you have any tips for liketranslating the ideas into an
actual layout?
Speaker 2 (04:32):
Yeah, and I mean I keep it very simple.
I just literally go through thevan.
After I put the subfloor andthe laminated flooring down, I
go through and just take maskingtape and tape everything off
and I kind of just stand aroundand navigate it and see, you
(04:53):
know, you got to have butt room,you got to have.
You know, I even tape on thewalls and stuff so I know where
all the cabinetry is and I justkind of go in there.
It looks like a little bit of amess in the beginning with with
masking tape, but it reallyhelps you visualize where
everything's going to go.
But that's, yeah, that's what Iwould recommend, that's what I
(05:13):
did in the beginning.
I don't do that stuff anymorebut as a DIYer it's just much
easier to visualize it if youhave that physical
representation right in front ofyou.
Speaker 1 (05:23):
Yeah, and I've heard some people say that you should
go and like live in the vanbefore building it out, or at
least go try it and see what itfeels like.
Do you have any recommendationsabout that?
Speaker 2 (05:34):
Knowing what you want is very important, especially
if you're going in to hiresomebody like me or build your
van yourself.
I definitely sorry he wants tobe in front of the camera for
whatever reason, but yes, it'svery important knowing what you
want.
So some people they're justlike I want the same here, I
(05:55):
want oven, here, I want this,and that's great for a builder.
I've been in situations wherepeople were not clear on what
they wanted as a layout and onetime it didn't go so well
because they didn't know whatthey wanted.
So I really strongly recommendyou go in, you go camping with
(06:16):
it or you hang out in anotherperson's van or you rent a van
and figure out the things thatyou truly want before you start
any sort of process.
Speaker 1 (06:26):
Right, that makes a lot of sense.
So people should think aboutlike their lifestyle and what
components they need.
What should they be likethinking about when deciding
what to put in the van?
Speaker 2 (06:37):
Well, creature comforts.
You know I could go pitch atent in the woods just about
anywhere.
So my personal van very, verybare-boned, simple.
It just has a whole lot ofcheetah print on the inside and
that's what I like, but yeah.
So if you're kind of more of abougie individual and you live
(06:57):
in like a high-rising downtown,you're probably gonna want no
heated floors and a showerinside and all that stuff.
But if you're trying to getmore in punch with nature, you
may decide that you went outdoorshower or things like that.
You just really gotta hone inthis kind of goes back to our
previous subject of knowing whatyou want and pretty easy to
(07:20):
discover that quickly if you'renot okay with just a plant of
fitness membership to go showerand stuff like that.
Speaker 1 (07:27):
So yeah, what are some like common questions you
get from people trying to decideon their layout?
I'm sure you work with them totry to hone in on their vision.
What kinds of amenities dopeople typically like, want or
ask for?
Speaker 2 (07:40):
I mean, I've done things as far as a bamboo steam
room inside of an ambulance oran athlete.
So I've had questions like allthe way over there I've had
people wanna put you know, biggiant soaps in the middle of
their bands and all sorts ofstuff.
And it's really theresponsibility of the builder or
(08:02):
yourself to know what works anddon't flew in on one thing Like
if you're like I absolutelyhave to have this, then before
you know it you have an entirebuild based off that one
attribute that you probablycould have sacrificed.
So it's good to take everythinginto consideration and not get
tunnel vision on this one thing.
That's what I do see a lot.
(08:23):
I see a lot of people say Iwant an oven and a
floor-to-ceiling fridge and ashower and this and that, and
then when it's done, they'relike oh, it feels cramped in
here it's like well, back to themasking tape.
But yeah, so yeah, just knowingwhat you want and being
practical about your ideas,cause it is a band, it's not.
(08:46):
You can't look at this like afive star hotel.
I'll make it look like a fivestar hotel, but it's still.
It's still gotta bounce downthe road, it's still gotta be
strong and it's gotta bepractical.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
Totally.
Yeah, I wanted to ask you aboutthat, cause I do see a lot of
luxury, you know, looking bandsand I have heard stories of.
When they're not builtcorrectly, they can kind of
break apart, especially if youwant to go down bumpy roads,
have you like?
What do you think about thatand how do you ensure that
components are like, not gonnafall apart?
Speaker 2 (09:17):
So other cabinets are definitely one of those scary
ones that I see a lot withpeople's builds.
I don't like seeing videos.
It's like kind of like hangingfrom the ceiling and I'm like
you have like a you have a childin the back of your van and you
have like cabinets hanging offthe ceiling.
So yeah, securing cabinets andthings like that is very
(09:37):
important, cause you have tobasically create an earthquake
proof home and not justearthquake proof like constant
earthquake.
That's how you have to treat itall.
So you know, securing yourcabinetry down properly I mean
that can kill somebody.
So that's why, as builder, Itry to.
(10:00):
When I do see issues, I don'tgive unsolicited advice, but
when people reach out to me, Iusually just like maybe like
drop it off in my shop, I'll fixall that for you.
But as far as the Sandy vans go, we tie all of cabinetry into
frame that Mercedes provides usso you could rest assured that
(10:22):
none of that's gonna come down.
I've seen inadequate likedrywall screws, folding cabinets
up and things like that, andit's just very dangerous.
So I do recommend people know athing or two about fastening
and glue and all that stuffbefore they go ahead and take on
being yeah, for sure, and I'mstill intrigued by you building
(10:45):
a steam room in someone's van.
Speaker 1 (10:47):
That's very interesting and creative.
What other interestingcomponents have you put in vans
that might be surprising topeople?
Speaker 2 (10:55):
Oh yeah, so this one called Amber Some of you may
have seen it on the interwebs.
I did a band tour with JaredTochi.
I hope I said that right, Jared, You're friends.
We did a tour and that had anRFID gun safe inside of it, that
it looked like regularcabinetry and you swiped a card
(11:19):
on the shelf on the bottom shelfof the cabinet and then the
entire hatch dropped open and itwas like oh, it was like this
long, obviously requested by theclient, and yeah, that was a
really cool feature.
I've gotten a lot of emailsabout you know people like hey,
(11:41):
let me, let me get one of thosegun safes in my van, and I'm
just like, well, that's, that'sa custom job.
My very first van I did, though, was a Ford Triumph that I
called Bandemic and it's becauseI built it during the pandemic
and that had a Murphy or not aMurphy, but it had a robotic bed
(12:02):
that folded into the ceiling.
So it literally like, as itlowered, it pushed into the
wheel or into the window wells,and then, when you had to go up,
it folded into the ceiling, andit wasn't a happy jack, it
wasn't anything like that.
It was literally like a $200thing I bought off Amazon and
(12:24):
made it work.
So those are some of the coolones.
Made robotic Murphy beds before.
That's a weird electronics on.
A lot of people know me for mylight features that I do as well
, so it's kind of across theboards.
Speaker 1 (12:43):
Cool.
So what are your light features?
What do those look like?
Speaker 2 (12:47):
So I I got into van building because before I was
into furniture making, I waslike kind of working a lot with
epoxy and fully winging it.
I like no formal training oranything.
I mean I was selling coffeetables for a good buck and I
would.
I mean I've done light featureswhere the like the actual epoxy
(13:10):
has lights cut into the bottomof it and like walk in the band
and all the countertops turn on,because they're like on motion
sensors and they're blocked, soif you're sleeping they won't
set off.
But just like you know, amixture between, like,
electronics and art, and it'salways been very cool to me, so
(13:32):
that's why I really enjoy kindof messing with lights.
I do like the strip lightingthrough through the ceiling and
it's all diffused and everything, and it looks indirect.
Um, which that is the scalabledesign that you won't be seeing
in more sandy bands movingforward.
But, um, yeah, my favoritelight feature I did, though, was
(13:56):
I did tire epoxy edge on acounter, and it looked like the
ocean crashing onto and I fancar about like sandbars and
stuff like inside, and then Ipoured the mold, and it wasn't
just a straight counter either,it was all like it was curved
and everything.
And then I put blue inside ofit.
(14:20):
That was fully diffused.
So then when it turned on, itjust looked like a glowing blue
ocean, like crashing onto awoodchower top.
It wasn't something that thecustomer asked for, um, it was
just something that I felt likeadding to there.
Speaker 1 (14:37):
That's really cool and that's inspiring for people
that people can be creative andartistic when, when building out
vans, it sounds like um, isthere anything they should keep
in mind?
Surrounding me, the artisticpart of a van build.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
Um, yeah, so careful also with the artistic stuff,
because you could hone in on oneartistic design or like like,
if you want, like a wall in acertain spot that correlates
with something.
If you, if you tunnel in onstuff too much with the art,
you're just going to build yourvan around one piece of bar,
(15:10):
which, if that's what you'retrying to do, that's cool.
But, um, beware of trying toincorporate one thing into your
entire van.
Um, but I think the best way togo about that stuff is to kind
of piecemeal it out and andfigure out like, have solution,
(15:32):
base creativity.
So, while you're doingsomething, you're like, oh, if I
add a piece here, it may likehide this imperfection or it may
, you know, make this lookbetter, rather than, from the
beginning, knowing exactly whatkind of art you're gonna put in
there.
Cause everything that I justdescribed to you in the previous
question was on the fly.
(15:53):
It was.
I was inside the band and I waslike kind of feeling the flow
of it and I'm like, okay, well,if this goes here and that goes
here, it'll look amazing, and Ithink that that is the best way
to harness your creativityinside one of these builds.
Speaker 1 (16:08):
Yeah, yeah, totally.
And you mentioned you work on144 wheelbase and that's what I
have as well, and there's onlyso much you can shove into that.
You were saying that somepeople want so much that they
have like no room inside.
It's not just curious, like howdo you balance like luxury with
the space to move around?
Speaker 2 (16:27):
So with Sandy Band specifically, we're doing
modular lights.
So this the whole back half ofthis band be kind of configured
however you want, because it'sbased off.
You know, all of the customjobs that I've done in my past
was SELT solutions and it'scombined into this 144.
(16:48):
One of the things that I reallylike about the modular design
is, physically, when you gocamping and stuff, there's a lot
of setup.
But if you have a van that'sdesigned to be set up and taken
down, it's not very inconvenient.
I've lived in a Sandy Van fulltime and it has a king side bed
(17:08):
in the back but it also hasdining for eight.
So I think keeping the modularaspect of the thing in 144
specifically is very important.
If you do a fixed bag, you'rereally kind of stuck with that,
but some people want to be thatway.
If you want more, then you needto get a bigger van.
(17:31):
But I personally like the 144sbecause I don't mind taking 45
seconds to set up my bed afterhaving seven homies sitting down
with me in the same location.
Speaker 1 (17:44):
So Cool, yeah, give me some more, some examples of
the modular.
So that's just with the.
Is it a bed, couch conversion,or what are some of your modular
components?
Speaker 2 (17:55):
So the table is just a simple U-bench dinette.
It's a very popular design thata lot of companies have already
done.
I don't think it's buddy's ideato steal at this point.
But yeah, it's as simple as thetable drops in and then there's
another read and then that fullback half of the actually more
(18:17):
than the back half of the vanburns into a king-side bed.
And I'm currently working onhaving the ability to take the
benches out as well and thenhaving a bench platform that can
attach to the L-track that isalready installed in the Sandy
Vans.
That can be a fixed bed across.
(18:39):
So then the customer has theability to customize the modular
portion of the design forthemselves.
So I don't have to sit therewith a pen and paper for hours
trying to pick my client's brainanymore.
This is, you know, I'm kind oftrying to make the Swiss army
eyes of a band.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Yeah, that's a great point to do the modular so
people can configure it how theywant.
And then there are so manyoptions.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Absolutely yeah, Right now, I mean, there's at
least like 30 differentconfigurations.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
So yeah, yeah.
Are you seeing that most peoplewant like a bathroom and a
shower inside?
I know that, again, the 144sare small.
What are you seeing surroundingthat?
Speaker 2 (19:22):
So toilets are.
Obviously a lot of peoplereally want toilets in their
band.
The reason I separate toiletfrom bathroom because you know I
try to steer as many people asI can away from having a wet
bath inside their band, becauseI am big fan of, like old school
(19:43):
vehicles and I've had old RVsand all sorts of stuff and every
single one of them has mold,mildew, all that stuff in the
wet bath area.
So it does not matter howtalented you are at installing,
how much you waterproof things,at some point water will get in
(20:05):
places that you do not want it.
It could be three years, itcould be 10 years, but
eventually it will happen.
So to increase the longevity ofyour build, I strongly
recommend outdoor showersolutions and things like that.
And if you're kind of worriedabout the cold, well, I've had a
(20:25):
diesel heater cranking in oneof the Sandy Vans, blowing heat
out the back, and I was taking ashower like in the snow out the
back.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
I had a curtain and everything.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
but yeah, so you can take an outdoor shower even if
it's cold out.
Speaker 1 (20:41):
That's true.
That's only what we do, so Ihighly recommend it, and so what
are some of your like outdoorshower options that people can
put?
Speaker 2 (20:51):
Well, I mean outdoor showers, it's Sprinter.
It's probably the easiest thingto do.
You run a hot water line back.
I mean, I usually run hot andcold so we'd find a mixer.
But yeah, you just run water tothe back and then you have like
either a hose or, if you wantto use fancy, I could put like
whatever shower head handle onit and you just hook it to the
(21:17):
door and the Sprinter width ofthe doors are actually the exact
same size as a standard showercurtain that you could get at
Target or whatever.
So really nice.
If somebody gets one of thesevehicles like you, don't have to
find it a poultry place to makeyourself a new shower curtain.
But basically they justmagnetized with little leg,
(21:41):
first magnets with carabiners onthem and then they just hook to
the outside.
In San Diego it's very popularto have the outdoor shower
because we build for a lot ofsurfers and things like that.
So it's a very common practicefor them already.
Speaker 1 (21:56):
Yeah, yeah, for sure.
When you look at DIY builds,what are some common mistakes
that you see that hopefullypeople can avoid by listening to
this?
Speaker 2 (22:06):
If you are not an electrician, if you have never
been certified or anything withelectricity sold, at least with
somebody I recommend hiring.
I have seen very, verydangerous things.
So to kind of cycle back mybackground, I was in the Navy
(22:27):
for six years in the advancedelectronic computer field, so
I'm well versed in electronicsbefore I went into building
bands.
So that's just one thing.
I just don't recommend peopletackling on their own if they've
never done it before.
There's a ton of stuff onYouTube but there are a million
(22:50):
mistakes you can make that thosevideos will not show you and
those mistakes could burn downyour vision.
God forbid, god forbid, you'reidiot if that happened.
So electrical is definitely astrength to know.
With me a little bit.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
Yeah, for sure, and I do have people writing to me
and asking I just need thiscomponent installed or I need
help with this part.
How do people go about findingsomeone to help with just small
build projects instead ofgetting a whole custom build?
Speaker 2 (23:24):
There are builders out there that are willing to do
just an electrical system.
Typically, I would advisepeople against just adding
something to your existingelectrical system, like
presenting that to somebody.
I think it should be worriedlike, hey, can you go through my
(23:44):
electrical system and add thispiece?
Because I've had pretty muchevery electrical system that's
come to my shop.
I've had a full year overalland it's very unfortunate
because I know they paid moneyto have that done or spent a lot
of time doing it and then theyhad to pay me to overhaul it.
(24:05):
But it's just safety, safety,safe.
So, yeah, I have all your ducksin a row with electrical and
plumbing before you go down toanyone, definitely.
Speaker 1 (24:20):
And I'm curious just off the top of my head have you
ever seen a bathtub in a van?
Has anybody ever done that?
Speaker 2 (24:27):
Yeah, so I've seen one of the SoCal builders one of
his first client builds theyput a bathtub in and I won't
name names because I thought itwas pretty ridiculous.
Just like you know, theclient's always right, but
that's something I think as aprofessional company, you should
(24:50):
really try to steer the clientin the correct direction.
The reason I think bathtubs arenot a good idea is because
you're looking at a tub and atub to fit its human is about
the size of a 55, 60 gallonwater tank.
(25:13):
Each gallon of water is eightpounds, so that kind of it's
still up that tub.
I mean you would need a hundredgallon water take in order to
support stuff, and in advance.
So, if you're a giant schoolleader or something where you
could do stuff like that, I'dlike go for it, but it'd be like
(25:36):
, yeah, it's just weight.
Weight is really the biggestissue, I think, with that.
For sure, sounds like itPracticality is a big one.
Don't put clock-quick pubs inyour springers, please.
Speaker 1 (25:48):
Just go to a hot spring.
That's what I would advisepeople Way easier.
Speaker 2 (25:52):
Yeah, that's what's the point of having a mobile
home if you can't travel to ahot spring to you know.
Speaker 1 (25:57):
Exactly, yeah, so what does the process look like
with you if someone wasinterested in building out like
a van with you and you workingwith them on the layout?
Speaker 2 (26:06):
Well, so with Sandy Vans, I kind of did all the
layout work for you.
I've designed a van that Ithink is very practical, and if
I'm not the right builder foryou because you don't like that
layout, it could probably be acustom build by all means.
However, at Sandy Vans we areoperating very affordable brand
(26:30):
new Sprinter, fully built out,fully financed, in 15 years.
So it's just yeah, I mean thewhole process.
To me it's a lot easier to doit this way because league times
are much less.
My custom builds were takingfour to six months and my Sandy
(26:54):
Vans builds can be gone in liketwo weeks.
So it's more about me beingable to help more people, and
that's why I dictate this layout, so that I can provide you a
van that I think will suit yourneeds faster.
Speaker 1 (27:11):
Very cool.
So are people choosing theinterior colors and stuff, or
does it?
Speaker 2 (27:15):
Absolutely yeah.
So if they want crazy fancylighting and they want a
different kind of countertop,they have customizable
attributes.
Absolutely, and they do lookvery.
They're CNC but they don't lookCNC because it's a very simple
layout but with all the lightingand I use real wood on the
(27:39):
countertops and all the areasthat well, I use real wood on
them, but I'm just all the areasthat are high visual, high
traffic.
They look custom and that's thewhole.
Goal is to still give peoplethe ability to make their van
the way they want it to.
But you'll have let me do thework, because I'm vending the
(28:01):
industry of telling you you'regetting an easel heater, you're
getting this kind of easelheater.
You're getting this kind ofwater heater, you're getting
this.
So I'm trying to do all thework for you, basically.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Fantastic.
So how can people find you onthe internet if they want to
work with you?
Speaker 2 (28:20):
Well, if you want a good laugh, you can follow me on
Instagram at Sculpt Solutions.
I do quite a bit of goofy stuffon there, and then, if you want
to look a build with me or evencome down and check out the
shop, I'd like you guys to visitwwwsantyvanscom and I'm hanging
(28:40):
out with us and check out ourvans.
Speaker 1 (28:43):
Very cool, all right.
Well, thank you so much forcoming on the summit.
Anything else you wanted to say?
Speaker 2 (28:51):
We also sell exterior products.
No, I don't want the salespitch, but yeah, I mean, and if
you have any questions that youwant to come directly to me, I
try my best to answer everybodyon social media.
So if you just want to DM medirectly at Sculpt Solutions,
I'd be happy to try my best tohelp you out in any way I can.
(29:12):
But yeah, be paid, you know,because I do get questions quite
frequently.
Speaker 1 (29:18):
So totally, Well, that's a great service you offer
and hopefully people go checkout your vans.
And thanks for all the amazingtips.
Speaker 2 (29:26):
Yeah, thank you for really appreciating this
opportunity.
Speaker 1 (29:29):
Well, thanks so much for listening to this episode of
the Wayward Home Podcast.
Remember to like and subscribewherever you get your podcasts,
so you don't miss the nextepisode.
See you next time.
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