Stage two of the van transformation was to insulate it. As someone that feels the cold this is a particularly important step for me. We’ve gone for slightly unusual insulation, as it’s actually the same stuff we insulated our house with. Chris found someone selling all the materials the contractors had left behind at a very cheap price.

The one problem with using materials not designed for the job was that we needed to prise the unneeded plasterboard off the insulation, a surprising difficult job.

Before attaching the insulation we first cut up and applied a sound deadening material to the various panels. This should reduce noise when driving the van.

Sticking the insulation on the ceiling was a pain. Even though Chris had brought special attachments to make it easier, the glue kept failing and the boards were constantly falling down.

The batons were cut to shape and attached to the side of the van.

We wedged soft insulation between them, as well as stuffing it into every nook and cranny. In general, it’s not recommended to use this kind of insulation in vans, as moisture can condense between the van interior and the insulation, however we’re using the same vapor membrane as in the house so moisture won’t get in to the insulation.

Next, we took up the floor of the van. We’ll reuse the existing boards, but need to lay insulation underneath.

Chris spent a bit of time sanding back and priming any small areas of rust.

As usual we didn’t get as much done as we were hoping, but still most of the insulation is in place, on to the electrics next week!

As always I’ve been trying to tick off a few jobs inside the house during the evenings to make up for concentrating on the van on the weekends. I finally finished filling, sanding, caulking and painting the new wood covering the window lintels, a fiddly and thankless job.

In the bathroom I finally got round to grouting the splashback.

Above our bedroom door I filled, and sanded the plasterboard, before attaching the final piece of coving and filling and caulking around it.

And, after filling and sanding the places where the wood had rotted away at the bottom of the doorway, the front door got another coat of yellow, and the ironwork a coat of black.

The garden is full of flowers at the moment, particularly the irises. I’d love to get more of the garden done with summer in full swing, but the van takes precedent… Lots to do and always little time.