Since my last Eurovan Modifications 1.0 post, we have added a few things so I thought I’d share them here!
Fun Mug
Pictured above, GoWesty has so many van themed mugs!
Fun Hand Towels
Just search Amazon or Etsy for camper towels and you’ll find some great ones! I love these 3 below (affiliate link):
Blind Spot Mirrors
Bought them from Amazon, we liked them but they fell off too easily due to the rounded nature of where they attach – so I don’t recommend the brand that looks like this.
Car Fan
The AC only vents into the front of the van, so the back can get pretty warm for the kids if it’s really hot outside. This car fan (affiliate link) attaches to the back of the front seat headrest and blows the cool front air to the back – and is surprisingly effective. We highly recommend!
Car Seat Back Organizer
Also seen in the pic above, I made this out of a door back shoe organizer (I think from Target?) by cutting it to size and using cloth to hem the top and bottom and make velcro straps to attach it around the headrest and seat. This this is GREAT for all those random items you want easy fast access to! What we keep in it: flashlights, bug spray, sunscreen, paper towel, charging cords, 12v inverter plug, baby wipes, and when the kids were little their shoes, and whatever else we need to store there.
Little Broom
Seen in the bottom of the photo, I love this little broom for sweeping out the hard floor and nooks around the doors. It stays in one of the seat back organizer pockets. I don’t know where I got it!
Upper Bunk Mattress Topper
We had little kids and were potty training so I used an old mattress topper that was coming apart to create a Eurovan-top-bunk-sized one by cutting it down and sewing the stretchy wrap-around edge back on. Now it’s just great for keeping those cushions clean. We keep it on even when the pop top is closed.
D-Ring Hangers
These are called “D-Ring Picture Hangers” and I put them with many of the screws around the top of the van, so we could hang twinkle lights and whatever else we wanted from them. We like it.
Cargo Carrier
We got a medium-cheap one off Amazon that got pretty good reviews. It worked great for our long road trip and holds a lot, but at the end it started bowing down quite a bit, although we think it might have been how our hitch attaches to the van. Overall, a great cheap option if you’re not ready to spring for the amazing swing away hitch carrier and box attachments. It typically holds our firewood, cooler when needed, and bikes. I’d share the link but I can’t find it.
Repair Paint Job
When we got the van, its paint was filmy and dull – it would come off like powder if you touched it, and when it rained it would turn darker like in the pic. After asking the Facebook group, we decided to “repair” it by: 1) Wash it, 2) Claybar it, 3) Dual Action Polish it, 4) Wax it. While it still took most of the day, I cannot tell you what a difference it made! We didn’t realize how bad it was until it got better. The car used to be MATTE but now it’s SHINY! See the before and after:
Below are the products we used and in the order used from right to left, all Meguiar’s brand: the car wash, then the claybar (in the bock box) with the spray (directions included with it), then the dual action cleaner and polisher (affiliate link), then the wax. I found it cheaper to buy a whole kit that included other items rather than individually, plus the cleaner/polisher linked above separately. We also bought a random orbit waxer/polisher (affiliate link) instead of doing it by hand.
Clean the Pop Top Canvas from Mildew
While we’re talking about cleaning, after much research I used Miracle Mist (affiliate link) to remove the mildew stains from the pop top canvas. It’s pretty easy to use, I pre-wet the material so the treatment would soak in better (because the canvas is water resistant, so this took quite a bit of rubbing water into it), then sprayed it with Miracle Mist and scrubbed it in, let it sit for a few minutes, then wiped it off with a wet cloth, and repeated until it looked better and I felt it was all rinsed out. Note it is bleach based and smells like it, so be well ventilated. I was happy with the results. When I’m done with the whole canvas I’ll re-waterproof it with a spray.
Before:
After (still needs some work, but much improved):
Pool Noodle Seal Strip
Because our pop top roof slightly curves in the middle, the front of the pop top rises just enough that the seal doesn’t touch the roof all the way and water gets in if the van is outside when it rains, which is how our nice original pop top canvas got the mildew stains seen above. I created this pool noodle seal as a solution. It has worked in light rain but I’ve not been willing to take a hose to it – however it will work better than nothing if we get caught in rain.
Porta Potty
We have actually never used this but when I researched it, it was a smaller cheaper option (and, it has a VW camper on the pic). I was told to put a trash bag in and fill it with wood pellets or cat litter. We took it all the way to Michigan with us and never used it since the campgrounds always had a bathroom!
Water Filter
We never use the camper’s fresh water tank for drinking water, we just bring jugs with us, but just in case we need to, I used this hack from Eurovan Camper Mods:
Hose Adapter for Water Tank
This hose adapter makes filling the water tank from a hose super easy, I love it. Here’s the affiliate link.
Mini White Noise Machine
I love this little white noise maker (affiliate link). It has many different noise options, volume control, and holds a charged batter for 2 nights.
Extra Blankets
I thought this space in the closet was awkward and annoyingly unusable until I discovered it’s the perfect place to store extra blankets and the van bedsheets. When it’s not quite cold enough for the heater, the extra blankets are perfect.
Plastic Bin for Dry Food
Pictured in the lower right, we started bringing dry (non-refrigerated) food in a plastic bin. Reasons: 1) we often cook outside of the van so it’s easier to access those things by just always having it on the picnic table, 2) with our growing family that eats more we ran out of room in the van cupboard, and 3) when the bed is down you can’t access the food in the cupboard but with the bin now we can.
Also in this pic you can also see how our van was organized a few years ago (not much has changed):
- the closet has shelves and holds our clothes in travel bags, dirty clothes bag, and extra blankets
- the little upper cupboard has shelves and holds the mugs, kettle, coffee supplies, first aid kit, and etc.
- the little drawer holds cooking utensils: knife, spatula, stirring spoon, measuring spoons, tiny tongs, etc. plus a lighter
- the little opens-down-door cupboard under it holds extra supplies like a roll of toilet paper, a kleenex box, the netted door covers, a little bag of repair parts and tools, the fans and little electric heater, etc.
- the big cupboard by the fridge holds cooking supplies (frying pan, cooking pan, big bowl, collapsible tupperware, tray with silverware (because it’s easy to take out to the table), cutting board, tubs for dish washing, cooking oils and seasonings, hand towels, etc. – on our big trip I kept the dry food on the bottom shelf and in the non-functional fridge, but now that it’s in the bin I’m still figuring out what to keep down there.
TruckFridge + Storage
We had someone do some repairs on our van, which included switching out the old fridge for a TruckFridge and adding the cubbies next to it. We LOVE the TruckFridge because it fits so much more space than the old fridge, and it will run off the battery for over 2 days while camping, even with charging our phones and using the lights a bit, which opens up new doors for camping without needing electric plugins. The cubbies I thought were awkward and unusable at first, but how we’ve found they’re perfect for: dish towels, potholders, tablecloth, and trash bag roll.
Repaint the Plastic
Along with the repairs we had the interior plastic repainted and it’s AWESOME, the van feels so much nicer now!
Also, this is what our van looks like packed for 5 people: the back holds the sleeping bags, pillows, and camp chairs. The little compartment below holds a plastic bin full which contains the awning tent cover, huge citronella candle, electric plugin cord, and extension cord. Tucked around the bin are the insulated thermal window covers all folded up.
New Hubcaps
After our big Michigan road trip we lost 2 original VW hubcaps. I finally replaced all 4 with these black matte hubcaps (affiliate link) which look AWESOME but are super hard to get on and one which keeps coming off (good thing they’re cheap) – so while I highly recommend the look, these ones aren’t the absolute best fit.
Rubber Floor Mats
I wanted something like our other car that is rubber and catches dirt, and these are GREAT. They’re not super expensive and you cut them to size. I love them. They are these Motor Trend 2 piece front car floor mats (affiliate link).
Glue the Weather Adhesive Strip
The driver door black weather strip kept coming out so I looked it up and bought this Black Super Weatherstrip Adhesive (affiliate link) to glue it back in – a few months late and it’s stayed put and I recommend.
Weather strip out:
Weather strip in (also, a nice view of the driver side floor mat):
Ok that’s it for now! I hope you found that helpful!
