Want to convert your van? One thing you absolutely cannot leave out is a small kitchen. But how do you go about building a kitchen in a van, and what should you keep in mind during planning so you can cook for yourself on the road? AtVanSiteyou'll find out how to build your camper kitchen yourself in just a few steps.

Build a van kitchen yourself in 5 steps:

1. Kitchen cabinets

2. Worktop

3. Cooking area

4. Water supply

5. Refrigerator

Van conversion: build your camper kitchen in 5 steps

The time has finally come: you've fulfilled your dream of owning your own van. An older used transporter that you want to convert into a camper yourself will probably need a trip to the workshop first, or you can tackle repairs likeremove rustyourself.

Once your van is roadworthy, has passed its inspection and is registered, you can start on the full orminimalist camper conversion. First you shouldinsulate your camperand install a fold-out bed before you start building the kitchen. If you want tobuild all the furniture yourselffor your conversion, check out our blog post on the topic.

Step 1: Kitchen cabinets and drawers for storage

The first step of your DIY camper kitchen should be building a kitchen unit. When planning your conversion, it's worth thinking about which layout between kitchen, bed and storage works best in terms of practicality and space.

Among DIY van builders, the L-shape layout is probably the most popular. For the carcass of your kitchen unit, simple birch or poplar plywood sheets work well. When building the compartments, cabinets and drawers, make sure you have enough space for crockery and larger pots or pans.

Step 2: Kitchen worktop as work surface

You'll need enough space in your camper kitchen to set down plates and cups, chop vegetables and prepare meals. To do this, cut a worktop from the hardware store (oak, for example) to size and seal it with some worktop oil.

When preparing the cuts, remember to leave a recess in the part of the worktop where you later want to fit your camping sink or possibly a hob.

Step 3: Camping stove as cooking area

In principle, similar to choosing yourparking heater, you can also choose between three energy sources for cooking in the van: electricity, gas or spirit. Gas is the most efficient option, as you can easily stock up on exchange cartridges in the camper.

You can either fit your camper kitchen with a fixed hob or simply use a portable camping stove. A mobile stove gives you more flexibility and avoids problems at the vehicle inspection. You can still place it in a recess in your kitchen unit and cover it with a flap made from the same material as your worktop.

Step 4: Sink, fresh water and waste water tank for water supply

A built-in water supply makes self-sufficient living and travelling in a van much easier, so you're not dependent on campsites. You can fit the sink together with a tap (which you can also use as a removable shower head) anywhere along the worktop.

Below the sink you can install a fresh water tank, or at the very least a waste water tank. The simplest way to supply fresh water is to fit a pump that gives you running water at the press of a foot pedal for brushing your teeth, washing or doing the dishes.

Step 5: Cool box as camper refrigerator

A cool box is essential for keeping food and drinks cold while travelling. A portable mini-fridge with compressor cooling technology works best. You can power it either from a built-in second battery or from mains electricity at aVanSite pitch.

Ideally, you'll leave a matching recess in the kitchen unit for your DIY motorhome's refrigerator. It's therefore a good idea to know the dimensions of the cool box, the gas hob and the parts needed for the water supply before you start building the kitchen.

Done planning? Then get started on your camper kitchen!

Building your own camping kitchen in a van takes a bit more planning. But with just a few steps you can put together a kitchen unit with a worktop, cooling, cooking area and water supply.

Don't have your own van yet? Here you'll find out how and where to bestbuy a used camper.