Layout Design

When committing to building a skoolie or van, utilizing space efficiently is an absolute must. One way to get started with designing a layout is with graph paper-you just have to decide the scale for each square. This can give you a very straightforward scale representation of your build. If you go with that route, I would recommend taking extensive measurements of your space, transcribing them into your template and then making several copies. By creating a template for your space, you can continue to iterate without having to start from scratch with each revision.

 

Not everyone is a master of a T-Square, though, so it’s good that there are lots of tools out there that can be helpful in your planning! My favorite tool for any sort of designing is SketchUp. It’s a free, online drafting and design program that is extremely powerful, yet user-friendly. Besides the ability to draw basic layouts and floorplans, there are libraries of many objects and textures that can be used to give a really great impression of a space. For example, when working on our design we were able to insert a 3D model of a Nature’s Head toilet into our sketches. This really helps you get a sense of how a space actually functions and how comfortable it will truly be.

 

Once you’ve got a rough design worked out, it can be extremely helpful to further sketch out the space in your actual van or bus. We traced our floorplan out using masking tape to be able to truly experience the layout and space. Some people go as far as to create cardboard mockups of their cabinetry and appliances.

 

The nice thing about working out the majority of your design in advance is that you have the ability to make changes and try out different concepts more easily. I made probably eight or nine different designs for our bus layout, each with its own merits and caveats. Discussing all of the designs allowed us to realize which elements of the build were most important and prioritize those in our final design.

 

One of the key concerns we had with our bus design was ensuring that our dogs could readily access our very high bed. Our older dog has experienced some joint issues, so it was important for us to figure out a good, safe route for him to get on and off the bed. We had considered a method of using our drawers as stairs, but the obstruction of having to leave our drawers open, constantly, wasn’t something we wanted to deal with. Ultimately, we placed our couch beside a counter, so he can jump from the floor to the couch, from the couch to the counter and, finally, to the bed. You can tell Reese appreciates those design considerations when he sprints into the bus and rushes into bed!

 

The other matter that galvanized our floorplan was the plumbing. While possible, it can be very tricky to run the plumbing from one side of the bus to the next. We decided to place our shower wall immediately next to the counter that contained the sink. With that setup we were able to greatly simplify our plumbing layout since the pipes were all concentrated in one small area.

 

Once we settled on our layout, it was time to start building things up!

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