Why This DIY ProMaster is Perfect For a Travel Nurse Living in a Van

Simplify
by Simplify

Jonnie is a travel nurse living in a van. Her DIY ProMaster camper conversion has inspired her to become a van conversion professional who now helps others to pursue van life.


Everything in Jonnie’s van is built to her specifications. She has a deep sink in the kitchen so she can shampoo her hair or take a sink bath, which is important to her because water preservation makes everyday showers impossible, but especially as a nurse, she needs to be able to clean herself up quickly and regularly. The sink is also equipped with a swivel nozzle for outdoor use.


The kitchen countertops are made from big sheets of butcher’s block that Jonnie found. She uses a small hanging basket above the counter to store small items, like hand sanitizer. Jonnie stores cleaning supplies, tea, coffee, and a gallon of fresh water under the sink; the under-sink storage is closed off by a curtain and illuminated by LED lights.


The key to the kitchen is the fridge, which is an Isotherm Cruise. It has a massive amount of freezer and fridge space, and is a marine fridge, which means that it doesn’t have to be at ground level and will keep working as long as there is an angle of less than 30 degrees. That’s very important to Jonnie because she doesn’t like grocery shopping a lot.

Living in a van

Jonnie's van has a raised bed with drawers that act as steps to the bed, and another, custom-made bedroom set of drawers made by a friend. These drawers are tall enough to be the right height for her to use the top as a getting-ready surface when putting on her makeup.


These are just two examples of the way that every detail is made with Jonnie’s individual needs in mind, which has trained her to become a professional who helps other people build vans that are tailored to their unique needs, as well.


In this video, Jonnie goes through the technical details of her DIY ProMaster van conversion and explains how she started building van conversions for customers, professionally:

Travel nurse living in a van

Jonnie also offers useful advice for those considering starting out on a van life adventure. First, she took some short trips to make sure she was comfortable living in a small space and sleeping at rest stops.


Then, when she took her first job as a travel nurse living in a van, she booked two weeks at a camping ground where she knew she’d feel safe.


Only after she’d had that experience did she start going on longer adventures on the open road, and she’s enjoying every minute of it.




For more van life stories, discover this inspiring military truck-turned-camper and this DIY ambulance camper conversion.


To see more videos, check out the Tiny Home Tours YouTube channel.

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