Living in your campervan will be much simpler if you install a kitchen. Fitting your full kitchen inside a van conversion could seem overwhelming, but with careful planning and eliminating everything except the necessities, it’s not a challenging process. You only need a kitchen that can at least allow quick and straightforward access to your kitchen gadgets; it doesn’t have to be anything fancy. The ideal campervan kitchen should include room for a stove and oven, sink, refrigerator, and storage for kitchenware.
You may learn about a variety of DIY kitchen layout alternatives in this post for all types of campervans. Planning for the arrangement of your kitchen will require consideration of the size of your particular van. Whether you plan to cook inside or outside is another important consideration. Cooking inside is a lovely luxury and much more covert if you’re travelling to an area with bad weather. Remember that you should probably keep a window cracked when cooking inside.
How Much Kitchen Space Do You Need in a Campervan?
The first things that likely come to mind when you think of a kitchen are its essential components: refrigerators, sinks, stoves, and perhaps a few more gadgets here and there. However, there is more to consider than merely making use of the available conveniences. Here are a few critical considerations for creating the ideal campervan kitchen unit.
Budget
How much money are you willing to spend on your campervan kitchen before you decide on a layout? Your campervan kitchen’s general design, usability, and the equipment you choose will be influenced by your budget.
Van Size
The type of kitchen arrangement that you can employ is dependent on the dimensions of your vehicle. If you have little room, you should choose a plan that puts usefulness over appearances. For instance, rather than having permanent appliances, this can incorporate portable ones. On the other hand, if you have a lot of room, you’ll have more possibilities.
Number of Individuals in Your Van
You’ll need more room for the more people you can fit in your vehicle. In addition to having adequate space so everyone can cook, you’ll also want extra cabinets and storage.
How Frequently You Cook
Not all van owners spend a lot of time in the kitchen. You can get away with a tiny kitchen and a few gadgets if you only cook sometimes. However, it’s worth investing more money and space in your campervan kitchen if you want to prepare restaurant-calibre meals whenever you go.
How Often You Stay in Your Van
It’s a given that those who live in their vans full-time will need larger kitchens than those who do so sometimes. You can rely more on takeout dinners than the average van owner if you don’t travel much.
Ideas for a DIY Campervan Kitchen
Here are some very awesome and motivational campervan kitchen ideas for you to check out.
Back Door Slide-Out Kitchen
It is a fantastic design if your vehicle is not too long. It gives you additional space in the front of your van to fit a larger bed, more storage, or whatever else you need room for. The main drawback to this design is that you have to cook outside, so it might not be the ideal option unless you live in an area with mild winters and summers.
Side Door Slide-Out Van Kitchen
Similarly to the backyard campervan kitchen, this outdoor cooking setup has a side-access door that slides out. Another excellent kitchen design concept for smaller vans is this. Everything is kept on a pull-out that can be tucked away inside the van’s storage area. The one drawback is that you can only access this campervan kitchen while parked, even though it includes everything you need to utilise the outdoor space.
Front Seats Parallel to Kitchen
This choice is excellent for shorter vehicles. The downside of this option is that the front seats cannot be reached from within the van. However, you may create a passageway to the front seats by dividing the kitchen area into two parts. Since there are only three seats in the van, they will have to get out of the vehicle to access the front seats.
Kitchen With Split Design
It has a fridge adjacent to the side door facing the back of the van, a sink and a stove parallel to the walls, and a stove. It is a terrific idea if you have a large refrigerator or need a little additional cabinet space beneath your sink or stove.
Side Door Kitchen
It is a fantastic alternative for making the most of the space in your van, but you must be cautious while closing the doors as it might send anything flying if not adequately secured. It is being used on a VW van, as you can see. Remember that a sprinter van has sliding side doors. Thus this won’t work on one. There are a lot of other cargo vans with doors like these, though. The back doors of your van could also benefit from this.
Slide-Out Trunk Kitchen
The slide-out trunk kitchen slides out of your trunk rather than your side doors. Since you may dedicate the entire width of the back of your van to this type, it may be more space-efficient. It eliminates the need for a prominent wooden fixture to take up space in your truck’s centre.
This design is fantastic since it allows you to cook outside and has lots of open space. Contrary to the side model, you don’t have the choice to stay inside and cook if the weather is terrible.
Bare Bones Van Kitchen
A bare-bones kitchen does precisely what it says on the tin: it has everything you could need to prepare food. It has a small surface area, portable burners, and a water jug. It is typically used to reheat food, make tea, and prepare quick, simple meals.
Chef’s Van Kitchen
As the name indicates, a chef’s van kitchen is equipped for a professional chef. Everything you need to cook a nice dinner includes a stovetop, an oven, and a tonne of counter space. Many have refrigerators and sinks that are entirely functional as well.
Portable Outdoor Campervan Kitchen
A compact, folding table that fits conveniently inside your vehicle is part of a portable kitchen for vans. You only need to move it outdoors and set it up when you’re ready to cook. The top may be used as a burner for cooking, while you can use the sides for preparation.
Cascade Campervan Kitchen Pod
The elegant, standalone kitchen pod uses recycled wood and concrete blocks. This machine has excellent functionality and is a perfect size. It is large and solid enough to provide cooking and cleaning support yet tiny enough to fit conveniently into your vehicle.
Single Wall Kitchen
Probably the most popular kitchen layout is this one. Planning your campervan kitchen to follow the wall’s length provides you with many designs and variation choices. Your sink and cooktop will most likely be built-in; depending on space, you can install your fridge on that side or elsewhere in the van.
L-Shaped Campervan Kitchen
This designer used the front of their vehicle to create an L-shaped countertop in the kitchen area. The mini-fridge, two-burner gas cooktop, and sink are all included in this kitchen. You may fill the lower cabinets and shelves and the higher cabinets with kitchen essentials by using creative storage options. Under the countertop, out of sight, are all the gas, electricity, and water lines.
Outwards-Facing Kitchen
Consider a kitchen layout with a small, condensed cooking area at the side door to face outwards. It is a great space saver and a cost-effective choice for a compact kitchen.
Galley Style Van Conversion Kitchen
These features are ideal for individuals who spend a lot of time in the kitchen and want to do it in the utmost comfort and those who drive larger vehicles and value maximum storage space.
Ultra Minimalist Campervan Kitchen
Many people believe you should only spend time, space, and money on what you need. Food may be prepared and cooked in this small, straightforward campervan kitchen while taking up very little room.
Luxurious Outdoor Campervan Kitchen
It is your vacation, so you should make the most of it in any way you want to, even if that means watching television as you eat supper. You have access to a bar and grill if you have one of the more abundant outdoor campervan kitchen types, a sink with running water, a bar refrigerator, a television station, and even a partial bathroom.
Conclusion
One of the essential aspects of living in the van is being equipped with a dependable vehicle with a kitchen. You cannot top the convenience of having a fully functional campervan kitchen on the road with you at all times, whether it is a kitchen you have constructed using a do-it-yourself kit or one you have purchased and already assembled.
