How to Build Van Cabinets

Updated on January 2nd, 2021

We were so excited to start the building the van cabinets! It was the first time we were really going to see something that made it look like a home. It was a lot of work, and was our most detailed project yet, but the results are awesome.

We highly recommend watching our Van Cabinet Video and reading this article as there are a lot of pieces to this particular part of building a camper van.

Disclaimer:  In the interest of transparency, please be aware that this post contains affiliate links and any purchases made through such links may result in a small commission for us at no cost to you.   We appreciate you shopping from these links!

Tools Needed:

• Circular or Table Saw (optional)
• Jig Saw
• Drill
• Impact driver (optional)
• Utility Knife
• Measuring Tape
• Straight Edge
• Square
• Scribing Tool–We made ours out of cardboard

Materials Needed:

• (2) 4×8 sheets ¾ Poplar Plywood
• Cardboard
• (2)  Premium 2x4s
• Ikea Karlby Countertop
• Ikea Fyndig Sink
• 3” Construction Screws
• 2” Construction Screws
• 2-½” Trim Head Screws
• #12 X ¾” Sheet Metal Screws
• (10) 2” Angle Brackets
• (2) Metal Straps
• (7) Frameless Hinges
• (10) Roller Latches

Before You Start

You’ll want to check out our post/video on framing.  This step needs to come before the rest or you will not have anything to mount your cabinet walls to!

Planning

We highly recommend having a well thought out plan before you start. There are projects that you could potentially just wing but building the van cabinets is not one of them.  For this project, we used Sketchup a free online CAD software, but since then we have started using Fusion360 which we highly recommend.  Both are free for hobbyists. We were able to make a cut list from the CAD software, including how to cut the plywood. This cut down drastically on the amount of material needed.

If using CAD is not in the cards for you, there is a lower-tech version of CAD, Cardboard Aided Design.  You can thank Andy for that lame engineering joke. Creating cardboard templates is an easy solution. You can see in our video that we also used cardboard templates in addition to the CAD drawings.

Cut Plywood

You’ll start off by cutting the plywood into the appropriate height and depth.  This will give you rectangles that you’ll scribe into place later. Take time to plan so you can cut down on waste.

We chose ¾” poplar plywood because it is good, inexpensive plywood for painting.  It is not good for staining.  If you plan to stain your van cabinets we would recommend you use oak or birch.  

Create Cardboard Template

Take a large piece of cardboard that is the same size as your largest plywood rectangle.  Trim away the cardboard using a utility knife or scissors until it fits flush to the wall of the van.  You can guess and check or use the scribing method we have detailed in several other videos (Subfloor 0:56), but you will want to make sure you have a perfect fit.

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You will use this same template several times as the angles of the walls is very similar, just cutting it down for the other parts.  You’ll see in our video we did have to add a sliver back to the template because our second piece was slightly larger than our first.  You will want to make sure you start with your largest piece.

It is also helpful to tape a piece of wood or a yard stick to the template to help stand it up when test fitting.

Cut the Cabinet Frame

Once you have a perfect template, you will trace the cardboard template onto the corresponding plywood piece.  Use your jigsaw to cut off the extra from the outside. Test fit and trim as needed.

Choose your next largest panel and repeat the cardboard template and cutting steps.  You should be able to just trim down your cardboard template rather than having to make a whole new one, but if you run into issues check out our video (2:19) for some troubleshooting ideas.

Floor and Ceiling Support

We cut a 2×4 to the length of the cabinet area and screwed it onto the floor, lining it up to the front of the cabinets will be.  In our case it was 20 inches from the wall. This is one of those times that you want to thru-bolt all the way through the van floor.  The heavier duty your van cabinets the less likely they will break apart and go flying in an accident. We had to cut groves in all of the pieces to accommodate for the floor 2×4.

Thanks to our friend Andy, we used metal straps to hold the taller cabinet to the ceiling.  Check out 3:37 in the video for how this works. The metal is screwed directly into the ceiling and helps support the whole structure.

Installing the Cabinet Walls

We waited until we had everything cut before we started installing, that way we could see it all in place and make any last minute adjustments if needed.  We used 2” angle brackets to mount the cabinet walls to the 2×4 on the floor and the 2×4 on the van wall.

Start at the driver’s end and working backwards.  Make sure you move the driver’s seat back, and put as much recline in it as you would want before screwing in the first panel.  It would be really annoying to have to drive in a position dictated by your cabinets!

We cut a 2×4 to place in between each cabinet wall at the top to help hold everything in place and to give somewhere for the countertop to sit.  These were screwed into place through the plywood and into the end of the 2×4. This is where we used the long screws.

Countertop

You could use a lot of different options for countertops but we really haven’t found a cheaper option than IKEA.  We originally planned to use butcher block but after thinking long and hard about the wear and tear that temperature fluctuations would have on butcher block we went with a veneer version instead.

We cut the countertop to the depth and length needed.  Unlike in a kitchen, you probably are not going to want 28” counter depth, as that will be most of your van!  We went with a 20” depth and really like the look and feel of it! You may need to trim a little at the back of the counter because the van walls are not straight.

Sink Installation

Depending on the sink you get, it may come with a template or just instructions for how to install it.  Ours required that we trace the sink while upside down and then make the hole 12mm smaller on all sides.  Once we cut the sink hole in the countertop we realized that we needed to trim a little of the upper 2×4 stud to get it to fit.  Since the cabinets are so completely overbuilt, trimming such a small amount does not compromise its structural integrity. We did this trimming with a jigsaw.

We also have a post and video about how to install van plumbing!

Cabinet Doors

We went with a frameless design for the van cabinets which meant we needed frameless hinges.  These hinges mount on the cabinet side and not a cabinet face. The ones we used are ⅜” overlap.  This meant we measured the cabinet opening and then added ⅜” to either side to get our door dimensions.  While we had these measurements as part of the CAD drawing and cut list, we double checked our measurements after installing the cabinet walls just to make sure everything would line up.

You’ll want to set your doors at the correct height and then using a straight edge mark a line across both the cabinet door and the cabinet wall so you know where the hinge will line up.  Use the template provided by the hinge manufacturer to drill the holes and the counterbore.

Once you have the hinges installed, you can use the adjustment screws to square up the doors and even up your gaps.

Install Door Latches

To keep the doors from opening and shutting while driving around corners you are going to want to have some sort of latch to keep them shut.  We’ve seen people use magnets, baby locks, bungee cords, and a variety of other methods to do this. We decided to use roller catches because they are cheap and simple.  The “female” part mounts to the cabinet, and the “male” part mounts to the door.

Active Time–12 Hours

Total Time–12 Hours

Cabinets were the most time consuming and detailed project of the van build.  If we can be of assistance with your cabinet build please reach out! We’d love to help!

Previous Step: Van Wall Paneling

Next Step: Van Flooring

For more posts related to the van build check out our Van Build Page.