ABOUT US
We’re Nic and Peter, just a pair of Aussies with a dream to build a home in a van.
Ever since we met over a decade ago, we wanted to get a van together. Pretty soon we had road tested a bunch of vans, fallen in love with vanlife, and handed over our life savings for our dream van, and named her Attie.
Having a van is freedom on wheels! You can go anywhere and you have everything you need all in one place. We’ve travelled to some of the most incredible places with just a mattress on the floor and a dog in tow.
But on Day 1 of the van build, we did not have the perfect plan. Like... how do you become a designer, engineer, plumber, electrician, carpenter, and builder all at the same time?
that’s why we created
heaps good vans
Our hope is that this little corner of the internet becomes a place to share ideas and learn heaps of good stuff. Maybe it will save someone an extra trip to the hardware store!
We’d love to hear if you find any useful info, have a laugh with (or at) us, or leave feeling inspired for your own van build.
MEET ATTIE
This is Attie, the van that started it all.
Attie is a Renault Master midwheel base (L2H2). Not too big, not too small, our van fits in most carparks and we’ve filled every square inch with everything we could ever want or need — like an extra long bed (for 2-meter Peter) and a Smeg kettle (for Nic’s morning chai).
The name “Attie” comes from the planning sessions we used to have for the van build, where we’d say “What’s the Plan of Attack?”. This was nicknamed to the “Van” of Attack, which somehow turned into Attie.
Attie may not be a conventional house, but our van really feels like a home on wheels.
Here are some of our favourite moments from life with a van.
Like one of the first times we ever hired a van and drove up the east coast of Australia (such an epic road trip — we think everyone should do this one day!) and tried finding all the ocean pools to swim in and bakeries to visit.
Or when we were in Finland and accidently hired a HUGE van (it had two double beds and a full bathroom!), and lived off packet meals, saunas, and frisbee golf.
There have been a lot of firsts for our van Attie, like the first car wash (how do you even clean the roof?), the first trip away (a glorious little weekender in Victoria), and the first time we took our van to the snow (and we were only a little nervous on the winding roads).
And then there was that time when we drove all the way to WA and back in two weeks (~3500km eek!), and couldn’t believe our eyes when we discovered all the sand dunes along the way.
Each one of our foster dogs has been keen to lend a helping paw in the build. Like Zaesar who loved a nap in the van, Toffee who wanted to be right next to us the whole time, and Arlo who was a little menace who kept running away with our tools. Then we inherited our little pup Abi, our fluffy sheltie who is now our permanent onsite project manager.
The van build has challenged us in so many ways (like when we had to rebuild our bed for the third time or that time our number plates got stolen in the middle of the night), but our community has really gotten us through!
AND we ALWAYS keep coming back for more…
We’re so glad you’re here!
We hope you enjoy this little corner of the internet.
Feel free to ask questions, share your ideas, or show us what you’re building!